March 9, 2015

How Homeopathic Individualization Works

As a regular reader of this blog, or a regular user of Homeopathic remedies, you must be familiar by now with the word 'individualization' when used in the homeopathic context.

Briefly, 'individualization' in homeopathy means that there is no one-for-all remedy. As an example, two people with a headache may not need the same remedy to relieve them. One might need Belladonna and another might need Natrum muriaticum. This is because of each person's individual traits and how they present with the symptoms of their headache.

Homeopathy considers the uniqueness of each person, and treats them based on their individuality as opposed to an assembly-line style of treatment where everyone gets the same drug.

I recently had the opportunity to help a 4-year-old child with symptoms of flu. His mother called me saying he had had a mild fever and cough with a little expectoration since 3 days. She had been using OTC ibuprofen and an allopathic cough syrup which relieved for 2 hours and then the symptoms would be back again. He refused to eat anything and slept fitfully. He had become weak and dull.

When I asked her to tell me how he was feeling, she said that he usually likes to be cuddled and hugged but with this fever he did not like anyone touching him even to check the fever. She also added that he kept saying that he was fine even though his skin was hot with a fever of 102. I suggested that she give him Arnica 200. 

That evening, she called me back saying that her son's fever broke within 20 minutes of giving the first dose of Arnica 200. He started to sweat, then sat up and asked for something to eat. He was able to keep the food down and fell into a deep sleep after the meal. She repeated the dose after he awoke, and he continued to improve and recovered well within the next 2 days without the need for further dosage, and was able to go back to school on the 3rd day.

The uniqueness in this case is the use of Arnica 200. Usually, Belladonna or Aconite are the first remedies everyone reaches for in the case of fever. But Arnica was chosen because of the way the boy responded to being touched. Belladonna or Aconite or any other remedy may not have helped the boy to recover completely within 2 days as he did with Arnica 200.

A professional homeopath is trained to observe these subtleties and suggest the correct remedy in the correct potency and dosage for that individual person. It can get overwhelming for someone who does not have enough training to try to find the correct remedy from a book or by other means. So do not hesitate to call your homeopath the next time you need their help.

I have already written about how homeopathy faces the myth that remedies act slowly and that they don't act well for acute conditions. You can read more by clicking the highlighted text. 

This case once again proves that homeopathy does wonders for acute conditions, while enhancing the individual's own immunity at the same time.