Homeopathy

Homeopathy:

WHAT DOES HOMEOPATHY TREAT?

In our practice we sometimes use homeopathy as part of our vaccination protocol to help the body deal with the immunological response to vaccination or post surgically in patients. We also use homeopathy to treat a wide variety of acute and chronic issues including skin allergies, digestive issues, joint and orthopedic pain or injuries, and trauma cases. Homeopathy is also very helpful for emotional and behavior problems or for diseases that have an emotional component associated with them such as anxiety or past emotional trauma. We use homeopathy extensively for Lyme disease in dogs, urinary tract issues including acute blockage in cats and in custom cancer protocols. We find homeopathy to be an excellent support for cancer cases, being inexpensive, easy to administer, and providing in most cases improved quality of life and longer remission times.

An initial homeopathic visit in our practice takes an hour and a half. The discussion includes a review of your pet’s current and past medical history, current and past emotional and physical symptoms, and lifestyle and environmental exposures. A physical exam is done to assess any physical or mental condition. All together this evaluation helps determine what remedies best match your pet’s overall condition.

WHAT IS IT?

Over 200 years ago, Dr. Hahnemann explored the effects of large and small exposures of different substances in people. For instance, if he gave people quinine from Cinchona bark, they developed symptoms as if they had malaria. However, in very small dilutions, it would cure a person infected with malaria. Dr. Hahnemann repeated these observations with thousands of substances and documented the physical and emotional symptoms a substance caused as well as what it cured. Through his research, he developed the medical practice of Homeopathy which is based on the philosophy of similars, or “like cures like”, and has been used effectively and safely as a means of treating illness. Unlike other therapies where drugs or herbs are used in strengths to cause an effect on the body, homeopathy is simply offering a tiny exposure in order to trigger a systemic response that guides and directs the body to correct itself. The advantage of this approach is that with such small dosing there are little to no side effects and the body is allowed to deal with its issues in its own way and in its own time.

WHAT ARE THE REMEDIES?

Very small dilutions of substances including plants, minerals, viruses, bacteria, allergens, etc. are carefully prepared under strict protocols by trained homeopathic pharmacists. They are kept pure and uncontaminated and diluted serially until the desired potency has been achieved. Between each dilution procedure, the solution is “succussed”, or shaken, to agitate and distribute the substance thoroughly before proceeding. This liquid is then dried on the surface of small lactose sugar pellets. Since the actual remedy is a thin layer dried on the surface of the pellets, care is taken to limit handling them directly to prevent the remedy from being removed before the pellet is taken.

HOW ARE THE REMEDIES TAKEN?

Homeopathic remedies are taken by allowing the pellets to sit in the mouth or under the tongue so the remedy dissolves prior to ingestion. Remedies may also be dissolved in water or milk and are held in the mouth before swallowing. With liquid preparations, patients are often directed to “success” or shake the prescription before taking it. Doses are given anywhere from once to multiple times a day depending on the condition and the desired strength of effect the physician is trying to achieve. The more acute or superficial the issue, such as a bee sting or a bruise from a fall, the more often a remedy may be given. In these cases resolution of the symptom can be immediate, requiring no further treatment. For more chronic or deep seated issues, single doses are used initially and then the body is given days or weeks to respond before re-evaluation.