Homeopathic Hints

Arthritis - Hayfever - Fevers - Trauma

ARTHRITIS

Even though many people have been diagonosed with Arthritis each person will feel this condition in a different way. It is this difference that the homeopath is looking for when choosing the appropriate remedy.

The following remedies give an idea of the various manifestations of Arthritis

ACONITE Sudden onset of inflammation of joints bought about by getting wet or cold.

APIS Acute arthrits where affected parts are swollen, red or shining whiteness. Very tender to touch. Better for cold water.

BELLADONNA Localises redness and swelling of joints. Burning, lancinating pains worse at night.

BENZOIC ACID Urine clear or offensive odour. Tearing in joints. Gout from left to right toe.

BRYONIA Joint swollen, tense. Not very red. Worse on motion or touch. Nausea on raising head. Tongue white down the centre. Very angry mood.

KALI CARB Tearing pains in fingers and toes. Migraine with nausea. Urine is red, smarting with red sediment.

LEDUM Worse motion. At midnight joints feel very hot. The joints can also feel hot inside but cold to touch. Affects left shoulder and right hip joint. Soles of feet very sensitive.

RHODEDRENDON Arthritic nodules Worse stormy weather and rest. Acute pains of woollen jointe wandering pain. Worse at night or when at rest.

SULPHUR Habitual gout of heavy drinkers. Dull aching pain in joints…Shooting pains and then numbness.

These remedies can be tried in the 6 potency over a period of two weeks to see if they are effective.

Although there is no conclusive research on what is the best diet for sufferers of Arthritis, I have found that an alkaline balanced diet suits most people. It is thought that an over acid system leads to build up of toxins in the joints and the inflammation is the bodys’ way of trying to re-stabilise and improve the internal environment

This diet is recommended for one month after which other foods can be introduced. Foods to avoid are Red meats, wheat products, dairy products, citrus fruit, salt pepper and vinegar, roasted nuts and all caffeine and Alcohol Foods allowed are Fish, Chicken, Pulses, Oat, Brown rice, all vegetables except tomatoes and aubergines. Potatoes in moderation. Eggs and Olive oil. After one month slowly introduce other food items. Foods to avoid altogether are white bread, processed food, snacks like crisps and general junk food. Alcohol in moderation.

Some people will find that they can tolerate other foods better than others over time it should be possible to adapt to a diet that suits the individual.

HAYFEVER

Homeopathic Remedies for Hay fever:

To discover which remedy is most suitable look at the symptom picture of each remedy. Sometimes symptoms may appear in one remedy and other symptoms in another remedy. First choose the remedy with the most symptoms and move on to the next remedy if the first remedy chosen isn’t effective. In an acute situation it is not unusual to switch remedies according to the change in the symptoms. Remedies can be repeated every 15 minutes for an hour if the hay fever attack is severe. Otherwise, take when needed.

SABADILLA: Sneezing constantly. Eyes have profuse lachrymation,. Symptoms aggravated in the open air andbright lights. Sore throat moving from left to right. Desires hot drinks and are better for them. Sensation of lump in the throat and feels the constant need to swallow.

ALIUM CEPA: Dull headache. Worse from being inside. Symptoms are better from being in the open air. Profuse lachrymation. Constant rubbing of the eyes that feel as if they are burning. Constant discharge from nose that burns the nose and top lip.

EUPHRASIA: Thick, burning discharge from eyes. Eyes are very red and swollen. Bland, constant discharge from thenose. Mucous in the throat. Worse in the evening. Worse inside.

NUXVOMICA: Eyes burning. Eyes very sensitive to light. Itching at the back of the throat, in the ears and down the Eustachian tubes. General irritability.

GELSEMIUM: Non-stop sneezing. Eyes swollen, heavy and watery. Feels listless and dizzy.

If symptoms persist seek advice from an experienced homeopathic practitioner. It is always best to treat hay fever before the season starts. The homeopath will offer constitutional treatment, which will help towards eliminating the symptoms for the following season.

FEVERS

Hippocrates is quoted as saying, “Give me a fever and I can cure the child.”

Fevers always create great anxiety in parents of babies and children. Often it is interpreted as the illness itself rather than seeing the fever as the bodys positive response to a dis-ease.

The homeopath sees the fever an important part of the healing process. If suppressed by Calpol, Aspirin or any other antipyretic the body processes implicated in the fighting of the infection are stopped and there will be no way of knowing the natural course or extent of the illness.

The first thing is to see that the child is cool if the fever is making them uncomfortable. Tepid sponging or even a tepid bath is a useful action. Make sure the child has plenty of liquid in the form of water, preferably warm. Normally the appetite wanes, this is normal, as the body doesn’t want to waste time in digesting food when it is fighting an infection. Even when the crisis passes make sure the dietary intake is light and easy to digest i.e. vegetable soups, stewed fruits etc. for a couple of days.

One of the major fears with all parents is Meningitis this site will help in showing what to look for www.medinfo.co.uk

Even if Meningitis is suspected remedies can always be administered while on the way to the hospital as many of the fever remedies cover the symptoms of this illness. Of course this will always be under the advice of an experienced homeopath.

Here is a list of four remedies that can be used for fevers, as always in homeopathy they each have particular characteristics or key notes that must be identified other wise the remedies will not be effective.

ACONITE : Fever comes on suddenly. Chill or coldness alternating with heat. Dry, burning, heat. Drenching sweat, patient wants to uncover. Sweats on uncovered parts. Eyes, nose, mouth, throat feel hot and dry. Face alternates between red and pale. Great anxiety about own death. Very restless. Anxiety. Intense, burning thirst.

BELLADONNA: Hot, dry burning heat. Radiating heat. Face bright red. Convulsions. Congestion. Eyes bloodshot. Delirium. Spasms. Hates artificial light. Pains in the head. Rolling head from side to side with pain. Quarrelsome, shouts out. Hot head and cold limbs. Jerks in sleep.

APIS: Burning heat but chilled when moved. No thirst. Heatof one part and coldness in another part. Screams during sleep. Swelling, puffiness of face and limbs.

GELSEMIUM: Heat with drowsiness. Pain in the back of the head. Dilated pupils. Band like headache. Heavy, droopy eyelids. Face looks heavy and dusky red. Whole body feels heavy and achy. Thirstless. Weak.

There are many more remedies that can be used in fevers. The above remedies are some of the more commonly used.

It is always best to get advice from a professional homeopath or a GP if there are any concerns about the patient’s health.

Last Christmas, I had an accident at the ice rink which caused whiplash and a swollen wrist. After the nurse at the ice rink checked my pulse and blood pressure, she felt my wrist to see if there were any discernible breaks. Even though it was swollen I had mobility in all my fingers and moderate movement in my wrist. The nurse put Arnica Cream and a tubi grip on my wrist and sent me on my way saying if the wrist continues to swell to get it x-rayed.

At home I tooke ARNICA, RHUS TOX and RUTA alternatively and frequently over a period of two hours before I went to bed. In the morning my wrist felt much better but I continued to take RHUS TOX as it is a specific for swelling on the wrist, interspersed with ARNICA. As the day wore on my head and neck began to hurt and by the evening my head felt as if it had shards of needles coming through my skull. I took HYPERICUM for whiplash and NATRUM SULPH which is a remedy for blows to the head. That night I couldn’t sleep due to the pain so the next morning my husband telephoned the cranial osteopath for an emergency appointment.

The Osteopath immediately felt the whiplash and gave me post trauma treatment which was very gentle moving of the tissues in the area affected and in my diaphragm which had gone into a spasm. I immediately felt so much better. I went home to sleep and woke without any pains in my head and only a very slight aching in my neck. The swelling in my wrist had gone down considerably and I had almost full mobility. A week later I had made full recovery.

This incident shows that with expert homeopathic advice and osteopathic treatment minor injuries can be treated swiftly and with the minimum of discomfort and reliance on pain killers.

However in all accidents if conditions persist or worsen then the hospital /GP should be informed immediately. In all situations expert advice should be sort.

If you would like to know more about homeopathic treatment please e-mail me at shauna@kingstonhomeopathy.co.uk