Homeopathy has been in use worldwide for over 200 years. It’s a system of healthcare that comes from nature and works with nature. A homeopath, when treating a person, understands that everything is connected and they treat the whole person, not the disease nor the diagnosis that a person has been given.
For example, although many people may get the flu every year, each person affected will respond in a different way because no two people are exactly the same.
An allopathic doctor would most likely give each person the exact same medicine because she is treating “the flu.” A homeopath would most likely give each person a different medicine because she is treating the person and not the disease.
The foundation of homeopathy is based on the Law of Similars and Individualization of Treatment.
Law of Similars:
The name “homeopathy”, coined by its founder, Samuel Hahnemann, a German physician, is derived from the Greek words for ‘similar suffering’ referring to the ‘like cures like’ principle of healing or Law of Similars. Hahnemann discovered that a substance that triggers a certain disease can also be used to treat that disease. Homeopathic remedies use tiny amounts of substances that are diluted and shaken to increase their potency. Hahnemann observed that similar medicine acts as a stimulus to what he called, the “natural vital response” present in each person. The homeopathic remedy gives that “vital response” the information it needs to complete its healing work.
Hahnemann also postulated that only ‘the minimum dose’ should be used to treat the patient. That’s based on the understanding that the stimulus of the medicine works from within the life force or vitality of the person and isn’t imposed from the outside of the person like a drug. Only enough of a homeopathic remedy is given to initiate the healing process, which then continues, driven by its own internal healing mission. Homeopathic medicines given in minimum doses, while they do stimulate the body’s natural healing, don’t produce the drastic side effects that are so often what limits conventional medications.
Individualization of Treatment
Since homeopathic remedies are selected based on many factors, including specific symptoms and personal level of health, rather than the main complaint a person presents with or a medical diagnosis, homeopaths tailor recommendations to each patient. Homeopathic treatment can only be decided on after specific and thorough case analysis. A skilled practitioner takes a lot of time with each person. She may ask questions that dig deep into many facets of the person: what they like to eat, how well they sleep, what they do for work, when they’re sick- what makes them feel better and what makes them feel worse.
Homeopathy is a popular form of complementary medicine:
- Homeopathic treatment works with your body’s own healing powers to bring about health and well being.
- You are treated as an individual, not as a collection of diseases and diagnoses.
- Homeopathy treats all your symptoms at all levels of your being – spiritual, emotional, mental and physical and finds the ‘like cures like’ match for them.
- Homeopathically prepared remedies, providing the minimum dose, are gentle, safe and powerful.