Homeopathy is a gentle and natural healing system that works with the body to relieve symptoms, restore vitality, and improve overall health. It is a federally recognized form of medicine regulated by the FDA.
Naturopathic Medicine is individualized and personalized.
The Naturopathic Medical Doctor is trained to spend time actively listening to the patient in order to treat the individual with the imbalance as opposed to just suppressing or treating the symptom.
In “allopathic medicine” (which literally means “other than disease” and is the conventional medical model in the US), the symptom is treated usually with a substance that opposes the symptom.
But, at the core, you are not your symptom (s). And, as a result, with solely this method of treatment, you may not get to the root of the imbalance. Although the symptom may be suppressed, you may not get as well as you can be, and you may have other broad reaching effects of the treatment that may not move you in the direction of health. And, the overarching goal in your medical care should be to create wellness and vitality.
As a Naturopathic Medical Doctor, one modality that I have in my “toolbox” is Homeopathy, a distinct medical art and science in its own right.
Homeopathy is a gentle and natural healing system that works with the body to relieve symptoms, restore vitality, and improve overall health. It is a federally recognized form of medicine regulated by the FDA.
In Homeopathy, minute doses of natural medicines stimulate the body’s inborn healing capacity. The homeopath’s goal is to perceive the patient’s individual physical, mental and emotional “totality'' and prescribe to that person. Homeopathy comes from the two Greek words “homois” which means similar and “pathos” which means suffering. In homeopathy, a substance is prescribed after a detailed intake between the patient and the doctor which identifies this totality of symptoms.
Technically, this substance would create the same symptoms in a healthy person if given at high enough dosage.
Homeopathy's central philosophy is the law of similars, "Like Cures Like." Dr. Samuel Hahnemann was the first to observe that a substance which causes an illness or a symptom can, in very small doses, cure the same problem by stimulating the organism to realign itself. As the medicine is prepared it is “diluted and agitated”, to potentize it.
Don’t stop reading yet if you are skeptical, because we are now at the crossroads of understanding nanoparticles from quantum physics and a biological phenomenon, called hormesis, that guides us in the science of how Homeopathy works scientifically. We are more than a linear biochemical soup, and we know this as we observe that the same treatment works differently in different people, and exposed to the exact same pathogen some will get gravely ill and others will not be affected. Our body actually heals with the process of experiencing small stressors referred to as hormesis.
Hormesis is a biological phenomenon whereby a beneficial effect (improved health, stress tolerance, growth or longevity) results from exposure to low doses of an agent that is otherwise toxic or lethal when given at higher doses.
- Donald Yance
So in a higher dose an agent can be toxic, while in a lower dose it can be curative. In the case of homeopathy, the substance is diluted and agitated (potentized) until the remaining molecules of the original substance are below Avogardo’ s number (a proportionality factor that relates the number of constituent particles in a sample with the amount of substance in that sample). Due to the preparation process, nanoparticles do remain of the substance. These nanoparticles can initiate hormetic low dose responses that are beneficial to the person.
To quote from Dr. Iris Bell MD:
Homeopathic remedies are remedy source nanoparticles… that act as environmental stressors to mobilize hormesis and time-dependent sensitization via non-pharmacological effects on specific biological adaptive mechanisms… The remedy nanoparticles, as a low level stressor, then elicit reversal of direction in the pre-established, disease-related maladaptive patterns. The net outcome is improved resilience to stress, with restoration of normal homeostatic function, resolution of disease, and an emergent sense of global well-being.
Homeopathic medicines are safe and have been found to be non-allergenic, non-toxic, and free of side effects. They are prepared in homeopathic pharmacies, under strict guidelines established by the FDA.
How to explore this form of medicine for your own health?
If you believe that a constitutional homeopathic intake is for you, please follow the link below to schedule an appointment. The first appointment will be 90 minutes, during which a complete in-depth interview will be conducted. After the interview, I will do a complete analysis of the interview and contact you with the homeopathic prescription within 3 business days. Most homeopathic remedies are inexpensive and I will provide you with good sources and exact dosages. My recommendations may also include Naturopathic nutritional and lifestyle guidelines. At this time, we will also schedule a follow-up 4 to 6 weeks from the initial appointment for 30 minutes as a check-in to understand the specifics of how you responded to the remedy.
For more information on homeopathy, please check out:
References
Bell IR, Koithan M. A model for homeopathic remedy effects: low dose nanoparticles, allostatic cross-adaptation, and time-dependent sensitization in a complex adaptive system. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2012;12:191. Published 2012 Oct 22. doi:10.1186/1472-6882-12-191
Yance, Donald. Adaptogens in Medical Herbalism: Elite Herbs and Natural for Mastering Stress, Aging and Chronic Disease