Homeopathy is safe and effective, but did you know you might also experience some unexpected side effects?

Homeopathy is a long-standing system of medicine discovered and developed by Samuel Hahnemann in the late 1700’s. The medicine came at a time when the dominant doctors (the only doctors) of the day were blood letting and poisoning their patients with heavy metals. Medicine was given on a purely speculative and authority-based premise. When Dr. Hahnemann came on the scene with this high dilutions of common substances such as plant matter, and brought full healing to people suffering with Scarlet Fever he would change the course of medicine for a time. And forever establish an art of healing which does no harm. His medicine was based on research and scientific observation, and it proved to be beneficial to approach medicine this way.

You may have never heard of Homeopathy, or perhaps you have heard the word, but do not have a concept of what it means. Many people think it is a blanket term for “natural medicine” but this is not so. As mentioned above, homeopathy is a system of medicine using high dilutions of substances such as plants, animals, minerals and even nosodes, which, in their crude state would cause symptoms of illness in a healthy person. By diluting the substance as well as succussing (shaking and banging) it, we unlock the true power of the thing to spur the body on to healing. When we see the same symptoms in a sick person, (that we caused in a healthy person) we know that the remedy prepared from the original substance which caused matching symptoms, can bring healing. Though it sounds a bit crazy at first, it has been proven over and again to work, not only in clinical trials, but also by many, many families over generations. You can learn more about that here: https://www.hri-research.org

So, now living in our time of modern medicine, surely we are more advanced than poisoning patients with heavy metals, or bleeding them, right? (insert eye roll) Anyone who has ever heard an ad for the latest miracle prescription knows that the side effects listed more often than not, sound worse than the original disease. Nothing has really changed in theory of dominant medicine over the years. Hahnemann warned of this 200 years ago! Dominant medicine trades healing for treatment of symptoms and thus robs people of true health and vitality!

“So what about the unexpected side effects of homeopathic medicine?”

Homeopathy boasts safe, natural, and effective medicine which brings a body back in balance and allows true healing to occur. So what about the unexpected side effects of homeopathic medicine? Well, first of all, we must understand that there are two basic ways homeopathy is utilized. Homeopathy can be used for acute care, such as a flu, or a broken bone, and it can be used for chronic care, such as eczema, or anxiety.

When we use homeopathy for an acute situation, we can expect one of three things to occur. First, a dose is given to the patient and they begin to experience relief very shortly. Second, a dose if given and nothing at all happens.

And Thirdly, a dose is given and the patient experiences a slight aggravation of their existing symptoms followed by relief and healing. And Bonus!- Your body is now stronger and better educated on disease and how to heal if it succumbs to an illness again. Now, one could argue that having a slight aggravation for a short time before getting well is a side effect, but there is a reason it is called an aggravation, and not a side effect.

Side effects are unrelated iatrogenic problems that are cause by a “medicine” which is given to essentially suppress the symptoms of a mother disease or illness. An aggravation from a homeopathic remedy comes as a result of the body working though a disease in a more efficient and rapid timeline.

Now, the second way homeopathy is used, is in chronic care, and this is where we really see the unexpected side effects I roped you in to reading about with my clever heading. When we are treating a person with a chronic ailment, we are not treating a diagnosis, we are treating the patient. Because homeopathy seeks to bring healing, it functions on the principle that the whole person is important to understanding how to facilitate healing. We need to gather not only all the physical symptoms associated with the imbalance they are experiencing, but also the mental, and emotional state which really help us differentiate between one patient with eczema and the next, for example. Once we have gathered all the clues the body has given us as it tells its story of imbalance and disease we find the remedy which matches all the clues. Homeopaths call this the simillimum.

“Once we have gathered all the clues the body has given us as it tells it’s story of imbalance and disease we find the remedy which matches all the clues. Homeopaths call this the simillimum.”

A Case of unexpected side effects~

Julie, an attractive, animated and winsome. Comes into my office for help with chronic pain. Throughout the course of her appointment I discover she not only suffers from chronic pain, headaches, irritability and unpredictable periods, but has also been repeatedly neglected in her relationship, has a deep desire to serve and help people. I know a lot of what I need to know to choose a remedy which matches her. Although an appointment is a full 2 hours of what most describe as what “feels like a counseling session”, I failed to procure some interesting physical symptoms, and I wasn’t made aware of them until Julie called me to tell me that they “mysteriously” no longer existed.

“The day a patient calls with good news is like Christmas morning. It is like unwrapping a gift and not knowing what you will discover.”

I never really know what to expect when I send a patient home with a remedy. I do expect it to help, but I’m not always prepared for how, how quickly, or what unexpected side effects might also occur. The day a patient calls with good news is like Christmas morning. It is like unwrapping a gift and not knowing what you will discover. When Julie called and told me that her chronic pain was much better OVERNIGHT after 10 years of suffering, that was great news. But when she also shared her unexpected side effect, a few days later, it was somehow even more dazzling. “I can see better” she said. “I always feel like I am straining my eyes so hard, and that I can’t see things clearly around whatever is in my immediate focus. When I drive I feel like things are fuzzy, even though I can see them, but not blurry, just “off”. But suddenly everything is crystal clear and bright! I can’t believe it! Could it be the remedy!?”

“I can’t believe it! Could it be the remedy!?”

The very simple answer is “Yes”. See, much like law enforcement withholds information on a murder case which only the perpetrator would know, so that if/when they get a confession, they can authenticate it, I withhold the name of the remedy and details about all the “symptoms” associated with it. So when Julie shared this seemingly unrelated bit of information and it was so spot-on with the known symptoms of the remedy I gave her, I knew it HAD to be the remedy that brought this unexpected side effect. We had not discussed her eyesight at all. She does not wear glasses. I would have no way of knowing that her eye sight could be improved upon…..but the remedy “knew”. Because not only did that symptom match her picture, but all her symptoms and all of HER fit the picture, you never know what sort of changes one might see.

So homeopathic care can and does bring unexpected effects, but not the kind you want to avoid. Not the kind that make it necessary to get your liver checked once a month, no the kind that make you choose between your plaque psoriasis and possible internal hemorrhage! They are pleasant surprises, evidence of a deeper healing than what you could achieve with any other dominant medicine system.

So, if you have been considering homeopathy for a chronic complaint, I hope this inspires you to follow through and do it. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.