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Practitioner
Profiles
Margaret
Easter
See One Doctor's
Story
Homeopathy
Homeopathy is a word people hear but often don’t really
understand. It is a scientifically based part of Western
medicine which is over 200 years old, and is based
on the law of similars. This law states that a substance which causes certain
symptoms when given in crude doses to a healthy person will, when given
in homeopathic dilution to a sick person, remove those same symptoms.
Unlike conventional medicine, homeopathy does not suppress symptoms but uses the symptoms to target an underlying imbalance.
Which diseases can be treated by homeopathy? Unlike
conventional medical practitioners, the homeopath does
not address named diseases, but rather the combined
symptoms of the person who is sick. All of an ill
person’s symptoms, whether they are physical, mental
or emotional, form a whole representing a state of
imbalance very specific to this individual.
Identifying these symptoms requires both a highly trained and skillful practitioner, and accurate reporting of symptoms by the patient.
An example is a headache on one side, or both; what time does it
occur; exactly what sort of
pain is it, etc. In addition, the practitioner asks in detail about the patient’s
energy, hunger, digestion, sleep, and also about feelings, sensitivities,
and experiences. The practitioner’s goal is to describe through
the unique expression of symptoms the present imbalance of this patient,
and then to select from among the great number of remedies the one most
homeopathic, i.e. most similar, to this patient’s disease.
Remedies used by homeopaths come from natural sources and are prepared in such a way that they are devoid of all chemical toxicity. Usually
the selected remedy will be administered in a single dose.
When exactly the right remedy can be identified on the
first try, the effect may be dramatic. As the state
of imbalance is corrected, the person’s vital force is strengthened
and healing can take place from within. During the follow-up visit, which
generally takes place two to six weeks after the original consultation
for people with chronic disease and earlier in more acute cases, the
practitioner will review changes which have occurred since the remedy was taken. If the patient reacted favorably to the first dose, the
homeopath will choose the ideal moment for the second
dose. If the response was not as hoped, the situation may require more digging
by the practitioner, and/or more precise observation of
symptoms by the patient. In long-standing conditions, the
symptom picture may change over time, indicating the need for a
new remedy.
Once internal balance is restored, patients are better able to maintain good health even through the stresses of life, and usually do not
require continuing treatment.
What is
Homeopathy all About?
There must be a reason the Royal Family chooses to be under the
care of a homeopath. Could it be that homeopathy is safe, gentle, and effective?
When someone takes a homeopathic remedy, the body’s own
healing force is called into action to find and restore wholeness. This applies
equally whether the need is to deal with PMS or to recover from a serious or
long-term illness.
As Chris Bohjalian points out in his bestseller, The
Law of Similars, “like cures like.” This means that a substance which
can cause particular symptoms in a healthy person can, when given in dilute form
to a person with a physical or mental problem, cure those very symptoms. For
example, a bad bee sting will feel much better after taking the homeopathic
remedy apis, which is made from bees! It sounds simple and a brilliant German
physician, Samuel Hahnemann, discovered it 200 years ago. (Yes, that’s where
the Hahnemann Medical College and the Hahnemann Hospital in Philadelphia got
their names.)
Also supporting the efficacy of homeopathy is modern research. In 1997, The
Lancet, a respected British medical journal, undertook a meta-analysis
review of clinical trials of homeopathy which revealed that homeopathic
treatment was more than twice as effective as placebo. -- Margaret
Easter
-For more information or a
consultation, call
Margaret Easter at the
RiverHill Wellness Center: 410.715.0200.
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