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  • Remedies for Barking Coughs

    Remedies for Barking Coughs

    Portrait of middle-aged men. "Real People" series. Man with red face coughing

    There are many different types of cough and you can hear them all during winter – tickly coughs, dry coughs, chesty coughs, croupy coughs – but they all have one thing in common; they cause distress and discomfort to the sufferer (not to mention the listener!) They lead to irritability, sore muscles, and lack of sleep.

    The correct homeopathic remedy, however, can bring rapid relief. It can also resolve the underlying cause of the cough.

    To understand more about coughs this article will explore:

    1. Why we cough
    2. Two types of cough: wet and dry,
    3. Self-help measures and home remedies to safely stop a cough,
    4. Cough medicines and their unwanted side effects,
    5. Homeopathy and coughs – what’s the research?
    6. Treating that cough: information on nineteen homeopathic remedies you can choose from at home to take the bite out of that bark.

    Reasons for Coughs

    Unpleasant though they are, coughs have a purpose. They protect our lungs from unwanted particles, infection, and the build-up of secretions that would otherwise lead to pneumonia. They also act as a warning signal for several serious diseases. Coughs can be:

    • Triggered by allergies or inhaled irritants such as smoke and dust,
    • Associated with asthma, heart failure or oesophageal reflux,
    • A symptom of complaints such as bronchiectasis and cystic fibrosis,
    • A nervous habit during times of anxiety,
    • The result of a post nasal drip irritating the throat,
    • An infection by the whooping cough bacterium
    • A side-effect from blood pressure medication or anti-inflammatories such as aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)

    Most often though, coughs are part and parcel of the common cold.  [REDACTED], the remainder of this article will focus on the common cough, how to soothe it, and how to get rid of it.

    Wet or Dry?

    Dry coughs are unproductive and irritating. They’re usually triggered by an annoying tickle and expel little or no mucus.

    On the other hand, wet coughs are productive. They remove congestion by expelling secretions that collect in your throat or chest.

    Either cough can be triggered by cold air, movement, talking, change of temperature, or laughing. Expectorant may be clear, coloured, stringy, frothy or tacky. Such characteristics are important to note when choosing a homeopathic remedy as different coughs will need different remedies. The reason for this will become obvious later when we look at some of the remedies homeopaths use to treat coughs.

    Treating Your Cough

    There are several options for dealing with a cough. We will start with the simplest and safest, and then work through to those that carry a greater risk. To finish, we will look at research on the homeopathic treatment of coughs and examine nineteen homeopathic remedies that you can use at home.

    Practical Advice

    • Eat healthy food and avoid sugar or sugary foods which suppress the immune system for up to 5 hours after being eaten.[1]
    • Get plenty of rest so your body can recover
    • Maintain hydration and keep your mucus membranes moist with frequent drinks of water or soothing teas.
    • Soothe inflamed airways and loosen mucus with steam inhalations and warm showers.
    • Avoid cigarettes and tobacco smoke which paralyse and eventually destroy the microscopic hairs that line your airways. These fine hairs, called cilia, normally sweep the mucus upwards in waves, away from your lungs.

    Home Remedies

    Most home remedies for coughs are the same as those used for the common cold. To read the common cold tips that also help coughs, visit: ‘The Common Cold – Ways to Send it Packing.’

    A specific tip for coughs involves black pepper. Pepper has an antimicrobial effect but in truth, its ability to soothe coughs probably has more to do with the homeopathic effect of ‘like treats like’; pepper can induce coughing in a healthy person and so will relieve it in someone suffering from a cough. Pepper is best added to raw honey and taken by the spoonful several times a day.

    Good News for Chocoholics

    Chocolate can help a cough! Theobromine, a compound found in the cocoa bean, will suppress coughs just as effectively as many cough medicines but without their side-effects. Milk chocolate contains very little theobromine compared to dark chocolate. To obtain an effective dose you need to eat 50 – 100g of dark chocolate. Enjoy!

    The Allopathic Approach – Conventional Treatment

    Conventional cough medicines usually rely on the allopathic effect [2] for their treatment (an interesting exception to this general rule occurs with two of the cough medicines that will be discussed a little further in the article.) Allopathic treatment uses suppression or palliation to relieve symptoms for short periods of time. The drawback is that in the long run, continual suppression leads to worsening health.

    Depending on whether the cough is wet or dry, conventional medicine will offer a suppressant or an expectorant. Indications and side-effects are listed below.

    Cough Suppressants

    Suppressants such as for pholcodine and dextromethorphan (and their related brand names) are used to suppress the cough reflex of dry coughs when there is no congestion or mucus to expel.

    Dextromethorphan can cause allergic reactions such as: hives, difficulty in breathing, and swelling of the face, lips, tongue, or throat. Urgent help should be sought if any of these occur.

    Other listed side effects include: severe dizziness, anxiety, restless feeling, or nervousness; confusion, hallucinations; and slow, shallow breathing. Some people also experience an upset stomach.

    Pholcodine products can cause: dizziness; drowsiness; excitability; poor coordination; breathing difficulties and gastrointestinal disturbances such as nausea or vomiting – especially if large doses are used.

    Expectorants and mucolytics

    Expectorants such as senega, ammonia, bromhexine, and guaiphenesin, and their related brand names, are used by conventional medicine to break up the mucus so it can be expelled easily.

    Senega and ammonia, interestingly, are homeopathic [3] medicines – something of which most conventional prescribers are unaware. Both substances when tested on the healthy produced symptoms of thick tenacious mucous and troubling coughs – the very symptoms they can treat. The only difference between their homeopathic and conventional use is that homeopaths prescribe them in potentised [4] form to avoid chemical side effects – something unable to be done if prescribed in their conventional form.

    Bromhexine and guaiphenesin are prescribed allopathically. They can produce allergic reactions in the sensitive, as well as the side effects of: nausea; vomiting; headaches; rashes; diarrhoea; drowsiness; stomach pain; vertigo (dizziness); and sweating – especially if taken in large doses. Caution should also be used with these medicines if you already suffer from gastric ulcers, and liver or renal impairment.

    Save the Children!

    When it first became known that children were being admitted to hospital and dying from over-the-counter cold and cough medicines, enquiries revealed that these products were useless for their intended purpose and contained dangerous medicines.

    In 2008, the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) decided that over-the-counter cough and cold medicines should not be given to children younger than 2 years of age. Drug regulating bodies in other countries such as Canada said they should only be given to children 6 years and older.

    Pharmaceutical companies now place warnings about these products on their labels but because they did not have to be recalled, old merchandise is still sitting on the shelves of stores and being sold. Beware.

    Remember, don’t give these medicines to children under 2 years of age. For children 2 years or older, still take care. Instructions issued by the TGA now state:

    1. Do not exceed the recommended dose, frequency of dosing or duration of use.
    2. Only use the medicine measure supplied with the medicine rather than a kitchen spoon so the right amount is given.
    3. Do not give other medicines containing similar ingredients at the same time.

    Homeopathy and Research

    One interesting study [5] with seriously ill patients on respirators in an intensive care unit showed that homeopathy not only effectively reduced their respiratory secretions but also helped them come off their respirators more quickly. The length of time they spent in the unit was also shorter and without respiratory complications.

    In contrast, those in the control group who had not received homeopathic treatment took considerably longer to recover. Some also had to be returned to the respirator after extubation because they were struggling to breath from excessive secretions in their airways – something that was not a problem for the homeopathic group. As excess respiratory secretions are a major trigger for coughs, the homeopathic treatment would also have reduced the incidence of coughs – something that is also substantiated clinically.

    Another study [6] of children with upper respiratory tract infections, including coughs, showed that those who received homeopathic treatment recovered much more quickly than those who were treated conventionally in the control group.

    A third study [7] showed that those children whose colds (and accompanying coughs) were treated with homoeopathy were more likely to feel and do better than those children whose colds had been treated conventionally. The homeopathically treated children had fewer complications, and their parents took significantly less sick-leave than the parents of those children treated with antibiotics.

    Treating Coughs with Homeopathy

    Treating yourself with homoeopathy for simple acute problems is easy as long as you know how to choose the remedy that matches your symptoms. Troublesome coughs that follow a cold are a good way to practice and become familiar with homeopathy. Unless you prefer to, there is no need for you to see a homoeopath first, and all remedies are safe for use with babies through to the elderly when used according to instructions.

    To treat your cough, look through the remedies listed below to see which one matches your symptoms – then just take it. Instructions on how to dose, and how often, can be found here . If there is no improvement by 3-4 doses just reassess your symptoms and choose another remedy.

    Should you find it difficult to identify and sort through your symptoms, ABC Homeopathy has an online remedy finder that will make it easier for you. Alternately, an appointment can be made with a homeopath who will try to get to the bottom of things for you.

    Homeopathic Remedies for the Common Cough

    Many of the following remedies are found in home-use kits.

    Aconite napellus (Acon.)

    The sudden onset of a cough after exposure to a dry cold wind or from getting chilled. There is a suffocative feeling with a constant, short, dry cough and chest. Aconite is for the early stages of croup and croup coughs, and also night-time coughs, accompanied by shortness of breath and agitation. In the case of croup, Aconite may need to be followed by Hepar-sulph as the symptoms develop.

    (Check Availability)

    Antimonium tartaricum (Ant-t.)

    A rattling, choking, chesty cough with negligible expectoration and where the patient has to sit up in order to breathe. The patient sounds like they are drowning in mucus and there are suffocative paroxysms of coughing, with sweat (see Ipecac)

    (Check Availability)

    Arsenicum album (Ars.)

    An asthmatic cough with wheezing and frothy expectoration. There is burning expectoration or sensation, with constricted airways, making breathing difficult. The patient is very chilly, restless, anxious and may be sweaty, with marked exhaustion. The patient feels worse after midnight and is sensitive to cold.

    (Check Availability)

    Belladonna (Bell.)

    A short, dry tickling cough, with sudden onset and worse at night. The cough lubricates the throat a little, but it dries out again and causes sudden violent spasms of coughing. There is tickling, burning or a scraped sensation in the throat. Belladonna symptoms are aggressive and can include high temperatures with a flushed face, staring eyes, swollen glands and red or inflamed membranes.

    (Check Availability)

    Bryonia alba (Bry.)

    A hard dry cough with soreness in the chest, where the patient clutches at their chest to ease the stitching pains caused by coughing. Bryonia symptoms are clearly better for hard pressure and keeping still. All symptoms are accompanied by dryness and are worse for any motion (including eating or drinking). Warm air aggravates and entering a room can trigger a bout of coughing. The patient wants to take a deep breath and sigh, but this is too painful and they are irritable, thirsty and want to be left alone. The cough may be caused by exposure to cold dry winds and builds up slowly over a few days. Always wants to lie on the painful side.

    (Check Availability)

    Calcarea carbonica (Calc.)

    Tickling cough, dry at night and loose in the morning with easy expectoration. Cough aggravated by various activities like eating or playing. Will suit the chubby, sweaty Calc-carb type of patient.

    (Check Availability)

    Drosera (Dros.)

    [REDACTED]. Spasmodic cough ending in retching and even vomiting. Cough from deep in the chest forcing the patient to clutch their abdomen on coughing. A choking cough with bouts following each other so rapidly that it is difficult to breathe. Cough is triggered by tickling in the throat and wakes patient from sleep. Worse lying down, after midnight, after getting warm in bed (see Ip, Ant-t).

    (Check Availability)

    Ferrum phosphoricum (Ferr-p.)

    The early stage of a respiratory infection, or colds which head rapidly for the chest and ear resulting in bronchitis or otitis. A very common remedy in children’s coughs which start with a fever and flushed face, followed by a short painful tickling cough with soreness over the sternum. Blood-streaked sputum or nosebleeds may be reported. Also covers croupy coughs.

    (Check Availability)

    Hepar sulphuricum (Hepar.)

    Croup from cold, dry winds or cold air. Cough is triggered by any part of the body being exposed. Choking spells of coughing. The Hepar patient is very sensitive to cold air, or cold in any form, and is especially irritably, although they are much better for warmth or humid weather. This is an important croup remedy in children.

    (Check Availability)

    Ignatia amara (Ign.)

    Dry, hacking, spasmodic cough, where the more the patient coughs, the more the irritation.  [REDACTED] (see Dros). They are unable to take a full breath and sigh frequently.

    (Check Availability)

    Ipecacuahna (Ip.)

    Suffocative coughs,  [REDACTED], coughs with choking or gagging (compare Antim tart, Drosera). Cough incessant and violent with each breath. Stiff and blue in the face with choking cough. Rattling cough with very little expectoration. Coughs accompanied by nausea or nosebleed. Wheezing coughs that recur annually.

    (Check Availability)

    Kali bichromicum (Kali-bi.)

    A barking, hacking cough with rales of white sticky or ropy mucus, the consistency of egg-white, and hoarseness. A croupy cough with tickling in the throat and accumulation of tough mucus. It may be triggered by undressing.

    (Check Availability)

    Lycopodium clavatum (Lyc.)

    A tickling cough, with shortness of breath and fan-like motion of nostrils at each intake. Tickling cough accompanied a throbbing headache with each bout of coughing.

    (Check Availability)

    Nux vomica (Nux.)

    A dry teasing cough with a sore chest, where colds usually settle. An immobile, feverish patient who is very sensitive to being uncovered. There is a spasmodic cough, with retching, which causes a headache and a bruised sensation around the navel. The patient is oversensitive, irritable and is worse in cold, dry, windy weather.

    (Check Availability)

    Phosphorus (Phos.)

    An exhausting and violent, dry and tickling cough with irritation deep in the throat. The cough may be triggered by laughing, talking or by a change in temperature, e.g. going out or coming in. There is a bursting pain in the head, a tight painful chest and pain may spread to abdomen. The patient may clutch their head, chest or abdomen on coughing. They can’t lie on their left side and are usually anxious, seek reassurance and feel chilly, but want cold drinks.

    (Check Availability)

    Pulsatilla pratensis (Puls.)

    This is a gagging, choking cough that comes and goes. It is dry at night and loose in the morning, worse and night and on lying down, causing the patient to sit up or use extra pillows. The chest feels sore, they can’t lie on their left side and there may be spurts of urine passed with coughing. The cough is triggered by coming into a warm room or by breathing in. This patient needs reassurance or sympathy and a child will be weepy and clingy. Fresh air helps, while a closed room aggravates symptoms.

    (Check Availability)

    Rhus toxicodendron (Rhus-t.)

    A dry teasing cough from tickling in the chest, which is triggered by uncovering the smallest part, even a hand. It is a dry, night cough with a bloody taste, although no blood is seen. The patient must move about as it is worse at rest and from cold, wet weather.

    (Check Availability)

    Sepia (Sep.)

    A violent cough with thick, yellow expectoration, with retching and gagging, that is worse on rising. The expectoration is only at night or only in the morning and the patient is tired and indifferent.

    (Check Availability)

    Sulphur (Sulph.)

    A strong desire for fresh air accompanies this suffocative cough which is worse at night with the rush of blood to head and chest. There is a burning feeling on the face and chest, with red lips and eyelids. The patient feels worse after a bath and has burning feet which are stuck out of the end of the bed.

    (Check Availability)

    Many of the above remedies can be found in home-use kits.

    Notes and References

    [1] Sanchez, A., et al. Role of Sugars in Human Neutrophilic Phagocytosis, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Nov 1973;261:1180_1184. Bernstein, J., al. Depression of Lymphocyte Transformation Following Oral Glucose Ingestion. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.1997;30:613

    [2] Allopathy is the treatment of disease with medicines that produce totally unrelated symptoms to those of the disease when tested on the healthy. This approach can palliate or suppress the health problems but never cures them. The allopathic approach is frequently associated with unpleasant or harmful side-effects. Long term suppression leads to worsening health.

    [3] Homeopathy is the treatment of disease with medicines (remedies) that produce similar symptoms when tested on the healthy. This approach ‘cancels out’ the disease symptoms and stimulates a self-healing response from the person’s own vitality. Homeopathic treatment improves rather than weakens that vitality so that full healing is more likely.To learn more about homeopathy visit Tutorials.

    [4] To better understand how homeopathic remedies are prepared and the potentisation process, read the Potentisation tutorial (and the Three Scales of Potency and Benefits of Potentisation tutorials).

    [5] Frass, M, Dielacher, C, Linkesch, M,  Endler, C, Muchitsch, I, Schuster, E, Kaye, A..  Influence of potassium dichromate on tracheal secretions in critically ill patients, Chest, March, 2005.

    [6] Steinsbekk, A,  Fønnebø, V, Lewith, G, and Bentzen, N. Homeopathic care for the prevention of upper respiratory tract infections in children: A pragmatic, randomised, controlled trial comparing individualised homeopathic care and waiting-list controls. Complementary Therapies in Medicine, Volume 13, Issue 4 , December 2005, Pages 231-238.

    [7] Trichard, M, Chaufferin, Nicoloyannis, N., Pharmacoeconomic Comparison Between Homeopathic and Antibiotic Treatment Strategies in Recurrent Acute Rhinopharyngitis in Children, Homeopathy (2005)94, 3-9.

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  • Research: Homeopathy for Ear Infections

    Research: Homeopathy for Ear Infections

     

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    Have you ever had an ear infection? If so, you’ll know the urgency of treating the pain and inflammation as quickly as possible.

    Fortunately, homeopathy has the answer – even during the dead of night. All you need is a little knowledge of the basic remedies traditionally used by homeopaths for the problem.

    Common earache remedies

    Aconite napellus (Acon.)

    Useful in the early stages of an ear infection, especially following exposure to cold, dry air. Rapid onset of symptoms. Intense symptoms. Person is restless, thirsty, anxious and sometimes frantic. Ear sensitive to touch. Worse at night, especially between 12-2am.

    Remember: Rapid onset; intense symptoms; restlessness; anxiety; thirst; worse after midnight.

    (Check Availability)

    Belladonna (Bell.)

    Often the right ear. Sudden onset of intense pain that may shoot or throb. Bright red ear or ear canal. Glassy eyes or dilated pupils. High fever. Often with headache. May become delirious in sleep, with nightmares. Hot head with cold hands and feet. Prefers the dark. Better for sitting rather than lying. Pain worse with light, noise, cold air, or being bumped.

    Remember: Rapid onset; intense symptoms; redness; often right-sided.

    (Check Availability)

    Calcarea carbonica (Calc.)

    Earache or glue ear that follows colds. Child is usually obstinate, pale and pudgy with a large head that sweats easily, especially during sleep. Anxious on thinking about unpleasant things. Often craves eggs and sweets or is sensitive to milk.

    Remember: Obstinate; timid; pudgy; sweaty head or neck (in sleep).

    (Check Availability)

    Chamomilla (Cham.)

    Unbearable pain. Anger and impatience with the pain. Demand many things but push them away when offered. Can’t be pleased – nothing will satisfy. Cannot be comforted except by being carried or rocked briskly. One cheek red, the other cheek pale. Earache may occur with teething. Worse at night and for warmth.

    Remember: Cannot be pleased; anger and impatience; better when carried briskly.

    (Check Availability)

    Hepar sulphuris (Hep.)

    For chronic ear infections rather than in first stage. Ear is extremely sensitive to touch of any type and cold air. May cover head or lie on affected side to keep ear warm. Pain often sharp like a splinter. Irritability or tantrums. Thick discharge from nose or ear smells like old cheese. Pain worse at night. Remedy may be needed to finish a cure started by Mercurius solubilis.

    Remember: Older infection; irritable; sensitive to cold and touch; ‘old cheese’ odour.

    (Check Availability)

     Kali bichromicum (Kali-bi.)

    Sharp, stitching or stinging pains. Intense itching or tickling inside ear. Thick, yellow and foul smelling discharge, often stringy. Irritable. Sweaty. Feels cold.

    Remember: Itching; stringy or offensive discharges; sweaty; irritable; chilly.

    (Check Availability)

    Mercurius solubilis (Merc.)

    For chronic ear infections rather than the first stage. Often right sided. May be discharge of pus that will be thick, burning, and have an offensive odor. Pus usually green though sometimes yellow. Thirsty. Bad breath. Salivation. Perspiration. Tongue flabby with imprint of teeth on edges. Glands or tonsils may be swollen. Sensitive to extremes of temperature. Pain worse at night.

    Remember: Older infection; bad breath; flabby tongue; salivation; offensive discharges (if present).

    (Check Availability)

    Pulsatilla (Puls.)

    Clingy. Seeks sympathy, company, and reassurance. Ear pain worse at night and in a warm room, better in open air. Worse for warm applications. Little or no thirst. Changeable moods. Thick, yellowish-green, bland discharge from nose if a cold is present or from the ear in advanced stages.

    Remember: Clinging, desires sympathy and comfort, thirstless, worse for warmth.

    (Check Availability)

    Silicea (Sil.)

    Difficulty in hearing that often improves with blowing the nose, yawning, or swallowing. Discharge of blood and pus. Smelly discharge. Dried crusts within the ear canal. Itching. Children bore their finger into the ear. Head sweats during early sleep.

    Remember: Itching; difficulty in hearing; sweaty head in sleep.

    (Check Availability)

    A note of caution on antibiotics

    The pain from ear infection and inflammation often starts in the middle of the night, limiting conventional treatment options – and should you eventually obtain some antibiotics, you might be in for a disappointment. Recent research indicates they are no more effective than simply waiting for the infection to pass.[1]

    Research: A safer and more effective alternative

    Four studies showed that homeopathic remedies relieved earaches and infections, and worked faster than antibiotics. Symptoms improved rapidly, often within hours of the remedy being given and without the introduction of new problems. One of the trials also showed that children whose earaches were treated with homeopathy were less likely to have their infection return.[2] [3] [4][5]

    So what can you do in the middle of the night?

    With a simple range of homeopathic remedies – all found in basic homeopathic home-use kits – a lot of pain and discomfort could be avoided. Parents and carers could learn to safely treat many simple acute problems such as ear infections, even in the middle of the night – and families would get a lot more sleep.

    Some of the common remedies for earaches and ear infections are listed above. A link to instructions on how often to give a homeopathic remedy has been placed at the end of the list.

    If you are unsure …

    If none of these remedies seem to suit you or your child’s symptoms, please see a qualified homeopath for a better-matching remedy, and if there is any indication that the problem is more than just a simple ear infection, please see a healthcare practitioner for further advice.

    Other resources

    1.Learn how often to use homeopathy with acute problems such as an uncomplicated ear infection by reading How Often Should I take a Dose of My Remedy.

    2.Read accounts of children treated at the Homeopathy Plus clinic for their ear (and other) problems.

    References

    1. McCormick, D.P, Chonmaitree, T, Pittman, C, Saeed, K, Friedman, N.R, Uchida, T, Baldwin, C.D. Nonsevere acute otitis media: a clinical trial comparing outcomes of watchful waiting versus immediate antibiotic treatment. Pediatrics June 2005; 115(6):1455.

    2. Frei, H, and Thurneysen, A. Homeopathy in Acute Otitis Media in Children: Treatment Effect or Spontaneous Resolution? British Homeopathic Journal, October, 2001,90:180-182.

    3. Friese, KH, Kruse, S, Moeller, H. Acute Otitis Media in Children: A Comparison of Conventional and Homeopathic Treatment,‖ Biomedical Therapy, 1997,15,4:113-122 (reprinted from Hals-Nasen-Ohren (HNO), August, 1996:462-66.

    4. Jacobs, J, Springer, DA, Crothers, D. Homeopathic Treatment of Acute Otitis Media in Children: A Preliminary Randomized Placebo-controlled Trial, Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal, 20,2 (February 2001):177-183.

    5. Randomized controlled pilot study to compare Homeopathy and Conventional therapy in Acute Otitis Media

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  • Anxiety and Panic Attacks

    Anxiety and Panic Attacks

    Do you shake at the knees in front of an audience, worry about what the future may hold, or cancel engagements at the last minute because you just can’t go through with them?

    You’re not alone. Anxiety or panic attacks affect everyone at some stage or another but homeopathy has remedies to help.

    According to recent trials homeopathy is just as effective as diazepam (Valium) and benzodiazepine (Lorazepam or Ativan) at treating nervousness and anxiety disorders but without addictive or harmful side effects.iii

    In one small study by a professor of psychiatry, 60% of participants with major depression, social phobias, or panic disorders responded favourably to homeopathic treatment.iii iv It has even been used to help anxious mice!v

    With the right homeopathic treatment, those living with debilitating anxiety can once again look forward to enjoying happy, worry-free lives.

    Nine Remedies For a Calm Mind

    The most common remedies for nuisance anxiety and nervousness are listed below but chronic anxiety disorders will need a course of treatment so for best homeopathic results do make an appointment with a qualified homeopath.

    As always, homeopathy treats animals just as effectively as humans so if your animal companion is prone to anxiety or panic, the appropriate remedy will help him or her also.

    Instructions on how often to give a homeopathic remedy for mild or transient anxiety is available at the end of the remedy list.

    Check Availability

    1.  Aconite napellus (Acon.)

    Aconite is one of the best remedies for waves of fear or outright panic. Symptoms are sudden, intense and may follow a shock such as an accident or natural disaster. The person is agitated, restless, and fearful. They can think they are about to die and may even predict the time of death. Other symptoms may include: dry skin and mouth; thirst; pounding heart. Aconite can also treat ongoing anxiety caused by a past traumatic event.

    Remember: Rapid onset, intense symptoms, agitation, fear of death, panic attacks.

    (Check Availability)

    2.  Argentum nitricum (Arg-n.)

    Apprehension and nervousness when the person is unsure of what is likely to happen. The more they dwell on the anxiety, the worse it becomes. They are hurried, feel the heat, and crave sugar or sweet things. Sugar can lead to digestive upsets and diarrhoea and flatulence may be triggered by anxiety. People who do well with Arg-n may also have strange compulsions and “What if…” thoughts. These can include things such as stepping into a line of traffic, throwing themselves from a height, or poking something into a power outlet. Anxiety worsens with overheating and they feel better in cool fresh air and away from crowds.

    Remember: Apprehension and anxiety. Strange imaginings and “what if …” thoughts. Craving for sugar. Worse when overheated.

    (Check Availability)

    3.  Arsenicum album (Ars.)

    The Arsenicum anxiety focuses on issues of security and safety, what will happen in the future, especially at night and when alone. They tend to worry about health, robbers, or money. To manage this anxiety, they become overly fastidious, perfectionists and selfish in their insecurity. They feel better in company but become critical of others and controlling in behaviour. They are usually overly neat and tidy, chilly and better for warmth.

    Remember: Anxiety about health, security, the future; perfectionists; critical; chilly; desire company.

    (Check Availability)

    4.  Calcarea carbonica (Calc.)

    Those who need Calc. have a fear of change and of losing control. As a result they insist on routine and struggle to keep things the same which can make them seem stubborn or obstinate. Frequently heavy in build, they tire easily on exertion or when walking uphill or climbing stairs. They sweat easily on exertion or during sleep, especially on the back of the neck. Fear of the dark, insects, spiders, and animals, especially dogs, are common. They can’t stand hearing about or seeing unpleasant things and acts of cruelty. They can sometimes struggle with confusion and worry that they are going insane.

    Remember: Fear of change and losing control; tiring on exertion; perspiring easily; anxiety on hearing about unpleasant things.

    (Check Availability)

    5.  Gelsemium sempervirens (Gels.)

    People who need Gels. suffer from performance anxiety that leads to weakness of muscles. Any exertion produces trembling of the muscles – knees may knock, legs may shake, and hands can tremble. They can feel paralysed by the anxiety, helpless and want to hide away. Gelsemium is one of the remedies used for agoraphobia (fear of wide open spaces) and influenza when the sufferer has weakness and trembling.

    Remember: Anxiety, weakness, trembling, desire to hide away, unable to cope.

    (Check Availability)

    6.  Kali arsenicosum (Kali-ar.)

    Anxiety about health, especially about heart disease or a heart attack. This can result in panic attacks or make them sleep with their hand over their heart. Anxious thoughts can increase at night making them avoid going to bed. They can even imagine that they see dead people. Frequently feel chilly.

    Remember: Anxiety about heart problems. Anxiety worse at night.

    (Check Availability)

    7.  Kali phosphoricum (Kali-p.)

    A remedy for those with anxiety from feeling overwhelmed. Easily, stressed, startled and frightened. Oversensitive and delicate. Easily exhausted and irritability from exhaustion or anxiety. Physical ailments from worry, overwork, and overexcitement. They can fear having a nervous breakdown or fear something bad will happen.

    Remember: Oversenstive, overwhelmed and anxious. Exhaustion and irritability with anxiety.

    (Check Availability)

    8.  Lycopodium clavatum (Lyc.)

    People who need lycopodium suffer from anticipation anxiety and stage fright. Lack of self confidence. However, once in the middle of a presentation they frequently relax and do well. Anxiety in new groups and situations that is covered up with bravado or over talking. Anxiety often accompanied by bloating. Craving for sweets.

    Remember: Lack of self confidence; boasting and bragging; bloating and desire for sweets.

    (Check Availability)

    9.  Phosphorus (Phos.)

    Many fears and anxieties but especially of being alone. Fears and anxieties always relieved in company. As a result, those who need Phosphorus are generally sensitive, sociable and friendly. Fear of the dark, ghosts, thunderstorms and many other things. Startle easily. Sensitive to odours and sounds. Vivid imaginations. Highly suggestible and highly empathic. Phosphorus types generally enjoy cold drinks, sweets (especially chocolate), ice cream and spicy food.

    Remember: Many fears and anxieties, especially of being alone. Friendly, empathic, suggestible.

    (Check Availability)

    Further Help

    Read How Often Should I take a Dose of My Remedy for guidance on using homeopathy for anxiety.

    If none of the above remedies suit your symptoms, please see a qualified homeopath for a more appropriate remedy as others not discussed within the list are available.

    References

    i Heulluy, B, Essai Randomise Ouvert de L.72 (specialite homeopathique) Contre Diazepam 2 dans les Etats Anxio-Depressifs. Metz, Laboratoires Lehning.

    ii van den Meerschaut, Lodewijk and Sunder, Andrea. The Homeopathic Preparation Nervoheel N can Offer an Alternative to Lorazepam Therapy for Mild Nervous Disorders. eCAM 2009 6: 507-515; doi:10.1093/ecam/nem144

    http://ecam.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/6/4/507?etoc

    iii Davidson, J, Gaylord, S, ―Meeting of Minds in Psychiatry and Homeopathy: An Example in Social Phobia, Alternative Therapies, July, 1995,1,3:36-43.

    iv Davidson, J, Morrison, R, Shore, J, et al., Homeopathic Treatment of Depression and Anxiety, Alternative Therapies, January, 1997,3,1:46-49.

    v Magnani P, Conforti A, Zanolin E, Marzotto M, Bellavite P. Dose-effect study of Gelsemium sempervirens in high dilutions on anxiety-related responses in mice. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2010 Apr 20.

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  • Warts: Treating Them with Homeopathy

    Warts: Treating Them with Homeopathy

    WartsWarts come in all shapes and sizes. Caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV), they are highly contagious and while they can appear in anyone of any age, children and teenagers are particularly susceptible.

    Nearly all warts are harmless, but once they pop up on conspicuous places such as the face or hands, most people will do almost anything to get rid of them.

    Conventional treatments offer to freeze, burn, inject, shave, electrocute, poison, or dig the poor wart out, with varying degrees of success. Some can cause scarring, and the wart may regrow. For patient sufferers, just waiting may also bring success as 65% of warts disappear all by themselves with time.

    For those who would like to hurry them along though, homoeopathy can help – and in more ways than one.

    Thinking More Deeply about Warts

    Warts are often seen as nothing more than a minor nuisance – to remove the wart is to remove the problem. Is this true? Not necessarily!

    Their presence on top of the skin warns of a deeper weakness or susceptibility that allows them to continue and flourish. While removing the wart creates a blemish-free skin, it does nothing to correct this underlying weakness – the person is still vulnerable to future health problems.

    A more holistic approach is needed and this is where homoeopathy excels. By treating the wart as just one of the person’s health problems and prescribing a homeopathic remedy accordingly, widespread improvements are achieved and the underlying weakness repaired.

    Common Wart Remedies

    When using homoeopathy for warts, good results are achieved when the remedy corresponds to the characteristics of the person as well as the shape and appearance of the wart.

    With that in mind, three remedies are prescribed more often than any other – Antimonium crudum (Ant-c.), Nitricum acidum (Nit-ac.) and Thuja occidentalis (Thuj.). Read on for the descriptions of these three and other common wart remedies.

    Antimonium crudum (Ant-c.): Hard, smooth warts that often appear in groups. Irritability and a thickly coated white tongue also suggest the need for this remedy. The person may also overeat and have various digestive complaints.

    (Check Availability)

    Calcarea carbonica (Calc.): Round, hard, solitary warts. Often useful for endophytic warts that have a horny wall surrounding a central depression. Indicated in people with clammy hands and feet who prefer routine and the familiar rather than change and the unknown.

    (Check Availability)

    Causticum (Caust.): Old, large warts on the face (especially the nose), under the fingernails, or warts on fingertips that bleed easily suggest the need for this remedy. The warts also tend to be hard, inflamed, and painful and sit on whitish-yellow, dirty looking skin. People who benefit from this remedy tend fear that something awful will happen and feel intensely sympathetic about the hardship of others.

    (Check Availability)

    Cinnabaris (Cinnb.): A common remedy for molluscum contagiosum that has a reddish periphery and senile keratosis (thick, crusty and scaly skin growths of the aged). People needing this remedy may also be prone to sinusitis.

    Dulcamara (Dulc.): Flat warts located on backs of hands and face and soft brownish to black seborrheic warts found on the back. Indicated in people with rheumatic complaints that are worse in cold, damp weather or humidity.

    (Check Availability)

    Ferrum picricum (Ferr-pic.): Small, pointed warts appearing in large groups. Also useful in cases of flat or plane warts with irregular borders that grow on the face, neck, wrists, hands and knees. Men may have prostatic enlargement.

    Graphites (Graph.): Especially in periungual warts or corn-like warts on palms or soles of feet that may be tinged with yellow. Indicated in those who have trouble making a decision and who are prone to keloid scarring.

    (Check Availability)

    Natrum muriaticum (Nat-m): An important remedy for warts on the palms of the hand and soles of the feet. Indicated in those who are closed, reserved and sensitive.

    (Check Availability)

    Nitricum acidum (Nit-ac.): This remedy is indicated in treating large, fissured or gold-yellow warts that itch and sting or bleed upon washing.. This remedy is also indicated for people who are anxious about health and worry about cancer. Often useful for endophytic warts that have a horny wall surrounding a central depression or the more common plantar wart.

    (Check Availability)

    Ruta graveolens (Ruta): This is a leading remedy for plantar warts, especially on the palms of the hand. People needing Ruta are prone to injuries of tendons and periosteum of bone.

    (Check Availability)

    Thuja occidentalis (Thuj.): The most common remedy for various kinds of warts. If no other remedy is obviously indicated, consider Thuja. Particularly indicated in isolated, jagged warts that smell or bleed easily or mosaic warts on the sole of the foot. Commonly needed for anogenital warts or butcher’s warts. Indicated in those prone to numerous growths or tumors and who worry too much about what people think of them.

    (Check Availability)

    Finally, a Warning About Warts

    Some skin cancers such as squamous cell carcinomas look similar to warts so it is important to get a firm diagnosis if there is any doubt.

    If genital warts are present it is also important for women to have a Pap smear to check that pre-cancerous changes have not taken place on the cervix.

    Whatever the details, warts should be treated according to classical homeopathic principles. In one study,  90% of patients with various types of warts saw their warts disappear within six months when remedies that matched their individualising symptoms were used (Gupta, Bhardwaj, and Manchanda, 1991). In another trial involving a combination remedy for plantar warts where symptoms were not matched, no positive result was achieved (Labrecque, Audet, Latulippe, 1992).

    References

    Homeopathy in the Treatment of Warts

    Homeopathic Treatment of Plantar Warts

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  • Sleep Tight with Homeopathy

    Sleep Tight with Homeopathy

    Sleep is important. It helps our body recover from the day’s activities and enhances memory and brain function. Without it, we would literally go crazy.

    Sleep should be a natural part of life but for some, it doesn’t come easily. The reasons are many and varied: some prescribed medications interfere with the body’s wake/sleep cycle, emotional stresses lead to night-time anxiety, and the wrong food before bed will disturb sleep. Sometimes there is no obvious reason.

    To help you get a good night’s sleep, we have compiled a list of helpful tips and outlined the common symptoms of some homeopathic remedies that treat insomnia. The remedy you need may be among them.

     

    Tips for a Good Night’s Sleep

    1. Keep Healthy

    • Exercise regularly. Exercising for at least thirty minutes each day will help you fall asleep at night. Just make sure you don’t do it too close to bedtime or the reverse will be true.
    • Lose weight. Being overweight increases the risk of snoring and sleep apnoea, neither of which result in a good night’s sleep.
    • Have a health check. Many diseases interfere with sleep. For example, thirst through the night may indicate diabetes, burning feet can point to small blood vessel or nerve disease, and frequent visits to the bathroom could signal a prostate, kidney, or heart problem.
    • Balance menopausal hormones. Hormonal changes at menopause can cause hot flushes, joint pain, and palpitations that interfere with sleep. Bring you body back into balance with the help of your local homeopath or natural therapist.

    2. The Food Factor

    • Avoid caffeine. Drinking coffee, or even tea, will stop some people falling asleep. Be aware that caffeine is also in some processed foods, drinks, and even medications such as diet pills.
    • Avoid foods which irritate. Dairy and wheat products are high on the list of foods that cause sleep-disturbing problems such as gastrointestinal upsets, congestion, gas, and apnoea in sensitive people.
    • Eat a protein snack a few hours before bed. L-tryptophan from protein foods will help your body produce the sleep-promoting neuro-transmitters of melatonin and serotonin. Carbohydrates such as a small piece of wholemeal bread may also help tryptophan cross the blood-brain barrier.
    • Avoid fluids two hours before bed. This will reduce the likelihood of waking to go to the bathroom. Empty your bladder before going to bed.
    • Avoid snacks, especially sugars and processed grains, before bed. These foods cause rapid spikes and drops in blood sugar levels that disturb sleep.
    • Avoid alcohol. The drowsiness produced by alcohol is short-lived and stops you entering the deeper and more restful stages of sleep. As its effect wears off some hours later, you are also more likely to wake and then be unable to go back to sleep.
    • Sip chamomile tea before going to bed. Chamomile tea has a mild homeopathic effect of relieving anxiety and inducing relaxation – just the thing for a good night’s sleep.

    3. Prepare the Bedroom

    • Make your bedroom an attractive place to sleep. Don’t dump work, chores, or junk on or around your bed. You will sleep much better in a relaxed and uncluttered environment.
    • Check your bedroom for electro-magnetic fields (EMFs) and remove electrical devices. These can disrupt the pineal gland and the production of melatonin and serotonin that lead to sleep. If you are especially sensitive to EMFs try switching the circuit breakers off at night, cutting the power in your home.
    • Maintain a moderate temperature. The recommended temperature for sleep is no more than 21 degrees Celsius (70 degrees Fahrenheit). A warmer temperature can disturb sleep.
    • Darkness will help. Even small amounts of light can disrupt your body’s production of the neuro-transmitters needed for sleep. Reduce the light in your room by black-out curtains and avoid sudden exposures to bright light if getting up at night, as these can stop you body’s production of melatonin.
    • Change the noise. Gentle music, white noise or relaxation CDs can help you relax and unwind. Sounds of the ocean can be particularly soothing for sleep.
    • No TV before bed. Stop watching TV well before you go to sleep and certainly do not watch it in the bedroom. An exciting program will over-stimulate your brain, and make it harder to fall asleep.
    • Add a little fragrance.The essential oil of lavender soothes and relaxes. Sprinkle a few drops around your bedroom before going to bed.
    • Keep your bed for sleeping. Bed should be reserved only for sleep, or that other pleasurable activity. If you are used to watching TV or doing work in bed, your brain will associate it with these activities rather than sleep, making it harder to relax when you turn off the light.

    4. Night-time Ritual

    • Pack up your work at least an hour or more before going to bed. This will let your mind relax so you will more easily go to sleep. Write the following day’s ‘to do’ list before finishing work to stop your mind compiling lists as you try to go to sleep.
    • Start a relaxing routine. This could consist of a warm bath, massage, aromatherapy or listening to a calming CD – anything that relaxes you. Repeat this routine each night and your body will soon associate it with going to sleep.
    • Go to bed at the same time each night. And get up at the same time each morning, too, even on weekends. Your body clock will synchronise with these times making it easier to go to sleep as well as wake up in the morning.
    • Take a hot bath or shower before bed. This will increase the temperature of your body. The fall in temperature as it returns to normal will encourage relaxation and help with sleep.
    • Write it down and get it out. If your mind races when you try to sleep, writing you thoughts, plans and worries in a book can be a useful way of calming and emptying your mind.
    • Read something relaxing. Slightly boring material is best as stimulating material such as mysteries or suspense novels will only wake you up further.
    • Go to bed early. It is often said that every of hour of sleep before midnight is worth two after it, and there is truth in that saying. Our bodies do most of their detoxing before the early hours of the morning, something that is hindered if we go to bed too late.
    • Use the homeopathic effect of coffee. In homeopathy’s ‘like treats like’ approach, coffee will paradoxically help some people sleep better as it will calm their busy mind and body if drunk before going to bed.  This approach only works if your symptoms of insomnia are very similar to those of having had too much coffee. Coffee can also be taken in homeopathic potencies – read all about it under the name of Coffea Cruda in the ‘Treat Your Insomnia with Homeopathy’ section.

    5. Once in Bed

    • Warm your feet with socks. Feet often have the poorest circulation of your body.  Wearing socks will stop them becoming cold and disturbing your sleep at night.
    • Wear an eye mask to block out light. As already mentioned, blocking out as much light as possible will help you sleep. An eye-mask is an easy way to do this, especially if it’s impossible to have your room in complete darkness.
    • Stop the noise. Ear plugs will block or muffle sounds if you are a light sleeper or if you have to sleep in a noisy environment
    • Face your alarm clock away from you. Watching the hours tick by as you try to sleep will only increase your stress and make it harder to drift off.

    Treat Your Insomnia with Homeopathy

    Homeopathy has a marvellous history of treating insomnia, often making some of the more stringent suggestions in the ‘Tips for a Good Night’s Sleep’ section unnecessary. If insomnia is the only symptom you have, one of the following remedies may bring relief.

    Just take one pill, or 5 drops, an hour or two before going to bed and let the remedy do its work. Once you are sleeping well, don’t continue to take it each night as each remedy will cause insomnia if taken in excess. You only need another dose should the insomnia return.

    Symptoms usually do not exist in isolation, though. If insomnia is just one of your problems, or if it is not fully relieved by the remedy that seems to match your sleeplessness, make an appointment to see a professional homeopath who will take a detailed case-history to find a constitutional remedy to treat not only your insomnia, but the other health problems that bother you as well.

    Arsenicum Album (Ars)

    Key Symptoms: Those who need Arsenicum will be anxious and restless. Anxiety, fear, or worry prevents sleep. Frequent starting or jumping which wakens from sleep. Sleeplessness from physical exertion. Worse for: after midnight. Better for: warmth; warm drinks.

    Supporting Symptoms: Disturbed, anxious and restless sleep. Lying awake with restlessness, tossing and turning. Cannot lie still in bed – has to get up and wander around from restlessness. Going from bed to bed to try and sleep. Can only sleep with head raised. Hard to fall asleep after waking.

    (Check Availability)

    Coffea Cruda (Coff)

    Key Symptoms: Coffee is well known for producing sleeplessness but because of homeopathy’s ‘like treats like’ effect, it will relieve insomnia when given in crude, or especially homeopathic form. The type of symptoms it relieves are those produced by coffee. They are: sleeplessness from rapid thoughts or an active mind; constant flow of ideas; physical restlessness; nervous energy; excitement. Can also be used to counteract the effects of a caffeinated product that has been taken too close to bed-time. Worse for: suprises; strong emotions; narcotics.

    Supporting Symptoms: Unable to sleep from the excitement of a surprise, or good or bad news. Palpitation with sleeplessness. Waking with every sound. Waking from frequent starting. Sleeplessness from an itching anus. Minor pains seems intolerable.

    (Check Availability)

    Gelsemium Sempervirens (Gels)

    Key Symptoms: Sleeplessness from anticipatory anxiety. Dull, drowsy mind – hard to think yet difficult to go to sleep. Insomnia from exhaustion. Hard to get fully asleep. Worse for: bad news; thinking about problems.

    Supporting Symptoms: Yawning with tiredness. Sleeplessness with teething. Sleeplessness from itching on head, face, neck, and shoulders. Sleeplessness during delirium tremens (withdrawal from alcohol).

    (Check Availability)

    Ignatia Amara (Ign)

    Key Symptoms: Intense, repeated yawning or frequent sighing. Sleeplessness from a recent disappointment or grief.

    Supporting Symptoms: Waking easily from sleep. Waking from the jerking of a limb. Itching of arms with yawning. Yawning produces tears in the eyes or threatens to dislocate jaw. Child wakes from sleep with screaming and trembling after being reprimanded before bedtime. Worse for: Coffee.

    (Check Availability)

    Lycopodium clavatum (Lyc)

    Key Symptoms: Waking from hunger – must get up and eat. Restless sleep and anxious dreams with frequent waking. Feeling unrefreshed in morning.

    Supporting Symptoms: Unable to get comfortable in any position. Falling asleep late and waking early. Sleepy all day and sleepless at night from an active mind. Children who sleep all day and cry all night. Child wakes terrified with screaming – seems not to recognise anyone (sleep terrors).

    (Check Availability)

    Nux Vomica (Nux-v)

    Key Symptoms: Frequent yawning. Irritability from loss of sleep. Falling asleep before normal bedtime and then waking at 3–4am. Waking at 3-4am with alert and active mind and then falling asleep as daylight approaches only to then wake with difficulty, feeling tired, weak, and not wanting to get up. Worse for: stimulants and narcotics

    Supporting Symptoms: Sleeplessness from the excessive consumption of coffee, alcohol, or drugs (therapeutic or recreational). Tendency to lie on back with arms under head. Sleeplessness from mental strain and stress or excessive study. Drowsy after meals an in early evening. Grogginess on waking in morning. Weeping and talking in sleep.

    (Check Availability)

    Passiflora Incarnata (Pass)

    Key Symptoms: Restlessness, exhaustion, and sleeplessness.

    Supporting Symptoms: Restless sleeplessness from excessive work. Sleeplessness with exhaustion. Insomnia of infants and the aged. Convulsions with sleeplessness.

    Other Comments: Has a long history of use in herbal medicine where its homeopathic effect in the treatment of insomnia has also been exploited. It is effective in either herbal doses or homeopathic potencies.

    (Check Availability)

    Phosphorus (Phos)

    Key Symptoms: Short naps with frequent waking. Frequent waking from feeling too hot. Sleeplessness from excitement or anxiety.

    Supporting Symptoms: Sleeplessness in old people. Sleepless before midnight. Sleepy all day, sleepless and restless at night. Sleeplessness with sensation of bubbling in blood. Worse for: lying on left side.

    (Check Availability)

    Sulphur (Sulph)

    Key Symptoms: Waking between 2 – 5am and unable to go back to sleep. Difficulty in falling asleep from itchiness of skin or perspiration. Drowsy by day and sleepless at night. Worse for: becoming hot; atmospheric changes.

    Supporting Symptoms: Wakes up singing from happy dreams. Waking at night from a rush of blood to the head. Sudden waking from sleep. Constant flow of thoughts that prevent sleep. Sleep disturbed by headache. Better for: dry, warm weather.

    (Check Availability)

    Pleasant dreams!

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  • Help! I Have PMS!

    Help! I Have PMS!

    Womens' issues are often helped by homeopathy, and PMS is no exception.

    Do you experience mood swings, or crave chocolate, carbohydrates and salt, or bloat with fluid before your periods each month? Or perhaps you shriek at those around you, can’t leave the house for anxiety, or burst into tears at the drop of a hat?

    If you are female and struggle once a month with these symptoms, you probably have premenstrual tension, better known as premenstrual syndrome (PMS). The good news is that something can be done about it. In this article, we show you:

    1. How a few simple self-help strategies reduce the impact of PMS on your life, and
    2. Which homeopathic remedies help return you to a healthy balance

    What is PMS?

    PMS is the name given to unpleasant symptoms that occur in the post-ovulatory phase of a woman’s menstrual cycle. PMS symptoms start 4-14 days before a menstrual period and settle when it begins, or not long after.

    PMS affects women of any age, but usually starts during the late 20s and worsens year-by-year until menopause. Up to 80% of menstruating women experience one or more PMS symptoms each month.

    PMS Symptoms – What are They?

    The most common symptoms of PMS are:
    • Mood swings
    • Irritability
    • Anxiety
    • Fatigue
    • Bloating
    • Cramping
    • Breast tenderness or swelling
    • Headaches
    • Menstrual discomfort
    • Weight gain.
    Other symptoms include:
    • Depression
    • Poor concentration
    • Clumsiness
    • Weepiness
    • Insomnia
    • Aggression
    • Fluid retention
    • Swollen ankles
    • Tiredness
    • Weakness
    • Joint and muscle pain
    • Cravings for food and alcohol
    • Skin deterioration
    • Lowered immunity and skin infections
    The intensity of PMS symptoms varies from woman to woman but most report that the mental-emotional symptoms are far more disruptive than the physical symptoms.

     

    Taming PMS: Simple Steps to Take

     

    1. Avoid these Foods and Drinks

    Caffeine and alcohol: Drinks containing caffeine or alcohol can trigger or worsen the symptoms of PMS. Avoid manufactured ‘energy’ drinks, coffee, tea, chocolate and alcohol, especially in the fortnight before your period. If looking to drink something with a little flavour, try a squeeze of lemon juice in water, or a herbal tea instead.

    Saturated and Trans-Fats: Diets high in saturated fats from animal products exacerbate PMS symptoms. Avoid greasy takeaway foods, animal fats, and processed meats such as sausages, ham, and salami. Also, trans-fats (manufactured fats, used in some margarines, commercial biscuits, and many processed foods) worsen symptoms, are harmful for health and should be avoided.

    Refined Sugar: Eating sugary food may give a rush of energy but the rapid drop in blood sugar that follows worsens PMS symptoms and creates fatigue. Sugar in your diet depletes Vitamin B6, one of the vitamins that stablilises blood-sugar levels and mood swings, in your body. If you must have a sweet hit, use a natural sweetener such as fruit, stevia, or honey and avoid artificial sweeteners that only contribute to further health problems.

    Salt: Too much salt has to be balanced with water in the body, worsening the bloating and fluid retention that occurs with PMS. Avoid foods high in salt to minimise this retention, especially in the fortnight before your periods.

    2. Eat Well to Cope Well

    If you are short on vitamins B6 and E, as well as potassium, magnesium, and calcium, your PMS symptoms will be much worse, but supplements may not be the way to go. For best results, obtain these vitamins and minerals from whole, fresh, organic foods; the benefits of other compounds and cofactors within the foods are not lost and they support the action of these vitamins and minerals in your body. Foods that improve are necessary for good health and which reduce PMS symptoms are:

    • Fresh vegetables and fruit – at least seven serves every day.
    • Whole foods such as wholemeal bread, whole grains, brown rice, nuts, and seeds. Avoid refined or processed grains.
    • Lean to moderate fat meat, fish, chicken.
    • A mix of mono and unsaturated fats from cold-pressed unhydrogenated vegetable oils such as olive and coconut oil (remember, a healthy diet IS NOT a low-fat diet).
    • Dairy products in moderation: milk, cheese, and yoghurt
    Eat organic produce where possible to reduce the amount of chemicals entering your body from artificial fertilizers, sprays, and pesticides. If you can’t buy organic, fresh foods are still a much better choice than processed foods.

     

    3. Don’t Skip Meals

    Graze your way through the day. Five to six small, healthy meals are more effective at preventing sudden blood sugar drops than two or three large meals. Low blood sugar worsens pre-menstrual symptoms and cause hard-to-control food cravings and mood swings.

    4. Drink Plenty of Water

    Treat your body to 1.5 –2 litres of water a day. Rather than leading to fluid retention, additional water stimulates your body to flush away toxins, removing extra fluid in the process.

    5. Break that Habit

    Tobacco use depletes the body of vital nutrients and so worsens the symptoms of PMS. Decide to kick the habit once and for all. Not only will your health and mood improve but the money you save could be spent on a special treat to reward yourself.

    6. Reduce the Stress

    Stress contributes significantly to the symptoms of PMS, and in turn, PMS makes it harder to cope with stress. To short-circuit this loop, look for ways to reduce the strain in your life. Known stress-busters include:

    • Daily exercise such as a workout at the gym or a brisk walk
    • Yoga – by yourself or with some friends
    • Meditation in the quiet of your home
    • Calming herbal teas such as Juniper, Dandelion or Chamomile
    • Warm relaxing baths – add a few drops of lavendar to the water for its calming effect
    • Plenty of good quality sleep – this is not the time to burn the candle at both ends
    • Escaping into a good book, hobby, or craft to forget about the days irritations
    • Building and maintaining a routine so that things do not overwhelm you. Planning ahead prevents frazzled nerves and temper
    • Scheduling important events and activities for times when you will be at your best and not when you are ‘premenstrual’

    Rebalance with Homeopathy

    Homeopathic remedies are fantastic at correcting underlying imbalances that lead to PMS symptoms. In two studies conducted by Hadassah Hospital (Jerusalem, Israel) in the 1990’s, 90% of women treated with homeopathy over a 3 month period experienced improvement in their PMS symptoms. The main remedies – there are others – for the treatment of premenstrual symptoms are listed below. Most should be found in home-use kits.

    Bryonia alba (Bry)

    Key Symptoms: Irritable and easily angered. Prefers to be alone and dislikes being disturbed. Painful, swollen breasts that hurt with movement. Breasts must be supported during movement. Stitching, shooting pains in the breasts. Thirsty for large drinks.

    Supporting Symptoms: Much better for being quiet. Anxiety about business affairs or finances. Dryness of mouth. Hard constipation. Headaches before the periods, often in the forehead and back of the head, worse for movement. Feels worse during the heat.

    (Check Availability)

    Chamomilla (Cham)

    Key Symptoms: Extremely irritable and angry. Rude and short-tempered. Dissatisfied – cannot be pleased no matter what is done. Oversensitive to pain or environmental stimuli such as noise, odours, and touch.

    Supporting Symptoms: Does not want to be spoken to or touched. Symptoms worsened by coffee. Physical symptoms caused by anger. Pains in the uterus from anger. Painful cramps before the periods. Feels worse once periods start.

    (Check Availability)

    Lachesis muta (Lach)

    Key Symptoms: Irritable, sharp-tongued, vindictive, jealous, or suspicious. Witty, sometimes with meanness. Passionate and talkative – may hardly pause for breath. Premenstrual symptoms or cramps settle as soon as the period begins.

    Supporting Symptoms: Overactive mind, especially in the evening and before midnight. Tight clothing is unbearable, especially around the neck. Headache before the periods, pulsating in temples.Left-sided symptoms or complaints. Feels the heat. Feels worse after waking from a sleep.

    (Check Availability)

    Lycopodium clavatum (Lyc)

    Key Symptoms: Weeping before the periods. Lack of confidence. Anxiety about new things. Feelings of helplessness. Avoids responsibilities. Digestive disturbances – bloating and flatulence. Craving for sweets.

    Supporting Symptoms: Bossy or rude with family members or subordinates. Headaches from overheating. Dry blockage of nose at night. Worse between 4 – 8pm. Symptoms worse on the right side, or starting on the right and moving to the left.

    (Check Availability)

    Nux vomica (Nux-v)

    Key Symptoms: Driven. Fussy and fault-finding. Extreme behaviour. Irritable or angry if hindered, to the point of rage. Desire for stimulants (eg, coffee) or relaxants (eg, alcohol).

    Supporting Symptoms: Competitive and ambitious. Quarrelsome, even to violence. Jealous. Feels the cold. Symptoms from becoming cold. Cramps. Worse in the morning. Desires fatty food.

    (Check Availability)

    Pulsatilla Pratensis (Puls)

    Key Symptoms: Weepy and moody. Feeling alone, unloved, and as if nobody cares. Wanting sympathy, affection, or to held and cuddled. Tears and irritability if ignored.

    Supporting Symptoms: Mild and yielding. Symptoms worse at times of hormonal change (puberty, periods, pregnancy, menopause). Changeable symptoms – no two menstrual cycles or periods are alike. Sensitive to heat. Everything feels worse in a stuffy room and better for fresh air.  Little or no thirst. Symptoms from rich or fatty food. Headaches before the periods.

    (Check Availability)

    Sepia (Sep)

    Key Symptoms: Irritability and anger. Sarcastic. Desire to be alone. Not wanting to talk. Better for work, keeping busy, or strenuous exercise.

    Supporting Symptoms: Dislikes being touched or shown affection. Weeping before the periods. Craves sour things or chocolate. Dragging pain during periods. As if everything was going to ‘fall out’ during periods. Chilly. Exhausted.

    (Check Availability)

    Keep in mind

    Immediate symptoms are easily treated by yourself in the home situation but PMS is a chronic complaint which may need a series of remedies for complete improvement. If in doubt about which remedies best suit you, please see a fully qualified homeopath and wave goodbye, once and for all, to PMS.

    References

    Yakir M, Kreitler S, Brzezinski A, Vithoulkas G, Oberbaum M, Bentwich Z (2001). Effects of homeopathic treatment in women with premenstrual syndrome: a pilot study. British Homeopathic Journal; 90:148–153.

    Boericke, William; Boericke, Oscar E. (1927). Homeopathic Materia Medica. ISBN 0766183882.

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  • Homeopathy and Laziness

    Homeopathy and Laziness

    Procrastination and laziness. We’ve all been there… You have the ability, time, and resources to complete a task… so what’s stopping you?

    Imagine you have a task to do. It could be the laundry strewn across your floor. It could be writing your Presidential acceptance speech.

    Either way, it’s ticking away in your mind like a time bomb, and it urgently needs to be done. But instead of starting the task…you open up Netflix.

    We’ve all been there…so what’s going on? You have the ability, time, and resources to complete it…so what’s stopping you? It’s like an invisible wall, isn’t it?

    Your parents and teachers probably had a word for this: “laziness”: a moral failure worthy of blame and punishment. But laziness, ironically enough, is itself a lazy concept.

    The brain is a complex beast, and to understand why we’re failing to do something requires more than moralistic judgment, it requires understanding.

    Laziness is not bad. It is morally neutral. Just as panic is an unhealthy expression of a healthy emotion (fear), or rage is an unhealthy expression of a healthy emotion (anger), laziness is the bitter fruit of a useful tree. We neglect that tree at our peril.

    Imagine an animal that works tirelessly at every task, no matter how pointless. It digs a burrow for itself…and then digs ten more burrows beside it, just to be safe. It finds enough food to eat…and then keeps gathering food, even though it can’t eat it and the excess will spoil.

    As you can imagine, such indiscriminate industriousness would be maladaptive: the animal would exhaust itself and die.

    Clearly, a degree of laziness is evolutionarily useful. We are programmed to differentiate between important, necessary work and unimportant, unnecessary work.

    And when combined with our ability to rationalize (“how important is cleaning my room, really? It’s not like the world will end if I don’t do it…”) it’s no surprise when necessary tasks get mistakenly lumped into a mental “do not do” basket.

    What is surprising is that the more important a task is, the less we want to do it.

    In psychology, this is termed the Overjustification Effect, and was illustrated by Undermining children’s intrinsic interest with extrinsic reward (MR Lepper · 1973). In this study, conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan, it was noted that children who played with markers did so less when they expected to receive an award for doing so.

    Many artists have fallen prey to the Overjustification effect: they were happy to draw, or paint, or write for free. But as soon as they started getting paid to do it, their motivation vanished.

    It’s theorized that we do things because of an internal motivation (it fulfills our sense of self), and once this internal motivation is replaced by an external one (“I have to clean my room, or mom will get mad at me!”) we find this hollow and unfulfilling, and no longer want to do it.

    In short, we don’t like to do things because of pressure from others. The desire has to come from within.

    All of this dovetails fascinatingly with homeopathic thinking. It proposes that “the patient, not the cure” is important: sickness comes from inside, and so does the restoration to health. If you’ve lost the will to do a thing, then external pressure will never re-light that particular fire. Only you can do it.

    Homeopathy has much to say on mental states, including laziness and procrastination. For example, consider the keynotes of the remedy Agaricus muscarius, which include:

    • Dullness of mind, laziness and lack of motivation in the morning.
    • Anxiety about health with an extreme fear of cancer.
    • Excited and ecstatic states.
    • Clumsy awkward children who are fearless of climbing, running, etc. ‘Dare-devils’.
    • Restlessness with poor focus or comprehension.

    …or those of Capsicum annum:

    • Sadness or depression – can become suicidal.
    • Nostalgia – longing for the past.
    • Homesickness.
    • Ailments after moving house or changing countries.
    • Dislike change to the daily routine.
    • Laziness or lack of motivation.
    • Indifferent to cleanliness.

    … and even common Sulphur:

    • Theorizing and expansive ideas but lack of attention to appearance.
    • Lazy and messy.
    • Lack energy and tire easily.
    • Dislike washing or bathing.
    • Not concerned about appearance.

    While there’s a lot of cross-over in the laziness symptoms of these three and other potentially useful remedies, the key to choosing a corrective one is to make sure it matches other co-existing physical symptoms the “lazy” person experiences.

    And while we’re sure that “excited and ecstatic states” of Agaricus muscarius describes a lot of you, laziness isn’t just not wanting to do something. It’s being distracted by something else. Particularly something bright and shiny and internet-y.

    One of the most fun terms to arise in the internet age is “productive procrastination”. It’s where you don’t do the thing you really want or should do, but your bed is made, your house is clean, and your sink is shining and spotless.

    If you engage in this, there’s hope. You clearly are not lazy. You have powerful mental energies you can channel: they’re just being misdirected somehow, and it’s up to you to get them flowing again, perhaps with the help of homeopathy.

    Of course, chronic and life-limiting symptoms of laziness are best treated with the help of a qualified homeopath to manage the changes in potencies and remedies that may be required.

    But for those suffering mental roadblocks, there’s hope: maybe a fix is easier than we think. Good news for the lazy!

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  • 8 Homeopathic Remedies for Brain Fog and Poor Memory

    8 Homeopathic Remedies for Brain Fog and Poor Memory

    People find it difficult to concentrate or remember things for all sorts of reasons.

    Anxiety, stress, food intolerances, headaches, or lack of sleep cause short-term forgetfulness while life-changing events such as strokes, head injuries, and dementia result in significant or chronic memory loss.

    This article examines 8 key homeopathic remedies for poor focus, forgetfulness and memory loss. It also lists other health problems that may be present at the same time and point to the needed remedy.

    8 Key Memory-Loss Remedies

    When reviewing the following list of remedies it is important to know that it is far from complete.

    Several other unlisted remedies may better suit an individual’s symptom profile.

    What the list does show, however, is how memory and concentration-related symptoms vary from person to person.

    Ambra Grisea (Ambr.)

    Key Symptoms: Shy and easily embarrassed. Premature aging and early senility.

    Other Symptoms: People who need Ambra Grisea are shy, timid, and easily embarrassed. They blush easily, dread the company of unfamiliar people, are anxious about what people think of them, and want to be left alone. While forgetful and dreamy, they may also jump from one subject to another when talking, or ask questions without waiting for an answer. They find it difficult to understand what has just been read and have trouble with calculations – even simple mathematics. Sometimes they will sit for hours or days crying from sadness. Premature aging and senility often indicates the need for Ambra Grisea.

    Potential Co-existing Health Problems: Chronic cough. Constipation. Bleeding between menstrual periods. Dementia or premature senility.

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    Anacadium Orientale (Anac.)

    Key Symptoms: Sudden loss of memory, especially under stress. Lack of confidence. Unkindness or cruelty.

    Other Symptoms: Those needing Anacadium Orientale have sudden loss of memory as though something is blocking the thought. They become hesitant, suddenly forget the names of people and things, and can even feel as if they are going insane. It’s a useful remedy for the sudden forgetfulness of anxious and under-confident students before an exam but also treats forms of senile dementia. Anacadium types are often confused about their identity, feeling and behaving as if they have ‘an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other.’ They can be cruel, irritable and hard-hearted with a tendency to swear but also struggle with lack confidence or feeling helpless, hopeless and needy.

    Potential Co-existing Health Problems: Behavioural problems. Bipolar disorder. Depression. Eczema. Gastric pain or ulcer. Headache. Inferiority complex. Paranoia. Poison oak or ivy rashes. Schizophrenia. Suicidal
    thoughts.

    (Check Availability)

    Cannabis Indica (Cann-i.)

    Key Symptoms: Feeling of floating or unreality. Disorientation and confusion. Forgetfulness.

    Other Symptoms: The memory-related symptoms of somebody needing Cannabis indica are very similar to those of someone who smokes marijuana. Things seem unreal to the point of disorientation or ecstasy and they may describe out of body experiences or say their body, or parts of their body, feel as if floating. The person is forgetful, often unable to finish a sentence and has a fear of losing control and of insanity. They feel confused and lose their way even in well-known streets. (Although this remedy is dispensed in potencies that don’t contain any trace of cannabis, it is still banned in ignorance by authorities in some countries because of its name and origin.)

    Potential Co-existing Health Problems: Anxiety. Behavioural problems. Bipolar disorder. Chronic fatigue syndrome. Delusions. Depression. Phobias. Prostatitis. Urethritis. Urinary tract infections.

    Helleborus Niger (Hell.)

    Key Symptoms: Apathy, dullness, slowness and blankness of mind. Poor concentration.

    Other Symptoms: Helleborus suits the symptoms of dullness, haziness and blankness of mind. It is often needed for poor memory following a stroke. The person finds it hard to concentrate and has a weakness of memory for what was just read, said or done. Often, things are not heard or seen properly. They are apathetic, concentration is difficult and they answer slowly.

    Potential Co-existing Health Problems: Alzheimer’s disease. Ataxia. Depression. Encephalitis or meningitis. Head injury. Headache or migraine. Leukaemia. Malignancy. Ulcerative colitis.

    (Check Availability)

    Lycopodium Clavatum (Lyc.)

    Key Symptoms: Gradual memory loss and confusion. Dyslexia. Words and syllables misused or misplaced.

    Other Symptoms: Lycopodium suits those who once may have enjoyed intellectual activities but, because of their gradually deteriorating memory, now feel confused. It also one of the remedies that suits children with dyslexia, learning difficulties and behavioural problems. Children and adults misspell words or misplace words or syllables while talking. They are bossy and rude at home, irritable in the morning on waking, but polite and friendly with strangers. Physical complaints start on the right side of the body and progress to the left side.

    Potential Co-existing Health Problems: Allergy. Anxiety. Arthritis. Asthma. Behavioural disorder. Bronchiolitis. Bulimia. Cerebrovascular accidents. Cholecystitis. Chronic fatigue syndrome. Cirrhosis. Colic. Connective tissue disease. Crohn’s disease. Cystitis. Depression. Diabetes. Eczema. Gout. Headache or migraine. Hepatitis. Hernia. Herpes. Hypertension. Impotence. Irritable bowel syndrome. Kidney stones. Malignancy. Otitis media. Ovarian cyst. Peptic ulcer. Pharyngitis. Pneumonia. Premature ejaculation. Pyelonephritis. Sinusitis. Tinea. Tonsillitis. Urethritis. Urinary tract infection. Uterine
    fibroid. Vaginitis. Warts.

    (Check Availability)

    Nux Moschata (Nux-m.)

    Key Symptoms: Spaced-out feeling. Sudden loss of thoughts. Absent-minded and dreamy.

    Other Symptoms: Nux Moschata is indicated for those who feel vague or spaced-out – as if intoxicated. They are absent-minded, forgetful of what they were about to do, and use the wrong words, especially during headaches. Their mind is dull and they feel confused or bewildered. Thoughts suddenly vanish while talking, reading or writing and there may be complete loss of memory about the past. Sleepiness or clairvoyant states are often experienced.

    Potential Co-existing Health Problems: Allergy (including food allergy or intolerance). Alzheimer’s disease. Colic. Constipation. Narcolepsy. Petit mal seizures. Sjogren’s syndrome. Syncope. Vertigo.

    (Check Availability)

    Phosphoricum Acidum (Ph-ac.)

    Key Symptoms: Forgetfulness and apathy from grief. Brooding about the past and future. Aversion to talking.

    Other Symptoms: Those who need Phosphoricum Acidum slip into indifference and apathy from a grief or significant disappointment. They brood, avoid talking to people, and dread the future. They cannot collect their thoughts, answer slowly, and are forgetful – especially for words – they hunt for words when talking.Their weakness of memory gradually leads to physical weakness.

    Potential Co-existing Health Problems: Alopecia. Chronic fatigue syndrome. Colitis. Depression. Diabetes. Diarrhoea. Glandular fever. Headache. Mononucleosis. Sepsis.

    (Check Availability)

    Sulphur (Sulph.)

    Key Symptoms: Absent-minded and forgetful of words. Mistakes in writing or speaking.

    Other Symptoms: Those who need Sulphur become increasingly absent-minded and find it difficult to concentrate. They have trouble thinking of correct words when talking or writing, often replacing correct words with incorrect ones. They may also repeat the question before answering to give their brain time to catch up and have a reputation of being itchy, lazy, tired, untidy or selfish.

    Potential Co-existing Health Problems: (Almost any complaint is possible.) Abscess. Acne. Alcoholism. Allergy. Angina. Anxiety. Arthritis. Arrhythmia. Asthma. Blepharitis. Bronchitis. Bulimia. Bursitis. Chronic fatigue syndrome. Cirrhosis. Colic. Colitis. Congestive heart failure. Conjunctivitis. Constipation. Dandruff. Depression. Diabetes. Diarrhoea. Eczema. Gout. Haemorrhoids. Headache or migraine. Hepatitis. Hernia. Hot flushes. Hypertension. Impetigo. Inflammatory bowel disease. Iritis. Lower back pain. Malignancy. Multiple sclerosis. Oesophagitis. Otitis media. Peptic ulcer. Pharyngitis. Pneumonia. Proctitis. Prostatitis. Psoriasis. Rectal fissure, abscess or fistula. Rheumatoid arthritis. Rhinitis. Seborrhoea. Sinusitis. Tinea. Tonsillitis.

    (Check Availability)

    Final Thoughts

    While many simple and short-lived problems such as coughs, headaches and indigestion are easily treated at home, concentration difficulties and poor memory are usually chronic problems that are best managed by a qualified homeopath.

    This is because the necessary remedies are unlikely to be found in a home-use kit, and potencies will have to be changed throughout the course of treatment.

    The benefit of treatment by a practitioner is that as memory and focus improves, so should other co-existing health problems.

    While short lapses of memory are common and usually nothing to worry about, increasing confusion and prolonged memory loss are of greater concern.

    If you or someone you love experiences these problems, it is important to see a trusted healthcare professional to exclude serious disorders that may require a different set of remedies or treatment approaches.

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  • Remedies for Disasters (Part 1)

    Remedies for Disasters (Part 1)

    Disaster - Flood

    Floods, wars, famines, accidents, earthquakes.

    Hardly a day goes by without a disaster making headlines somewhere – they are an inescapable part of life and whether natural or manmade have always been with us.

    We’re often transfixed by the media reports of chaos visited on others but for those caught up in the disaster it may mean injuries and sickness, destruction of property, loss of loved ones, starvation, and displacement. Long after the physical wounds have healed, emotional trauma remains.

    Homoeopathy is front-line medicine at its best. It has much to offer the victims of disaster and those who rush to their aid. It is inexpensive, easily distributed, able to be safely used before other medical help arrives, and can then used beside it without interactive effects.

    Over the next three articles we will look at the remedies traditionally used in homeopathy to reduce the impact of physical injuries, soften emotional trauma, and lessen the risk of epidemic disease.

    We will show you how to compile an emergency homeopathy kit, teach you how to use it and explain how its remedies can be ‘stretched’ to not only help you but others, also.

    In this, our first article, learn the remedies homeopaths use for the initial problems of shock, fear, hysteria, and injuries.

    Find out about the ‘corpse reviver’, why homeopathic opium is considered a fantastic treatment for shock, and how the London Police Force used homeopathic gunpowder as a remedy for infections, boils and abscesses.

    And, if you ever have the misfortune to be caught in a disaster situation remember the ABCs of first aid – check and maintain the person’s Airway, Breathing and Circulation and certainly call for help.

    First Response Remedies

    Shock

    Emotional shock is the body’s response to extreme fear, stress, pain, or helplessness. It is also known as acute stress reaction. Symptoms include: disorientation; confusion; agitation; restlessness; and feeling ‘dazed’.

    Two key homeopathic remedies for this type of shock are Aconite and Opium.

    Aconite napellus (Acon.): Aconite is used when the person is agitated, restless, fearful and anxious (or even in a state of terror) and convinced they will die. It is capable of relieving not only these mental-emotional symptoms but other symptoms that may be present at the same time such as chest pain from an impending heart attack (myocardial infarction) or convulsions.

    (Check Availability)

    Opium (Op.): The homeopathic remedy prepared from opium is more useful for emotional shock in which the person looks and acts like a ‘stunned mullet’. They are withdrawn, respond poorly to what is happening around them, and have a dazed, besotted expression. Be aware though that in some countries you will not be able to obtain homeopathic opium as regulators of these countries, unfamiliar with the extreme dilutions of homoeopathic remedies, confuse homeopathic opium with its crude source and so classify it as an illegal substance.

    Guidelines: Either remedy can be given as often as every 15 seconds if the person’s symptoms are severe. Once symptoms start to settle only give another dose when improvement stops or symptoms start to return. If there is no improvement by 3 doses, stop, as this means the remedy is incorrect – choose another remedy that better matches the symptoms. As long as the person is improving with each dose, the remedy can be given as often as needed and for as long as is needed.

    Hysteria and Panic

    Following shock, panic and hysteria are the next most common reactions to emotional trauma. People may shriek, scream, have rapidly changing emotions, sob convulsively, hyperventilate, or frantically clutch at others for help. Two remedies to help reduce panic and hysteria are Aconite and Ignatia.

    Aconite napellus (Acon.): Those needing Aconite, as already mentioned, will be extremely restless and agitated, fearing they are about to die. They are likely to have palpitations and will hyperventilate, producing symptoms of pins and needles and numbness throughout the body.

    (Check Availability)

    Ignatia amara (Ign.): Ignatia is used for rapidly changing moods and crying with sobbing. The person may hyperventilate, twitch, jerk, have cramps and display contradictory, unpredictable behaviour. They will pull away from comfort and reassurance and may sweat from the face.

    (Check Availability)

    Guidelines: Either remedy can be given as often as every 15 seconds if the person’s symptoms are severe. Once symptoms start to settle only give another dose when improvement stops or symptoms start to return. If there is no improvement by 3 doses, stop, as this means the remedy is incorrect – choose another remedy that better matches the symptoms. As long as the person is improving with each dose, the remedy can be given as often as needed and for as long as is needed.

    Injuries, Wounds and Hazardous Effects

    Allium cepa (All-c.): When eyes and nose are streaming from some sort of irritant. Burning discharge from the nose, bland discharge from the eyes. A good remedy to counter the effects of tear gas. (Also see Euphrasia.)

    (Check Availability)

    Arnica Montana (Arn.): For bruising and damage to soft tissues such as skin and muscles.  Slows bleeding, reduces swelling, promotes healing, helps with shock and reduces the risk of infection. Ideal as a first remedy for broken bones (fractures) that cause bleeding and swelling into the tissues (use Bryonia for fractured ribs or Symphytum after 24 hours when swelling and bleeding is no longer a problem). Do not use in herbal form if skin is broken as it will irritate; it is safe to use in homeopathic potencies.

    (Check Availability)

    Bryonia (Bry.): Fractures such as fractured ribs when the pain is worse for the slightest movement (breathing) and better for firm pressure or being supported.

    (Check Availability)

    Calendula (Calen.): Useful for superficial wounds, grazes and lacerated skin – promotes healing and reduces the risk of infection. Can be taken by mouth or applied topically (directly on the skin). To apply topically, place 10 drops of the herbal tincture or potentised remedy into a cup of water, cleanse the wound and then bind with a dressing moistened with the solution. Leave the dressing intact for as long as possible but keep it moist with the solution to speed healing and stop infection.

    (Check Availability)

    Cantharis (Canth.): A key remedy for 2nd to 3rd degree burns where there is severe pain and even blistering of the skin. (See Urtica urens for 1st and 2nd degree burns, Causticum for chemical burns, and Phosphorus for electrical burns.)

    (Check Availability)

    Causticum (Caust.): A useful remedy for deep burns and chemical burns. (See Urtica urens for 1st and 2nd degree burns, Cantharis for 2nd and 3rd degree burns, and Phosphorus for electrical burns.)

    (Check Availability)

    China officinalis (Chin.): Relieves exhaustion and debility that follows the loss of body fluids such as blood, sweat and diarrheoa.

    (Check Availability)

    Carbo vegetabilis (Carb-v.): This remedy has the reputation of being a ‘corpse reviver’ among homeopaths. It treats many near-death states with the following symptoms: faintness; collapse; exhaustion; chilliness; cold sweat; gasping for air; wanting to be fanned; flatulence and distension; heart failure; blue or mottled skin. (Also see Laurocerasus.)

    (Check Availability)

    Euphrasia (Euphr.): When eyes and nose are streaming from an irritant. Bland discharge from the nose, burning discharge from the eyes. A good remedy to counter the effects of tear gas. (Also see Allium cepa.)

    (Check Availability)

    Gunpowder (Gunp.): Used in its crude form in the past by soldiers and the London Police Force (of all people) to fight infection, homeopathic gunpowder is still an excellent remedy today to prevent boils and abscesses developing in cuts and wounds.

    (Check Availability)

    Hypericum perforatum (Hyper.): For injuries to nerves and nerve rich areas such as finger tips and the spine.  Numbness and tingling. Pains shoot upwards along the nerve pathways. Also helpful for lacerations and puncture wounds.

    (Check Availability)

    Laurocerasus (Laur.): A good remedy for lack of reaction when the heart and /or respiratory system is in failure. The person may: be in a state of collapse; have chilliness that is unhelped by warmth; be gasping for breath or suffocating; and be blue or mottled. (Also see Carbo vegetabilis.)

    (Check Availability)

    Ledum palustre (Led.): Main remedy for mottled puncture wounds. Useful for sprained and twisted joints.

    (Check Availability)

    Natrum sulphuricum (Nat-s): For concussion and head injuries that potentially involve brain damage or bleeding into the brain. Also useful for some types of spinal injury.

    (Check Availability)

    Phosphorus (Phos.): The main remedy for electrical burns or electroshock. (See Urtica urens for 1st and 2nd degree burns, Cantharis for 2nd and 3rd degree burns, and Causticum for chemical burns.)

    (Check Availability)

    Staphysagria (Staph.): Especially useful for cuts and incisions that have clean rather than jagged edges. Promotes healing and reduces the risk of infection. Also helps the person process emotions following violations such as rape.

    (Check Availability)

    Symphytum officinale (Symph.): Known as the ‘Arnica of the eye’. Helpful when the eyeball has been punctured, ruptured or damaged. Also used in the ongoing repair of fractures.

    (Check Availability)

    Urtica urens (Urt-u): Main remedy for 1st and 2nd degree burns that sting, burn and possibly itch. An unusual symptom is that the burn may feel worse for cold water. (See Cantharis for 2nd and 3rd degree burns, Causticum for chemical burns, and Phosphorus for electrical burns.)

    (Check Availability)

    X-ray: Minimises genetic damage following exposure to radiation.

    (Check Availability)

    Dosage Guidelines

    Remedies can be used in any potency from 6C to 200C but remember, good results depend on getting the remedy right rather than getting the potency right. If none of the above potencies are available, dose with whatever one you have on hand. Because homeopathy is an intrinsically safe system of medicine, free of toxic effects, no harm will be done.

    How often to dose will depend on the intensity of the person’s symptoms and how quickly they respond to the remedy. Initial doses may be needed as often as every 15 seconds or at intervals of several hours. To find out more about dosing, read: How Often Should I Take a Dose of My Remedy.

    Other Articles

    Part 2: First Response Homeopathy: Remedies to Use in a Disaster (Mopping Up)

    Part 3: First Response Homeopathy: Remedies to Use in a Disaster (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder & Disaster Kit Remedies)

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