We have encountered few common queries regarding the Homeopathic way of treatment during more than 25 years of practice. People want to know about the medicines and the rules to be followed during treatment. Here we are attempting to answer all your questions on one page itself.
Why homeopathic doctor wants to know all about patient’s body from head to toe and why he wants to know about patient’s whole life including psyche, housing, relationship, economical conditions, past and current circumstances, likes and dislikes and so many more things? Sometimes it seems totally unrelated to patient’s principal complaint!
This is known as history taking in Homeopathy. Homeopathy is a holistic science, it considers whole patient as going through some discomfort or say disease. It does not consider its patients in parts like liver, lung, heart, brain and joints. Consequently, it considers healing whole human being from disease and never targets at rectifying just one organ or system of the body. To ful fill the purpose of this holistic healing, Homeopathic doctor does require knowing patient in its full totality. Now you must have got some idea regarding why we ask and examine so many aspects of patient’s body, mind and life. This approach puts Homeopathy far ahead of other systems of treatment because it delivers complete and permanent cure by devising very individualistic plan for each and every patient. No two patients in homeopathy receive the same treatment even if the diagnosis is same in Homeopathic way of treatment.
Why all Homeopathic medicines look same, either sweet sago like pills or sweet lactose powder? Even about it all medicines taste the same! Sometimes we wonder if the doctor is giving same single medicine to all the patients all the time?
Actually the sago like pills or lactose powder you see and receive, as medicine is just carriers or say vehicle of the medicine. The real medicine is in liquid form. Homeopathic medicines are made in base of absolute alcohol and it is colorless because the medicine in it is in highly diluted state and probably in Nano quantity. This liquid medicine is pored over that sago like pills or lactose powder so , all medicines look alike and taste alike in Homeopathy. Homeopathy boasts of more than 2500 known and proven medicines and a single Homeopathic doctor uses around 500 medicines out of these many medicines routinely. No doctor can cure all the patients and all the diseases; just by using a single medicine, you can easily understand that. Never ever think that your Homeopathic doctor is giving you and all other patients the one and same medicine. All patients do require different medicines as per their disease and individuality.
Why sometimes it happens that the complaints of the patients increase initially and then gets cured on taking Homeopathic medicines? Why the medicine given for relief of the complaint, increases it?
This is known as aggravation in Homeopathic vocabulary. It can happen sometime if the patient is very sensitive to the selected medicine. In Homeopathy, medicines are selected according to law of similar. In short, it means that the Homeopathic doctor selects that exact medicine to cure your ailment, which medicine is known to have power to produce the same sort of ailment in an otherwise healthy body. This may give rise to mild upsurge in the sufferings of the patient but it is temporary phenomena and eventually the patient gets cured soon.
When we take modern medicine, our fever goes down within an hour but same thing doesn’t happen in Homeopathic treatment. It takes day or two for fever to subside. Why it is so?
In modern medicine, the fever is targeted first with some chemicals, which can block body’s defence mechanism, which produces fever. Fever is outcome of body’s own defense mechanism’s effort to restrict the growth and count of invaded microorganisms in the body and Homeopathy considers those microorganisms as enemy, not the fever that the body has brought on in self defense! Hence, Homeopathic treatment targets first at the cause of the fever, the microorganisms and it is considered here that the fever will come down by itself once the enemy is destroyed. This is the reason behind slow disappearance of fever under Homeopathic treatment in comparison of modern medicine. The fever, which is reduced chemically as in modern medicine, comes back invariably as the cause of the fever, the microorganisms are still existent. Whereas in Homeopathy, the fever comes down only after destruction of microorganisms and so it doesn’t come back again.
Does Homeopathic doctors use steroids to treat diseases?
We have seen many times that when the Homeopathic medicines work like miracle and bring on amazingly fast recovery; the patient suspects that the doctor must have used some sort of steroid drugs in the treatment. This is not true. The fact is, there are no steroids used in Homeopathic treatment. Beware; if somebody is misguiding you; ask your Homeopathic doctor first about your doubts. You are free to subject your given medicine to go under chemical tests to detect presence of steroids in it. The result will come negative for presence of steroids invariably! I assure you that there are no steroids in Homeopathic medicines. Inventor of Homeopathy, Dr. Hahnemann never knew about steroids…!So, relax.
Is a Homeopathic doctor is well trained, well educated and competentenough in comparison of a doctor belonging to modern medicinal science?
Answer is big YES. Yes, the homeopathic doctor from whom you are getting treatment is equally knowledgeable and competent in comparison of the doctor belonging to modern medicinal science. Homeopathic doctor is also taught all the subjects that are taught to doctor belonging to modern medicine. Homeopathic doctor does make diagnosis like them. Homeopathic doctors do ask for laboratory investigations as per the requirement of the case. Only difference that comes in to play is at the time of the therapeutics (treatment); the Homeopathic doctor will treat the diagnosed condition with Homeopathic medicines whereas the modern medicine doctor will proceed according to his method of treatment. Government has endowed equal authority to both the doctors (Homeopathic as well as that of modern medicine) to issue medico legal certificates and issue death certificate in case of death of the patient. Inference is, Homeopathic doctors are not less competent.
Why there is no surgery in Homeopathy? Why no Homeopathic doctor is a surgeon?
Here you need to understand clearly that medicine and surgery are two completely different sciences. Any disease has two option of getting treated, first one is medicine and if medicine is not enough for the situation, there comes in to play surgery. Any medical graduate needs to learn surgery as his post graduation study if he wants to become a surgeon. In India, the graduate from the side of Homeopathy is not allowed or say not offered any post graduation course in surgery. So, obviously, there are no Homeopathic surgeons. If government had offered learning surgery to graduates of Homeopathy also; there would have been plenty of them right now.
Are there any rules and dietary restriction to be followed during Homeopathic treatment?
Yes they are there but are very simple to follow and there are minimal dietary restrictions in Homeopathy. Let me tell you these rules and let me explain the reason behind insisting on you following them.
Don’t touch the medicines with your hands. If given in a paper pack, take directly from the paper and if it is given in small bottle, bring out the required amount of medicine in to the bottle cap and take in to your mouth directly from it, without touching it. The reason behind this instruction is due to the fact that Homeopathic medicines are in nano quantity and are considered to be having electric like energy, which can be drained away on touching them.
Don’t use any metal container, metal and spoon to store and consume the medicines. Use non-conductors like plastic, wood, paper or glass for storing and consuming the medicines. The reason behind this once again, is the same; the electric like energy in medicine may go away and get spoilt if it comes in to contact of good conductor like metal. Use any nonconductor.
Chew your Homeopathic medicines but don’t swallow it with water, as you were use to with modern medicines. Reason behind this is; Homeopathic medicines are in form of sweet pills or globules and since they have pleasant taste, you need not swallow them like bitter modern medicines, you may simply chew them. Secondly, since the Homeopathic medicines are in Nano quantity, they may get spoiled on getting mixed with the consumed food which is still there in your stomach. So, just chew them and they will enter your body directly through the nerves and blood vessels in inner lining of your mouth.
Do not eat or drink anything immediately before and after consuming Homeopathic medicines, keep gap of at least 15 to 20 minutes. You may take your medicines before or after your food but keeping this small gap is good for you and for display of full effect of the medicine. You may have little plain water if you are thirsty during these 15-20 minutes but nothing besides water. Reason is same; the medicine in Nano quantity can get spoilt in your mouth itself if your mouth still has smell, particles and taste of the food you have just eaten
During span of ongoing treatment, avoid eating high smelling things like onions and garlic and avoid drinking high smelling beverages like coffee and alcohol. The reason behind this instruction is: it is observed that consuming such high smelling things tend to destroy the beneficial effect of the given Homeopathic medicine.