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“The long-term benefit of homeopathy to the patient is that it not only alleviates the presenting symptoms but it reestablishes internal order at the deepest levels and thereby provides a lasting cure.” George Vithoulkas, Director,Athenian School of Homeopathic Medicine The World Health Organization has cited homeopathy as one of the systems of traditional medicine that should be integrated worldwide with conventional medicine in order to provide adequate global health care. In Britain, homeopathic hospitals and out-patient clinics are part of the national health system, and homeopathy is recognized as a postgraduate medical specialty by virtue of an act of Parliament. Homeopathy has also enjoyed the patronage of the British royalfamilyfor the pastfour generations. The highest ideal of cure is the speedy, gentle, and enduring restoration of health by the most trustworthy and least harmfiil way. -Samuel Hahnemann,founder of Homeopathy Homeopathy is well suited to self-care and can become an integral part of your and your family's health maintenance program. Official acceptance of homeopathy and its integration into the American health care system couldprove to have an enormous impact on lowering the cost Of national health care due to the low cost, safety, and effectiveness of homeopathic remedies. |
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The Healing Crisis and Hering's Laws of Cure In homeopathy, the process of healing begins by eliminating the immediate symptoms, then progressing to the "older," underlying symptoms. Many of these "layers" are residues of fevers, trauma, or chronic disease that.were unsuccessfully treated or suppressed by conventional medicine. As the stages of homeopathic healing progress, the patient may get worse before getting better. This is often referred to as the "healing crisis." In the mid-nineteenth century, Dr. Constantine Hering, the father of American homeopathy, stated that healing progresses from the deepest part of the body to the extremities; from the emotional and mental aspects to the physical; and from the upper part of the body (head, neck, ears, throat) to the lower parts of the body (fingers, abdomen, legs, feet). Hering's Laws of Cure also state that healing progresses in reverse chronological order, from the most recent maladies to the oldest. By Hering's laws, homeopaths are able to track the progress of their treatment and restore a patient's health, layer by layer. An excellent example of homeopathic treatment is the case of a woman who suffered from lupus, a disease where the body's immune system attacks its own tissue. After years of unsuccessful conventional treatment, she was told that she could only expect a life of continued pain and drug dependency. In desperation, she turned to a homeopathic physician. First she was treated for drug dependency and the condition it was to relieve, pericarditis, an intensely painful inflammation of the outer lining of the heart. She was prescribed the remedy Cactus grandiflorus, a substance that, in healthy people, produces heart palpitations and depression. The homeopathic dose of Cactus grandiflorus reduced the inflammation, and a new set of symptoms emerged-anger, bitterness, and stresspowerful emotions she'd experienced prior to the emergence of her pericarditis. Nux vomica (poison nut) was then administered. A substance that produces hyperirritability and nervous cramping in healthy individuals helped her to overcome her emotional problems and progress to the next layer of healing. A recurrence of an old back pain and her phobia of cars emerged, the result of a serious accident and injury. As these conditions were treated, the woman was able to return fully to her life, healthy and free of pain.' Conditions Benefited by Homeopathy Homeopathy is a complete system of natural medicine that can have a therapeutic effect on almost any disease or health condition. "Homeopathy has been of tremendous value in reversing diseases such as diabetes, arthritis, bronchial asthma, epilepsy, skin eruptions, allergic conditions, mental or emotional disorders, especially if applied at the onset of the disease," states George Vithoulkas, Director of the Athenian School of Homeopathic Medicine in Athens, Greece. "The long-term benefit of homeopathy to the patient is that it not only alleviates the presenting symptoms but it reestablishes internal order at the deepest levels and thereby provides a lasting cure." Robert D. Milne, M.D., of Las Vegas, Nevada, reports excellent results in the prevention and treatment of acute cold and flu-like symptoms using homeopathic remedies. "The quick use of remedies, such as Aconite, Bryonia, and/or Belladonna, have been a great help in alleviating the acute symptoms of colds," says Dr. Milne. He also has had success treating conditions such as headaches and female health problems, including symptoms such as fatigue, irritability, premenstrual symptoms, neck stiffness, low back pain, and bloating with homeopathic remedies. Increasingly, clinical studies are supporting the effectiveness of homeopathic remedies. In a recent article published in the British Medical Journal, 107 controlled clinical studies (performed between 1966 and 1990) were reviewed. Eighty-one of these studies showed that homeopathic medicines were beneficial in treating headaches, respiratory infections, diseases of the digestive system, ankle sprains, postoperative infections and symptoms, and other health-related disorders. Studies attesting to the effectiveness of homeopathic treatment for rheumatoid arthritis have appeared in both The Lancet and the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. II In a double-blind study on the effects of homeopathic remedies on influenza, it was found that twice as many of the patients who took the homeopathic remedy were cured in forty-eight hours, as opposed to those who took a placebo, as reported in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology." Another clinical study shows the efficacy of treating hay fever with homeopathic remedies." A double-blind trial indicates that homeopathic remedies are extremely effective in dealing with dental neuralgic pain following tooth extraction .14 German research reports successful homeopathic treatment of Parkinson's disease, bronchitis, sinusitis, migraines," influenza, and motion sickness with homeopathic remedies |