HOMEOPATHIC HEALING

WELL DONE IS THE NEW RARE

2009-08-20T06:36:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning I got a call from my daughter, complaining of an upset stomach, that she had had all night. Earlier the night before, she had dinner at her grandmother's house, and ate steak, rather on the rare side. A few hours after dinner, the upset stomach and cramping started, and kept my daughter up all night. Then yesterday morning she called me with the stomach complaint, after finally throwing up. The dog threw up as well. My advise was arcenicum, the classic spoiled food remedy, even though the other 2 diners didn't get sick (well we know Grandma didn't get sick, but we don't know if the other person did, or not). My daughter, of course immediately took arcenicum, laid down for 2 hours, and then felt well enough to continue on her day. Another triumph for homeopathy, and a good lesson on eating meat in these times- cook until well done, as rare meat is not healthy. Well done is the new rare.

"FREE"? CREDIT REPORT...

2009-08-11T07:05:00.000-07:00

Your mental and emotional states, as we know, can largely effect your health. When you are stressed, your immune systems goes down, and when you are feeling on top of the world, it is often reflected in good health. Here's a story that sent my stress levels through the roof, and almost took my blood to the boiling point.

You see it everywhere- "free credit report". Well "free" to me implies there is no cost (correct me if I'm wrong). Even all the top financial wizards (Susie, Clark, etc.) suggest you get one (a free credit report), apparently unaware of the scam of it. The problem is, IT'S NOT FREE. By ordering your "free" report, you are committing to joining My Credit Health, a monthly credit monitoring system. It's hard as hell to cancel, and/or get back what they already debited (if you catch the fact that they charged you at all), not to mention the rude and snotty associates you might encounter. One of the best leveraging tactics for getting your money back was recently employed by my illustrious husband, who (upon informing he supervisor that he and recorded the previous conversation with their associate) promised to air it on You Tube, for all the world to hear. This type of announcement is often received by a moment of silence, and followed by a mush mouthed apology, credit as requested, and a weak "good bye". It is a glorious feeling to be David slaying Goliath once again.

ALISON'S FRIEND JACK

2009-08-03T07:55:00.001-07:00

My daughter Alison is a cosmetology student in Culver City California, just finishing up the program. She transferred from Pittsburgh, where she completed most of the hours she needs for licencing. Now, in a new city, she has a chance to share homeopathy with new friends. It is very exciting to see a friend in need, and be able to come up with a remedy to help.

Jack is one of her new friends at school; a nice looking Latino male, with beautiful skin, and very conscious of his looks. Last week, he decided to give himself a facial, using an acid peel. Apparently when he mixed up the potion, he got the ratio wrong, with too much acid in the mix. You can imagine what happened next------ red raw skin. Unsightly and uncomfortable.

Alison to the rescue. She's getting to be a very good remedy selector. I sent her out to Los Angeles about 6 weeks ago, with a fair supply of homeopathic products, including a basic 50 remedy kit as well as a few creams and ointments. After evaluating Jack, she came up with the remedy "sulphur", and also, rescue remedy cream (Bach flower essences) for topical application, not really knowing if Jack would be receptive to this, new-to-him modality. Miracle of miracles, he took a dose of sulphur and applied the cream, and his face began to transform back to his original texture and color. By the end of the day, his skin was almost normal. Shocked and grateful, I think we have another convert!!

HEAD, SHOULDERS KNEES AND TOES

2009-08-02T07:43:00.000-07:00

For me, it is shoulders. I've been battling a "frozen shoulders" condition, on and off for 5 years. I also have a array of other symptoms that need to be addressed, but this is the 1 that is at the top of the list of things that are bothering me. I called in Tom on the case. He was our original homeopathic practitioner from the early 2000's. Well, you know how it goes. You start with something new ( homeopathy was new, and Tom was new) and for 1 reason or another, you switch up practitioners, though you may eventually go back to them sometime in the future. I have consulted several practitioners over the past 8 years, but Tom has always been in the wings. He recently rescued my daughter from a horrific allergic reaction, so bad, that she had to spend an afternoon in the ER with an IV (which, by the way, did little to help her- it was the remedy called apis that pulled her through).

Next week, Tom is going to review my whole case, and hopefully fix up all my problems, especially my shoulders. I will surely keep you posted. If anyone has a good solution to my frozen shoulders, please feel free to comment.

REBECCA'S SISTER

2009-07-30T06:49:00.000-07:00

Rebecca is an attractive young woman in her 30's. I consider her to be strictly allopathic in thinking and practice, however she has one fantastic story about her younger sister, that is anything but allopathic. This is truly one of the worst medical nightmare/miracle, that I have ever heard. At the time, Sister (I'll call her sister because I don't even know her name) was 19 years, and had been diagnosed with bone cancer, with already 2 surgeries on the scoreboard.

With 2 unecessary surgeries and no where else to go, the doctors reluctantly gave Sister 6 months to live, and sent her home to die. Rebecca's parents, in a last ditch effort, somehow found a alternative medicine cancer clinic in Mexico, and took her south of the boarder, for "God knows what". We don't know exactly what therapies Sister received- she has never liked to talk about it, but Rebecca does think that acupuncture was a part of it. After several weeks of "God knows what", Sister was sent home, with literally bags of horse sized vitamins that she was to take. (I know that many doctors feel that vitamin and mineral deficiencies are at the root of many diseases, so intensive vitamin therapy in conjunction with other modalities, makes perfect sense). Sister left the clinic in Mexico cancer free, and remains cancer free to this day- she is now 33 years old. Here is the warning her American doctors gave her after she showed up with a clean bill of health- "Do not have children. Becoming pregnant can change your hormones and set off another bout of cancer." This was probably an legitimate warning, but dispite it, Sister has 4 beautiful children, and NO cancer.

WHEN THE BED FEELS TOO HARD, THINK ARNICA

2009-07-28T16:13:00.001-07:00

Almost every day, I hear a new and interesting story about homeopathy, in one way or another. Today I read about a woman who had been traveling once a month on business, and was becoming exhausted from it. At one point she became ill with flu like symptoms- fever, chills, restlessness, aching bones, and feeling like she just wanted to be left alone. That night she couldn't sleep. Restlessness and flu symptoms were keeping her up, along with tossing and turning, adjusting, and so forth. The bed felt hard and lumpy. After some time of discomfort passed, she even went so far as to turn her matress over because the bed felt so hard and she just couldn't get comfortable. All at once, a light went off in her head, and she immediately placed some 30c arnica pellets under her tongue, resulting in a calming and soothing of symptoms within moments. Now, arnica is the last remedy you would think of for flu like symptoms, however the mind set "wants to be left alone" screams arnica. Also, oddly enough, when the bed feels too hard, take arnica. I am not kidding. And I have come to learn that arnica has been widely used to treat exhaustion from travel. Very interesting use of arinica.

IT DOESN'T SURPRISE ME

2009-07-25T07:01:00.000-07:00

Just yesterday, I mentioned the problem with the summer camps being closed because of the swine flu. Today I read an interesting article, stating that Tamiflu (Oseltamivir) which has been a mainstay drug for swine flu, should not have been given to children to prevent the virus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Dr Anne Schuchat, made that announcement on Friday at a news conference.

What the article did not mention, is that during the flu epidemic of 1918, 28% of the flu victims who used conventional treatments, died, whereas only 1% of those using homeopathy died.

The Tamiflu had been considered an effective treatment to quell the flu symptoms. but as we know, the overusing of drugs allows viruses to develop resistance to medications, and Schuchat now says it's not a good idea for camps to have given Tamiflu to children who are not yet sick. I just thought I would mention too, that the known side effects to Tamiflu include nausea, vomiting, as well as abnormal behaviors such as self injury and delirium. Hummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

DON'T LEAVE HOME WITHOUT IT

2009-07-24T06:53:00.000-07:00

I haven't had a new blog lately because I have been working on my website, PEOPLES ORGANIC PHARMACY, due to launch in about a month. We will be selling homeopathic remedies, kits, books, etc., on the site, as well as have interesting videos, articles and important health updates to keep you informed. I am also expanding my money management business, and have just completed a site pertaining to that which you might want to explore http://www.missmoneymanager.weebly.com.

One cool item that will be available on the pharmacy site, is a homeopathy travel kit. It is a small plastic box, with pigeon holes for 18 remedy vials. The remedies in the kit cover food poisoning, cold and flu, fever, strains and sprains, trauma or allergic reaction, sun stroke and more. Imagine being on a cruise where the whole ship comes up sick from flu or food poisoning. If you had your kit, you'd be covered. Recently, many summer camps throughout the country are shutting down because of the swine flu. I always sent my daughter to camp with remedies in backpack, especially, apis for the bug bites that invariably got red and puffy. A travel kit should be standard gear when you or your children are away from home. Hopefully, you won't have to use it!

AVIAN FLU

2009-07-20T10:00:00.000-07:00

The BBC is reporting disturbing news about the H5N1 strain of the avian flu, now rearing it's ugly head in Turkey. Guenael Rodier of the World Health Organization said there are 45 cases now under investigation, and that the avian flu was "well established" in the region. To further add to this outbreak, some of the local farmers are refusing to hand over their dead chickens to authorities, although I cannot imagine what they might be doing with them instead! At least 2 people in Turkey have been killed with their deaths linked to the avian flu.

I use homeopathy for all flu- any flu. There are kits available which cover 95% of all influenza. I also use the continued study of the upper worlds, through Kabbalah, to seek light from the ultimate healer.

Nature is always coming up with new things to make us wake up and ponder the meaning of our lives. How can we take this outbreak of disease, and turn it into a personal correction, that will ultimately change the world?

SWAMP FEVER

2009-07-18T02:58:00.000-07:00

Each year after hurricane season, many Cubans are hit with leptospirolis, commonly known as swamp fever. Protocol for prevention, until now, was an aggressive vaccine program, costing the tiny island about 3 million each year however, hundreds were still stricken, and many cases resulted in death. In December 2008, an international conference was held at the Finlay Institute in Cuba, attended by world renown homeopaths from South American, Australia, Canada, Kenya, and Cuba. During this conference, the Cubans announced that a "nosode" (a homeopathic preparation of less than a molecule of substance) to prevent leptospirolis was given to the populous in place of the vaccine, with incredible success. The nosode directs the body to produce antibodies against the leptospirolis. Subsequent to this new approach, only a few cases of swamp fever were reported, and NO deaths. It cost Cuba only about $250,000 to supply their citizens with this simple and effective remedy, not to mention the suffering and death that was averted. Michael Moore had it all going on when he took a rag tag group of sick and beaten down Americans to Cuba, where most of them were transformed into healthy beings, in the movie SICKO. Thanks Michael, for bringing forth all this vital information, as you do.

KING COBRA

2009-07-16T05:58:00.000-07:00

No, I'm not talking about the big snake, but health care insurance that can choke your finances. For three months now, I have been in the company of the unemployed. After over five years as a loan officer for a company owned by the world's largest bank, consumer lending (6,000 of us) was shut down, without so much as a day's notice. In a gesture of generosity (ha ha) the company paid our health insurance premium for the next 60 days, and then we were on our own. Enter Cobra, stage right. Now health insurance is something I have always opted to have, as one never knows what type of emergency might come up- from broken bones, to stitches needed, burns, urgent breathing issues, etc. As an employee of a huge company, my portion of the monthly premium ran me about $125 every other week, which included medical, dental, and eye for a family of three, on a Blue Cross PPO. That means I can choose my own doctor ( with a higher co pay) or take a network doctor for a lesser co pay. But there is always a co pay, and I didn't mention that my deductible was $750 a year, per person. Now when Cobra kicks in, my premium goes up to $800 per month. That's right folks, $800 a month, along with a $750 deductible yearly times three. That's $11,850 out of pocket each year, from the gate!!!! I have no choice but to go on, with ablsolute certainty, that I or my family will NOT get sick, or that the issues that come up can be handled with homeopathy, cause I sure as heck am not going with King Cobra.

JIM THE DENTAL TECH

2009-07-13T06:39:00.001-07:00

We've know Jim for years. He's Dr. Lisa's right hand man at the dental office. Recently, he complained to me about severe pain in the gall bladder area, often after eating and sometimes in the middle of the night. There were no other remarkable symptoms he had to relate to me. Jim had been advised to have some sort of x rays taken that required radioactive dye, time, money, and further discomfort beyond what he was already experiencing. The bottom line to gall bladder problems is ultimately surgery to remove it, but I suggested he call Jimmie, my husband, who has become an excellent lay remedy selector, before getting into all that.

Jim did finally call, too stubborn and macho to submit to the testing and desperate for some relief. We did an intake on him, considering his visual attributes, personality traits, and symptoms. After several remedies came up that seem to fit the case and not really sure which one to try, we decided on a gallbladder formula, that combined several of the remedies we had in mind. The formula included lycopodium (the classic "right sided" remedy- gall bladder being on the right side of body) and berbis, often used to dislodge kidney stones as well as any blockage that might exist in the gall bladder.

Two weeks passed, and no word from Jim. We finally called him, to get a report on his condition. "Well"" he said (they always start off with that "well", when a remedy gives a person immediate relief, and they can't believe it or understand it- they just know it worked). He had taken a dose of the formula in the car on his way home from our house, and got, literally instant relief, but thought it might be placebo, and continued to drive home. He used the formula a few times during the week, prior to his vacation. A week later, he was eating crab by the bucket, and drinking beer on the Maryland shore, without incident. Here is a wonderful example of how a die hard allopathic man turned to homeopathy, became symptom free, and averted potential surgery.

SULPHUR SAVES BRANDI

2009-07-12T12:36:00.000-07:00

Sulphur is what is called an inter current remedy. It is used in acute cases, such as Brandi's upset stomach, or blockage, or pancreatitis, or whatever it really was. Brandi is our 8 year old dog- husky/rottie mix. We've had her for 2 years without issue- we adopted her from the humane society. Forth of July proved too much for the dog, and she stopped eating promptly after the 4th. Unable to reach my homeopathic vet, who lives in Maine, and does telephone consults, I had to resort to a local allopathic vet, for blood work and x rays. $300 later, we walked out of the vet's office with clean blood work and an xray that showed something in the pancreas area. No medicine- no cure. We were left to our computer and books to try to select a remedy for Brandi who clearly was uncomfortable, and continued to refuse food. My brilliant husband came up with sulfur, which is often used as a opening remedy when beginning treatment on a case. Sulphur is said to bring the issues to the surface. In Brandi's case, we had complete success. It took about 3 days, a bland diet, and hand feeding. Today, I put down a bowl of food, and she ate as if nothing ever happened. We are thrilled and relieved. Aside from some arthritis in the hips, Brandi should be with us for many years to come.

IN TOM WE TRUST

2009-07-08T15:41:00.000-07:00

Remember I warned you about the importance of observation when analyzing a case? Well, again I missed the call with my daughter's swollen head- it was not sunburn but a severe allergic reaction. We were not having success with belladona or arnica, so she did end up at the emergency room this morning, with my full support, as her head and eyes were swollen beyond belief and I knew some type of emergency intervention was needed, if only some heavy duty first aid. They identified her condition as allergic reaction (to what, we do not know), and gave her Benadryl, iv, and sent her home, still very swollen and ET looking. Funny enough, Alison had taken a few does of apis, for allergy, the night before, but we came to learn it wasn't taken frequently enough. Alison had been scheduled to have her case evaluated with our original homeopathist, Tom, who we have known since the early 2000's, but then this came up, so she ended up on the phone with him for an emergency call, to get a remedy today after the leaving the hospital. He praised the selection of apis, but showed us the error of our ways- she didn't take frequent doses until relief felt. Right remedy, but wrong dosing. Now Alison is resting at Grandma's having dinner, and sounding much better. Her photo looks better too- I've been having her send picture updates to monitor the situation. Ok, I gave the hospital a chance, and they fell short. Now it's on you, Tom!

NERVES OF STEAL

2009-07-07T18:35:00.000-07:00

It takes nerves of steal to hear your daughter in physical distress, and not direct her to the nearest emergency room. With 2,000 miles between us, I panic at every sprained ankle, every head ache, every sunburn. We, as mothers, as a society, have been programed all our lives to run to "professionals" in buildings called "hospitals" to have our fates determined, whenever we fall ill or need first aid. Alison's latest trauma is a severe sunburn- something she has never before experienced, and she is truly miserable. After recommending glonoinum (for sunstroke) with no result, I had her move on to belladona, which is great for any type of heat, even sunburn. I won't hear from my daughter until tomorrow, but I think we headed off another potential trip to the ER. I hope the belladona will work, and that Alison can sleep tonight. A tepid bath with callandula solution in it, will surely ease the pain and relax the mind as well. Good night, Alison.

THE MORNING AFTER

2009-07-05T07:51:00.000-07:00

If you are anything like me, and even if you are not, last night was a blow out of fun, friends, food, and drink. The weather in Pittsburgh has been coolish, far from the humid and sticky 4ths I remember- perfect for sitting, sipping, and munching, which is exactly what we did last night, amidst the clap of fireworks and barking dogs. The menu was excessive to begin with (for only 10 of us)- lamb kabobs with saffron rice, roasted wings with cilantro dipping sauce, potato salad, fruit salad, tangy greens, and brownies- ALL HOME MADE. Libations included a nice selection of Belgian beers, and a new liquor called Canton, a ginger and Cognac blend ,champange rasberry sorbetwith a berry reduction sauce. Ok ok, I'll stop. Now, it's tomorrow and my stomach and head are very sorry for everything, so I am letting a few pellets of nux vomica melt under my tongue, and can feel my full head and nauseous stomach fade as I write. It is amazing how quickly how I feel, is being transformed. For those of you who definitely over drank to the point of constant vomiting, let me suggest ipecac. If you were smart, and only slightly over did it, and suffer find mild indigestion, 1 or 2 doses of nat phos should do you right. I hope everyone who partied last night, has the chance to relax today, and has the remedies on hand to assist any discomfort from the night before.

DO WHAT COMES NATURALLY

2009-07-03T06:46:00.001-07:00

There's been a lot of buzz in our family lately about the new baby coming. My nephew Philip and his wife Deborah are having the first of a new generation to our family, and we are all very excited. But, and there's always a "but", Phil and Deborah are planning a home birth, which concerns my very allopathic family. I must say, as natural as I am, the thought of not having emergency facilities put me a little aback, as well. But fate, as it goes, stepped in, and sat down right next to me on my recent flight back to Pittsburgh, from Los Angeles. Fate, was a large set older woman, with a warm smile and bright eyes. Much of the flight went by with nothing but a little pleasant small talk between us, and then suddenly, she told me she was an educator, who just gave a graduation speech at a college she had founded. Turns out she was also a midwife who had assisted in many home births. She revealed a series of stories about her own three girls who had had home births, the competency of the midwifes, and the fact that there were no statistics supporting a higher rate of fatalities in home births. If having your child at home is your choice, it would be wise to have a few basic homeopathic remedies on hand, for birth time. Deborah, this is for you: for morning sickness use ipecac, nux vomica or pulsatilla. For constipation during pregnancy try bryonia. If labor is coming too fast, with sharp unbearable pains and you feel in a panic, take aconite. If labor is too slow (cervix not dilating) and pains are ineffectual, then you woud need caullophullum. Kali phos is a must for simple exhaustion during labor. Pulsatilla is the remedy for post-natal blues. Arnica, during and after the birth, will help with the birth trauma. And for nursing mothers, try mastitis for painful nipples or slow milk flow. The gentle system of homeopathy is ideal for treating babies, but I will leave that for another blog. Health and much happiness to you both, Phil and Deborah, and to new baby, too.

A PICTURE WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS

2009-07-01T07:36:00.000-07:00

For any of you following my blog, you might want to hear the outcome of poor Alison's foot. After a day of being terrified that my daughter might have a raging infection in her foot, and imagining all sorts of horrible outcomes, I finally got a better understanding of just what was actually going on. As it turns out, the redness was confined to the blister area only, NOT the whole foot. True, the foot was very swollen, but not red. This changes things significantly. Now I am considering a dual situation 1. a blister 2. a sprained ankle. After soaking out all the infection of the blister (until only clear liquid came out), we changed the remedy to arnica, the classic strain and trauma remedy, which immediately did it's thing to reduce the swelling and ease the pain. A combination of bad shoes, and on-her-feet all day, caused both the blister and the swollen foot, but not being able to see the foot, caused me to have the wrong impression, and ultimately select the wrong remedy. Bottom line is, never forget the importance of visual observation in analyzing a case.

WHEN TO VISIT THE ER

2009-06-29T11:14:00.000-07:00

Today again, my faith was tested. Should we move forward with the appropriate homeopathic remedies, or run down to the emergency room.

My 23 year old daughter recently relocated from Pittsburgh to Los Angeles, (with a brand new 50 remedy kit in tow), and my Mom who lives there too, called this morning concerned about a blister on Alison's foot, that had become infected along wth her foot being red and swollen.

I immediately went to my reference guides, and with recognition, found belladona and apis, as well as aconite. It all makes sense- acontite for inflamation, and belladona for infection and redness, and apis is the classic bee sting remedy, also for redness and swelling. But Mom wants Alison brought to the ER to be handled there. I would like to try homeopathy first. I am not knocking the ER. By all means, when breathing is compromised, an appendix burst, when bone setting and stitches are needed, and so forth, go to the ER. For infection and swelling that becomes alarming and seems to have gotten out of control, try remedies first, and if no success is received, then definitely seek another route!

IF I HAD IT TO DO OVER AGAIN...

2009-06-27T12:39:00.000-07:00

My daughter Alison, was born in 1986 in Los Angeles California, and upon her birth was given all the childhood vaccinations of the time. I remember the vacant look in her eyes after her vaccination given at age 18 months. I fully beleived that a vaccinated child was a well protected child, though I now regret not only the vaccinations, but the whole way I thought of, and handled my family's healthcare. I became disenchanted with Western Medicine, and started dabbling in Chinese herbs and accupuncture, as well as B.E.S.T. chiropractics (of which I still receive treatments), but didn't actually discover homeopathy until the late 90's. Looking back, I now know that in raising my child, I could have dealt with the teething and fussyness, the earaches, the nervousness before a party or test at school, the acne, and the menstrual cramps- ALL with homeopathic remedies, that I could have easily selected at home, without ever leaving for a doctor's exam.

One of the interesting features of homeopathy, is that remedies for humans, are the same remedies used for animals. I once gave a baby Cardinal who was in shock, a drop of aconite water, and she suddenly broke into song. We used arnica to shrink a tumor on one of our beloved dogs. Belladona was used to reduce the fever of a very sick cat.

If I had it to do over again, homeopathy would have been me and my family's mainstay medicine, early on. I am sure that we would have been healthier and happier, not to mention we would have saved the over $100,000 paid out in medical insurance premiums over the years, as that too became an unnecessary commodity.