"I have taken my homeopathic remedy. Now, what can I expect to happen?"
Well, that depends. Today, we’ll talk about what to look for in an acute illness after taking a well-indicated remedy.
Generally speaking in homeopathy, a person suffering an acute ailment should be feeling a little better in a short amount of time and significantly better within 24 hours. We’re not looking for perfection, remember… we are looking for improvement or, “moving in the direction of cure” is the homeopathic terminology.
In terms of an acute illness, if after a few doses you are not feeling any improvement, there’s a good chance it is not the correct remedy for this immediate situation. Once again, we’re not looking for perfection.
If we’re not looking for perfection, what are we looking for?
Let’s use a stomach bug as an example, since it's going around these days. (See Nobody Needs a Nasty Nauseating Norovirus for some remedy ideas.) With our pretend bug, our pretend symptoms are:
headache
nausea with loss of appetite
burps
stomach pain
loose stools, feeling like full blown diarrhea is on the way
dizziness
chilly
irritable
A general rule of thumb in an acute illness is to repeat the remedy every 15-20 minutes for an hour. After that hour is up, re-assess. There should be some level of improvement, even if it's small.
What do we want to see happening with our stomach bug sufferer after taking some Nux vomica, which seems to be a pretty good fit for these symptoms? We want to see something shift in a positive direction.
We want to see the headache lessen a bit and the mood to lift.
We want to see the nausea ease up a bit and maybe be interested in entertaining the idea of some food again some day.
Burps, which were very sour and very frequent and even a little painful, are now a little less sour and not quite so frequent and they no longer hurt.
The tender, sore stomach is a little less tender and those waves of pain are now coming every few minutes instead of being constant.
The loose stools have ceased and diarrhea no longer feels imminent.
The dizziness which was constant is now only once in a while.
The blanket you couldn’t bear to part with is now just covering your still chilly feet after the rest of you has warmed up a little.
See what I mean? Not perfection, but definite improvement. Maybe not everything lifts all at once, but some of these symptoms should be heading in the right direction.
Now that things are improving a bit, back off the frequency of taking the remedy. Now, take it maybe once an hour, or if and when the symptoms return. If you find yourself snuggling under that blanket again or the sour burps are returning, it’s time to repeat the remedy, regardless of timing.
One of the best indications that a remedy is headed in the right direction is that the person feels better in themselves: they are less grumpy, or their energy picks up a bit, or their concentration improves. These can be subtle changes, so keep an eye out for them. For example, our stomach bug sufferer — they may still be feeling a little nauseous but they are now able to concentrate on that book or movie. These improvements in the mental and emotional arena are very good indications that the remedy is a good fit for the current situation.
If the symptoms change, it may be time to find a new remedy. Some acute illnesses require “chasing” the symptoms which requires sequential remedies.
Remember… improvement, not perfection, is what we’re after.
Julia Coyte, CHom
Classically Practical homeopath
#wellnessawaits