What is Homeopathy?
Homeopathy is a natural healing modality that uses extreme dilutions of substances from nature to stimulate a healing response. It's based on the Law of Similars (also called Like Cures Like) which states that if a substance can cause symptoms in a healthy person in its crude form, then it can stimulate self-healing of similar symptoms in a sick person when prepared homeopathically.
For example, since onion in its crude form causes watery eyes and a runny nose, when prepared homeopathically it can be used to stimulate self-healing in an individual suffering from the same characteristic allergy symptoms (e.g. watery eyes and runny nose).
Likewise, since coffee in its crude form causes increased mental acuity, creativity, brain chatter, and insomnia, when prepared homeopathically it can be used to stimulate self-healing in an individual suffering from the same characteristic type of insomnia (e.g. increased mental acuity, creativity, and brain chatter.)
Homeopathy is holistic in the sense that is impacts the body and the mind - and as such, each homeopathic remedy has both a physical symptom picture and an emotional symptom picture. For example, the homeopathic remedy Silicea includes in its symptom picture the symptoms "fatigue, constipation with bashful stool, coldness, and milk craving", as well as the symptoms "timid, indecisive, fastidious about details."
The role of a homeopath is to understand these symptom pictures, to assess the symptom picture of the client (via an in-depth interviewing process), and then to select the homeopathic remedy which most closely matches the symptom picture of the client.
Client Symptom Picture <<< MATCH >>> Remedy Symptom Picture
= Innate Healing Response
Although often confused with herbal and nutritional medicine, homeopathy is distinctly different. Herbal and nutritional medicine are primarily physical forms of medicines, whereas homeopathy is an energetic form of medicine. Like other forms of energy medicine (e.g. acupuncture, acupressure, reiki, somatic emotional release, flower essences, etc.), homeopathy helps dissipate blockages in an individual's subtle energy that may be preventing the individual's body wisdom from healing the chronic or acute illness. When the blockages are released, the individual's body wisdom is freed up to do what it needs to do - restructure, reorganize, release, reconstruct, realign, etc.
It's this innate body intelligence that really brings about the healing that results from energetic healing modalities. I often compare this process to pushing a boulder over a cliff. It only takes one big shove in just the right place and then gravity takes over. Likewise, an individual may need only one homeopathic remedy to stimulate a deep and long lasting healing response.
For acute illnesses (e.g. cold, flu or sports injury), usually only one blockage is involved and so usually only one remedy is required. For most people with chronic illness, however, there are usually multiple blockages - in which case they often need a series of remedies over a period of time. Each remedy helps release a pattern of blockage, and assists the body wisdom in healing the chronic illness layer by layer.
Once a homeopathic remedy stimulates a healing response, the process often involves a release of thoughts or emotions that the individual may have suppressed in the past. This may come in the form of dreams, moodiness, flashbacks to the past, or even just a heightened awareness of negative thoughts and emotions. In homeopathy, as with other forms of energetic healing, this type of emotional release is typically followed by an innate restructuring process in which the body wisdom resolves chronic symptoms.
(For more information on the healing process involved with taking a homeopathic remedy see Before Taking a Remedy - What to Expect from Homeopathic Treatment and Frequently Asked Questions about What to Expect.)
Homeopathic remedies are prepared commercially by homeopathic pharmaceutical companies according to strict FDA guidelines. The preparation process includes repeated dilution and succussion (titration or shaking) of the original substance in a lactose or alcohol base.
The original substance can be the mother tincture of a plant (e.g. Belladonna), a powdered mineral (e.g. Silica), or an animal derived substance, such as dog's milk.
Typically, remedies come in the form of lactose tablets, sucrose pellets, or an alcohol solution. Remedies are sold in health food stores and homeopathic pharmacies, and typically cost between $7 and $11.
Homeopathic remedies are extremely safe. Because they work on an energetic level, they either create a resonance response in the individual taking the remedy or they don't. When there is a resonance response (i.e. the symptom pictures match), they stimulate a healing response. When there is no resonance response (i.e. the symptom pictures don't match), the individual's body ignores the remedy.
Homeopathic remedies have no side affects, do not interfere with the action of pharmaceutical medicines, and are thought by many to be one of the safest modalities during pregnancy.
For a more detailed overview of homeopathy, including a brief explanation of the some of the scientific explanations for its action, see Goldberg Group Write-Up on Homeopathy.
For more details on the history of homeopathy and/or scientific research related to homeopathy, see Recommended Homeopathic Web Sites.