Ruminating on Remedies, My thoughts on homeopathy

8/30/2021

The Eiffel Tower in My Mouth

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We have a really good dentist. I've never been so pleased with a dentist -- at least not since our kids were little and the new dentist at the time had TV screens running whatever show they wanted to see.

I found our new dentist after learning about tongue ties. I knew vaguely what they were, of course. But, I never dreamed that I might be suffering from ankyloglossia until some relatives discovered that was the problem with their children. It all tied in for me then and I investigated the subject for myself. That's when I discovered I had the Eiffel Tower Type tongue tie. (I also had the lip tie and the buccal tie. I had the lip released but they left the buccal alone).

As I do with everything, I investigated the heck out of what this could mean to me. It tied into my jaw issues and the fact that my tongue absolutely ached after reading out loud to my kids, my many wakings during the night, neck pain, etc. I researched dentists in town who deal with this sort of thing. I went to see her, the tongue tie was confirmed and the Myofunctional Therapy followed straight away. (In adults, the tongue muscle needs to be exercised before this procedure is done.)

Then the day came for the procedure. You can look the procedure up on-line, but essentially, they slice down the center of the frenulum (thus the term frenectomy for the procedure). I have to tell you… I read reports of people saying they could feel their neck muscles "ping" as they let go. While I did experience a bit of that, the biggest thing for me was the sense of freedom I felt when the frenulum was cut loose. I literally felt like I was flying free, soaring. It was the most amazing feeling in the world. Then, they sewed it back up again. My Eiffel Tower is gone, my tongue has much more freedom, (I never understood how someone could ever swallow their tongue in an emergency situation -- now, I see that it is possible!), and, I felt like I was getting full breaths of air. An amazing amount of oxygen was entering my body for the first time in my life!

As you can imagine, a frenectomy can be uncomfortable. Homeopathy can and did help! My dentist gave me a local phone number to purchase an aftercare kit. This kit included a salve made of coconut oil mixed with Bach Original Rescue Remedy and Vitamin E. It turns out the woman who makes the kits was once upon a time a classical homeopathy student but never finished her schooling. The salve was the bomb-diggity, I tell you. In addition to the salve, I kept a little glass of water with Hypericum in it. I sipped from that, as needed the first night. It was a very fast recovery, actually. It got a little achy when resuming the tongue exercises, but nothing a little Arnica couldn't help.

If you think tongue tie may be an issue for you or your child, I encourage you to investigate the issue. And, if you decide to have the procedure, remember the homeopathic remedies Hypericum, Arnica and Rescue Remedy -- along with coconut oil -- for a fast recovery.

Links to learn more: Tongue Tie; Frenuloplasty; Myofunctional Therapy. (I did not use the services of this doctor, I only used his site for research purposes.)

Photo by Kreshen on Unsplash

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8/26/2021

I did a doozy…

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The before picture was immediately after the injury. The after photo was taken about 6 weeks later.

Graphic content warning. If you’re squeamish, you can start at the 3rd paragraph.

Back in February of this year, I did a doozy. In hindsight, I perhaps shouldn’t have been handling a knife. I was having an “off” day. But, life goes on and I was preparing dinner and slicing a sweet potato. Turns out I sliced a nice hunk off the pad of my left ring finger!

That was shocking, I tell you. The blood was profuse. My finger was throbbing with pain. Part of my finger remained on the blade of the knife. My husband happened to be on the phone with his cousin/doctor who informed him that there was not much that could be done since there was no skin left to reattach. I paced around with my arm straight up over my head to hopefully staunch the bleeding, but it didn’t help much.

Start here, if you're squeamish.
I am happy to say we have a good first aid kit at home* and my husband and son went to work to get me bandaged up. Meanwhile, I went to my cupboard and took Hypericum 30x which happened to be sitting in the kitchen cupboard from the last time one of us had some dental work done. The pain very quickly abated. Hypericum is well known homeopathic remedy for its positive effect on nerve rich areas and “lacerations with intolerable pains.” That fit the description of what was happening for me, I assure you.

I also right away took a dose each of homeopathic Aconite and Arnica to address the shock and some Phosphorus for the bleeding. With my finger wrapped up well and propped on a pillow for the night and a couple of doses of Hypericum 200c in me, I miraculously got a pretty good night’s sleep. I took very good care of myself and my poor, sore finger for the next few days, but I still managed to develop an infection. I did an on-line call with a physician who prescribed both an antibiotic and a silver ointment. I filled the prescription for the antibiotic (just in case) but I chose to first treat the infection using only homeopathy, which I successfully did. (I did use the silver ointment for a couple of days because it needed something between the wound and the bandaid.)

I continued with the Hypericum 200c and then I added Arnica routinely after learning about a study showing the positive effects of Arnica on tissue development and healing. Once the skin had grown back, I used Helios’ Healing Cream for a few more weeks. This cream is made from tinctures of Calendula and Symphytum with Thiosinaminum 6x and Vitamin E oil.

Calendula has a long history of wound healing in the herbal world. (Follow these links for a review of Calendula’s wound healing properties in canine dermatology and a study on Symphytum’s beneficial effects on human skin fibroblasts.) And here for a 1910 article talking about the fact that “thiosinamine is not a new drug” and has been used in treating scars since way back when.

It’s been 6 months and I am happy to say that with the help of homeopathy, the skin grew back on my finger — you really have to look at it in the right light to see the circle of scar tissue. It is tender now and again if I knick it or pinch it but, all in all, I am pleased with how this potentially disastrous situation turned out.

NOTE: This is how I decided to treat my injury. I am not recommending anyone who suffers a similar fate to do it this way. Emergency rooms are there for this very reason.

* If you don’t have a good first aid kit at home, I suggest you get on that. Most of the readily available kits are pretty lame, in my opinion. The big kit we have at home I created over the years after researching what may be needed in an emergency. Recently, I found really good kits from My Medic. I keep one of these in the RV and have been very pleased with it. I do not have any affiliation with this company, I just like their products. https://mymedic.com

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8/23/2021

Tonsil Stones?!?!

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Tonsil stones?!?

Early on in my homeopathic training, a friend’s son was scheduled for surgery to remove his tonsils. I had my tonsils out as a kid and as an adult, I realize having tonsils would be a useful thing. They are not as expendable as doctors might otherwise have you believe.

What are tonsils? According to Taber’s Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary, tonsils are “a mass of lymphoid tissue in the mucus membranes of the pharynx and base of the tongue.” Let’s break that down further, again using Taber. Lymphoid: "Pertaining to lymphocytes." Lymphocyte: "A white blood cell responsible for much of the body’s immune protection." It sounds to me like tonsils are an important part of your immune system and may best be left intact. In fact, according to What are the Organs of the Immune System (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279395/), “Because of their location at the throat and palate, they can stop germs entering the body through the mouth or the nose. The tonsils also contain a lot of white blood cells, which are responsible for killing germs.” Yep. Tonsils sound useful to me.

Back to my friend’s son who was scheduled to have these useful things removed. The reason he was scheduled for surgery was recurring tonsillitis and the presence of tonsil stones. At that time, I had never even heard of tonsil stones. Turns out a tonsillolith is “a calculus in a tonsil.” There’s no difficult math equation hiding in the tonsil (I crack myself up sometimes! 😂), a calculus is “a stone, usually composed of mineral salts” (Taber). A quick search of the Internet shows they can either be asymptomatic or be a cause of sore throats.

As I said, I was brand new to homeopathy, and I had just learned about the cell salt Silicea (or Silica). Silicea is known to push things out. And push things out this Silicea 6x did indeed do for this young man. He not only spit out a bunch of tonsil stones, an old splinter that had been lodged in his leg for years popped out! (And, they cancelled the surgery because his recurring tonsillitis stopped. Yay!)

I knew homeopathy was good, but hearing a report like this, just as I was getting underway with my studies certainly propelled me along.

If you (or your child) is suffering from recurrent sore throats, homeopathy may be able to help, whether from tonsil stones, strep throat or a hoarse voice/sore throat from over use.

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8/21/2021

A Pain in the Neck

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A stiff neck is more than a pain in the neck. A stiff neck can ruin your day and your sleep! Grumpiness sets in. Driving is difficult and forget reversing out of your garage — that’s not even an option! The fatigue from the missing sleep sets you up for more stiffness and holding your neck in a position to keep the pain (somewhat) at bay can cause other muscular problems to follow.

Bad pillows. Too much computer work. Old injuries. Long drives. It doesn’t matter what has caused the pain.

Torticollis, the official name for a stiff neck, can result in pain, neck spasms, and the inability to turn your head. Traditional therapy may include heat, physical therapy or wearing a neck collar.

The Banerji’s have provided another homeopathic option. Symphytum 200c mixed with Rhus tox 30c is the Banerji Protocol for this pain. Drop a couple of pellets of each of the homeopathic remedies in your mouth at the same time and let them dissolve. Repeat twice daily, or even more frequently as indicated by the pain and discomfort.

Symphytum officinale, also known as comfrey or “knit bone” is a well known homeopathic remedy to assist in bone fractures, but it is also very helpful for backaches/pain from overexertion and injuries to cartilage, ligaments, joints and tendons — with excessive pain.

Rhus tox is a go-to homeopathic remedy for joint pains that are worse at first movement. If you’ve had a stiff neck, you know that initial turn of the head can be excruciating, a symptom indicating that Rhus tox is a good fit for this condition.

I have had clients who have experienced relief in seconds from this homeopathic combination, but not everybody’s pain will resolve that quickly. What you’re looking to happen is a little less stiffness; a longer period of time before the stiffness sets in again and ultimately a return back to a normal swivel and unhindered activities.

Not all stiff necks are a simple fix and may need further homeopathic investigation. If you find yourself in that position, contact me and set up an acute appointment and we’ll see what we can do to get you on your way again.

And, like any condition, if you don’t have quick resolution, have yourself checked out by a medical professional.

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8/17/2021

Kidney Stones!

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If you know what these are, then you have experienced quite an amazing amount of pain.

For those of you unfamiliar with these, this is an assortment of kidney stones and I guarantee you that you don’t want to know what they feel like.

Some people have said that kidney stones and childbirth are about equal in the amount of pain they cause. I would say from personal experience, that it is actually pretty close.

I had my kidney stones years ago, before I knew about homeopathy. I went through the whole lithotripsy experience and while I was happy to have my 2 stones gone (one at 8 mm and the other at 9 mm), I don’t ever want to experience the lithotripsy procedure again. Lithotripsy uses ultrasound shock waves to break the stones apart. It felt like I had taken a terrible beating in a boxing ring and it took many weeks to get back to feeling somewhat normal.

Touch wood, I have been stone free for a long time now.

If you’ve had one kidney stone, you’re likely to make more. Should I find myself in that painful predicament again, I know exactly what I would do. I would tackle these painful little stones with homeopathy.

If you are suffering from kidney stones, book an appointment now and let’s see if homeopathy can get you some relief from this pain.

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8/13/2021

Lions and Tigers and Bears…

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My latest read arrived in the mail today. “Pigs: The Homeopathic Approach to the Treatment and Prevention of Diseases.” Once I have read it, it will sit on the shelf next to “Homeopathy for the Heard: A Farmer’s Guide to Low-Cost, Non-Toxic Veterinary Care of Cattle” and the “Practical Handbook of Veterinary Homeopathy: Healing Our Companion Animals from the Inside Out.” I have more like this on the shelf, but that’s not the point of this article.

The purpose of this article is to point out how marvelously well homeopathy works for all creatures. I have recently written about Rufus and his troubles ["An Insecure Rectum" & "What Hurts?"], but homeopathy has in the past helped our chickens and our peacock, too.

Now, let's take a look at our imaginary creatures from the title of this article.

I have no doubt this powerful medicine would be able to help “The Lion in Love.” That’s the Aesop’s Fable where the poor lion, in love with the woodsman’s daughter, was de-fanged and de-clawed and still denied the woodsman’s daughter anyway. This poor fellow most certainly could have been helped by Natrum muriaticum, the preeminent homeopathic remedy for unrequited love.

Though tiger balm isn’t made from any part of a tiger (at least not that I can find!), and can be useful for straining injuries — the mechanism behind the active ingredient is to numb and block nerve sensations to make the area feel temporarily less painful. Now, if our imaginary tiger from an Aesop’s fable was in need of tiger balm, I’m not certain it would do him much good due to his thick coat and skin. BUT, homeopathy could help him. Helios pharmacy makes a lovely remedy they call “Helios Injury.” This is a combination of homeopathic Arnica, Rhus tox and Ruta grav which will bring relief to strains and sprains and bruises (oh, my! — sorry, I couldn’t resist). If you are not near a Helios (located in the UK), you can make your own homeopathic combination remedy by putting a couple of pellets of each of the 3 remedies in your mouth at one time and letting them dissolve together to create a powerful remedy.

The bear in Aesop's “The Bear and The Bees,” who was stung so terribly by the whole hive from whom he was trying to steal their honey… Apis mellifica is the homeopathic remedy needed if the area is warm, red and swollen. But, if the sting area feels cold and it is relieved by cold, then homeopathic Ledum palustre is the better choice.

Whether it’s a chicken or a peacock or a dog or a pig or a whole herd of cows… homeopathy can help clear up what ails them quickly, safely and non-toxically.

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8/12/2021

Back to School in the Year 2021!

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Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash

Heading back to school under normal circumstances can be a harrowing experience for some kids. Going back to school in the year 2021 must be unthinkably stressful. Not only are these kids having to endure the usual stressors of finding their classroom and meeting their teacher/s, this year they have to worry about possibly wearing a mask all day long and worrying about how to make friends while remaining the prescribed distance apart from other human beings, lest they give or receive deadly germs to one another. That is beyond a doubt a recipe for anticipatory anxiety.

Anticipatory anxiety, (the discomfort felt when entering an unknown situation), is nicely met through homeopathic remedies.

Gelsemium sempervirens is the homeopathic remedy they used to give to the soldiers during the Civil War -- you know, the boys and men who knew they were up against nearly impossible odds? This gave them the courage necessary to step foot onto the battlefield. It can help with "nervous dread" and stage fright; fear of going to the doctor or the dentist and fear of pain, injury or even death. With this anxiety, a dull stupor may be seen or headaches resulting from nervous excitement. Tummy troubles, diarrhea in particular, or sleeplessness from the anxiety may also be present.

Homeopathic Argentum nitricum also addresses anticipatory anxiety but this may cross over into a bigger fear, even panic attacks or anxiety attacks as opposed to just being nervous. An irresistible desire for sugar may be present. Headaches resembling migraines may be seen. Tummy troubles of rumbling, gurgling and flatulence. Restless, disturbed sleep may be an issue.

Homeopathic Silicea (or Silica) presents with more timidity. This person may be feeling bashful and focusing on the minutiae, making sure every last little thing is just right. Headaches located over just one eye or a headache that is worse from exertion or even a "sick headache" may be seen. The tummy trouble in a person needing Silica can be a griping pain and they may be sleepy all day long.

Anticipatory anxiety, fear, dread, timidity, panic attacks -- nobody should have to live with that and homeopathy may help.

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8/6/2021

What Hurts?

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Rufus is a big dog and he most likely suffers from the hip joint problems these big fellows are known to endure. He’s been slowing down for a while now and we dare not take him on a long off-road walk because there would be no carrying him back home if he decided to sit down and be done with the walk.

The other day, poor old Rufus couldn’t (or wouldn’t) get up to get his breakfast. He had to have his back end lifted for him to get him on his way. He seemed fine the day before. Fine is relative here. It always seems an effort for him to stand up. There is almost always a groan and a sudden drop when he tries to make himself comfy.

Having no idea what happened to Ruf — did he injure his leg or back or is it just the old age aches of a big dog — I wasn’t sure where to start and he wasn’t helping me figure it out.

After being helped up, he had his breakfast and took himself outside for a bit and plopped back down in his cool room.

I brought him a homeopathic T-Relief spiked treat*.

T-Relief used to be known as Traumeel and was one of the first homeopathic remedies that I began using on my own. It’s a homeopathic mix which covers a lot of ground:

Arnica — Joint, back, muscle pain
Calendula — pain reliever
Hamamelis — a good remedy to think of when Arnica didn’t act.
Bellis Perennis — joint and muscle soreness
Belladonna — pain reliever
Hypericum — nerve pain (see “Poked by a Branch” blog)
Ruta — tendons and ligaments
And a few more remedies thrown in for good measure.

A lot of homeopaths don’t like the combination remedies. Could an injury or pain be more specifically addressed through a targeted remedy? You bet. But, in a pinch and when you don’t have the working knowledge to guide you to the “correct” remedy, combination remedies can often quickly get you the relief you need.

And, for Rufus, it did just that.

He lounged most of the day, as usual, and he was able to get up for his dinner, albeit slower than usual. A few more doses of T-Relief put him back on track.

If you or your loved one or beloved pet is suffering from aches and pains, contact classicallypractical.com to see if homeopathy can help.

[In writing this article, I see Medinatura also offers a line of Pet products. I have not tried them. The ingredients and price appear to be identical to the people version.]

* I crush the tablet with the back of a spoon or the flat part of a knife and pick up the powder on a piece of meat or cheese and give it to him that way. They can also be put directly in the mouth, between the gum and cheek.

** Follow the manufacturer’s recommendation.

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