I don’t know many people or animals who like things that go boom in the night but some of us 2 and 4 legged creatures get a little out of sorts when they happen.
Where I live, the night time booming started a few days ago — pre 4th of July excitement, I guess.
If you or your pet are troubled by the fireworks, here are a couple of ideas to try.

• Aconite, rhymes with fright, can help calm the nerves.
• Bach Rescue Remedy. (See: A Remedy to the Rescue for more information.)
• Borax for when the disturbance comes from the suddenness of the noise — a startled sensation.
• Coffea for painful sensitiveness. The noises seem to penetrate into you… disturbing sleep.
• Ignatia — fears and phobias triggered by noise. (See also: PTSD.)
• Phosphorus -- is a very fearful remedy in general, including fears stemming from noise.

What else can help? Back when we still had our dog, Rufus, I would put him in an air conditioned room with all the doors and windows closed, with a nice playlist on at a pretty decent volume to help drown out the booms. I added both Bach Rescue Remedy and Ignatia in his water dish. I chose Ignatia because this poor fellow came to us in a pretty traumatized and fearful state.
​
I hope you have a safe, exciting, fun and joyous 4th Of July weekend and are able to enjoy the booms!


Julia Coyte, CHom
Classically Practical homeopath
#wellnessawaits

Can you catch vertigo*? Gosh, it seems like it cuz all of the sudden, everybody around me is complaining of dizziness. (See also: It’s Never Too Late, part 2: Balance.)

I’ve been there done that — it’s a miserable experience. Some people experience it as being lightheaded or unsteady on their feet. Others experience it as the room spinning around them and still others experience it as if they themselves are spinning. Some may feel they are falling to the left, or the right. Some people have it only when they’re in bed and others have relief when they get into bed.

What causes vertigo/dizziness? Lots of things: Upper respiratory viruses can set it up. Head injuries. Ear infections or inner ear problems. Motion sickness. Anxiety. Infections, in general — viral or bacterial. Migraines. These are all some “benign” causations.

Vertigo can also be caused by some more serious issues: some medications, heart problems, stroke, MS — so if you are a vertigo sufferer, be sure to work with your physician to uncover the cause.

Another cause of vertigo is a “silent” migraine, also known as vestibular migraine, which can affect the inner ear and the balance system but without the typical headache usually associated with migraines. Typical migraine triggers may set this off (caffeine, bright lights, changes in weather) and these episodes can last for minutes or for days.

So, how can homeopathy help when your world is spinning? Murphy’s Repertory lists 974 rubrics for vertigo with some pretty specific symptoms and I’ve seen some pretty pleasing results for this nasty condition. (There are so many homeopathic remedies that can help with vertigo that it can make your head spin!)

Perhaps some of the frequent vertigo I am hearing about lately is coming from the world at large feeling all topsy-turvy right now — these are some dizzying times, politically and culturally speaking. (See also: Homeopathy can make a heavy world a little lighter.) 

When anxiety is related to the dizziness, Cocculus may be of some assistance. A trembling/fluttering sensation in the heart (palpitations) during vertigo; mental confusion; mental exhaustion. Vertigo following emotional excitement; vertigo from loss of sleep. Travel may bring on dizziness (see also, Seasickness).

Another remedy which can be useful for vertigo and anxiety is Nux vomica. I have watched Nux vomica work beautifully (and quickly!) for dizziness as a result of fatigue. (See: Too Much.) As we all know, fatigue can be brought on from not enough sleep — not enough is another way of saying “too much.”

More broadly, Nux vomica can be useful for dizziness as a result of eating, drinking alcohol or smoking. If there is tendency to fall or if there is staggering or if fainting accompanies the vertigo. Dizziness from the smell of flowers or gas; Mental exertion; or, from being in a room with too many lights. Think of Nux vomica also for vertigo that is worse in bed.

If turning in bed is worse, look to either Belladonna or Conium. Belladonna is a good one to think of when a headache accompanies the dizziness. Anxiety might be part of this picture. Pupils may be dilated. Walking may be tricky, or, the vertigo may actually come on while walking.

Visually speaking, dizziness may be accompanied by dim or obscured vision. Nux vomica is very highly indicated if there is “vanishing” sight with vertigo.

Gelsemium for vertigo with vision issues: double vision; obscured or dim vision, or, even a loss of vision during the vertigo.

Head position can play a big part in vertigo. There is something called Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) (which is different from “silent” migraine mentioned above). BPPV is very common and results in “the sudden sensation that you are spinning or that the inside of your head is spinning” (Mayo Clinic 2018) .

If moving the head makes the dizziness worse, think of either Bryonia or Conium. (Remember, Bryonia is very commonly worse for movement no matter what is going on, they prefer to remain still.) Another way of looking at this one, is that keeping the head perfectly still makes the vertigo better.

Borax is a little remedy which has a great affinity for downward movement. If the vertigo kicks in when descending stairs, Borax is the place to start. (Think of Borax also for sleeping babies who startle awake as they are being placed in the crib.)

If dizziness occurs when going up the stairs, look to Calc carb.

There are so many reasons why one may be experiencing vertigo/dizziness. Be sure to work with your physician to rule out anything serious. In the meantime, a well-chosen homeopathic remedy may help stop the merry-go-round while you figure out what is causing the dizziness/vertigo.

Julia Coyte, CHom
Classically Practical homeopath

#wellnessawaits


​* I will be using vertigo and dizziness interchangeably in this article, though National Dizzy & Balance Center (Balance 2021) -- (I have no idea who they are, but it’s an interesting website) describes vertigo as “a false sense of movement — almost making it feel as if you, yourself, are spinning even when you’re standing still.” They describe dizziness as a “term often used to describe a variety of balance issues… a term that may apply to motion and balance sensations including light-headedness, faintness, wooziness, or unsteadiness. While not all dizzy spells point to vertigo, vertigo can fall under the umbrella of general dizziness for diagnostic purposes.”
​

Balance, 2021. Dizziness vs. Vertigo - National Dizzy & Balance Center [online]. National Dizzy & Balance Center. 

Mayo Clinic, 2018. Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) - Symptoms and Causes [online]. Mayo Clinic.

Pooping is under appreciated. We all do it. Some of us appreciate it. Some of us find it a nuisance. Some of us struggle with it daily. Some of us find it funny. Some of us find it disgusting (there may be some scientific evidence for this one (Curtis et al. 2011). Some of us find it embarrassing. Some of us find it unseemly and certainly not a topic for polite discussion.

If you find yourself in that last category, I hope to change your mind starting today and continuing over the next couple of weeks because poop is so amazingly important!

Don’t believe me? Try not having a poop for a few days and see how you feel!

Not surprisingly, finding a good homeopathic remedy for an individual can be helped along with some fecal details. It’s one of those little tidbits that really can relay a lot of useful information. Also not surprising, lots of people have poop issues but they never bring it up until after the fact. (After the fact: "My constipation is better after that remedy" after never having mentioned the problem.) Even if a homeopath asks directly about pooping, it is not uncommon for the answer to be along the lines of, “all good there” — implying "move on". (If you find yourself in a homeopathic consult, put whatever squeamish embarrassed-ness you may have aside and fling those poop facts out there!)

If you’re not in the habit of taking a peek after you poop, I suggest you re-evaluate that decision. If you don’t look, who else is going to … until it’s too late and you find yourself at the doctor’s office leaving a stool sample to find out what is going wrong? Keeping an eye on your deposits can help you keep an eye on your health.

Back to how important poop is…

Poop takes waste from our bodies — preventing the build up of toxins and maintaining a healthy gut.

Poop can have an effect on our psychological wellbeing.

Poop reflects our physical health. The color, consistency and frequency of poop can indicate an underlying health issue such as digestive problems, infections, or nutrient deficiencies. Stool samples are used to diagnose infections, detect bacteria, viruses or parasites and also to screen for medical conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease or colon cancer.

So, that’s a lot of poopy talk, but what is this poop we are actually talking about, anyway?

According to Taber’s Medical Dictionary, feces is bodily waste such as food residue, bacteria, epithelium, and mucus, discharged from the bowels.

People poop generally once or twice daily (1.2 times a day on average), totaling about 1.8 oz to a whopping 28 oz for the average adult and between 2.6 oz and 13 oz per day for children (Rose et al. 2015). For reference: a tennis ball weighs about 2 oz. A can of soda weighs about 12 ounces. On the high end of this scale, 28 oz equates to 1.75 pounds which is approaching the weight of a typical pineapple sold in grocery stores (Measuring Stuff 2022). 😳

Where does all this stuff come from?

Poop is (generally) made up of 75% water and 25% solid matter. 30% of that solid matter consists of dead bacteria; about 30% indigestible food matter such as cellulose; 10-20% is cholesterol and other fats; 10-20% is inorganic substances such as calcium phosphate and iron phosphate; and 2-3% is protein (Britannica 2019). (Short hand: 10 parts water, 1 part bacteria (dead and alive), 1 part indigestible fiber and 1 part mixture of fat, protein, dead cells, mucus (Richman and Sheth 2007).

With all the basics out of the way, let’s get back to homeopathy.

In preparing for this mini-series on poop, I was browsing through my little assortment of poop books. (What? Don’t you have one of those?!) Judging by my quick look on the internet, my poop book collection is woefully slim … there are poop log books which claim to help you improve your gut health; poop coloring books; books about how to poop in the woods; an absolute ton of books for kids about pooping; and, a surprisingly large number of bathroom guest books 😳. (I guess that’s one way to encourage people to talk about this heretofore forbidden topic.)

To get us in the poop mood, however, I am going to be relying on What’s your Poo Telling You? By John Richmond and Anish Sheth, M.D.

The very first page of the introduction talks about “the feeling of unbridled elation that results from unleashing the perfect poo. Although difficult to achieve, this Poo-phoria lends a feeling of ecstasy, even invincibility, that some have likened to the perfect buzz.”

Cheerfulness after a stool is a symptom in a few homeopathic remedies, but Natrum sulphuricum is the most highly indicated. (Paradoxically, anxiety, confusion or weakness following a stool may also indicate Nat sulph. Men who may benefit from Nat sulph also may have an increased desire for sex during stool. In short, if there are residual emotions following a stool, Nat sulph may be worth considering.)

* If you experience ANY of these physical symptoms, or, if you have recently had a change in bowel habits, be sure to seek professional medical advice. In particular, pain, blood, excessive mucus, especially if they are ongoing, should be evaluated professionally.

What other intestinal indicators may lead you to Nat sulph?

• Cramping abdominal or intestinal pain which is better following a stool.
• Loud flatus during a stool or sputtering flatus.
• Urging for stool but only flatus is passed.
• Clay-colored, green, or yellow-colored stools.
• Copious stools.
• Thin, liquid, watery stools.
• Rumbling, gurgling, rolling noises before stool.

What if having a poop leaves you little irritated instead of cheerful?

In that case, I would look to Nitric acid.

What other intestinal indicators may lead you to Nitric acid?

• Abdominal pain during and after a poop.*
• Constipation.
• Pain in the rectum following evacuation. This pain may be cutting, burning, sharp, sticking, stinging or tearing.
• Stools like balls; like sheep dung.
• Bloody streaks in the stool*. (This may be from hemorrhoids but any blood in the stool should be evaluated by a medical professional.)

If you find yourself in a state of tranquil serenity following a stool, that may lead you to Borax. Borax is a smaller stool-related remedy, but other indications may be:

• Light-colored stool
• Stools with a transparent or white slimy mucus.
• Painless diarrhea.

Borax can be an excellent remedy for babies, so if you have a little one who has some other issues which may need addressing but who blisses out after filling their nappy, take a look at Borax.

Note: A small amount of mucus on the stool is usually not a cause for concern. Mucus lines your intestines to keep your colon running smoothly, among other tasks. However, if there is excessive mucus in or on the stool it may be a sign of an underlying condition such as: Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Crohn’s Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, food poisoning, bowel obstruction or blockage, cancer of the rectum or colon. If you have excessive mucus or even a small amount of mucus which is on-going, seek professional medical advice, especially if it is accompanied by abdominal pain, bloody stools, fever or weight loss (Mayo Clinic). Check out this article for more information.

It’s important to remember in these situations that cheerfulness, irritation or tranquility after a stool is not something pathologic — it’s not a problem and it doesn’t need to be addressed. These symptoms may just be useful in leading you to an overall remedy for an individual (or, an animal). However, some other stool related symptoms may be calling for attention and the post-evacuation mood might help you get to the best remedy.

Back to our book to round out this opening article on emotions and poop…

Number 3… AKA diarrhea. I will be writing a longer article on diarrhea shortly, but today, going with the emotions involved with pooping, I will just mention a few remedies where mental/emotional symptoms are the leading indicator of a remedy for diarrhea.

When diarrhea is triggered by emotions, the first remedies to consider are Argentum nitricum and Gelsemium.

I have written about Argentum nitricum a few times before (see: What Goes Up; Feel the Fear; My Little Bag of Wellness).

Gelsemium is an absolute go-to remedy for anticipatory anxiety (see: Back to School; The Big Goodbye). Gelsemium is bold type and underlined for ailments from anxiety. Nervous tummy sending you running to the toilet? Gelsemium. Another emotional diarrhea symptom for Gelsemium is diarrhea from bad news.

Arsenicum album could be considered here, too, especially if there is any burning pain associated with it. (I see a new article in the making, comparing Arg-nit, Gels and Ars. Sit tight. I’ll get to it one day.)

If it is diarrhea after anger, Colocynthis is the remedy to grab for ailments from anger. Homeopathic Colocynthis pains are almost always better by pressure and by warmth -- bending double or a hot water bottle helps the abdominal pains associated with the diarrhea. (I see where you're going with that thought and yes, it can be very helpful for menstrual cramps.)

Diarrhea following chagrin or humiliation: Staphysagria.

Diarrhea following grief? Phosphoric acid is another remedy for diarrhea after anticipation, but it is an even bigger grief remedy… weakness and sorrow and depression, mental exhaustion.

Diarrhea after mental exertion? There’s a 3 way tie between Arg-nit, Nux vomica and Picric acid (see: Taxing Remedies for more info on Pic ac).

How about the other side of things, like excitement? Aconite, Argentum nit, Arsenicum album or Gelsemium. If that excitement is coupled with fear, then stick with Aconite.

Sudden diarrhea following joy? Coffea cruda (see: Silence, Please!)

One last emotion to talk about in regard to poop and that is fear. Touched on a couple of lines above, Aconite is the place to start for all things fear. There can certainly be a bit of crossover with anxiety, but fear, to me, is a result of a threat or impending danger and anxiety is a response to an anticipated or expected danger.

However, a fear of losing control of one's bowels is a genuine fear, especially if one is already experiencing some goings-on in that area. Homeopathic Aloe is the remedy for an insecure rectum. Involuntary stool, with or without flatus. Involuntary stool following urination. 

Tune in next week for the second installment of the Doo-Doo Documents: The Bristol Stool Scale.

​
Julia Coyte, CHom
Classically Practical homeopath

​#wellnessawaits

Reference list and poop-related books:

Britannica, 2019. Feces | biology | Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica [online].

Choi, B., 2024. Fun Poop Facts Kids Should Know • Human Body Learning [online].
Human Body Learning. 

Cohen, M., 2023. Mucus in Stool: Is It Normal & What Does It Mean? [online]. The IBS & Gut Health Clinic. 

Curtis, V., de Barra, M. and Aunger, R., 2011. Disgust as an adaptive system for disease avoidance behaviour. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences [online], 366 (1563), 389–401. 

Enders, G., 2015. Gut : the Inside Story of Our Body’s Most Underrated Organ. Greystone Books.

Holzwarth, W. and Erlbruch, W., 2007. The story of the little mole who knew it was none of his business. London: Pavilion.

Mayo Clinic, n.d. Mucus in stool: A concern? [online]. Mayo Clinic.

Measuring Stuff, 2022. Things Around The House That Weigh 2 Pounds – Measuring Stuff [online]. Measuringstuff.com. 

Richman, J. and Sheth, A., 2007. What’s your poo telling you? San Francisco, Calif.: Chronicle Books.

Rose, C., Parker, A., Jefferson, B. and Cartmell, E., 2015. The Characterization of Feces and Urine: A Review of the Literature to Inform Advanced Treatment Technology. Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology [online], 45 (17), 1827–1879.

Tarō Gomi, 2020. Everyone poops. San Francisco: Chronicle Books.

The Canadian Society of Intestinal Research, n.d. The Scoop on Poop [online]. Gastrointestinal Society. 

Venes, D. and Clarence Wilbur Taber, 2013. Taber’s cyclopedic medical dictionary. [22nd ed., ISBN: 9780803629776]. Philadelphia, Pa.: F.A. Davis.

One evening, my oldest son called wondering what to do about a painful canker sore… My answer that night was Borax. (For another possible answer to that question, click here… Throat or Tongue?)

Borax is a homeopathic remedy whose physical symptoms focus primarily on the mucous membranes.

Borax also has an interesting keynote symptom in that there is found a fear or dread of a downward motion. Where might you find this strange sensation in everyday life? When you’re trying to place an infant in a bed. I remember experiencing this when my kids were little — (Unfortunately, I was not privy to this information then, though!) — a little fellow, sound asleep in my arms and the second the baby was about to be placed in their crib — that was it, they were up and not too happy about it either. In fact, they most likely screamed. Screaming, ironically, is another keynote symptom for Borax. Go figure! 

It’s not unusual for me to get calls and texts from friends and family asking for quick remedy suggestions. As a matter of fact, these queries have been coming in even before I was an “official” homeopath.

You see, you don’t need to be an “official” homeopath to be able to help your friends and family — you just need a little know-how and, more importantly, a couple of successes under your belt, to provide the confidence to share this marvelous knowledge.

How do you get started with this? You are already in the right place! This blog provides lots of practical little nuggets for you to try. In case you missed them, here are some links to some quick go-to information…

Puncture wounds…  Poked by a Branch
Stiff necks… A Pain in the Neck
Minor infections… Ingrown Toenails… ouch
Colds… Calming the Cold
Allergies Are Back!
Homeopathy & Dentistry
Grief and worry… Homeopathy can make a heavy world a little lighter
Injuries… I did a doozy…
Constipation… The Eagle has Landed!
Thankful for a Yeast Infection
Indigestion… Just going for a Pepcid…
Quick list of go-tos… Keep Calm and Carry a Homeopathic Remedy Kit
Cough cough!
Brace Face
Over-indulgence… Too Much!
Wasp Attack! part 1
Ear Infections
Back strain … Rhymes with box
Diarrhea… Traveler's Diarrhea
Nausea… Seasickness
Overwhelmed
Croup… Barks in the night
Hoarse voice… Hoarseness
UTI… When it hurts to go

There are more, this is just a short list to get you started. Go to ClassicallyPractical.com and have a peruse, get yourself a remedy kit and see how useful it can be for you and your loved ones.


Julia Coyte, CHom
Classically Practical homeopath


#wellnessawaits