HOMOEOPATHY - Introduction

HOMOEOPATHY - Introduction

Homeopathy is a system of medicine introduced by a German physician Dr. Samuel Hahnemann. He was an allopathic doctor who has left the practice because of side effects and temporary relief of symptoms of allopathy. For his bread and butter, he started translating the medical books into different languages. While he was translating Cullen's materia medica he came across a herbal medicine called cinchona. It was written that cinchona can cure malaria and it can also produce symptoms similar to malaria in healthy individuals. This point clicked hahnemann's brain and he prepared an extract of cinchona bark and took himself. To his surprise, he developed some symptoms of malaria like chills and achings. He started doing the same experiment on different individuals and the result was the same.

In this experiment,t Hahnemann came to know that any drug which can produce a set of symptoms on a healthy human being can be used to cure similar symptoms in a diseased person. He gave cinchona to various malaria patients and the result was wonderful and a system called homeopathy originated. The word home means similar, pathy means suffering. The basic principle of homeopathy is 'similia similibus curantur' means like cures cure. Hahnemann prepared some other drugs using alcohol as a vehicle and started experimenting on different age groups and noted down the symptoms produced in them. He proved nearly 30 drugs and the symptoms produced were noted down systematically. The symptoms collected by drug proving were categorized in the order in a book form named materia medica para.

                         

Hahnemann noticed that by diluting the crude drug substances in spirit a dynamic power is developed and is responsible for producing the symptoms in healthy people. Hahnemann started giving treatment to so many diseased persons with the medicines prepared by him on applying the principle similia similibus curantur and got wonderful cures and homeopathy started spreading all over the world.

                

He gave medicines to some patients and noticed that symptoms are coming back again. So he understood that the cause for the disease should be treated. After doing experiments and observations he came to know that diseases are caused by some dynamic forces and he named them miasms.[psora, syphilis, sycosis] He noticed that to cure a person completely these miasms should be eradicated using a similar dynamic force. This idea leads to anti-miasmatic drugs which are drugs having disease-producing power similar to miasms. He developed anti-miasmatic drugs and experimented on diseased persons and got wonderful cures.

Development of homeopathy

The principles of homeopathy were written in book form and he named it organon of medicine. Lateron he started publishing these works and six editions of organon were published. Right from the beginning of homeopathy so many doctors of other systems started working against homeopathy. But those who were against homeopathy later came to know the truth behind homeopathy and started practicing the same. Physicians like Dr. J T Kent, Dr. Hering, Dr. Boenonghausen ect followed Dr hahnemann's mission and developed the system. They all started preparing so many other drugs based on guidelines given by Hahnemann. Physicians came to know that by diluting the drug substance in the spirit in a systematic way the medicinal power is increasing even though the number of drugs decreases. Since diseases are due to dynamic causes the medicine also should be dynamic. By a process called potentisation, the same drug in different levels of potencies was made. They found that by increasing the potency the penetrating power of medicine is increased so that it acts on a higher level than the usual material form of drugs used in other systems. This unique nature of homeopathic medicine is the reason for the wonderful cures of even mental diseases. 

                   

General principles

Homeopathy treats the diseased individual as a whole rather than treating diseased parts or organs. The physical, mental, emotional, social spheres of a person are considered for a permanent cure. This system believes that diseases are caused due to the derangement of vital force which is an invisible power in every individual. In a healthy state, the vital force maintains the equilibrium of the mind the body and, soul. During this man will have normal sensations and functions.When the vital force gets affected there will be external manifestations in the form of signs and symptoms. The imbalance in the body functions makes a shelter for foreign organisms(bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoa ect) and allows them to proliferate &produce so-called diseases. Homeopathy believes that the real disease comes before the bacteria & viruses, hence the root cause of the disease has to be treated for a permanent cure. The antibacterial and antiviral agents only remove the secondary causes mentioned above.

Diseases are produced by noxious morbific agents called Miasms which are dynamic influences that affect the vital force. There are mainly three miasms PSOR, SYPHILIS&SYCOSIS. These three causes are accepted by other schools of medicine but called by different names. Psora causes functional disturbances, syphilis causes structural changes in the form of destructions, and sycosis causes changes in the form of overgrowth. These three miasms can act individually or in combined form to produce different disease conditions.

Preparation of medicine in homeopathy

In homeopathy medicines are prepared from different sources like minerals, plants, animals, toxins, diseased parts ect. Medicines are prepared from these substances by a special process called potentisation. Here the soluble substances are potentized by diluting(mixing with spirit with a downward stroke) with spirit and insoluble substances by grinding(trituration) with sugar of milk. The crude drug substance is first mixed with a calculated quantity of spirit and water and kept for a few days. From this mixture, the extract is taken and is called mother tincture(denoted as Q). From this mother, tincture dilutions are prepared by potentisation. Potentisation is a mathematical process by which the quantity of the original drug substance reduces but medicinal power increases. Depending upon the ratio of the quantity of drug substance and vehicle(spirit or sugar of milk)there are different scales for this process. Each scale has got different potencies which indicate the power of medicine. For example, on the decimal scale, the drug substance vehicle ratio is1/10, and the available potencies are 3x,6x.12x ectOn.On the centesimal scale, the ratio is 1/100 and the available potencies are 30c,200c ect, in LM potency the ratio is 1/50000 and the available potencies are 0/1,0/2,0/3 ect. Potency is written after the name of every medicine

The same medicine is available in different potencies. Suitable potency is selected according to so many factors like severity, depth of disease, condition of the patient, nature of the disease, type of symptoms, age of patient and ect.

Subjects studied in homeopathy:-

History of medicine

History & development of homeopathy

Pioneers of homeopathy

Organon of medicine

Homeopathic philosophy

Materia medica

Homoeopathic Pharmacy & pharmacognosy

Homeopathic repertory

Homeopathic case taking

Homeopathic therapeutics

General medical subjects:

(Anatomy, physiology, pathology, microbiology, parasitology, toxicology, forensic medicine, social & preventive medicine, surgery, ENT, gynecology & obstetrics, Opthalmology, dentistry, orthopedics, surgery, general medicine, pediatrics, dermatology, psychiatry, and ect) 

Homeopathic case taking and prescription.

Cure by a homeopathic medicine is rapid, gentle, and permanent if correct remedy in suitable dose is given. . Just giving one drug for one disease (specific drugs)may not give good result. To come to a correct remedial diagnosis we should have the symptomatology of the person. It is the total symptoms of a person which includes mental generals, physical generals, particular symptoms ect.

All signs and symptoms (mental&physical)of the person are taken into detail. Knowledge about past illness, family history of diseases, food & bowel habits, notable causes, relation to climatic changes and constitution ect are noted down in a systematic order.

Mental symptoms:  

Example: fear, anxiety, depression, anger, jealousy, and ect...

Physical symptoms: 

Example: Body makeup, appetite, thirst, desires, aversions, bowels, urination, sleep, taste, nature of smell, discharges any abnormal sensations like pain, burning, climatic changes, thermal relations, etc...

Peculiar uncommon symptoms:

This is the specialty of the homeopathic system of medicine. For the selection of a suitable remedy, these symptoms are very important. common symptoms which are seen almost in all patients are least important. This is the reason for giving different medicines to different individuals suffering from the same disease. Example: Five people suffering from typhoid may get five different remedies because of changes in individual symptoms.

Particular/local signs&symptoms:

This includes signs &symptoms related to body parts &organs. 

Example: Part affected, any swelling, discoloration ect.    

                       

Systemic examination:-

Different systems are examined in a systematic order. (Respiratory system, digestive system, nervous system, cardiovascular system, and ect....) Vital signs

Pulse, blood pressure, temperature, respiratory rate ect are checked here.

General physical examination:

Here body parts are examined from head to foot to find out any changes.

provisional disease diagnosis; Here probable diseases are diagnosed. In homeopathy, disease diagnosis is not that important for the selection of a remedy but is needed for general management and to know the prognosis.

Investigations: This includes lab investigations and other methods to find out any other major illnesses.

                                                                                                                          

Final disease diagnosis:

After doing all investigations the disease is diagnosed.

Remedial diagnosis:

This is the most important part as far as homeopathy is concerned. For this, the selected symptoms are arranged in a systematic order based on importance. Symptoms are analyzed to find out the importance of each symptom for the selection of a remedy. Remedies are selected based on similarity.

Suitable remedies are diagnosed by a process called repertorisation. Here books called repertories are used. Repertory is the index of symptoms of materia medica(books that contain the symptoms of drugs). Nowadays computer software is used for repertorisalion. By this process, we will get the remedies covering the maximum important symptoms of the patient. 

Among this group of remedies,  the most suitable remedy is selected by referring to various books and considering the life space investigation of the patient. The selected medicine is given in suitable potency & dose.

ANTI MIASMATIC TREATMENT:

The root cause of the disease is miasms which should be eradicated using suitable anti-miasmatic drugs. Every drug can eradicate the miasm if there is a symptom similarity. There are anti psoric drugs, anti syphilitic drugs, and antipsychotic drugs. After diagnosing the miasm suitable anti-miasmatic drug has to be given to complete the cure.