Health
The History of Homeopathy
by Erika Phillips
A
For centuries, homeopathy has been shunned, rejected, dismissed, cast out and ridiculed. Mostly because it was, and still is, misunderstood. And like anything that is misunderstood, it has been placed in a category with other unexplainable phenomenon and generally regarded as quackery. Even today it is considered a complementary therapy.
lthough modern homeopathy was developed in the 1800s by a disillusioned medical physician named Samuel Hahnemann, the concept has been in existence since 450 BC. Hippocrates, “the father of medicine”, recognized the body’s natural ability to heal itself. And Galen (130–200 AD), who was the official physician to the Gladiators in the forum, used Homeopathy exclusively. In the Middle Ages it was also alive and well, made popular by Dr. Theophastus Vom Bombast, also known as Paracelsus, who believed that every diseased organ had its corresponding remedy in nature. The evolution of homeopathy The term homeopathy comes from the Greek words “homeo”, which means similar, and “pathos”, which means suffering. In the 17th century, Dr. George Stahl, taking up the assumptions of Paracelsus, wrote, “To treat with opposite acting remedies is the reverse of what it ought to be. I am convinced that disease will yield to, and be cured by, remedies that produce similar afflictions.” Hahnemann’s aversion to the medical practices of his day lead him to produce his first history–making experiment, which laid the foundation for his new system of medicine–now named homeopathy. For the next 180 years, practitioners refused to be integrated into orthodox medicine. “Orthodox” in the 1800s meant blood–letting, purging, venesection, emetics, laxatives, leeches and other strange practices. These homeopathic practitioners were physicians themselves and graduated from orthodox medical
schools, but some innate ability made them aware of the senseless practices of their day. The American Institute of Homeopathy was established in 1844, two years before the American Medical Association. The two schools have been in opposition ever since. Even though most homeopathic practitioners were graduates from such schools as Harvard, Dartmouth and Penn State. Consultation with these physicians resulted in ostracism and expulsion. Sound familiar? This did not stop the growth of homeopathy, however, and it was already popular in the eastern and middle states. Even the resistance in the south was a thing of the past, after the yellow fever outbreak in 1878, when homeopathy proved indispensable and was successful in gaining a healthy following of patients and physicians. By 1890 there were 14,000 homeopaths to 85,000 “conventional” physicians. Eventually the AMA had recognized homeopathy as an official threat and was subsequently able to prevent physicians from practicing homeopathic medicine. So with the decline in practitioners throughout the United States, it is difficult to remember that the once proven and accepted scientific methodology that was put in place hundreds of years before is now being questioned. It seems humorous that people regard homeopathy as a “new” therapy when without the provings of Samuel Hahnemann, modern medicine would not have most of its medicinal therapies.
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Schutzhund USA
The difficulty in the induction into mainstream medical practices has for the most part been a financial one. While homeopathy is a scientifically proven system of healing, the administration of the remedy is truly an art. Each disease and the person it afflicts is an individual case. Information is gathered based on the person’s constitution, personality, lifestyle, background, physical attributes and so on. The gathering of this information requires the practitioner to sit with his/her patient for several hours. Without this valuable tool, complete cure is not possible. Today’s medical practices do not allow for this type of patient/ doctor communication. You are lucky if you get to see your doctor for 15 minutes and then being asked questions about your emotional or mental state borders on an invasion of privacy! At the very least it is not financially viable, but then this is not entirely accurate as there would be a tremendous savings in the cost of diagnostic machinery. A holistic approach In homeopathy there are four stages of disease. These are physical, emotional, mental and sycotic (psychotic). If a disease is to be completely cured, then all four stages have to be considered. “A totality of symptoms” is necessary to find the correct remedy. When the correct remedy is found, it stimulates the body into healing. Most chronic states are the result of generations of disease being passed down from parent to offspring. Damaged or mutated genes from vaccinations, poor nutrition, toxic substances and other environmental pollutants are the major contributors to chronic disease. In order to keep the body disease–free we must provide the body with the correct environment and allow the body to regain a healthy state. Most allopathic medicine, such as antibiotics or steroids, gives symptomatic relief of a symptom of a disease. This means that in Western medicine, the symptom is treated and not the disease itself. Eczema, for example, is the skin’s way of telling us that there is something wrong. The skin is the largest organ in the body, and it will work to protect the vital organs by eliminating toxins from the body. When we apply steroidal creams to the skin, it acts to suppress the symptom not cure the problem. This suppression then compromises the entire system and is a complete contradiction to our body’s natural ability to heal. Suppression of a skin condition may later show up in the form of kidney failure or heart disease. It is hard to fathom to non–believers that a dog with idiopathic aggression, DCM (Dialated Cardio Myopathy), kidney failure or EPI could have been started by incorrectly treating a skin infection. Animals have such simple emotional systems that cure is even less complicated
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and more noticeable. Remedies can be administered for acute situations without much consideration to the other stages of disease. Some acute disease can be cured based on the physical stage alone. For example, bruising, cuts, broken bones, trauma, bloat, birthing complications and other first aid type injuries. While the theory of homeopathy is relative for all things that have a vital force–energy which maintains life in the individual and is unique from being to being–over the last few decades it has become more specialized in the veterinary homeopathic community. Today, there are many books available that list hundreds of health issues with the corresponding remedy. These books are useful in assessing and treating acute symptoms of disease. With the epidemic of disease prevalent in all breeds of domestic dogs today, and with the realization that dogs are genetically the same as wolves, we have to ask ourselves what is fundamentally different between them. Wolves do not suffer from chronic states of disease such as plaque, dysplasia, PRA (Progressive Retinal Atrophy), EPI, Cushings, Addison’s or myriad other health problems. The answer could be simple and quick: Wolves do not eat kibble, and wolves do not get vaccinated! Without a change in thinking, we will never get a handle on chronic debilitating disease. Health testing and breeding based on clearances is a generational cure only. It does nothing to eliminate these issues permanently from the gene pool. Cure must be on a cellular level. In the next issue, we will discuss a natural diet for canines and why it is imperative to understand proper nutrition for this species. Vaccination protocol, what is vaccinosis and how it relates to chronic disease will also be discussed.
r USA
May/June 2008
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