Some homeopaths say that remedies are entirely harmless and definitely don’t cause any “side effects” or issues if you take a remedy you don’t need. They say that there is simply “no action”. However there are a multitude of other homeopaths who say the opposite is true!! How confusing?!
To be honest there are a lot of wildly differing viewpoints in homeopathy, many belief structures and rules which some stick to like glue and others oppose hugely. When I’m faced with such diverse views I tend to think that there must be something in both views for people to have become so set on them. People don’t tend to rigidly stick to a belief or rule (unless it’s a law or something!) unless they have some faith in it being true and have perhaps seen good examples of what they believe or experienced it first hand.
So if a number of homeopaths have seen first hand that prescribing the “wrong” remedy just does nothing at all, no adverse effects, then they may conclude that this is always the case ad infinitum. (By “wrong” remedy I mean either a new remedy that isn’t the correct match for the person or overprescribing a usual remedy beyond the point that they no longer needed it, or prescribing too high a dose.)
And if a different set of homeopaths have experienced situations where something negative has happened as a result of taking the “wrong ” remedy, then they of course would warn against this to anyone who might listen! And take this standpoint as their firm belief.
First in this analysis I must draw attention to something: if a remedy has triggered something negative, is it a sign of that remedy being “wrong” or has it caused an aggravation / flare up of a problem that already existed in the person and which needed healing by bringing it to the surface? Homeopathy certainly does have a powerful track record for “making you worse before better” (although see my article on this too! As I do feel this can be avoidable a lot).
Whether there is such a thing as a completely new negative experience caused by a “wrong” remedy or whether it is an aggravation, both causes lead me to believe that we Must be careful in dosing and selecting remedies. There has clearly been some discomfort felt by some, enough to cause many many homeopaths to be cautious. So whatever the cause I believe there is some foundation in their approach.
Given how many homeopaths are careful to select the right remedy and not overprescribe I believe that the direction of “No, it’ll be fine whatever we give you. Totally fine!” may be a little blasé.
But of course if we are too cautious and timid in our prescribing, out of fear of getting it “wrong” (if there is such a thing) or causing an aggravation, then we can corner ourselves and never make any progress at all.
Somewhere in the middle feels best.
What I tend to do is to start with a low dose of a remedy, if it is new to you, to assess if it shows effect at this level of treatment, rather than launch in with a high dosage. Unless, for example, it is an urgent situation where a higher dosage is definitely required.
Your sensitivity should also be taken into account and any previous history and response to homeopathy in general, plus your general health and well-being. As these all build a picture of how you *Might* respond to treatment. But of course everyone is different and you may respond wildly differently from one remedy to another!
Also some remedies really do need to be given in high doses to work on certain levels in the body/mind! So again we cannot be over cautious.
One trick I do have is that I am particularly intuitive and sensitive energetically. I have worked in energy healing for ten years (starting in 2009) and I have always been 100% aware of not over-healing. In energy healing across the board (in which I include homeopathy, as homeopathy is about energetic patterns and vibrations and energy fields) care always, Always must be taken to try to help you not receive more healing than you are capable of processing. Healing should not be torture. We suffer enough with the problems we are trying to heal! So I do my best to relieve symptoms without aggravating them along the way. Of course this isn’t always possible, but I do try!
This caution and regard for not causing more discomfort comes from my own experiences in self-healing over the last ten years but also in my twenties when I ended up in hospital as I was so frightened and in a Lot of pain after being prescribed a homeopathic remedy that was very much right for me, but which was too powerful at the dosage I had. Innocent as I was back then I went to hospital for help (and really wished I hadn’t!!). These days I know the first port of call in my situation should have been my homeopath as my symptoms were not life-threatening, just extremely painful. (Note: Do Not avoid hospital if you end up in a situation where you are worried!!) For me I was taking homeopathy for chronic pain and the remedy I took was 30c. Some say this is a high dose, some say this is low, so I call it in between lol. I was prescribed this “as needed”. The pain I was experiencing was regular, intense and pretty relentless so I must have taken it too regularly and triggered an aggravation. In my case this meant the pain became utterly intolerable.
In hindsight I could have gone to my homeopath and he may have prescribed an Antidote or some other remedy to help me. This was a situation where it wasn’t life-threatening so going to A&E wasn’t essential but to me it appeared at the time to be the only option. I think the thing to do if you experience something like this is follow your instincts. We should never take risks with our lives / health, so if you feel any doubt about whether this is a hospital emergency situation then go and get checked out, or call an emergency helpline, if only for your peace of mind. It’s better to be safe than sorry.
Interestingly the remedy I was taking at the time of my aggravation is a remedy I dared to return to twenty years later (for different reasons). So I clearly still needed it, it wasn’t the “wrong” remedy, I had just taken too much of it and too high a dose back then. This time around I was prescribing it for myself and I decided to start on a very low dose, it may even have been 3c! Yes, I was still scared of it! I still have remnants of the chronic pain occasionally so I was aware it was at risk of being aggravated. I have changed and repaired a Lot in my life to make sure I don’t end up in a pain spiral, but you never know if a remedy might just throw it out there to be healed further! So after 3c of my remedy I gradually crept up to 6c, then gently increased as needed. And this approach worked well for me. Even with this gentle, slow progression though, I am always aware that an aggravation could still happen at some stage. At least these days I am aware of Antidotes though, just in case!
