Homeopathy as a system isn’t simply replacing drugs and conventional medicines with alternative natural medicines. Although using natural medicines clearly has many benefits - both for individuals and our environment.
Using homeopathy to its full potential can often involve a shift in how we look at our own health, what it means to be healthy and how we are connected to everything and everyone.
It involves a deeper understanding of the laws of nature. What we put into ourselves, we put into the world; and we take that out in some form. We reap what we sow. We choose how we respond (have response-ability) for our experiences and reactions - in all areas of our health, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.
Doctor Samuel Hahnemann started investigating health at a deeper level because of his discontentment with the medical system of his time (1800s). It became a frustration that to get rid of a disease, treatments were used which often caused new, sometimes worse problems. To treat syphilis with mercury could not really be called a cure when the patient died from mercury poisoning. The aim of getting rid of symptoms did not always nor fully take into account what caused the symptoms in the first place.
So what does cause symptoms? If we consider what symptoms are - a sign of a problem/ an underlying issue; then they are useful indicators. Your body is providing you with a map to understand yourself and your interactions in the world. Why then would we want to get rid of these signs? It is preferable to understand them and resolve the underlying cause so that the symptoms themselves are no longer needed to alert us to anything.
In the wider environment, we can see some examples of causations where actions have clear knock on effects. If we move a sun-loving plant into the shade, pour toxins into our pond, make cuts into the bark of a tree we can plainly see adverse consequences. The more we put systems under strain, the greater the adverse reaction or symptom. Our individual bodies are unique ecosystems, made up of a composition of elements and minerals united by our own vital force of life or spirit. We were born at a particular time, in a certain environment with a genetic background and we experience unique life events. We all have individual patterns and individual requirements to thrive. The life experiences that come our way allow us to witness causes and effects upon ourselves and give us the opportunity to become familiar with our own patterns so that we can use this knowledge and develop skills to manoeuvre through life with active choice and vitality.
We are not tied to past experience or family histories. We have the power to change. The study of epigenetics shows us that genes themselves can be turned on or off. You are the master of your destiny.
Homeopathy then uses the knowledge of the patterns of an individual; understanding symptoms - the what, why, where, when, how. This in itself is a powerful tool – to understand yourself as a whole system; your own timeline, your responses and reactions, the whole picture of becoming who you are today – physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. All together, not in separate strands – you are one whole ecosystem, an interconnected network of matter, experiences, tools and spirit.
Inputs into your ecosystem happen at all levels all the time and impact each other – physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. Homeopathy uses the unique vibrational resonance of substances (remedies) to stimulate your whole body or ecosystem to heal itself. These remedies no longer contain material substance because the desire is to treat the underlying cause – the sum of all inputs and impacts upon your whole ecosystem (not only a physical or chemical response). The remedies are chosen to correspond most closely to your current state of being or total energetic resonance (discovered through analysis of your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual symptoms).
The healing action takes place on all levels (physical, mental, emotional and spiritual). You might need several remedies depending upon your individual symptoms and patterns – everyone is different and with homeopathy you can follow the signs your body responds with and continue to use these as a guide until multiple layers are resolved as needed.
Everyone can start to learn more about the principles of homeopathy and how it works and begin to put it into practice using it for minor ailments. Find out a bit at a time and see where it leads you : )
