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Homeopathy: Natural Mind-Body Healing
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undergoing a resurgence in the United States. From the mid-nineteenth
century to first two decades of the twentieth century, it enjoyed widespread
popularity here, especially among the highly educated. It counted among
its adherents several Presidents and many leading writers and thinkers
(Cummings and Ullman, 1991; Lansky 2003). The rise of “magic bullet”
antibiotics and other pharmaceuticals led to its eclipse for several decades,
but it has recently re-emerged, especially since it can treat conditions
for which conventional medicine lacks effective treatments (ibid.).
Nurses are likely to encounter questions from patients about homeopathy,
which is frequently confused with herbal medicine but quite distinct in
its healing action, as explained later. In addition, nurse practitioners
can practice homeopathy in all but a few states. Since the FDA has granted
most homeopathic remedies over-the-counter (OTC) status, RNs can recommend
homeopathic remedies in most states if they work in a situation where
they can recommend OTC medications or nutritional supplements. Like some
RNs, I practice homeopathy full-time as a form of patient education, recommending
remedies which are easily available in health food stores, in some pharmacies,
and from several on-line or mail-order suppliers.
The several thousand homeopaths currently practicing in the US include
physicians, nurse practitioners and RNs, pharmacists, veterinarians, and
other health care practitioners as well as others without conventional
medical licensure. The designation “CCH” indicates “Certified
Classical Homeopath,” signifying that the homeopathic practitioner
has passed the national credentialing exam.
Perhaps the best way to understand homeopathy’s effectiveness in
mental/emotional conditions is to hear the stories of several of my patients.
To protect their confidentiality, each portrait is a composite of several
patients, however all quotes are authentic.
Postpartum depression
Sally G. is a 36-year-old woman who came to see me recently complaining
of postpartum depression. “You’d think I’d be happy,
we’ve wanted a baby for so long. But I feel so exhausted and dragged
down that I cry at the drop of a hat, and I’m cranky with my poor
husband. I can’t believe I would ever dream of hurting my beautiful
baby, but sometimes when he won’t stop crying I catch myself thinking
of hitting him, and it frightens me.” While her depression was her
primary concern, she had minor physical complaints including hair loss,
hemorrhoids and varicose veins, all since the pregnancy. When I inquired
about other hormonal symptoms, she mentioned PMS symptoms prior to the
pregnancy which included breast swelling as well as a milder version of
the easy weeping and irritability which she now suffered from. She typically
suffered from extreme tiredness on the first day of her period, as well
as lower back pain and a dragging down sensation in her uterus. As for
her pregnancy, she said, “I ate pickles by the gallon and sauerkraut
by the bucketful.”
I suggested she try Sepia, perhaps the most effective women’s hormone-balancer
among the homeopathic remedies as well as the most effective energetic
support for exhausted women. Homeopaths have found Sepia effective for
PMS, menstrual cramps, menarche, menopause, morning sickness, and postpartum
depression characterized by the same symptoms Sally complained of. In
my own practice, perhaps half the women taking Sepia have noticed a difference
in their mood and energy from the first dose. I have used it successfully
for a wide variety of women’s hormonal conditions, from teenagers
with acne, to young women suffering side effects of the birth control
pill, to women on an “emotional roller coaster” from fertility
treatments, to menopausal depression.
Endogenous depression
Helen E., a 44-year-old business consultant, came in complaining of “depression
that just seems to come out of nowhere. It seems unrelated to anything
in my life. It feels like I’m wearing a lead vest, like my feet
are stuck in concrete. I feel so heavy and lifeless. It’s like I’m
spiralling down and down into a black hole from which there’s no
escaping.” She had suffered bouts of depression on and off since
she was a teenager, when she pushed herself hard to be a top student and
was extremely self-critical when she failed to get perfect marks. Her
family history included depression on both sides of the family as well
as alcoholism and an uncle who had committed suicide. When questioned
about suicidal ideation she responded, “I would never actually do
it, but sometimes when I’m driving I have this impulse to just swerve
into oncoming traffic.” Her concomitant physical symptoms included
headaches and chronic sinusitis.
Aurum, a homeopathic remedy made from the metal gold, was my suggestion
for Helen E. Homeopaths use this remedy when the depression seems rooted
in a familial energetic pattern, the “destructive/self-destructive”
pattern. With a broader view of heredity than conventional medicine’s
genetics, homeopaths perceive how families can pass along patterns of
physical, mental and emotional conditions. In this pattern, Helen was
susceptible to developing alcoholism, substance abuse, self-sabotage or
other self-destructive behavior. Depression was simply one manifestation
of her family’s pattern, and Aurum helped her “take off the
lead vest,” as she put it. It also relieved her headaches and sinusitis.
In fact an early sign that the remedy was working was a profuse drainage
and clearing from her sinuses.
Depression following a grief
Depression stemming from the loss of her mother was the presenting complaint
for Michelle G, age 24, who responded to the death of “my best girlfriend”
by losing all interest in her former pleasures. Normally a very sociable
young woman, she began unplugging her phone and refusing to go out with
friends. She would call in sick to work and spend hours just lying in
bed, lacking the motivation to go out. Plagued by insomnia at night, she
would then be exhausted all day. She worried that she was developing chronic
fatigue. Lacking an appetite, she sipped on cola drinks all day (“my
medicine” she called them). She would drive across town to buy her
favorite tart fruit juices by the case, a special blend of green apple-cranberry-kiwi
juice. She had few physical complaints aside from bouts of watery diarrhea.
Michelle responded beautifully to the homeopathic remedy Phosphoric acid,
not coincidentally the substance used to make carbonated drinks. Homeopaths
think of it as a remedy that can bring back the “sparkle”
or the “bubbles” when a normally fun-loving, sociable person
becomes emotionally flat, lifeless, and dull — like a carbonated
drink that has gone flat. Phosphoric acid is used for depression stemming
from grief, often accompanied by sleeplessness at night and sleepiness
by day, withdrawal from social contacts, craving for carbonated and sour
fruit drinks, and painless watery diarrhea. After six weeks on Phosphoric
acid, Michelle’s energy was back to normal and she was better able
to process the loss of her mother. Homeopathic remedies do not in any
way numb or suppress natural feelings like grief following the death of
a loved one. However, they can help a patient like Michelle process her
feelings by putting her in touch with an inner core of strength.
Medicine customized to the individual patient
Three different women with depression, three different homeopathic remedies.
Why? Homeopathy—a system of highly dilute natural medications—treats
the whole person, including the total picture of mental, emotional and
physical symptoms to match a remedy to each individual patient. Another
dozen women with depression might receive a dozen entirely different remedies.
A professional homeopath individualizes the remedy to the person, taking
into account the causality, the family and personal medical history, the
personality and temperament, and many other factors. Sometimes even food
preferences can be a clue as to which of the more than 3000 remedies a
patient needs.
Historical perspective
Individualizing the remedy to the patient is one of the core principles
of homeopathy, a system of natural medicine developed in Germany in the
early 1800s. Its founder, Samuel Hahnemann, was a conventionally trained
physician and pharmacist who became discouraged with the medicine of his
day when he was unable to treat his patients, especially his own children,
without causing them suffering. After decades of research (he lived to
be nearly 90) he developed a method for making medicines both very gentle,
so as not to cause side effects or toxic reactions, and deeply powerful
and quick-acting. Homeopathy gained widespread recognition in Europe when
Hahnemann and his followers were able to treat deadly epidemics like cholera,
plague, tuberculosis and scarlatina. It quickly spread worldwide, and
today it is an accepted and respected form of health care in many countries
of Western Europe as well as Russia, India and South America. Homeopathic
remedies—in the form of tiny medicated sugar pellets in small plastic
bottles—are now available in most health food stores and many pharmacies
across the U.S.
Comparison with herbal medicine
Frequently confused with herbal medicine, homeopathy is entirely different
in its legal status and its safety in terms of side effects and potential
drug-drug interactions. It is not surprising that the two are frequently
confused, since many herbal remedies like Calendula and Chamomile are
also available as homeopathic remedies. The end result is quite different,
though, because of homeopathy’s unique method of manufacture. The
starting substance—frequently an herb, in other cases a mineral
or sometimes an animal product like bee venom—is put through a dilution
process so many times that the original substance is no longer present
in the final product. This makes the remedy extremely safe, as there are
no molecules of the remedy substance remaining in the dilution to cause
an allergic reaction, side effect, or drug interaction. It acts on a principle
which has been compared to vaccination, in which a minute amount of a
substance which could cause a disease is introduced into the system to
stimulate an immune response.
Safety concerns and legal status
Homeopathy is even safer than a vaccination, however, because the original
substance is present only as a pattern of information rather than as actual
substance. Just as two computer disks or two cassette tapes are chemically
identical but contain very different information, so too different homeopathic
remedies can transmit very different information to the body’s healing
energy. This energy (called the Vital Force in homeopathy) is analogous
to the chi of acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine. The physics
behind homeopathy’s effectiveness is just beginning to be understood
as the technology is developed to detect this energy, just as technology
has recently been developed to detect the meridians or energy channels
of acupuncture (Gray, 2001).
Because homeopathic remedies are so safe, the FDA has granted them special
status in the form of a pharmacopoeia (the Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of
the US or HPUS) which parallels the United States Pharmacopoeia (USP)
for conventional drugs. The FDA regulates the manufacture and sale of
homeopathic remedies just as it does pharmaceuticals. Reports of side
effects and adverse reactions involving homeopathic remedies have been
almost totally unknown since 1938 when homeopathy was granted legal protection.
Of the more than 1300 remedies listed in the HPUS, more than 98% are safe
enough to sell over the counter. The rest are restricted more out of concern
for their original starting substance (such as a controlled substance
like opium) than out of a concern that the diluted remedies themselves
could actually be harmful (HPUS 2000).
Drug-drug interactions
Interactions with pharmaceuticals are similarly rare. Homeopathic remedies
act on an energetic level to support the body’s natural healing
processes and to restore unbalanced functions to normal. They thus work
on an entirely different principle than conventional medicines, which
typically seek to suppress particular symptoms. Anecdotal evidence indicates
that patients who have been stabilized longterm on a particular dosage
of a medication such as Synthroid or Prozac may need to have their medication
reduced after homeopathic treatment. This does not reflect potentiation
of the medication by the remedy, but rather the latter’s healing
effect. (Riedlinger & Lennihan, 2002) If a remedy supports and strengthens
the thyroid, for example, the patient may need less Synthroid to achieve
the same effect. Or if a remedy helps the patient process an old grief,
the person may need less Prozac to help her cope with daily life.
Advantages of homeopathy
Homeopathy offers many advantages in treating mental health conditions.
In brief:
Limitations of homeopathy
Given all these advantages, why is homeopathy not more widespread? One
reason is the lack of insurance reimbursement—although that is bound
to change when the insurance companies discover how much money could be
saved with homeopathic treatment. Preliminary results from outcome studies
in Europe indicate that for a given condition, homeopathic treatment tends
to cost less in the long run, while at the same time causing lower rates
of side effects/adverse reactions/hospitalizations, a reduced incidence
of relapse, and a higher degree of patient satisfaction. (Lansky, 2003)
Homeopathy’s only disadvantage, in these outcome studies, was the
cost of the initial interview. Because the remedy must be individualized
to the patient, extensive information must be gathered at the initial
intake, which typically lasts one to two hours for chronic complaints,
more than insurers are currently willing to reimburse for.
Because of the number of remedies that must be mastered, homeopathic training typically takes several years longer than conventional medical training. (Homeopathic medical schools, integrating a mastery of homeopathic medicine with conventional health sciences, are not available in the US as they are in some other countries. Homeopathic schools in the US typically meet one weekend per month over a number of years.) This causes the second greatest limitation of homeopathy: the lack of qualified practitioners. There are currently perhaps several thousand homeopaths in the United States, leaving many geographical areas without a qualified homeopath.
A final limitation has to do with a possible overreaction (not a side effect) to homeopathic remedies among people who are extremely sensitive to medications. Nurses may encounter patients who report an extreme reaction to a homeopathic remedy. (In such an instance they should clarify the nature of the remedy; patients often report taking a homeopathic remedy when in fact they have taken herbs. In my own practice, when I ask patients if they have ever used homeopathy, they may say, “Yes, I take gingko” or echinacea or St. John’s wort, when they are really taking an herb. Herbs typically come in tablets or alcohol-based tinctures, while remedies typically are supplied as tiny white medicated pellets that look like non-pareil candies or small tablets like baby aspirin.)
It is possible, however, that a patient could have an overreaction to a remedy. Homeopaths should—but often fail to—adjust the potency of their remedy to the sensitivity of their patients, by inquiring as to the patient’s sensitivity in other areas (such as their tendency to experience side effects from prescription medications or to react to foods or environmental toxins). In such a hypersensitive patient, the standard dose of a homeopathic remedy can cause an “aggravation” or temporary worsening of symptoms. This is different from a side effect, in the sense that it is only an initial reaction which typically wears off, leaving an overall improvement in symptoms. Nurses referring patients to a homeopath (see below) should advise these hypersensitive patients to request a reduced dosage from the homeopath.
Appropriate conditions for referral
Most conditions are appropriate for referral to a homeopath, especially
if the patient refuses conventional treatment, suffers severe side effects
from conventional treatment, or has run out of options. In addition, it
is ideal for those patients who report symptoms such as pain, but for
whom all diagnostic tests are normal (because homeopaths can work with
the patient’s subjective report of symptoms in these cases). Conditions
which are less amenable to homeopathy include gross structural problems
which require surgery, such as an adhesion or large fibroid, or those
with irreversible structural damage such as the demyelinization of the
nerve sheaths in multiple sclerosis. Homeopathy can still be a helpful
adjunctive therapy in these latter instances.
For example, if a potential patient calls to see if homeopathy can help
with a large fibroid, I advise her that it is unlikely that a remedy can
shrink the fibroid, but it can help speed healing from surgery and prevent
recurrence of the fibroid. Since psychological conditions generally do
not involve structural alteration, they are generally highly amenable
to homeopathic treatment. Even patients with personality changes following
a brain injury showed significant improvement from homeopathic treatment
in a recent study. (Chapman E, Weintraub R, et al., 1999). Patients who
do best with referral to a homeopath are those who are highly motivated,
good self-observers and self-reporters, and willing to be actively involved
in their healing process. Patients who may not be appropriate for referral
to a homeopath include those with cognitive limitations which prevent
them from reporting their symptoms or following directions. Even these
patients can be successfully treated, however, if a family member can
describe their condition and manage their medication. Homeopathy has been
successfully used in comatose patients, for example. (Morrison, 1993)
(I personally witnessed the repeated administration of a remedy to a comatose
patient by dabbing the liquid remedy on his lips; each time he opened
his eyes and asked for a newspaper or a drink of water.)
Conditions which are especially amenable to homeopathy include psychological
ones and those with a strong mind-body connection. Homeopathic journals
abound with cured cases of depression, anxiety, panic attacks, the sequelae
of childhood sexual abuse, and so forth. Women’s conditions like
the mood changes of PMS and menopause have been successfully treated with
homeopathy, which provides a more curative response than conventional
medications. Patients frequently report not only a cessation of symptoms
but also a deeper self-awareness as a result of the homeopathic healing
process. In particular they are often able to reflect on the meaning of
their illness in their lives, which in itself can have a healing effect.
Children’s conditions like separation anxiety, ADHD, ODD and various
learning disabilities have also been successfully treated with homeopathy,
which can provide parents with a welcome alternative to medications which
have been FDA-approved for adults but never tested on children. Parents
reluctant to put their child on Ritalin, but who are under pressure from
the school system, could be good candidates for referral to a professional
homeopath.
Severe mental health conditions requiring in-patient treatment are difficult
to treat with homeopathy in the absence of homeopathic mental hospitals
such as existed in this country in the first half of the 20th century.
(Seven such state hospitals, with a total of over 10,000 beds, were listed
in the 1941 Directory of Homeopathic Physicians. [Winston, 1999]). Conventional
mental hospitals, as well as other institutions like nursing homes, often
prevent patients from taking (or family members from administering) homeopathic
remedies due to a lack of awareness of their safety and FDA-protected
status.
Evaluating a homeopath for referral
Finding a professional homeopath is likely to be easier in large cities
and on the two coasts. A good way to start is by asking patients routinely
about the use of natural supplements and medications. If a patient reports
taking remedies under the guidance of a professional homeopath, he or
she could be asked to assess the practitioner in terms of effectiveness
and bedside manner. Word of mouth is often the best way to find a homeopath,
for two reasons. First, the homeopath must be able to put patients at
ease, because of the extensive and intimate nature of the initial interview,
which can last for two to three hours. Secondly, national standards have
not yet been fully implemented to certify professional homeopaths. The
homeopathic community is still in the process of developing professional
certification. Certification standards have recently been developed; however
only a small percentage of practicing homeopaths have passed the certification
exam to date. Since national certification does not lead to licensure
or insurance coverage, there is little incentive for homeopaths already
in practice to take the exam. Licensure laws vary state by state, with
few states specifically licensing homeopathy or even mentioning it in
their medical scope of practice acts (Riedlinger J. & Lennihan B.,
2002; Lansky 2003). Thus, while the “CCH” designation is a
positive indication of the homeopath’s competence, the lack of it
does not indicate a lack of competence. It may simply mean that the homeopath
already had a well-established, busy practice when the CCH exam was recently
instituted.
In the absence of licensure or national certification, other objective
criteria can be used to check the competence of a professional homeopath.
Ideally s/he will have had at least 500 hours of training in homeopathy,
5 or more years in full-time practice, and will treat all or most patients
in his/her practice with homeopathy. Nurses may feel more comfortable
referring to a homeopath with medical licensure. (Skinner 2001) However,
conventional medical licensure does not necessarily indicate competence
in homeopathy: a physician could advertise that she practices homeopathy
after taking a single weekend workshop, for example, while a dedicated
layperson may have spent many years mastering the subtleties and complexities
of homeopathy—which reinforces the value of word of mouth in assessing
a professional homeopath.
Research studies
Research in homeopathy has mostly been conducted in Europe, where homeopathy
is more popular and more accepted than in this country. Much of the research
has been published in other languages or is otherwise inaccessible to
American scientists. Most medical and nursing school curricula in the
US do not cover research in homeopathy, leading to the common misperception
that homeopathy is “unproven.” In addition, many research
studies which purport to demonstrate that homeopathy is ineffective actually
failed because they did not follow some of its basic principles (Ullman,
D. 1995). The concept of individualizing the remedy to the patient, for
example, makes it difficult to design a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled
trial in which a single remedy is tested against a single conventional
drug. Nevertheless, in two meta-analyses of controlled trials, one showed
that 81 of 105 trials indicated positive results for homeopathy, including
9 of the 11 highest quality trials (Kleijnen, J., et al. 1991), while
a more recent meta-analysis of 89 studies, homeopathic treatment was 2.45
times more likely than placebo to produce a positive therapeutic effect
(Linde, K. et al., 1997). Homeopathy fares best in outcome studies in
which patients can choose a homeopathic or conventional practitioner (thereby
neutralizing any placebo effect) and the practitioner is allowed to prescribe
the appropriate remedy or medication.
A summary and analysis of research studies on homeopathy is available
at www.homeopathic.org
or www.homeopathic.com.
Studies on particular conditions are summarized in Ullman (2003), which
is a frequently updated e-book listing the latest research studies (with
excerpts available at www.homeopathic.com).
Research studies on mental and emotional conditions include the following:
Trying homeopathy at home
Experiencing homeopathy first hand is the best way to learn about it.
Resources for readers wishing to try it for themselves and their families
(see “Resources”) include several excellent books by Dana
Ullman, such as Homeopathic Medicine for Children and Infants and The
Consumer’s Guide to Homeopathic Medicines; and the equally useful
and well-written guide by Dr. Judyth Reichenberg-Ullman, Whole Woman Homeopathy.
The latter has partnered with her husband Dr. Robert Ullman in writing
several books documenting homeopathic alternatives to common drugs: Prozac-Free,
Ritalin-Free Kids and Rage-Free Kids. While not suitable as guides to
self-medication, they present the limitations of conventional pharmaceuticals
and the advantages of homeopathic treatment. The recently reprinted Emotional
Healing with Homeopathy by Peter Chappell is the best overall treatment
of the subject and includes many suggestions for self-care with homeopathy.
While chronic conditions (both physical and psychological) need to be
treated by a professional homeopath rather than by self-medication, acute
conditions can be safely and effectively treated at home. Since legal
restrictions on RNs recommending homeopathic remedies for patients vary
by state and by workplace, the following suggestions are intended for
nurses wishing to experience homeopathy first-hand for conditions appropriate
for home care.
Ignatia (made from the St. Ignatius bean) is a common remedy for acute
grief, for example when someone receives a phone call about a family member’s
sudden death. When the person responds by sobbing, sighing and wailing,
they are likely to find Ignatia calming. It will never numb them or deny
them the grief experience. As one of my patients said after taking Ignatia,
“It allows me to cry without screaming and to grieve without becoming
hysterical.” A good homeopathic remedy will support the person in
processing their grief while being able to think clearly and act calmly.
Some people respond to a sudden grief or shock quite differently, by going
numb rather than becoming hysterical. They may feel all the energy drained
out of them and may be unable to cry. In this case the remedy Gelsemium
(yellow jasmine) is more likely to be helpful. While the person needing
Ignatia is hyperemotional, the one needing Gelsemium seems to be lacking
emotion (although inwardly traumatized). Gelsemium is helpful in general
for what homeopaths call “hearing bad news” as well as for
viral conditions like the flu when the person complains of being “so
tired I feel like a truck ran over me, like I just want to close my eyes
and lie down and sleep all day.”
A friend asked me for a remedy last summer because he thought he had the
flu, with this typical drowsy-droopy-dizzy sensation. Since it was not
flu season, I asked him what else was going on; he said he had inadvertently
parked illegally in Manhattan, his car had been towed, and he did not
have the $200 in cash to retrieve it. I realized he was suffering from
“hearing bad news” rather than the flu. I suggested that he
get Gelsemium from a nearby health food store, and it brought his energy
right back (although not his car!).
Gelsemium can be used for situations where the person feels frightened,
including going to the dentist, taking an exam, or public speaking, when
the person feels drained of energy, mentally blank, and possibly trembling
inside. (It can even be used for animals that seem fearful and trembly
when they realize they are about to be taken to the vet!) A patient called
me recently for a remedy because she was terrified about having to face
her abusive ex-husband in court; she reported feeling weak and shaky,
and I suggested Gelsemium to help give her strength in facing him.
Another remedy for these situations in which the person feels fearful
is Argentum nitricum. People needing this remedy will keep asking others
“What if?” type questions (“What if this goes wrong?
What if that happens?”) and may express their anxiety physically
with bouts of diarrhea—which tend to compound the anxiety. They
may be afraid to go out of the house unless they know exactly where all
the bathrooms are along their route. Aconite is another useful remedy
for fright—in this case for a sudden fright, especially for people
who feel they almost died or might have died. For example, someone in
a car accident who just escaped death, or people hearing gunfire in a
neighborhood prone to driveby shootings, might find their racing heart
calmed with a few doses of Aconite.
Rescue Remedy is almost a universal remedy for traumas of all kinds, whether
physical, mental, or emotional (even financial!). It is a blend of five
Bach Flower Remedies, which are dilute flower essences (not technically
homeopathic but in the same general family of energy-based medicines).
For those who do not feel confident trying the specific homeopathic remedies
above, Rescue Remedy is ideal to keep on hand for any acute trauma: a
fall from a bicycle, the breakup of a relationship, the death of a beloved
family pet.
Dosage and delivery forms
All of the remedies listed here should be easily available in health food
stores, some pharmacies, and from several on-line distributors. Rescue
Remedy comes in a little dropper bottle and is dispensed a few drops at
a time under the tongue or into water which is sipped. The rest come in
little tubes or bottles filled with sugar pellets. (Children love them,
and in my practice many children ask their parents for their homeopathic
remedies). Typically they are given three at a time to dissolve in the
mouth, repeated two or three times a day until they take effect. Then
no further doses are given unless and until the symptoms start to recur.
“First do no harm” is a good principle to keep in mind when
considering using homeopathy. It is almost impossible to cause harm with
homeopathy, and it is at least possible to do some good. Therefore it
is safe to try as the first line of treatment in many situations likely
to arise in the home. Once readers have seen good results with themselves,
family members or pets, they may feel comfortable recommending homeopathy
in their professional practice. They may then discover how homeopathy
can be both extremely gentle and deeply curative.
References
Chapman, E., Weintraub, R., Milburn, M. et al. (1999) Homeopathic
treatment of mild traumatic brain injury: a randomized, double-blind,
placebo-controlled trial. Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation,
14,6:521-542.
Davidson, J., Gaylord, S. Meeting of minds in psychiatry and homeopathy:
an example in social phobia (1995). Alternative therapies 1,3:36-43.
Davidson, J., Morrison, R., Shore, J., et al. (1997). Homeopathic
treatment of depression and anxiety. Alternative therapies 3,1:46-49.
Frei, H., & Thurneysen, A. (2001). Treatment for hyperactive children:
homeopathy and methylphenidate compared in a family setting. British
homeopathic journal 90:183-188.
Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States. (2000). Southeastern,
PA: Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia Convention of the United States.
Kleijnen, J., Knipschild, P., ter Riet, G. (1991). Clinical trials
of homeopathy. British medical journal 302:316-23.
Lamont, J. (1997). Homeopathic treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity
Disorder. British homeopathic journal, 86: 196-200.
Lansky, A. (2003). Impossible cure: the promise of homeopathy. Portola
Valley, CA: RL Ranch Press.
Linde, K., Clausius, N., Ramirez, G., et al. (1997). Are the clinical
effects of homeopathy placebo effects? A meta-analysis of placebo-controlled
trials. Lancet 350:834-43.
Morrison R. (1993). Desktop guide to keynotes and confirmatory symptoms.
Albany, CA: Hahnemann Clinic Publishing.
Reidlinger, J., & Lennihan, B. (2002).Homeopathic medicines. In:
Handbook of nonprescription drugs. Washington, DC: The American Pharmaceutical
Association.
Skinner, S. (2001) An introduction to homeopathy in primary care.
Gaithersburg, MD: Aspen Publications.
Ullman D. (1995) The consumer’s guide to homeopathy. New
York: G.P.Putnam/Jeremy Tarcher Books.
Winston J. (1999). The faces of homeopathy: an illustrated history
of the first 200 years. Tawa, New Zealand: Great Auk Publishing.
Resources
Recommended Reading
Chappell, P. (2003). Emotional healing with homeopathy. Berkeley,
CA: North Atlantic Books.
Coulter C.(1986). Portraits of homeopathic medicines: psychophysical
analyses of selected constitutional types . Berkeley, CA: North Atlantic
Books.
Coulter C. (2001). Homeopathic sketches of children’s types.
Bethesda, MD: Ninth House Publishing. A description of children’s
psychological types.
Cummings S., Ullman D. (1991).Everybody’s guide to homeopathic
medicines. New York: G.P.Putnam/Jeremy Tarcher Books.
Gray B. (2001). Homeopathy: science or myth? Berkeley, CA: North
Atlantic Books. An excellent and readable review of the research on homeoapathy.
Herscu P. (1991). The homeopathic treatment of children. Berkeley,
CA: North Atlantic Books. A description of children’s psychological
types.
Reichenberg-Ullman, J. (2000).Whole woman homeopathy.Roseville,
CA: Prima Publishing. An excellent guide to self-care for women’s
conditions.
Reidlinger J., Lennihan B. (2002). Homeopathic medicines. In: Handbook
of non-prescription drugs. Washington, DC: The American Pharmacists
Association.
Skinner, S. (2001) An introduction to homeopathy in primary care.
Gaithersburg, MD: Aspen Publications.
Ullman D. (1995) The consumer’s guide to homeopathy. New
York: G.P.Putnam/Jeremy Tarcher Books. A good basic self-help book, with
additional excellent chapters on research on homeopathy and how it works.
Ullman D. (2003). Homeopathic family medicine. Berkeley, CA:
Homeopathic Educational Services e-book.
Ullman D. (1992) Homeopathic medicine for children and infants.
New York: G.P.Putnam/Jeremy Tarcher Books.
Ullman R, Reichenberg-Ullman J. (1999) Prozac-free: homeopathic medicine
for depression, anxiety and other mental and emotional problems. Rocklin,
CA: Prima Publishing.
Ullman R, Reichenberg-Ullman J. (1996) Ritalin-free kids: homeopathic
treatment of ADD and other behavioral and learning problems. Rocklin,
CA: Prima Publishing.
Ullman R, Reichenberg-Ullman J. (1999) Rage-free kids: homeopathic
medicine for defiant, aggressive and violent children. Rocklin, CA:
Prima Publishing.
Internet Resources
www.homeopathic.com
www.homeopathic.org
www.homeopathy-cures.com/referral.htm
(for referrals)
www.homeopathyhome.com
www.mcp.edu/altmed
www.holistickids.org
Teleosis School of Homeopathy
5A Lancaster St., Cambridge, Mass. 02140
teleosis@verizon.net (617) 547-8500
©Copyright 2005
