by Dr. Judyth Reichenberg-Ullman and Dr. Robert Ullman
The Myth of the Slow Cure
Wherever we travel, once we identify ourselves as homeopaths, we receive the same comment about our healing art: “Wonderful medicine, but it takes a long time to work, doesn’t it?” It is true that healing through homeopathy can be gradual in some chronic conditions, but no more so than with conventional medicine. At our four to six-week follow-up visit after administering the homeopathic medicine, significant change should be evident in most chronic conditions. For example, in the case of a depressed patient, we expect at least a seventy percent improvement by the six-week point. This response takes no longer than antidepressants. The same time frame is to be expected with most chronic conditions when a single, dry dose is administered. The response can occur within days or weeks in some cases, especially if the patient takes the homeopathic medicine in daily, liquid doses. Some of our patients report that they notice an improvement in their chronic, or constitutional, symptoms within minutes, hours, or days of taking the homeopathic medicine.
Acute illnesses are another story. The pace of the cure is related directly to the pace of the illness. A fever of rapid onset, for example, can respond within hours to a homeopathic medicine, such as Belladonna (deadly nightshade). In such a case, if the medicine is administered at night, there should be a dramatic response by morning at the latest. A patient called a couple of weeks ago with a debilitating flu. She reported feeling so exhausted that she could barely raise herself out of bed, as well as suffering from a severe headache and vertigo. It was early afternoon when she called, and she and her son had reservations to fly to the East Coast the following morning. Given her state of exhaustion and misery, she couldn’t even imagine getting on that plane much less being able to care for her son on a trip. The dizziness, drowsiness, and dullness matched quite well the picture of Gelsemium (yellow jasmine). We were relieved to hear that the woman felt well enough the next morning to hop on the plane and she and her son had a wonderful trip. So, trust us, the right homeopathic medicine can act very quickly.
Cystitis
Acute bladder infections (cystitis) are one of our favorite conditions to treat. Why? Because homeopathy almost always works beautifully, as long the patient doesn’t wait too long to call. We are referring primarily to bladder infections in women. Our office staff is well aware to notify us immediately if a patient calls with a UTI (urinary tract infection) and we will interrupt what we are doing to speak with the patient immediately. The other reason it is so gratifying to treat cystitis is because the pain, often severe, can be relieved so quickly and gently. In fact, many women are so convinced by their success with homeopathy for an acute bladder infections that they can’t wait to be treated constitutionally for their chronic problems. Bladder infections are a condition for which one of several common homeopathic medicines is very likely to work. When bladder infections are recurrent, or part of the constitutional picture, it is another story, and the patient may simply need a repetition of the constitutional medicine. In this article, we are discussing what we call “true acute” cystitis.
The Top Three Medicines
Sarsaparilla (wild licorice): It is ironic that this medicine is so common for women, yet one that some homeopaths do not learn in their training. We find it to be even more commonly indicated than the other two medicines we will discuss—Staphysagria and Cantharis, both of which are much more well known. The key symptom of those needing Sarsaparilla is a burning pain in the urethra at the end of urination. The pain may be severe, especially if the infection has gone on for hours or days. Although the sooner the symptoms are reported, the better the response, we have used Sarsaparilla even with cases of cystitis of same days’ duration. We do not tend to see any particular mental or emotional picture with those needing this medicine for acute cystitis.
Staphysagria (stavesacre) is the second most commonly prescribed cystitis medicine in our practice. The onset tends to occur either after frequent or vigorous sexual intercourse (hence the name “honeymoon cystitis”) or following an episode of anger, often suppressed, humiliation, insult, or indignation. The pain can be a burning in the urethra, much like that of Sarsaparilla, but Staphysagria covers many different kinds of pain and modalities (what makes the cystitis better or worse). This is because the plant is a member of the Ranunculaceae (buttercup) family, which, in homeopathy, includes the most sensitive of all the medicines.
Cantharis (Spanish fly) unquestionably corresponds to the most intense cystitis symptoms of these three medicines. The medicine is made from an insect, which, in and of itself, implies a certain life or death, highly sexual quality. Patients needing Cantharis are likely to experience a cystitis characterized by a rapid, often excruciating, onset. If these women do not receive the medicine very quickly after the initial onset of the symptoms, it is very likely that they will end up taking antibiotics. The pain can be described as intense, stinging, cutting, burning, and intolerable and is accompanied by tremendous urgency and frequency of urination. There is often blood in the urine soon after the onset of symptoms. Urination can be absolutely unbearable. The patient typically exhibits great restlessness and has a hard time sitting still because of the intensity of the suffering.
We were in Chile a month ago and were called to the bedside of an eighty-one-year-old farmer who had been apparently strong until two days earlier. Now, aware that he was dying, he made it clear to his five children that he wanted only natural medicine. His family, above all, wanted him to be free of pain. Although the medical history was sketchy, he seemed to be suffering from end-stage prostate cancer. We were taken to his bedside and found the white-haired, elderly gentleman writhing in pain and passing copious amounts of bright red urine. Within ten minutes of taking a dose of Cantharis 1M, he was able to relax, considerably more free of pain. It was a great relief to us and to the family that, although homeopathy could not save his life at that point, it could allow him to pass on more comfortably just after midnight. Although we deeply regretted having met this patriarch of a large, respected family, only on the last day of his life, his loved ones credited homeopathy with easing his pain at the end.
Potency and Frequency of Doses
Finding the correct medicine is much more important than selecting the potency. We tend to give quite high doses (1M) in the case of cystitis, in hopes of generating a powerful, rapid healing response. If you have lower potencies on hand, such as a 6C or a 30C, you will likely need to repeat them with some frequency (even every half hour, in some cases).
Adjuncts to Homeopathy
Don’t forget to drink as much water as possible and to drink cranberry juice or concentrate or take cranberry capsules at the first sign of cystitis. We often use an herbal combination including, for example, Bucchu and Uva ursi, along with the indicated homeopathic medicine.
Expected Response Time
We expect the urinary symptoms to improve with fifteen minutes to several hours. When using a high potency, such as a 1M, we rarely need to repeat the dose during the illness. We ask patients to call within two to three hours to report their progress, and it is usually quite favorable.
Prognosis for Future UTIs
The combination of rapid homeopathic acute care and effective constitutional homeopathic prescribing makes bladder infections highly treatable, much to the relief of those suffering from them.
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