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The pioneer of homeopathy was Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843), a German
physician. After working as an orthodox doctor, Hahnemann became
dissatisfied with the medical practices of his day and turned to
research.
For one of his experiments he dosed himself with Peruvian bark, or
cinchona, a known remedy for malaria. He found that he quickly
developed malaria-like symptoms: drowsiness, trembling, heart
palpitations, flushed cheeks, fever and thirst. This outcome
suggested to him that substances which produced a specific set of
symptoms in a healthy person could also cure the same set of
symptoms in an ill person. Hahnemann recognized the connection
between his idea and the references made by the ancient Greek
physician Hippocrates to a medicine of 'similars': substances which
could both cause and cure an illness.
Homeopathic treatment
Homeopathy views illness as a unique manifestation of a specific
disease in the patient. Symptoms are believed to be the body's way
of trying to maintain an equilibrium as it instinctively seeks
healing, and thus should not be suppressed. A homeopathic remedy
prescribed in accordance with the patient's total symptoms,
constitution, temperament and disease state will hasten recovery by
stimulating the body's innate vital force.
Finding the right homeopathic remedy to treat a person is a complex
procedure. It starts with the homeopath taking a lengthy personal
history which covers medical history, emotional reactions, food
preferences, reactions to weather, state of mind and personal
beliefs. An understanding of the patient's unique physical and
psychological make-up is crucial to the homeopath making a correct
diagnosis and choice of remedy.
Homeopaths treat chronic illnesses and their symptoms by stages,
giving progressive remedies to peel back ailments layer by layer.
The homeopathic Laws of Cure state that symptoms will
disappear first from the most important organs to the least
important, and in reverse chronological order to the onset of
symptoms. Thus homeopaths approach all the patient's physical and
mental health problems as related, rather than treating any one
ailment in isolation.
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