Is it necessary to bother the Homeopath for every beginning cold?

I work with children and every 2-3 months start to come down with something. I take an herbal supplement, Kam Jang, for a few days and rest and that usually deals with it nicely. I don't think they are aggravations b/c they always start the same: dryness in the throat, congestion...

I also worry that I would be interfering with my constitutional remedy if I switched temporarily to acutes.

Am I making a mistake here and what about herbs antidoting the remedy?

Contenta

A month's course of Echinacea MT(Herbal) would build up your immune system and IMO doesn't interfere with constituitional remedies.

Ricky's right-- a short course of echinacea as soon as it begins cuts the duration down quite a bit and doesn't interfere.

But--doing nothing works fine, too. A cold after a remedy is generally a very good sign that the remedy has done its job, and the body is now actively pushing out waste materials, debris, whatever it was unable to clear before the remedy acted.

A flu is another thing entirely, however...

Thanks, both of you. Of course I've never been clear on the difference between a cold and a flu. Right now my joints ache, throat's dry and my nose is running. I'm also exhausted. Please, what do I have?

(non molto) Contenta

Are you running a temperature? Or, are you slightly colder (body temp wise) than you usually are? Are there any other symptoms, such as a headache? What about your appetite, any changes? Changes in urination or stool?

Is the exhaustion something extraordinary or just like something you would deal with after not enough sleep and too much to do?

Usually exhaustion, joint pain, chills, a fever, and throat pain makes me think a flu may be coming on. Is the time of year (leftover winter/spring) when you routinely come down with something? I think you should contact your homeopath and tell him/her about the symptoms, as they do sound to be leaning more to the flu than to the cold description...

Okay--there is a silver lining here, you know: if this is indeed a flu and you've been on a constitutional remedy, then the flu symptoms will provide some good pointers to an excellent and necessary remedy for you.
I had a patient last year I could have sworn needed Kali Phos as a constititional, and everything seemed to be going really well until I got this phone call...she had a wicked, painful flu! We looked at the symptoms of the flu she had--extreme drowsiness and exhaustion, chills up and down the spine, and severe joint pain, and a thick headache that felt better whenever she had to pee!...and they pointed to Gelsemium. That was when I learned that Gelsemium contains a great deal of potassium phosphate--Kali Phos! So, the acute ailment actually pointed out an excellent constitutional remedy for her, and she has continued to do well on the Gelsemium as a constitutional remedy ever since. So, in her case, I may never have thought of the best remedy for her if she'd not become ill.
I'd have to say that in her case, the acute ailment definitely made a nice window into her chronic state.

Maybe this ailment will do the same for you!
But you would have to tell your homeopath your symptoms so that a good remedy for your acute state can be determined.

How's that to restore you?
Sei piu Contenta adesso?
Speriamo!

Divina

Divina,
Thanks for your informative reply. You really make homeopathy fascinating.

I did speak to my homeopath and he confirmed that I do have the flu. It was the persistent joint pain that made me wonder. Of course, today we're having a very wet storm so maybe that was a factor too.

He said my symptoms were too strong for it to be an aggravation. He also asked if anything emotional had been going on. Aha! About 36hours before this started my husband returned after a two week research trip. Since he has MS I go on these overseas trips to help him. However I couldn't spare the time and we managed to construct the trip in a way that was manageable. He survived, with help, and I hope it builds up his confidence.

I, not surprisingly, thrived. As busy as I was, two weeks free of the stress of dealing with MS, and his way a handling it, was a wonderful break for me. Let's just say I found his return difficult. I hadn't realized before how much everything revolves around him, and he likes it that way. I went to bed feeling trapped and depressed.

I relate this b/c the worst symptom I had was burning, tearing eyes leading to sneezing. I realized that I had probably needed a really good cry on saturday night. Not surprisingly, the eye symptoms have eased up since I realized this.

Sorry about the personal nature of this but I thought I'd share it since it seemed homeopathic to me.

Contenta

Dear Contenta,

Your husband's MS can undoubtedly be treated homeopathically. Can you get him to your homeopath?

Snoopy

Another cold and flu remedy is Ossillococcinum -- works really well especially at the start of symptoms.

Hi Contenta,

Please don't apologise for the "personal nature" of your letter...heck, what would we be doing here if people weren't willing to recognize the "personal nature" of their ailments?

I think the analysis you did on your own situation is very insightful--unfortunately, it is a situation which is significantly epidemic among women....lots and lots of us structure our whole lives around our mates and family, and don't realize how much we've neglected ourselves until they have to go off and act on their own. Then, when they return and we've tasted the freedom and "luxury" of "having our own lives"...well, let's just say there is an opportunity for life enrichment there for both you and your husband!

Fortunately, you already know you can use homeopathy to help you out with this goal--it will help you to find a way to create this fulfillment for yourself, and it will also help your husband with his MS--it is very treatable, and often curable, with homeopathy!

So, yes, it is very sad at the moment to come to that kind of knowledge about your self and your situation, but you can effectively change this with some effort (and a good homeopath!). Try to keep in mind that if this nasty flu hadn't hit, you may never have put the pieces to this little puzzle together...and this could have gone on for years, right? So that's a pretty nice "silver lining".

By the way, homeopathy is altogether fascinating...even without my help! But thanks for the gracious compliment anyway!

Divina

Hoppitt, it's funny you mentioned Oscillococcinum. I've been taking it all winter as a preventive, since I work with children. The homeopath gave me a tincture and I take two drops each morning. I stopped it ten days before I got sick. Big mistake I guess.