Recently I took my partner to see my homeopath, he suffers from anxiety and depression which we hoped homeopathy could help to ease.
Over the past few years he has taken antidepressants and ended up on tranquillisers, trying to get off them. He now unfortunately has a tranquilliser dependance. He had been cutting down his tranq. dose very steadily and had just stopped taking them before he saw the homeopath.
She decided to post him the remedy after his consultation, but in the meantime he started getting quite bad withdrawal symptoms. By the time it arrived he was frightened to take it as she said it may stir up some feelings that had previously been hidden, and he wouldn't know what he was experiencing, homeopathic medicine effects, or withdrawal.
As time went by his withdrawal got worse, and we felt he may have been suicidal and he was certainly very confused, having dellusions at times too, so we got emergency help from the emergency GP at the hospital, and he saw a psychiatrist the same evening, they put him on anti psychotics, for hopefully only avery short time.
I was due to let my homeopath know how I was doing so I told he about my partners situation at the same time, expecting a sympathetic response. Instead she seemed cross that he hadn't taken her remedy, and annoyed that I had taken him to see conventional doctors. She also expressed an opinion that the same thing would happen again when he tried to come off the new drugs.
I felt very anxious after speaking to her, wondered if I had done the right thing, but decided that he may not have been with us if I hadn't taken him to see the conventional doctors. ialso doubt whether a homeopath would have been equipped to deal with a patient in the state my partner was in.
Is homeopathy suitable in the situation we found ourselves in?
That said homeopathy has helped my allergies alot, and I want to continue my treatment, as i also get alot of tiredness and pain following viral infections that I picked up at university, which the homeopath thought she could improve. I am just not sure if I want to return to this particular homeopath, maybe our patient-practitioner relasionship has broken down? I wonder if she is too anti conventional medicine for me? (I don't consider conventional medicine to be a cure all, but it is the socially accepted way at present and the most acessible care in an emergency, and also an accountable source of care.) Would a homeopath with different views of homeopathy's role suit me better? Should I give this homeopath another go?

I think you should have a frank discussion with your current homeopath, given that you were satisfied prior to this incident with your partner. That said, a well qualified homeopath should be equiped to handle a psychological emergency, if only to recognize when allopathic treatment is appropriate. Also, it's important to feel comfortable with your homeopath and his philosophy of practice. After discussing the situation with your homeopath, you should have a better sense if this is the person you want to stay with or if you want to change.
Shirley Reischman

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Shirley Reischman

It is always best to not withdraw the drugs just before going for homoeopathic treatment. It is very confusing for everyone, what is the remedy and what is the withdrawal? It is best to stay on the drugs and take the remedy, waiting until you feel your emotional strength build to a point where you feel safe to come off the drugs.

All of the patients I have had in the same situation were able to withdraw from their drugs AFTER the remedy worked to reduce or eliminate the problem underneath. They often did this with very few side effects (depending on the drug of course). The other possibility is to use a remedy known to ease people through withdrawal (ie Avena sativa, which I have seen completely stop heroin withdrawal symptoms!!)

As to the issue with the homeopath, I think she was being a little unfair in showing her irritation to you. Perhaps a little more understanding and compassion on her part could help your partner come to trust she will get him through this. After all, it is your decision , not hers. She is just there to give aid and advice (as we all are).

[ 08 July 2001: Message edited by: DavidJK ]

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David Kempson.<br />Dip.Homoeopathic Medicine.<br />Lecturer Australian College of Natural Therapies (Brisbane Campus)<br />Member AHA, AROH, HMA<br />Member Australian Homoeopathic Association. Member#0442.

Just to say thank you both for your opinions, and kind words. It was very reassuring to know that I hadn't done a totally terrible thing. My partner has now stopped taking the anti psycotics, and has appointments to see his GP and a psyciatrist, we know he has a long way to go, but hopefully when he has evened things out he will feel that homeopathy can help,would this be the time you would recommend restarting treatment? The things that David mentioned are very interesting and encouraging.
i am thinking about going for my follow up with the same homeopath, I'd hate to think that someone wouldn't give me a chance to sort things out, when it didn't go quite to plan, so I guess that is why although i was upset by what the homeopath had said I felt uncomfortable just cutting it dead.

Some homeopaths I know are strictly alternative practitioners and some like me are complementary. I agree with everything that David said as that is the way I also work. I always use Avena Sativa MT to help withdrawal symptoms but medication should never be withdrawn completely just like that. After homeopathic treatment the patient should go back to the Doctor and say "I feel better (hopefully) now so how do I withdraw from the medication gradually and safely."

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RSHom - Registered Homeopath

David and Ricky are absolutely right. If the homeopath blew up at you, she absolutely blew it! The consulting room is supposed to be a safe place. If she's going to "scold" her patients, they're not going to feel safe enough to share their deepest feelings, without which it's impossible to find the right remedy.

Very unprofessional. I hope you can find someone else. Plus which, every homeopath should know not to withdraw people from their drugs. We're supposed to know how to prescribe for people on drugs, there's a way to do this.

Good luck,

Snoopy

I do not agree to what is said here by a few people and point to the par. 52 of the Organon. It sais there:
There are but two principal methodes of cure:
the one based on accurate observation of nature, on careful experimentation and pure experience, the homeophatic (before we never desgnedly used) and a second which does not do this, the heteropathic or allopathic. Each opposes the other, and only HE WHO DOES NOT KNOW EITHER CAN HOLD THE DELUSION THAT THEY CAN EVER APPROACH EACH OTHER OR EVEN BECOME UNITED, OR TO MAKE HIMSELF SO RIDICULOUS AS TO PRACTICE AT ONE TIME HOMEOPATHICALLY AT ANOTHER ALLOPATHICALLY, according the pleasure of the patient; a practice which may be called criminal treason against divine homeopathy.

There is only to add my own bad experience when I ignored this paragraph, which I don't wish on anybody to go through.

I really can only advice: do one thing at the time.
Greetings from Irland, hans

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cure by symptom similarity!<br /><a href="http://www.Boger-Boenninghausen.com/" target="_blank">www.Boger-Boenninghausen.com/</a>

Once again thank you for your help, between you, you have reinforced how I felt, trying to see both sides!
I must explain that withdrawing from the tablets was something my partner had done alone (with the knowledge of his GP), and although the homeopath was pleased he was off them, she didn't tell him to come off them. Shame she hadn't given him the remedy to help him with the withdrawal (I'm fairly sure its not, the abbreviation on the bottle says P01)
Snoopy, I identify with what you say so closely, I see patients and they are often very elderly,confused (and sometimes pretty contancerous!) and I would never let a patient know if I was getting exasperated, luckily my patients aren't looking at me most of the time, they're busy concentrating on my chart (I'm an optometrist) so I have perfected the art of a very quiet deep breath to calm me!!! Also I really hate arguments and confrontation, so if I did go back to the same person, maybe I wouldn't find it easy to explain how much she had upset me, bury it, for an easy, less confrontational life, and never really get to the bottom of my own problems, and end up changing homeopaths at sometime down the line anyway.
I have plenty of time to consider my options my next appointment is a couple of weeks away, so I think I may chat to a couple of other homeopaths locally, and see if I can find a suitable replacement, maybe I'm just not big enough to have a discussion with her! I will certainly question them abit more about their ways abit more rather than totally trusting my gut feeling!
Thanks again for all your help.

Dear Elly,

Already we know something very important about you. You're one of the non-confrontational remedies: Staphysagria, Carcinosin, Nat-m., Ignatia, Silica....Staphysagria is a very frequently prescribed remedy for women, and I thought of it while reading your letter.

What Hans says is true. Allopathy and Homeopathy are definitely at cross-purposes! Homeopathy tries to enlist the body's own defense system to do the healing, the other totally disrespects and suppresses it--and weakens it until finally it can't do its job at all.

Still, we have to get a hold of ourselves!
Allopathy is holding all the cards, and any patient we see is liable to be on any number of prescription drugs, and we have to have a strategy for this other than being insulting. Some of these drugs will actually kill you if you try to go off of them! Some of the heart drugs will cause a heart attack if you stop them suddenly.
The tranquilizers will cause seizures if you stop them suddenly. It's better to give the indicated remedy in daily low doses and slowly withdraw the drugs after the remedy has been effective.

Snoopy

When i first read this...I thought, hmmmm.... On the one hand, yes, a practitioner must be patient, understanding, etc...she could've maybe tried to explain (but then, did she try?? Mebbe no one was listening? Or mebbe they didn't fully grasp what was being told to them??).

Although, on the other hand - when one has worked out the remedy needed - based on the presenting symptoms and the patient delays taking it and doesn't even bother to call .... that kinda equals major FRUSTRATION! Especially when you see your patient running back to the allopathic doc for more suppression - and a deeper problem!

How the heck can your practitioner even begin to help if a patient won't call and let them know they didn't take the remedy?? How can the practitioner help if one doesn't call during a crisis???

It seems to me that Eliz and her boyfriend don't quite understand, fully, how homeopathy really works (and I say this with compassion and understanding, not as a finger-pointing criticism) - because if they did - they would've called the homeopath for support. Homeopathy is MOST effective in crisis and it's a pity you didn't understand or realise this...as it would've been a huge help to your boyfriend during the awful time of withdrawal.

I wouldn't let a slight bit of irritation get in the way of a productive relationship with your practioner! No way!

Hey, if she did NOT care - she would not have reacted at all. And let's not forget that we're all human...
Please, let's leave the habit of 'putting DR on a pedestal" to the allopaths.

I'm all for professionalism - but I also realise we're all human too. And, if my patient didn't take the remedy when I had warned that it would be a nice/crucial time to take it (as you clarified that she knew your boyfriend was going off the a/d's tho she didn't advise that..the m.d. did) I'd be a bit frustrated, too..mebbe even irritated on a bad day (hey, we all have'em)...in any case, don't get side tracked with the human-emotion of it....

Stick to the aim - which is to get good treatment. And talk with your homeopath...no need for confrontation - just communicate your feelings...

You may just end up realising what got in the way and made you feel upset was really your stuff and not hers. And, she may learn a thing or two from the exchange with you and your boyfriend .

As for the irritation over taking your boyfriend to the conventional doc....I can understand this. Really, I do. Perhaps next time he tries to go off the drugs - and since it has FAILED time and again (i.e. the conventional approache, I mean) then why not give your homeopath the chance to treat him and ease him through the transition.

Yes, some drugs MUST be weaned...but it sounds like you already understand the dangers, etc....

Hang in there...communicate your feelings without worrying too much about her reaction (as long as you're being honest and real...no one can say much hey!) ...see how it goes with your homeopath, before you switch. Don't let one little 'hump' in the road make you feel you must leave.

I believe you'll feel much better after talking with her. If you don't at least try talking to her......then you'll always have a little niggle inside you wondering if you were unfair - or justified in your action.

Most of all...hang in there...and let's hope your boyfriend will be able to get back to a homeopath and successfully be seen through the transition back to health!!!

Good luck,
Lisa

[ 11 July 2001: Message edited by: LisaAnnan ]