Wed, the 13th, Son fell in a hole that he had to crawl out of that was lined with Poison Oak. When he got home from this youth activity, he showered and washed everything! I treated with Rhus Tox 30c, as I do not own Rhus V. We treated three times over the weekend with no physical manifestations of it and the internal itching he felt Wednesday night went away with the first dose. Monday the 18th and for the rest of the week he was at Scout Camp. After 2 or 3 days there he got alot of bug bites and they all itched, so he took Apis 30c from the emergency kit I sent with him (so he wouldn't have to submit to allopathy unless it was beyond his capabilities). He says the itching went away except for on the back of his right knee, where it appeared to be festering and buring in four spots (lines actually). He asked to call home to see what to do about it but was told it would be fine. He also took Arnica to prevent bruising and relieve pain when he was kicked by a steel toe shoe, which of course worked and may be irrelevant here. I go out of town Thursday and husband stays home to await sons arrival. Son arrives Saturday around noon and I am called Sunday at 10 am to be told about this patch of red skin on the back of his knee that is about 4-5 inches long and 2 inches wide. My husband could not get hold of me so he took him to his mother who proceeded to put Calymine spray on it!! I spoke to my son at noon Sunday and told him to wash that off! I told my husband to do a strength test between Apis and Ars. because the watery weeping was burning. The Ars. won. The burning went away and has not returned. I told him to make Oatmeal paste and he failed, not knowing what I meant and so it sat til I got home Monday around 3pm. I made the oatmeal paste and applied it. It works the way I expect. It sucks the weeping watery gunk out of his skin. I call a Naturopath in my area that I know his wife and he verifies by phone that it is Poison Oak and that it is progressing as is typical and has no further suggestions except graphites.Tuesday his knee starts to swell and that night I decide more research is in order. That evening I use cucumber and filtered water that I shook together in a bottle to rinse his skin after he rubbed a peeled cucumber on it ot sooth it. He said as he rubbed it it cooled very deeply. Later he said it caused it to itch almost. The Graphites does not fit the case on the skin descriptions (it is not sticky pus and his skin is generally healthy) and the modalities are completely wrong. I look over the Arsenicum as well as the Rhus Tox and Apis to see if I am missing anything. Both Rhus and Apis mentioned swelling and so I figure all is well. It is at that point that I discover that Apis and Rhus Tox are opposing remedies!! Wednesday I tried to call my mentor to bounce some ideas off and my mentor cannot reached. I ask the naturopath and he doesn't seem to understand my question only tells me what ininimical means...?? Wednesday we use the oatmeal again and by now the patch is about 8 inches long and about 3 inches wide. The center of it (about a 1-2 inches circle) is changing and is no longer flaky or weeping and is only surrounded by the skin that is hard crusty and no longer weeping. It is like a big ring. Thursday we did the oatmeal agian and the ring is getting larger and the new skin in the center is also getting larger, but the ring is weeping again...not burning. We noticed his ankle was swollen Thursday am. Got a holdof my mentor I was remided to ask here and was told that thr poison ivy and oak cases this summer seem to be more severe than in past years for some unknown reason. The only thing I had thought to do was to antidote the two with camphor or menthol or coffee and start him out on Rhus Tox 200 or higher which it states in my materia medica by Beoricke. Based on how severe it is at thsi stage and how severe the cases have been this summer I am comfortable putting him on 1m, but buying 10 m just in case.

Here's a kicker. My infant son (7.5 months old) has a circle of red dry crusty skin I found onhis head Wednesday. i washed it and put Calendula Cream on it over night. The next day it was weeping and I washed it agian and left alone. I gave him Rhus Tox 30 c as I have no reason to believe it is NOT a spreading of what my 12yr old son has. Thursday and today it has been looking the same and there is no longer any weeping. Based on the above I think I may give him a 200 or use the Split Dose method mentioned on the Asthma thread before giving him the 200c of Rhus Tox.

I need to know what the SOP is for dealing with ininimity is and what other thoughts are floating aorund out there. I will be obtaining the higher doses in about an hour and I am alos goingt o get some Grindelia Spray in as low a potency as I can find, as to not interfere or overload the system any further.

Thanks ahead of time for any and all input!!

Sepia

Dear members

I understand Sepia’s predicament. It is the problem of having some knowledge of homeopathy and wanting to treat and do good. Once things become a bit complicated, the advice of a mentor, naturopath is sought and then one gets completely entangled in all the suggestions from anyone and everyone. And then the doubts set in, -- Am I’m sure that this is the right thing what I am doing, -- maybe its this, or that remedy, or we try something from the outside; How long should we wait on the C-potency? And then desperation sets in, PANIK.

And that’s where we are; the realization is simple: I can’t do it, because my knowledge and expertise is not up to it.
Now, there is a choice: Either keep trying and possibly prolong the suffering, or hand over the case to someone who is capable of treating this complaint.

The second choice would be mine, as it is the limited knowledge in Materia Medica, combined with the limited availability of remedies, which creates this predicament.
Resulting from the limited knowledge of MMP is the inability to recognize certain symptoms, simply , because we are not aware of them forming part of a proving.

Only by having a fairly comprehensive knowledge of the MMp is it possible to know in advance all remedies suitable for the condition and the subtle differences to look out for, in order to determine the exact right remedy of the group of possibles.

On a general note: Inimicals / follows well relationships between remedies are mere suggestions from different authors. (Some copy each other). Every remedy can follow any other one with benefit , if the symptoms call for it.

It always remains the symptoms now present, which call forth the suitable remedy.

__________________
Hans Weitbrecht
Consultant Homeopath
homeopathy study guide: http://www.homeopathyworldcommunity....hy-study-guide

what Hans says , but we need to get more people involved in homeopathy , and like mayself (and possibly Hans ) learning from their mistakes. This way you dont forget.

Prof Kent said , and I have tried and tested it many times , that when you get in a fix , use high potency (10m) Nat mur and bring the case to order -- wait and then take the case again.

For some one to welcome being made an example out of, but I do see the need for the reminder. I have always heeded the "recommendations" as to what was ininimical and what followed well as well as antidotes and comparisons...My son didn't have a Materia Medica or Comparison Chart to compare or look to when he made his decison to take Apis. I will be sure he isn't ill equipt next time he goes out on his own! I am sure he will welcome the resource.

I have never dealt with this situation and neither has my Mentor, apparently. My mentor is the one who taught me to pay heed to the cautions and such. In Boericke's MM&Rep it states that 200c or higher will antidote the plants effects...the trouble with that is that I need a perscription for 200c and up and my naturopath is unreachable!! So I have no other chioce than to take suggestions and don't think for a moment that I am just goingt to try everything under the sun! Nor have I any intentions of taking every little peice of advise...I plan to take it all in and anylize it and apply the knowledge and natural instinct I have about homeopathy and choose carefully, if there is a suitable chioce to be made.

So please keep'em coming.

I bare no ill feelings and don't expect anyone else to assume that I am ignorant.

=)

As of late, his knee decided to swell up agian last night. He has bumps that look hard under his skin almost every where. When he told me his "privates" were feeling kinda itchy last night I had him take two big gulps of coffee (which we never drink-I had to go spend 60 cents on it at the convienience store) in an attempt to antidote both remedies...not much results. At 1AM I reread the same material I have been going over and one of to thinsg are happening: The Apis is aggravating the poisoning or the Rhus is proving itself. I chose at that point ot give him Anac.30c and gave it 3 times. It took away the allover body itch that had just return a few hours prior and this morning his patch of skin is not weeping and is very dry and crusty except along the thin edge where it is still red, puffy, bumpy, taunt and irritated. BUT IT'S NOT WEEPING! SO now I wait. I am not sure what I am waiting for but I have no urge to panic. I feel content to WAIT.

Hi,

I dont have any advice but just to let you know that my thoughts are with you and your son.
Take care.

Thank you habeeba!

Hi Sepia

Boericke’s material medica is in homeopathy, what an off- the- shelf magazine is on open heart surgery.

Just compare the volume on proving information:
Allens Encyclopedia: 12 volumes with approximately 800 pages each, only containing proving info, no repertory, no clinical findings
and Boerricke’s MM, + Repertory +Index, including clinical findings: 1042 pages.

You wrote:
>> So I have no other chioce than to take suggestions and don't think for a moment that I am just goingt to try everything under the sun! <<

There is more then that option, one, -- to bring your son to a homeopath, who is an expert and can deal with his problems effectively.

>> Nor have I any intentions of taking every little peice of advise...I plan to take it all in and anylize it and apply the knowledge and natural instinct I have about homeopathy and choose carefully, if there is a suitable chioce to be made.<<

Becoming an expert in homeopathy will take you approximately 15 years of study and work. Then you are most likely in the position to make a proper choice even if things are not plain sailing.

Is your son prepared to wait that long, and are you prepared to put in the time and effort?

So much can be said, that many cases were irreversibly spoiled by the wrong and indiscriminate application of ill-chosen remedies.

The life force=living principle gets confused, and becomes immune to homeopathic remedies altogether, or starts overreacting to any remedy.

So, the choice is yours,
-- either to continue playing Russian roulette with your sons health,
-- or to give things a different direction by considering the above.

__________________
Hans Weitbrecht
Consultant Homeopath
homeopathy study guide: http://www.homeopathyworldcommunity....hy-study-guide

...it is something I personally don't get from people around me. While it can frustrating, I soak it up.

I have already decided to take him to a homeopath. I have a Naturopath, but don't feel like he is well versed enough in Homeopathy to handle this to my satisfaction or maybe even at all.

15 years huh? My mentor has been studying and utilizing homeopathy for twice that. I WILL be a licensed homeopath in less than 10...I have children to raise right now, you see.

Laterz

A simple solution - keep a list of inimicals among the remedies you store or keep in a kit. I would certainly encourage anyone to use the remedies to the best of their knowledge, because most people who store/carry homeopathic remedies do know basic facts. In an emergency, use whatever's best-suited and to hand.
If you want to be even more careful, keep and list antidotes, especially antidotes that can be used for a number of remedies.
Any serious problem needs a qualified homeopath, but lets not mystify the process to put off people who try to help themselves.

I think it is wonderful that your kids grow with homeopathy and not allopathy!You are doing a great job!

Sure, we all make mistakes (except maybe for Hans) but I wouldn't equal skills with years of studying. You may study without learning. Professional homeopath not always means more than some paper on the wall.

__________________
Astra<br /><br />"Difficult cases take some time to be cured,<br />impossible - a little longer."