What is homeopathy?

There are many misunderstandings about homeopathy and homeopathic medicines. What exactly is homeopathy?

In short, homeopathy is a healing method, in which a medicine chosen by the practitioner (based on similarity), both in acute and chronic illness can provide support through activation of the patient's self-healing ability.

Homeopathy is a healing method, which strengthens man's self-healing ability and otherwise has hardly any side effects. The basis of homeopathy is the "Similia principle": the sick person can be cured by a remedy that can cause similar symptoms as the sick person has. This principle has been known for a long time and can be traced as far back as Hippocrates. Around 1800, a German physician, Samuel Hahnemann, rediscovered this basic rule and further developed and described it as a method. He called this way of healing homeopathy (Greek: homeo= similar, pathos= suffering, disease). It involves three important basic principles, firstly the choice of medicine according to the Similia principle, secondly the use of specially prepared medicines, so-called homeopathic potencies. Third, the medicine is chosen on the individual symptom image of the patient.

The Similia Principle

The like is cured with the like. This is the so-called Similia principle and forms the basis of homeopathy. A substance that causes symptoms in healthy people can, in potentized form, cure the same symptoms in a sick person. By aggravating the symptoms in a very minimal form, the body is stimulated to restore balance. An example of this is: a person who is always cold can help himself by regularly taking a short cold shower. The exposure to the brief intense cold stimulates the body to generate heat. If a person continues to do this regularly, they will find that they can tolerate cold better and better, and thus are generally much less cold.

Another well-known example of a homeopathic method is placing a raw sliced onion next to the bed during a cold. The onion is known for its irritating effect on the mucous membranes. It can make you shed tears and snot terribly. The onion, whose Latin name is Allium Cepa, is a proven remedy for a watery cold and for hay fever, an allergic cold with these same symptoms. 

A homeopathic doctor chooses the remedy appropriate to the patient, according to the similarity of the patient's symptoms and the symptoms, which the remedy may cause in healthy people.

Drug preparation, potencies. 

Hahnemann discovered that when a medicine is prepared in a certain way, namely diluted and shaken vigorously, the action does not diminish, but remains remarkably effective. He called this preparation process potentization. With each potency, the action becomes more specific; only people who fit the exact image of the drug have the best results at higher potencies. Lower potencies work more broadly especially on the physical plane.

Homeopathic medicines are prepared primarily from natural substances. But homeopathy may also use chemical substances when appropriate. 

A mother tincture is first prepared from the substance. This is incrementally diluted or weathered and later shaken with a mixture of alcohol and water. The final product is given the name of the excipient, usually in Latin. After the name comes the letter of the type of potency and a number indicating how many times the substance has been potentized. As an example: Arnica D6, a homeopathic remedy prepared from trap herb, Arnica montana and diluted 10 to the 6th time.
The homeopathic consultation.
To find the most appropriate remedy, the practitioner (he/she) must first obtain a picture of the symptoms, which occur in the person in question. For this purpose he/she will take an anamnesis, observe and, if necessary, examine the patient He/she will then compare this symptom picture thus obtained with the known drug pictures from the Materia Medica. The most appropriate medicine is prescribed for the patient. It is thus a medicine prescribed on the individual. 
Another important part of the consultation is finding out since when and what caused symptoms to begin. Complaints can sometimes have arisen after experiencing an infectious disease, after taking specific medication, by exposure to certain chemicals or after a vaccination, etc. In homeopathy it can then be decided to start the treatment by homeopathically detoxifying this specific substance/cause first.
                                Homeopathy is a treatment applied to the individual
Many syndromes, despite falling under the same diagnosis, appear to present differently in different people. For example, headaches can present themselves in multiple ways. Some patients improve from cold, others from warm wraps, sometimes there is a stabbing pain, sometimes more of a pressing or throbbing. Sometimes it is tied to the menstrual cycle, sometimes it arises after annoyance or some other emotional event, etc. Precisely the individual characteristics of a condition are very important for the choices of a good homeopathic remedy. Therefore, the homeopathic doctor is always looking for the peculiarity of the complaint, for that which stands out, for the peculiarity in that particular person. 
During the history, especially in chronic cases, attention is paid to the patient's life history. Bottlenecks, life-events say a lot about a person, especially how they have dealt with them, and provide important additional information. Often there is a particular recurring theme, this also plays a role in drug selection.
Thus, when visiting a homeopathic practitioner, it is important as a patient to enter into the conversation as openly as possible and as a practitioner to hear and interview the patient as unbiased as possible. The homeopathic practitioner looks not so much at the organs individually as at the total functioning of the person, including his psychological functioning.  
                                The homeopathic prescription.
To conclude the consultation, the homeopathic doctor usually writes a prescription and will explain the method and frequency of intake. A properly appropriate remedy can have an effect in a very short time, especially in acute situations. In chronic diseases, the improvement is often gradual. 
Healing process
During intake or after some time, it is important to assess whether the remedy has the intended effect. The homeopathic practitioner then checks in a follow-up consultation what changes have taken place, how the symptoms are developing. Based on this he/she determines whether the intake can be continued, whether the potency needs to be adjusted, or whether another remedy should be chosen. In this way the homeopath aims to promote healing in chronic patients step by step.
A homeopathic medicine fits a person like a key in a lock and activates the whole being, the whole person, to bring about improvement.                               
Special patients.
Homeopathy thus makes use of a person's life force, his/her own ability to recover. Since children often still have this in abundance, they can often respond quickly to a homeopathic remedy. 
Treatment during pregnancy under expert guidance is not a problem, and often a good option, if there are symptoms, for which the pregnant person prefers not to take ordinary medication.
If a disease has progressed too far or if a sick person has lost almost all vitality, healing by homeopathic medicine is usually no longer possible. However, relief of symptoms can be achieved with homeopathy.
                             Man and not just disease. 
By restoring the natural balance, homeopathic medicine will improve well-being. It can make sure to be sick less often in the future, or suffer less severely from the disease. Homeopathy stimulates one's own resistance and ability to recover, often making patients less dependent on regular medication 
                              Further information. 
Royal Dutch Homeopathy Association (KVHN). General information about homeopathy: This website includes a blog and videos. The KVHN also publishes a magazine: HM, the Homeopathy Magazine.
This website contains a lot of information about homeopathy both for a wider audience and for healthcare professionals including answers to frequently asked questions and information regarding scientific research. 
The Homeopathy Foundation aims to promote homeopathy in its broadest sense. Also organizes the education of homeopathic doctors
https://vhan.nl/ VHAN = Stichting VHAN ( Originated from the Association of Homeopathic Physicians Netherlands) manages the library and funds scientific research.
https://avig.nl Professional association of homeopathic physicians in the Netherlands:
AVIG (Physicians Association Integrative Medicine), which includes the homeopathy specialty group, in addition to naturopathic physicians, among others.
This is the website of the Hahnemann pharmacy in Heiloo. There is a lot of information about homeopathy here as well.

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