Clinical
Case 3:
This is my own
patient who suffered for over 15 years with Prolapsed Intervertebral
Disc.
A gentleman,
43 years of age, suffered from Prolapsed Intervertebral Disc
(PID) since 1993 but chronic backache since he was 12 years
old. He started treatment with me in September 2004. His disc
prolapse was at L4/L5 level and he had 5 major episodes of nerve
impingement, where he had to be hospitalized and on complete bed
rest for a month in order to recover. He used to take homeopathic
remedies for acute pain, but they did not cure him. Since I was
already treating the rest of his family and extended family, he
finally decided to take the plunge and begin long term chronic
treatment for this problem. He weighs about 150 kgs (almost 300
pounds) and is nearly 6 feet in height. The severe obesity adds
to the strain on his back. His symptoms when he started treatment
included: Painful back spasms, backache radiating into the legs,
stiffness and numbness of the legs. Each day was a continuous
struggle on a daily basis. He was afraid to start constitutional
homeopathy because he mistakenly thought it would be even more
of a struggle without painkillers - homeopathic or allopathic
! As you will see, he found that he was wrong, the allopathic
quick-fixes or even the homeopathic quick fixes were just that:
Quick fixes with no long term benefit.
His other problems
include severe anxiety and performance problems in relation to
his job, he also had hypertension. His problem with obesity
was from the age of 4 years. The weakness in his back started
in Class 8, which followed a Tonsillectomy due to frequent attacks
of tonsillitis. He had also probably injured or strained his back
at that time, but the back problems persisted since then and subsequently precipitated
into PID. Of interest to note here, is that prior to back problems
he had frequent throat infections that were cut short by the Tonsillectomy.
Now that the chronic imbalance and weakness in the vital force
could not be expressed at the level of the tonsils, he developed
chronic back problems instead that persisted to this day. In addition
he became severely anxious about his performance in studies right
through college.
Based on the
analysis of his characteristic homeopathic symptoms, the remedy
Lycopodium was chosen as chronic constitutional remedy.
He started on this remedy and felt a lot of relief in general
as well as in the symptoms of his back. But he continued to be
susceptible to back strains and acute back pain. This was due
to the fact he was working in Sales and had to travel frequently
in uncomfortable conditions, in addition he had to frequently
lift his child who had a physical handicap. These maintaining
aggravating factors could not be avoided. Hence during this treatment
he required acute remedies like Arnica, Bryonia, Rhus Tox,
Ruta, Phosphorous, etc., depending on the cause and symptoms
of the acute episodes of backache.
The next time
he had an episode of PID, confirmed by the Orthopaedic Surgeon,
(a few months after he started treatment), we handled the management
purely on homeopathic remedies, partial rest at home and supportive
physiotherapy, SWD. This chronic problem required Lycopodium
1M and then Lyco 10M repeatedly during the acute phase
of PID. No acute remedy was indicated. After just one week
of bed rest, he was obliged to attend work for at least half a
day. Previously he used to be laid up in bed or hospital for over
a month. He did not take any allopathic painkiller through this
whole episode! In a month or so, he felt his back renewed as never
before, though he still had episodes of minor pain. What was more
important was that he could continue his normal activities as
long as he avoided straining his back.
10 months
into treatment his backache was much less, but he began to have
a chronic painful sore throat instead. It was difficult to swallow,
so he avoided the foods that aggravated – sometimes he only
drank warm water and would not eat! This lasted about 2 months
and when it became unbearable he simply took a dose of Lycopodium
30C to help. He told me that this was the typical throat symptoms
he used to get as a child. With our homeopathic understanding
of the direction of cure, it is obvious that these were OLD symptoms
manifesting again. Instead of suppressing them with antibiotics,
all we had to do was allow the vital force to cure it in
the proper way. This had been deviated to his back all those 30
years, since the Tonsillectomy. Understanding this, he was
willing to be patient and rough it out. Sure enough in a couple
of months, these symptoms passed off completely and he has no
throat pain any more.
Now 1.5 years after treatment, he hardly complains of any back
ache at all. His anxiety levels are considerably reduced. It is
no longer a struggle to cope with every day as there is no 'pain'
to cope with. He continues to lift his child (growing bigger and
heavier) who is handicapped, and no acute problems with that.
He does his regular back strengthening exercises. He is still
obese, but since this is older than all other problems, it may
resolve later. At this point it does not concern him. His job
performance and anxiety levels have improved so much, that he
has been given a promotion from Sales Manager, to Head of the
Human Resource Department of the company; a major promotion indeed.
His ability to attend part time work faithfully right through
his last acute episode of PID impressed his boss and paid off
well!
Isn't chronic
homeopathic treatment really worth the patience and commitment?
After 30 years of suffering with recurrent and chronic backache
and struggling through life with pain, anxiety and performance problems,
after just 1.5 years of patient commitment, he lives a much better
quality of life, healthy in both body and mind.
SYMPTOMATIC use of homeopathic remedies is NOT Cure
As explained above, if any of these cases had been prescribed specific
remedies based on disease diagnosis or local symptoms without
taking into account the entire history as well as the miasmatic
evaluation and direction of cure, they could never have been
cured. Instead the disease would either have remained as it was
with temporary symptomatic relief, or else, the disease would have
progressed into deeper complications involving other systems of
the body. That is why I have stressed in the last 2 articles,
that ''symptomatic" use of homeopathic remedies, which simply
removes a nagging symptom for a while, does not amount to
homeopathic cure. While it may be fine for the acute pain or emergency
or first aid, it is never indicated to cure chronic problems. The
detailed explanations in the cases above highlight what is true
homeopathic cure of chronic diseases.
Serious (Spiritual) questions about the Scope of the Similimum
Since these
article will largely be distributed to the Christian community,
I wanted to address some of the points of contention some groups
have brought up re: homeopathy. Each homeopath needs to be aware
of the scope of our homeopathic remedies. What do we intend to treat
with homeopathic remedies? What do we understand as 'disease' that
needs to be treated? In Aphorism
3, Hahnemann mentions that one of
the important qualifications of a homeopathic physician is the knowledge
of disease. Unfortunately today, there have been various extrapolations
of the homeopathic principles that stretch it into metaphysical
and often absurd directions that have no link with 'disease'. I
find this absurdity arises from a lack of clear focus on what constitutes
disease. Along with this, an associated lack of understanding of
the laws and principles of the homeopathic system will result in
"playing around" with homeopathic energies when we still
haven't understood their complete potential.
There is a lacuna
in terms of regulatory criteria governing the uncontrollable,
often dangerous phenomena in the metaphysical world. Unfortunately
'Anything goes' has become a dangerous adage with many metaphysical
seekers today, which could seriously affect the integrity of a person's
soul. How does a simple person understand these dangers? We don't
'play around' with drugs like marijuana, opium, LSD, Ecstasy, etc
which are considered dangerous and illegal. Neither do we play around
with prescription drugs, steriods, viagra, etc. One of the ways
homeopathy as an energy medicine can be abused, is to stretch its
application in unregulated metaphysical ways, abandoning the foundational
principles of cure of disease on easily comprehensible principles
clearly explained in the Organon
and Chronic Diseases.
Homeopathic treatment is essentially for the treatment of disease
which affects the whole person - body, mind and soul. The scope
of the homeopathic remedy is to relieve disease as expressed in
the body and mind that can arise out of imbalances that may originate
either in the mind and heart or originate through the body's interaction
with the environment that the unintelligent and deviated vital force
is unable to correct on its own.
Here is the
experience of a sincere Christian homeopath and friend of mine:
From a Christian perspective, homeopathic
remedies do not affect one's relationship with Jesus or with the
world around and its consequences. These things are choices that
one makes after the remedy has had an affect. For example with
Calc.sulph, the remedy works with the vital force and one becomes
less whiney. One can still choose to see oneself as a victim,
and to perpetuate the whiney state. But with emotional maturity,
assisted with the remedy, this doesn't feel right, and one begins
to see the benefits of not being whiney anymore. When the effect
of remedy 'wears off', the whine will come back, unless one continues
the maturing effort, and/or the remedy is repeated. So, the remedy
is a brace, a crutch, to assist in the choice the person makes.
Surgery is the physical analogy; conversion is the spiritual;
Vital Force is the homeopathic. When I take my similimum from
nature on earth, I worship God more purely than I could before.
Not as purely as I will when I die, and my eternal choice is evident,
but more "in tune" than I could before the similimum.
The more partial the similimum, the more partial is the worship.
Some questions
have been raised in Christian circles whether the similimum becomes
a replacement for the Holy Spirit. The fear is that the CRUTCH granted
through a homeopathic similimum would not encourage one's spiritual
growth. But I can think of a thousand other reasons why one's spiritual
growth may be hampered. Religious concern could better be directed
in those situations. Seeking a relationship with the Holy Spirit
and truly experiencing the Love of God could never be hampered by
a taking a homeopathic similimum remedy.
Having said
that I still CAUTION those choosing homeopathy, against the indiscriminate
use of homeopathic remedies without following the principles already
laid down, as well as stretching the use of homeopathic remedy energy
with impunity, for purposes other than cure of disease as explained
in Part I and Part II. One should also be careful of one's source
of homeopathic remedies. Use a reputed and reliable pharmacy that
follows the pharmacopeia procedures laid down for the collection
and preparation of well proved homeopathic remedies.
God wants us
to be whole and healed in order that we may serve Him and His people
better. My life as a Christian has been enhanced through my
practice of homeopathy as well as taking homeopathic remedies. My
professional life as a homeopath is inspired by my walk in the Spirit
while I do each case analysis, make remedy choices or manage the
case. To explain and authenticate this aspect, I have continued
with cases of Spiritual Healing, for fellow Christians and all those
interested.
The Spiritual Similimum (Jesus on the Cross)
The greatest
paradox about Christianity that most people cannot understand is
why Jesus had to die that humiliating death on the Cross. For a
Christian to have a problem with the Law of Similars is strange.
Similarly those who accept the Law of Similars would understand
very well the Similimum of the Cross. Isaiah
Chapter 53
is the prophesy of the promised messiah that Jesus fulfilled. Do
read this beautiful chapter. It states,
4Yet it was our infirmities
that he bore, our sufferings that he endured, While we thought
of him as stricken, as one smitten by God and afflicted.
5But he was pierced for
our offenses, crushed for our sins, Upon him was the chastisement
that makes us whole, by his stripes we were healed.
6We had all gone astray
like sheep, each following his own way; But the LORD laid upon
him the guilt of us all.
God intended
that Jesus die on the Cross for ALL MANKIND. Jesus fulfilled this
in obedience to God inspite of the incomparable pain he would have
to suffer. He bore the pain that we may be redeemed of our
offenses, sins, infirmities, sufferings. This was done 2000 years
ago in one magnificent act of unconditional love, followed
by His Resurrection, the embodiment of true hope. All we
have to do is believe it and be delivered from our sins, sufferings,
infirmities! Experiencing this deliverance from my personal suffering
recently was the single most transforming event in my entire life.
It was an experience of true deep, internal joy and hope in the
midst of my painful circumstances. This is the power of
the Spiritual Similimum in ANYONE'S pain, suffering, sin
or disease today. This is for ANYONE willing to experience the redeeming,
unconditional love of Jesus that took place 2000 years ago.
During his
life on earth, Jesus and his disciples healed the sick and
those oppressed by demons. There is clear distinction in the New
Testament that healing disease was separate from demonic possession
and this distinction should be maintained in the Christian as well
as the homeopathic perspective. It is clear that the homeopathic
remedy is not expected to have any scope against evil spirits. These
may be some of the “incurable” cases from the homeopathic standpoint
unless there is complementary Spiritual Healing. Yet, in
other circumstances, complementary spiritual and emotional development
assists the working of the homeopathic remedy.
Here are some passages that highlight these differences in the compassionate
healings by Jesus.
Luke:4:40,41
40
At sunset, all who had people sick with various diseases brought
them to him. He laid his hands on each of them and cured them.
41
And
demons also came out from many, shouting, "You are the Son
of God." But he rebuked them and did not allow them to speak
because they knew that he was the Messiah.
Jesus healed
the sick AND raised dead people to life:
Saint
Mark 5: 21-43.
When Jesus had crossed again (in the boat) to the other side,
a large crowd gathered around him, and he stayed close to the
sea. One of the synagogue officials, named Jairus, came forward.
Seeing him he fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him,
saying, "My daughter is at the point of death. Please, come
lay your hands on her that she may get well and live." He
went off with him, and a large crowd followed him and pressed
upon him. There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve
years. She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors and
had spent all that she had. Yet she was not helped but only grew
worse. She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the
crowd and touched his cloak. She said, "If I but touch his
clothes, I shall be cured." Immediately her flow of blood
dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction.
Jesus, aware at once that power had gone out from him, turned
around in the crowd and asked, "Who has touched my clothes?"
But his disciples said to him, "You see how the crowd is
pressing upon you, and yet you ask, 'Who touched me?'" And
he looked around to see who had done it. The woman, realizing
what had happened to her, approached in fear and trembling. She
fell down before Jesus and told him the whole truth. He said to
her, "Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace
and be cured of your affliction."
While
he was still speaking, people from the synagogue official's house
arrived and said, "Your daughter has died; why trouble the
teacher any longer?" Disregarding the message that was reported,
Jesus said to the synagogue official, "Do not be afraid;
just have faith." He did not allow anyone to accompany
him inside except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James.
When they arrived at the house of the synagogue official, he caught
sight of a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. So he
went in and said to them, "Why this commotion and weeping?
The child is not dead but asleep." And they ridiculed
him. Then he put them all out. He took along the child's father
and mother and those who were with him and entered the room where
the child was. He took the child by the hand and said to her,
"Talitha koum," which means, "Little girl,
I say to you, arise!" The girl, a child of twelve,
arose immediately and walked around. (At that) they were utterly
astounded. He gave strict orders that no one should know this
and said that she should be given something to eat.
Jesus healed
those with "unclean spirits"
Saint
Mark 1: 21-28.
Then they came to Capernaum, and on the sabbath he
entered the synagogue and taught. The people were astonished at
his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority and not
as the scribes. In their synagogue was a man with an unclean spirit;
he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?
Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are--the Holy One
of God!" Jesus rebuked him and said, "Quiet! Come
out of him!" The unclean spirit convulsed him and with
a loud cry came out of him. All were amazed and asked one another,
"What is this? A new teaching with authority. He commands
even the unclean spirits and they obey him." His fame
spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee.
Spiritual healing
Fr.
Rufus Pereira:
is from Mumbai. He is the President of the "International
Association for Exorcists" and is the Vice President of
the "International Association for Deliverance".
He is one of the most respected Catholic Priests in the Ministry
of Healing in the Catholic Church worldwide. Yet he is a simple
and humble priest who has served millions of people from all over
the world through his prayers for their healing and deliverance.
Here is an insight
from him on Spiritual Healing in the Catholic Church quoted from
his article "Prayer
for Healing".
The
Biblical Answer:
The Biblical response to this dismal worldwide
situation is the proclamation of Jesus that he has been sent by
the Father and has been anointed by the Holy Spirit to forgive
sinners, to heal the sick and to deliver the oppressed (Lk 4:16-21,
Acts 10:38). He therefore invites all who are burdened in any
way to come to him to receive his healing rest and life to the
full (Mt 1:28, Jn 10:10), and charges his followers to do the same: to heal the sick,
to cast out demons and even to raise the dead (Mt 10:8). Inspired
by his example and motivated by his pleas, the Church has continued
the proclaiming and healing ministry of Christ in the Sacraments
and through the charisms....
The Christian Healing:
Christian healing
does not take place by the exclusive use of some medicinal substance
or by sole reliance on some obscure impersonal energy but through
a personal encounter with and experience of Jesus, our Saviour,
Healer and Deliverer. It is not something we get hold of but
Someone we hold on to. It does not result from some sort of emotional
faith but from one's unshakable trust in the Lord, in his love
by dying for us and in the power of his resurrection (Phil 3:10).
It is the full Gospel in action, proclaiming God's love and bringing
peace to man, giving glory to God and destroying the work of Satan.
The Healing Prayer:
The Prayer for
Healing is therefore not a magical formula but a faith process
of experiencing God's forgiveness, inner healing and deliverance.
It calls for preparing oneself through repentance, forgiveness
and renunciation. It can be experienced at Mass or before the
Blessed Sacrament, on hearing the Word of God or through receiving
words of knowledge, by recourse to the Sacramentals or through
the intercession of the Saints, through the laying on of hands
or by resting in the Spirit. In any case healing takes place in
an environment of faith in the Lord and of love for one another,
- just as it is both the power and the love of Christ that
heals. ..."
I had attended
between the years 1993-1995, two "Inner Healing Retreats"
conducted by Fr. Rufus and his team. One was for Christian doctors
and nurses of the Holy Family Hospital, Mumbai; the second
was along with my husband. An interesting anecdote occurred
during the second retreat, when I met a Christian woman from Europe. She was one of the speakers at the retreat. With a background
in Pharmacology, she denounced homeopathy in no uncertain terms
due to the "evil" effect it had on a friend of hers. She
likened the effect on her friend, who was taking repeated doses
of a homeopathic remedy for a few months, to a demonic possession
of sorts! She said angrily, that he had become a completely changed
person with no control over his emotions and all his physical symptoms
were worse - "..can any reliable system of healing change
a person so deeply from within? It is not to be trusted! I suggest
you seriously consider whether you should be a homeopath or not."
I tried to explain to her the "Doctrine of
Drug-Proving", but she refused to be convinced. I
discussed her opinion with Fr. Rufus Pereira. But he said that they
had a difference of opinion here and he couldn't see why
she was so antagonistic to homeopathy. Whenever he had taken a homeopathic
remedy, he was relieved instantly, with no evil effects!
I called him on the phone in Mumbai a week prior to writing this
article and he confirmed that his difference of opinion with her
on homeopathy remains. He sees nothing evil in it. |
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