Author: Stelyana Spassova

Below is a letter written by a woman who used to suffer from post-natal depression. The client, whose name will not be revealed for reasons of confidentiality, was eager for us to publish the account of her experiences in the hope that it would encourage other women in that situation to find the right help. She was treated by hypnotherapist Lionel Sinclair DABCH, MCA Hyp, who has been practising at the Brackenbury Clinic since 2005.

‘I’m sure no one expects to get PND, but it hit me so unexpectedly because I’d had such a happy pregnancy and was so looking forward to my son being born. But, after a very scary birth and 4 weeks of sleep deprivation, I started on a downward spiral. I felt like I was in the film ‘Groundhog Day’, where every day is the same, and that the nightmare would never end. I felt totally trapped by the new life that motherhood brings. I wept for my lost life, missing all the freedoms that I had taken for granted. Every day felt as if I was walking in slow motion, every morning I cried and threw up, and barely ate. I lost the will to live.

I adored my son, but felt completely out of my depth looking after him, and wanted a way out. I walked out once, but my husband persuaded me back. I fantasised about getting into an accident that would put me in hospital, so I could get away. I thought about how to kill myself constantly. And, all the while, I drove myself even crazier as I saw how, seemingly, everyone else took motherhood in their stride and I was a total wreck.

“It’s like you’ve been erased. I felt as if I had died, and was grieving for my lost life. I had panic attacks, constant nausea, insomnia, crying fits and frequent suicidal thoughts. It was as if someone had put me in solitary confinement and thrown away the key – I felt totally abandoned, alone and desperate. It was the opposite from what I had expected to feel as a new mother.”

The insomnia was unbearable, and the panic attacks made me feel terrified. I was completely without hope, unable to see that this constant panic would ever end, though everyone tried to tell me it would. I felt hopeless and desperate. I didn’t think I’d make it.

My husband saw Lionel’s ad in the paper when my son was 6 months old, and insisted I go. I must admit, I was totally sceptical. I’m not a fan of any so called ‘alternative’ therapies, and a firm believer in science and traditional medicine as the cure for life’s ills. But I didn’t want to take anti depressants as I was breast feeding. So I went along the first time, in my usual state of heightened panic, on the verge of nausea and in tears, thinking it wouldn’t help. I couldn’t believe that anything could make me better. I was so desperately unhappy it didn’t seem possible.

I liked Lionel instantly, and he gave me a realistic idea of how much we’d be able to do, and how long it would take. For the first time in months, I could at least see someone thought I could get out of this, and that he believed in me being able to get better. That in itself was a big step.

Don’t get me wrong, there is no instant cure, you can’t expect magic, but Lionel took me from a suicidal, desperate wreck, who felt totally detached from the world, to someone who could feel hope, could sleep, and who could believe in a ‘cure’ in a matter of 8 weeks. I wasn’t better, but, for the first time ever, I felt hope that I could recover. Bit by bit, Lionel and I put the jigsaw back together – I’d been shattered and needed all the pieces put back together. I’d been a confident, clever, funny, sassy career woman, and he helped me see that I could incorporate my son into that life too. He helped me see a future where I would be happy. I began to totally believe that I would get better, that my life was not over, that I had everything to live for. I would never have believed it possible just a couple of months earlier.

All in all, it took about 5 months to make me ‘normal’ again. And now, I like to think, I’m a much better version of me. I know how to control the demons, and am a far happier, more confident, and nicer person than before. It is no exaggeration to say that Lionel saved my life or, as he would say, taught me how to save myself. I would not be here without him.

Please don’t suffer alone. Please don’t cry alone. Please don’t think you’re the only one – it’s so, so common. Now, when I mention I had PND, so many women tell me similar tales. Above all, please take a step to make yourself better. Good luck… you can find hope again, I promise.’

(Source: Society of Homeopaths, www.homeopathy-soh.org)

Randomised controlled trials By the end of 2009, 142 RCTs comparing homeopathy with placebo or conventional treatment had been published in peer-reviewed journals. In terms of statistically significant results, 74 of these trials were able to draw firm conclusions: 63 were positive for homeopathy and eleven were negative.¹

Detractors of homeopathy continue to suggest that any beneficial effects of homeopathy are due to placebo alone. Over a period of 18 years Dr Reilly’s team at Glasgow University conducted four double blind placebo controlled trials, specifically designed to examine the evidence for this placebo hypothesis. All four trials, involving a total of 252 patients, produced similar positive results, demonstrating that homeopathy has an effect greater than placebo and that these results are reproducible.² As the trial design used is the same as that used to test conventional treatments, Reilly states that there are only two possible conclusions from these results – “either homeopathy works or the trial generates false positive results and is therefore not a useful tool for assessing any treatment – whether orthodox or homeopathic.”³

Evidence for specific conditions

Systematic reviews analysing results from several RCTs that investigated the homeopathic treatment of a given medical condition have reported positive conclusions in the following areas1: allergies and upper respiratory tract infections,⁴ childhood diarrhoea,⁵ influenza,⁶ postoperative ileus,⁷ rheumatic diseases,⁸ seasonal allergic rhinitis^{9, 2, 10} and vertigo.¹¹

One of the above reviews included three double-blind clinical trials of diarrhoea in a total of 242 children aged 6 months to 5 years; the data from the three trials were analysed together.6 The results of this meta-analysis showed that the duration of acute childhood diarrhoea was reduced by individualised homeopathic treatment more than by placebo treatment, and that the results were highly significant (P=0.008).

Homeopathy in practice

A service evaluation at the Bristol Homeopathic Hospital recorded the outcome of homeopathic treatment in over 6,500 consecutive patients. In this study, carried out over a six-year period, 70% of patients reported an improvement in their health.¹² The best clinical results were seen in the treatment of children with eczema and asthma, and adults with inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, menopausal problems and migraine. Other conditions which improved after homeopathic treatment included arthritis, depression and chronic fatigue syndrome.

A German study involving 493 patients seen in general practice found that treatment by a homeopath gave better outcomes than conventional treatment for similar costs.¹³ This study was commissioned by a German health insurance company to see whether they should continue to cover homeopathic treatment. The outcomes and costs of homeopathic and conventional treatment were compared in patients being treated for chronic conditions including headache, low back pain, depression, insomnia and sinusitis in adults, and atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis and asthma in children.

In the laboratory

75% of in vitro experiments have found that substances as dilute as homeopathic medicines have specific effects.¹⁴ For example, homeopathically-prepared thyroxine can slow down metamorphosis of tadpoles into frogs.¹⁵ These results were replicated by five separate laboratories in Austria and confirmed by the results of similar experiments carried out by an independent team in Brazil.¹⁶ The homeopathic thyroxine used was so highly diluted that you would not expect any molecules to be present.

Further information

It is frequently said that there is ‘no scientific evidence’ for homeopathy. Such a statement is incorrect for it ignores the positive research findings as outlined above. The homeopathic community welcomes more high quality research, however, to build on the existing evidence base.

For more information about homeopathy research please visit the Society of Homeopaths website at www.homeopathy-soh.org

References:

1. British Homeopathic Association. The Research Evidence Base for Homeopathy. www.britishhomeopathic.org/export/sites/bha_site/research/evidencesummary.pdf [accessed, Dec 2010]

2. Taylor MA, Reilly D, Llewellyn-Jones RH, et al. Randomised controlled trials of homoeopathy versus placebo in perennial allergic rhinitis with overview of four trial series. Br Med J 2000; 321: 471–6

3. Reilly D. Reilly D. The Evidence For Homoeopathy, published by Adhom, Glasgow. http://www.adhom.com/adh_download/EVIDENCE_9.0_Sept_06.pdf

4. Bornhöft G, Wolf U, Ammon K, et al. Effectiveness, safety and cost-effectiveness of homeopathy in general practice – summarized health technology assessment. Forsch Komplementärmed 2006; 13 Suppl 2: 19–29

5. Jacobs J, Jonas WB, Jimenez-Perez M, Crothers D. Homeopathy for childhood diarrhea: combined results and metaanalysis from three randomized, controlled clinical trials. Pediatr Infect Dis J 2003; 22: 229–34

6. Vickers A, Smith C. Homoeopathic Oscillococcinum for preventing and treating influenza and influenza like syndromes (Cochrane Review). In: The Cochrane Library. Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 2006; CD001957

7. Barnes J, Resch K-L, Ernst E. Homeopathy for postoperative ileus? A meta-analysis. J Clin Gastroenterol 1997; 25: 628–33

8. Jonas WB, Linde K, Ramirez G. Homeopathy and rheumatic disease – Complementary and alternative therapies for rheumatic diseases II. Rheum Dis Clin North Am 2000; 26: 117–23

9. Wiesenauer M, Lüdtke R. A meta-analysis of the homeopathic treatment of pollinosis with Galphimia glauca. Forsch Komplementärmed Klass Naturheilkd 1996; 3: 230–6

10. Bellavite P, Ortolani R, Pontarollo F, et al. Immunology and homeopathy. 4. Clinical studies – Part 2. eCAM 2006;3: 397–409

11. Schneider B, Klein P, Weiser M. Treatment of vertigo with a homeopathic complex remedy compared with usual treatments: a meta-analysis of clinical trials. Arzneimittelforschung 2005; 55: 23–9

12. Jacobs J, Jonas WB, Jimenez-Perez M, et al. Homeopathy for childhood diarrhea: combined results and metaanalysis from three randomized, controlled clinical trials. Pediatr Infect Dis J 2003; 22: 229–34

13. Spence D, Thompson E, Barron S. Homeopathic treatment for chronic disease: A 6-Year, university-hospital outpatient observational study. J Altern Complement Med 2005; 5:793-8.

14. Witt C, Keil T, Selim D, et al. Outcome and costs of homeopathic and conventional treatment strategies: a comparative cohort study in patients with chronic disorders. Complement Ther Med, 2005; 13: 79-86

15. Witt CM, Bluth M, Albrecht H, et al. The in vitro evidence for an effect of high homeopathic potencies – a systematic review of the literature. Complement Ther Med, 2007; 15: 128–138

16. Endler PC, Heckmann C, Lauppert E, et al. The metamorphosis of amphibians and information of thyroxine. In: Schulte J, Endler PC (eds). Fundamental Research in Ultra High Dilution and Homoeopathy. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1998

17. Guedes JR, Ferreira CM, Guimaraes HM et al. Homeopathically prepared dilution of Rana catesbeiana thyroid glands modifies its rate of metamorphosis. Homeopathy, 2004; 93:132–7

Some common summer complaints can be avoided by following sensible advice and using medicinal herbs as teas, tinctures, lotions or creams.

Our herbalist JULIA SCHULTZ is offering some tips to help you enjoy your holiday fully:

* One of the most important things during hot days in the sun is to keep well hydrated, so always keep a bottle of fresh clean water with you. Babies and the elderly dehydrate quickly. Headaches can be prevented by drinking enough water.

* Sun, caffeine and alcohol don’t mix and will accelerate dehydration

* Avoid fizzy drinks that contain sugar, artificial sweeteners, colourings and flavourings. Even in small quantities these can affect both physical health and behaviour. Children are especially vulnerable. Diluted fresh juices are far better for you.

* Avoid long exposure in the sun especially at mid day and wear a hat.

* Use a safe sunscreen that doesn’t contain harmful chemicals. There are several to choose from. Yaoh organic hemp seed sun block, factor 30 and Weleda are both very good.

* If you do burn then drink plenty of water and apply some Aloe Vera gel and gently massage the contents from a vitamin E capsule into your skin to help heal any damage. Calendula and Lavender are also excellent for burns.

* Hot sweaty feet and bodies will encourage athlete’s foot and fungal infections. Wash feet each morning and evening and dry thoroughly, then massage some tea tree cream into your feet and around toe nails to keep them healthy.

* A tube of tea tree cream is very useful as an antifungal and antiseptic to prevent infection from bites, cuts and grazes.

* If travelling to high risk areas where malaria, parasites and gastric complaints are common it is well worth visiting your herbalist to discuss a herbal kit that is specific to your needs.

* Use a mosquito net at night and spray it and the surrounds with natural insect repellents. Citronella is popular but must not be used directly on ski to the sun.

* Vitamin B complex and eating plenty of garlic is helpful if mosquitoes love you.

* Take a good probiotic daily to assist with healthy gut flora.

* Echinacea, Chamomile and Garlic are useful herbs to carry. Echinacea is antibacterial, anti immunostimulant and antiseptic. The tincture can also be diluted and used for wounds. Chamomile is antibacterial, antifungal, and antispasmodic. A very useful herb for tummy upsets and when there is griping and cramping. Garlic is antiparasitic, antifungal and antibacterial, making it an excellent addition if parasites are suspected, particularly intestinal worms.

* Only brush you teeth and drink bottled safe water and avoid unpeeled fruit or salads as they may have been grown or washed in contaminated water.

* It is advisable not to visit high risk areas if you are planning pregnancy or are pregnant. Some diseases will place your baby at risk and some treatments may not be advisable during pregnancy.

* Remember that good preparation and prevention is always better than cure!

JULIA SCHULTZ, DBTh, NFM, MMHA, MNHAA. Julia practises at the Brackenbury as a Medical Herbalist and Natural Fertility Management Consultant.