Last week was celebration time at four different places- Boston in USA, Mumbai in India and Sunnyvale in USA. Three of my patients reported to me on three consecutive days of the week (a hat trick for me!) that they had conceived after consulting me and starting homeopathy.  The fourth celebration was in my office since these were not only just a few of the many patients of infertility that I have helped with homeopathy, but because one of them was very difficult to treat.

This particular patient had been given up by the gynecologists in the US and frantic telephone calls and e-mails to prominent fertility specialists in India and elsewhere had left her dejected and depressed because all had given the same response. Her Anti-Mullerian hormone levels were very low (which means the ovaries were failing) and she was going into a premature oopause. Fertility specialists had suggested certain procedures (@ $10000 per cycle) but no one could guarantee a positive outcome. She decided to fly to India and persuade a fertility specialist to help her conceive.

In the meantime, a homeopathic doctor she had contacted in India suggested that she should meet me as he had seen my results in infertility and PCOS with homeopathy. Within 2 months of homeopathy (she was on no other treatment) this patient conceived. She now has to try and convince the airline to refund the tickets that she has had to cancel!

(A detailed history followed by constitutional homeopathic medicines may help people with infertility and PCOS. For homeopathic consultation for your ailment you may visit our website www.drvaishnav.com or send an e-mail to office@drvaishnav.com)

Recommended reading: Biochemic drugs in pregancy, Homeopathy in Infertility

The Samuel Hahnemann Monument located at Scott Circle in Washington, D.C.

April 10- Hahnemann Day.

These are the words of Dr. Samuel Hahnemann, the founder of homeopathy, that always inspire us to give our best:

“Poetic fancy, fantastic wit and speculation must for a while be suspended, and all over-strained reasoning, forced interpretation and tendency to explain away things, must be suppressed. The duty of the observer is then only to take notice of the phenomena and their course; his attention should be on the the watch, not only that nothing actually present should escape his observation, but that also what he observes be understood exactly as it is.”

A Fragment from the Medical Observer, “Lesser Writings”- Dr. Samuel Hahnemann

ADHD is a condition involving inattention and hyperactivity. Though it is a condition usually diagnosed in childhood, many adults continue with inattention even in adulthood while hyperactivity tends to reduce with the age.

Most ADHD adults can subtly fidget their way through meetings, checking their e-mails, tapping constantly at their feet, or having constant movements of hands or getting up frequently to go to washroom.

Inattention, however, tends to persist. Adults with ADHD often have difficulty keeping schedules, managing time, keeping appointments and following through with tasks.

Most ADHD modern medications work by increasing the activity of one or both of two chemicals, dopamine and norepinephrine but have a lot of side effects.

Children with ADHD as well as adults can be helped with safe, homeopathic medicines.

Some of the commonly indicated remedies are:

ZINCUM MET: There is often a history of undeveloped eruptions or suppressed eruptions and exanthemas. The feet are in continued motion; cannot keep them still. Repeats all questions before answering them. Low-spirited at noon; lively in the evening or vice versa.

LYCOPODIUM: There is a restlessness of the lower limbs which comes on when he thinks of going to sleep and this prevents sleep until midnight. It is often a very distressing feature. Drawing, tearing in the limbs at night; better by warmth of bed and motion.

KALI BROM:  Loss of memory. Must do something-move about; gets fidgety. Amnesic aphasia; can pronounce any word told, but cannot speak otherwise. Children are prone to night terrors. The person is nervous, restless; cannot sit still, must move about or keep occupied; hands and fingers in constant motion; fidgety hands and twitching of fingers. Loss of memory; forgets how to talk; absent-minded; had to be told the word before he could speak it Depressed, low-spirited, anxious, feel as if they would lose their minds. Restlessness and sleeplessness due to worry and grief. Night terrors of children, grinding teeth in sleep, screams, moans, cries; horrible dreams, cannot be comforted by friends. Somnambulism Stammering; slow, difficult speech.

TARENTULA: The patient is restless, fidgety and hurried. She is in constant motion, though walking worsens her. Suddenly changing moods, fancies or strength. Lacks control. Crafty and cunning. Selfish. Destructive, destroys whatever she can lay hand on, tears her clothes etc. Throws things away. Malingering; when there are no observers, there is no hysteria; when attention is directed to her, she begins to twitch, feigns fainting, insensibility, but looks sideways to observe the effect on those around her.

A detailed history followed by constitutional homeopathic medicines should help people with ADHD. For homeopathic consultation for your ailment you may visit our website www.drvaishnav.com or send an e-mail to office@drvaishnav.com

Daxa Vaishnav MD (Hom.)

On the occasion of International Women’s Day (March 8, 2012), we offer a SPECIAL 10% DISCOUNT to all women for their initial consultation at Homeopathic Healing from March 8 to March 14, 2012.

Homeopathic Healing can effectively deal with problems that occur at puberty. The problems that are seen in adolescents like dysmenorrhea, leucorrhea, irregular menses and emotional upheavals are best treated with homeopathy. Premenstrual Stress (PMS) can also be effectively tackled with homeopathy.

It can also help bring joy to infertile couples, help overcome ovarian diseases like Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome.

Pregnancy is often associated with its own discomforts and homeopathy can be used to tackle them so that you can enjoy motherhood.

Homeopathy is also a very useful aid in treating the complaints that appear at menopause, including irregular menses, hot flushes, etc.

Contact us for appointments: office@drvaishnav.com

Being upset, feeling ill or lacking confidence can make them sulky.

Over-eating, excessive sleepiness and too much concern with appearance may be signs of emotional distress.

Anxiety may produce phobias and panic attacks.

During their adolescence, more than 1 in 5 teenagers are depressed. However, depression may not be obvious to other people.

The adolescent may develop a feeling of guilt, depression, a loss of interest in her usual activities or sleep disorders.

Homeopathy and Bach flower remedies can help such emotional states.

Indications of some homoeopathic medicines for psychological problems:

Pulsatilla: This drug is often helpful to girls who have recently started having periods with irritability, moodiness, and weepiness. The girl usually is emotional and weepy, wanting a lot of attention and comforting and feels better with sympathy and consolation. Delay or suppression of the menstrual flow can be accompanied by nausea and faintness. Being too warm or in a stuffy room makes her uncomfortable, and fresh air can bring relief. The menstrual flow is changeable just like her moods and is usually late, dark and intermittent.

Natrum muriaticum: The adolescent who needs this remedy usually seems reserved to others, but is deeply emotional inside. She may feel extremely sad and lonely, but gets angry if others try to console her or sympathize. Depression, anger over minor things, and a need to be alone to cry is a part of her nature. When she is depressed she broods about past grievances or may have migraines, backache and insomnia. A craving for salt, great thirst and a tendency to feel worse from being in the sun are other indications for this remedy.

Cimicifuga: This remedy can be helpful for irregular and painful periods, with shooting pains that go down the hips and thighs, or cramps similar to labor-pains that are felt in the pelvic area. Headache with pain and stiffness in the neck and back will often occur with PMS. The girl is intense and talkative when she is well, but becomes agitated, fearful, and depressed before a menstrual period. She may develop exaggerated fears (of going mad, of being attacked, of disaster). Painful menstrual periods and headaches that involve the neck are often seen when this remedy is needed. She becomes extremely sad, depressed, does not talk to any one, does not like to be looked at. At such times she does not want anyone around her, not even her mother.

Chamomilla: The adolescent needing this remedy is angry, irritable, and hypersensitive to pain. She is cross, irritable, snappish and spiteful. Cramping may come on during the menses which could be intensified, because of emotional upset. The flow can be very heavy, and the blood may look dark or clotted. Problems are often worse at night. Heating pads or exposure to wind may aggravate the symptoms, and motion (such as rocking or brisk walking) may help to reduce the tension and discomfort.

Calcarea carbonica: Anxiety, fatigue, confusion, discouragement, self-pity, and a dread of disaster may develop. The girl who needs this remedy often feels chilly and sluggish and easily tires on exertion. (See Homeopathy for Adolescent Girls I).

Ignatia: These are sensitive girls who suffer from grief or disappointment and try to keep the hurt inside. They do not want to cry or appear too vulnerable to others, and so they may seem guarded, defensive, and moody. They may also burst out laughing, or into tears, for no apparent reason. A feeling of a lump in the throat and heaviness in the chest with frequent sighing or yawning are strong indications for Ignatia. Insomnia (or excessive sleeping), headaches, and cramping pains in the abdomen and back are also often seen.

Constitutional homeopathic treatment given at adolescence would go a long way in preventing disease and maintaining the physical and mental well-being of the patient. However, please note that a detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by a good and qualified homeopath is necessary to treat the complaints that appear during adolescence. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease. The above mentioned drugs are just a few of the remedies and are mentioned solely to create awareness about the efficacy of homoeopathic medicines in adolescent girls.

For homeopathic management of your health issues visit our website Homeopathic Healing or send an email.

Related articles

• Homeopathy in Puberty (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy in PMS (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescents Girls I (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescents Girls II (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescents Girls III (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)

Prepare your daughter for her first menstrual period.

Menstruation may last from 1 to 8 days, and initially the periods may be scanty and irregular.

A warm bath or a hot water bottle to the abdomen may help menstrual discomfort.

Severe discomfort or pain (called dysmenorrhoea) can be easily treated with homoeopathic medicines.

Indications of some homoeopathic medicines for dysmenorrhoea:

Magnesia phophorica: This is the homoeopathic anti-spasmodic drug. There is a severe colic during the periods. The pain is cramping and is relieved by hot water bottles or by bending over. She is also relieved by passing out some clots. The bleeding is dark red and clotted, with the tendency for the flow to be more pronounced at night.

Colocynth: Like in Magensia phosphorica, the pain is again cramping, but is likely to be seen in girls who are very sensitive- especially to insults or rudeness. The pain is relieved by hard pressure (she doubles up with the pain) and also by using hot water bags.

Viburnum opulus: The menses are late and scanty and last a few hours only. The cramps begin in the lower back, travel around the pelvis or waist and go into the thighs. The pain is relieved once the bleeding begins.

Constitutional homeopathic treatment given at adolescence would go a long way in preventing disease and maintaining the physical and mental well being of the patient. However, please note that a detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by a good and qualified homoeopath is necessary to treat the complaints that appear during adolescence. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease. The above mentioned drugs are just a few of the remedies and are mentioned solely to create awareness about the efficacy of homoeopathic medicines in adolescent girls.

For homeopathic management of your health issues visit our website Homeopathic Healing or send an email.

Related articles

• Homeopathy in PMS (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy in Puberty (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescents Girls I (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescents Girls II (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescent Girls IV (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)

During adolescence hygiene is very important to remove oils and body odor.

They must be told the importance of washing their face, underarms, pubic area, and feet daily.

Have your children wash their hands frequently to decrease the spread of germs, especially before eating and after using the bathroom.

Underwear should be made of cotton for better air circulation. Tight jeans also prevent air circulation and can cause friction of the labia (private parts).

Hygienic care revolving around the monthly cycle needs to be conveyed. Girls must learn how to anticipate and prepare for their menstrual cycles so they won’t be caught by surprise. Daily bathing and special padding must be undertaken for this cyclical phase of their development.

Tampons or pads should be changed every few hours to prevent bacterial growth; tampons should not be worn overnight.

Avoid all feminine hygiene sprays, douches and scented sanitary products since they may irritate the pubic area.

Your daughter might notice a yellow stain on her panties. Leucorrhoea or a white discharge is also a common complaint during puberty. If the discharge is white, non-irritating, non-offensive and is not associated with any urinary symptoms, then it is a physiological phenomenon. This can be corrected with the help of constitutional homeopathic remedies. However, an acute onset of leucorrhoea, with an irritation, itching and redness of the parts, may be due to a fungal infection.

Indications of some homoeopathic medicines for leucorrhoea:

Borax: When the discharge is curdy or like the white of an egg and appears between the menses with a lot of itching and irritation of the parts, this is the drug that may be required.

Alumina: The discharge is profuse, transparent and yellowish. It is associated with a lot of weakness, especially during the daytime.

Kreosote: The discharge is yellowish and offensive. It is corrosive and causes an irritation of the parts. It leaves behind stains that are starchy.

Constitutional homeopathic treatment given at adolescence would go a long way in preventing disease and maintaining the physical and mental well being of the patient. However, please note that a detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by a good and qualified homoeopath is necessary to treat the complaints that appear during adolescence. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease. The above mentioned drugs are just a few of the remedies and are mentioned solely to create awareness about the efficacy of homoeopathic medicines in adolescent girls.

For homeopathic management of your health issues visit our website Homeopathic Healing or send an email.

Related articles

• Homeopathy in Puberty (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescents Girls I (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescent Girls IV (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescents Girls III (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy in PMS (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)

Adolescence (Latin adolescentia, from adolescere, to grow up) is the period of psychological, social, and physical transition between childhood and adulthood.

As a transitional stage of human development, adolescence is the period in which a child matures into an adult. This transition involves biological (i.e. pubertal), social, and psychological changes.

It is a time of rapid physical development and deep emotional changes which can be confusing and uncomfortable for child and parent alike.

This article is mainly for the parents of adolescent girls. Some teenagers might also enjoy reading it. It gives information about the process of adolescence, the upheavals it can cause, some of the problems that arise, and ways in which they can be managed especially with homoeopathic medicines.

Early puberty is sometimes called precocious or premature puberty. In most cases, early puberty is just a variation of normal puberty i.e. it is not caused by any disease.

Delayed puberty Sometimes a medical reason causes delayed puberty, but sometimes not. For example, malnutrition (not eating enough of the right kinds of food) can cause delayed puberty. Many girls who exercise vigourously have very little body fat and this is known to cause a delay in the onset of puberty. Sometimes, delayed puberty tends to “run in families” and normal adolescent development proceeds normally after the delay. This is sometimes called a constitutional delay and is responsible for the vast majority of cases of delayed puberty.

Puberty may be late if there is:

1. No development of breast tissue by age 14

2. No periods for 5 years or more after the first appearance of breast tissue.

Most of these girls respond to reassurance, a good balanced diet, moderate exercises and constitutional homeopathic drugs like Pulsatilla, Natrum muriaticum, Kali carbonicum, Graphites and Lycopodium. If not, the child needs to be investigated for various anatomical defects of the genitals, chromosomal problems, or problems at the hypothalamic-pituitary or ovarian-uterine axis.

Dysfunctional uterine bleeding: Girls who have recently begun menstruating may have irregular, prolonged, or heavy menstrual bleeding. Anovulation (not ovulating) is the most common reason for abnormal menstrual bleeding in adolescent girls. An irregular cycle is often due to a failure to ovulate. It could be heavy or prolonged. A proper explanation, adequate reassurance and psychological support should correct the emotional consequence.

Indications of some homoeopathic medicines for dysfunctional uterine bleeding:

Calcarea carbonica: This is a medicine for girls who have grown too rapidly. They are fat and flabby and are extremely sensitive to cold. In fact, they feel cold all over. They sweat excessively especially on their heads. They are known to have early puberty and the menses are too early, too profuse and last for a very long time. Sometimes the periods return from the slightest emotional causes. As small children they may have had problems with their growth because of the poor calcium assimilation. They tend to have deformed and curved bones and due to their obesity, they cannot take their body weight and so appear to be slow in learning to walk. The child craves eggs, sweets and even indigestible things. She has an aversion to milk and meat.

Phosphorus: This is a child who appears to be just the opposite in appearance to the Calcarea carbonica child. Though both grow too rapidly, she is lean and thin and appears emaciated. The menses may start at a very early age and the bleeding is bright red, profuse and lasts for a number of days. She is a chilly child and craves spicy and pungent food, salt and ice-cold things. She seems to dislike sweets.

Erigeron: The child suffers from bleeding which may be continuous or between the periods and which is made worse from the slightest movement. The blood flow is bright red and she complains of severe urging for urine and stool during the menses.

Sabina: The bleeding is profuse and bright red and she complains of also passing dark red clots. She also has pain during the menstrual flow that begins in the sacrum (lower back) and goes to the pubis (in the front).

Trillium pendulum: During the menses she has a sensation as though the hips and back were falling into pieces. There is a gushing out of bright blood on the least movement. The bleeding is associated with faintness & sinking at stomach. The menses appear every two weeks.

Constitutional homeopathic treatment given at adolescence would go a long way in preventing disease and maintaining the physical and mental well being of the patient. However, please note that a detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by a good and qualified homoeopath is necessary to treat the complaints that appear during adolescence. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease. The above mentioned drugs are just a few of the remedies and are mentioned solely to create awareness about the efficacy of homoeopathic medicines in adolescent girls.

For homeopathic management of your health issues visit our website Homeopathic Healing or send an email.

Related articles

• Homeopathy in Puberty (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescent Girls IV (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescents Girls III (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy for Adolescents Girls II (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)
• Homeopathy in PMS (homeopathicure.wordpress.com)

What is gout?
This is a metabolic disorder. It affects joints and later the kidneys. It is a disorder where the uric acid is not metabolised well. The serum (blood) level of this normal substance is high. The raised levels of uric acid may be due to over production or reduced excretion. The higher levels allow the uric acid crystals to get deposited in and around the joints. This causes severe pain, swelling and redness of that area. The crystals can also get deposited in the kidneys to form uric acid stones

What can precipitate an attack?
Unaccustomed physical stress, mental stress and bouts of alcohol consumption can trigger an acute attack of gout.

What are the symptoms?
There is a sudden, acute onset of severe pain involving any one joint or one side of a joint. The commonest joint is the ball of the great toe. The area suddenly becomes red, painful and swollen. It may be difficult to move the part due to the pain. Occasionally, people mistake it to be due to an injury. However, it is not possible to have such a severe pain due to an injury that one cannot remember definitely.

How does one control the disease?
It frequently needs medicine for good control. There is also a need for good control in the diet to keep the serum uric acid levels within the normal range.

What diet should one follow?
The intake of the following things should be stopped, as they are high in purine rich proteins: alcohol, red meat, fish, sea food, pulses, peas, spinach, cashew nuts. Alcohol should also be avoided. (See also the article- Dietary advice)

Can homoeopathy help?
Homoeopathy is known to control the uric acid diathesis and is also useful in acute attacks. The following drugs are important aids in the treatment of gout:

Lycopodium- This is a drug for chronic gout, with chalky deposits in the joints. It is suited to persons who are mentally keen, but of weak muscular power. Typically, the patient appears emaciated (he is thin and withered), and full of gas. They are apprehensive and afraid to be alone. Though they lack self-confidence, they are haughty and headstrong when sick. There is a pain in the heels as if treading on a pebble. One foot feels hot and the other feels cold. The urine is slow in coming and shows a heavy, red sediment. There may be a backache, which is relieved by passing urine. The right side of the body is peculiarly affected and all the complaints seem to increase in the evening, especially between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m..

Colchicum- This drug has a specific power of relieving the gouty paroxysms but it seems to be more beneficial in chronic affections of these parts. The parts are red, hot, swollen with tearing pains felt more in the night. The parts are sensitive to touch. The patient complains of tearing pains in the joints in hot weather, and stinging during cold. Gout settles in the great toe or in the heel. With the gout the patient also has disorders of the stomach. The smell of food, especially fish, causes nausea and may even cause fainting. There may be an icy coldness felt in the stomach. The urine is dark, brown, black- looks like ink.

Urtica urens- This drug, prepared from the stinging nettle, helps in the elimination of uric acid from the body. The patient has a tendency to gout and stone formations. The joint symptoms are associated with urticaria or alternate with it. The shoulders (deltoid region), wrists and ankles are commonly affected. The patient cannot tolerate touch, water or exposure of the affected parts to cool, moist air and snow air.

Lithium carb- There is a swelling and tenderness of the finger and toe joints, better by hot water. There is a nodular swelling of the joints. The ankles pain on walking. Some of the patients have a headache, acidity, nausea and gnawing pain in the stomach which cease while eating. The urine may deposit a red sand and is turbid, scanty and dark. Joint symptoms are sometimes associated with heart disease.

Ledum- When gout is the result of alcoholism, Ledum should be thought of. The inflammation of the joints begins in the lower limbs and ascends upwards. The ball of the great toe is swollen. It is red, sometimes bluish, and cold to touch. Dipping the part in a bucket of ice cold water relieves the pain. It is generally worse from getting warm in bed. The patient is sensitive to the cold, yet the heat of the bed is intolerable.

Benzoic acid- It cures symptoms of gout associated with a high coloured and offensive urine. The pains are tearing with stitches in the affected joint. Gout seems to settle in the achilles tendon, just above the heel. The symptoms are worse in the open air and from uncovering the affected parts.

A detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by a good and qualified homoeopath is necessary to treat gout. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease. The above mentioned drugs are just a few of the remedies for gout and are mentioned solely to create awareness about the efficacy of homoeopathy in this disease.

For more information on homeopathy and for consultations about your health issues, visit our web site- Homeopathic Healing.

Related articles

• Avoiding Common Gout Triggers (webmd.com)
• Learn to Manage Your Gout Between Flares (webmd.com)
• What is Gout? (healthadel.com)

- Dr. Ian R. Luepker, N.D.

Ian Luepker, ND

After Dr. Vijay Vaishnav’s inspiring Grand Rounds lecture on asthma and homeopathy in April 2001, seven students and two faculty from NCNM (National College of Naturopathic Medicine, Portland, USA) organized an eight-week rotation at Shree Mumbadevi Homeopathic Hospital in Mumbai, India. Despite the usual obstacles inherent in international travel and the prospect of being in India during the height of the monsoon rains, the program turned out to be one of the richest educational experiences imaginable, truly an immersion program in homeopathy!

We lived in the hospital, two floors above the outpatient clinic, and just down the hall from both the inpatient unit and maternity ward.  We followed the progress of the hospitalized patients and observed several births. For naturopathic students without much exposure to “doing rounds” on an inpatient unit, we saw deeper and more acute pathology than we typically see at the NCNM clinics. We also observed multiple births on the maternity ward; an unexpected pleasure to hold infants just minutes young.

We saw a high volume of patients at the homeopathic outpatient clinic of the hospital, between 300-400 per day.  We had six different clinic shifts during the six-day workweek, one per morning over an eight-week term.  This system allowed us to see up to 50 patients per shift, and gave us the invaluable opportunity to observe several doctors with effective but vastly different styles of practicing homeopathy.

The intake rooms were small! Each contained a desk, five chairs (the largest for the doctor) and a small exam table that could be sectioned off for privacy with a hanging curtain. The walls and ceiling suffered the fate of tropical climes, and the more luxurious rooms had a fan. The fan was indeed a luxury, because when up to thirty students eagerly sardined themselves into the room, temperatures soared high. Two to three times a shift, the sounds of the monsoon rains permeated the interview, the rain’s sweet coolness bringing relief from the heat. Perhaps OSHA would disagree, but we all quickly resonated with the state of the intake rooms; it represented the efficiency and wonder of homeopathic health care that worked so very well in India.

The Indian homeopaths treat diseases that most homeopaths here in the states wouldn’t attempt to treat homeopathically, i.e., hydrocephalus, leprosy, and on one memorable occasion, a cobra bite complicated with cellulitis. The supervising doctor and students carefully weighed the risks and benefits of treating allopathically vs. homeopathically. For example, the decision to prescribe (or not) for a twelve-month old girl with hydrocephalus carried a high degree of risk. On the one hand, a failure to select the proper remedy would very likely have resulted in permanent brain damage.  On the other, a surgical introduction of a shunt could easily have induced infection and certainly suppression of symptoms.  The supervising physician, Dr. Devadiga, decided that we could give homeopathy a trial for six months before referring for surgery.

The clinical faculty of Shree Mumbadevi was extremely well versed in pathology and diagnosis. They emphasized understanding the common symptoms and the usual progression of disease states in order to distinguish characteristic symptoms. Because many of the outpatient cases required acute treatment, we frequently relied on a lesional/regional approach. Nonetheless, etiology, miasm, and mental/emotional symptoms, when available, also played a significant role in remedy selection. Case analysis and prescription often involved a miasmatic approach. Sometimes an anti-miasmatic remedy was given to treat the soil of chronic disease. As Dr. Devadiga, our primary Organon teacher, would say, “unless you’ve got a plant (characteristic symptoms) you’ve got to treat the miasm of soil so that such a plant can grow. Only then you can prescribe on the characteristic symptoms of the plant!” We also used miasmatic remedies as intercurrents. When a patient’s progress was waning on their simillimum, we were taught to prescribe the miasmatic remedy, and then later re-dose with their simillimum.

I think that there is a common misperception about Indian prescribing–that it is a keynote oriented and superficial approach. Indian homeopathy is by no means monolithic. In fact, although the term Bombay Group or Bombay School is usually heard in association with Rajan Sankaran’s group, he only adopted the term. Bombay School, coined during the 1950′s, was originally intended to distinguish the Calcutta School and their keynote approach from the Bombay School and their more comprehensive approach.

There are several groups and varying methodologies used by Mumbai homeopaths, and it was wonderful to be exposed to several of them, a homeopathy sampler of sorts.

As we know, there is a wide spectrum of homeopathy being practiced worldwide, and Mumbai is no exception. From the scientific to the artistic, the proving-based factual to the imaginative, there are practitioners in Mumbai that are representative of each station along this continuum. Our primary contact, Dr. Vijay Vaishnav, guided us toward the scientific end of the spectrum. We were grateful for this. Without a firm foundation in the rock solid symptoms of the materia medica and time-tested rubrics, it’s easy to get lost amidst kingdoms, dreams, group provings and essences. Though it is clear that there is also room for the latter, they can be misleading places for a student to begin.

Clinics generally lasted three to four hours.  In the afternoon, we attended tutorials: one instructor to the seven of us.  The college is split into three departments: Organon/Philosophy, Repertory, and Materia Medica. There are 6-8 faculty members in each department who specialize in that subject. The tutorials mainly consisted of a teaching followed by discussion and often would begin with discussion of cases seen that morning. We covered a significant amount of ground: classification of disease, symptomatology, susceptibility, posology, second prescription and miasms; every subject firmly referenced back to the Organon. One of our primary texts was the Principles & Practice of Homeopathy by Dr. M.L. Dhawale; one of the clearest and simplest explanations of the underlying principles of homeopathy I’ve read, it would be a great text for an introductory course.

We also attended classes with Rajan Sankaran and analyzed cases with some of his senior students. Sankaran taught Kent’s repertory, rubric by rubric, starting with the mind section. He defined each rubric, explained why each remedy belonged to that rubric, and discussed cases in which he had employed the rubric. A dynamic lecturer, he tied in the humanities, contemporary film, politics, and culture into his lectures. During one class, after analyzing each character of a popular Bombay film, he implored us to bring our repertories (and a flashlight) to the movies!  His emphasis on disease as delusion, awareness as cure, and his 10 miasms placed him in stark contrast with most faculty in the homeopathy department. Nonetheless, he maintains a clinical post at the hospital, seeing patients there one day per week.

Dr. Vijay Vaishnav, one of the two doctors who created Shree Mumbadevi hospital, was our primary contact during our rotation. He organized our clinic shifts and tutorials.

Anyone with an interest in homeopathy who wishes to establish an invaluable international tie would do well to contact this man. He repeatedly astounded us with his consummate skill as a clinical physician, a homeopath and an organizer.  His humor and sensitivity toward his students and his patients easily earn him the respect and gratitude of all who work with him. Without him, we would never have had this extraordinary summer; we owe him much gratitude.

Hopefully, with the help of the HANP, interested students from all the naturopathic colleges will have the opportunity to study homeopathy in India for part of their clinical education. Many thanks to Drs. Kip Bajaj, Marlane Bassett and Kelly Fitzpatrick for their support, guidance and teaching! Also, I’d like to acknowledge Daniel Noam Smith’s colorful contribution to this article.

 (Ian R. Luepker, N.D., DHANP is a homeopathic and naturopathic physician specialized in the pediatric treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders, including Asperger Syndrome, and of other behavioral, developmental, and learning issues. He is president of the Homeopathic Academy of Naturopathic Physicians (HANP).)

This article was first published in the Simillimum (Volume XV Issue 2 Summer 2002)- The Journal of the Homeopathic Academy of Naturopathic Physicians. It was first reprinted on our web site www.drvaishnav.com by permission.

Dr. Vijay Vaishnav’s comments:

Dr. Ian Luepker’s article about the experiences of the students of NCNM in India is really balanced and gives a ‘wide-angle’ exposure as well as a close-up of the working of our hospital and the clinical training program that I had set up for them at Smt. C.M.P. Homeopathic Medical College and Shree Mumbadevi Homeopathic Hospital at Mumbai, India.

I wish to point out a factual error. Ian has written “Dr. Vijay Vaishnav, one of the two doctors who created Shree Mumbadevi hospital, …….”. I wish to set the record straight by stating that I have not created Shree Mumbadevi Hospital (though I have put my heart and soul into its existence). It existed as a teaching hospital, attached to our college, even when I joined the institution as a student. I was a Professor and head of the  department of Materia Medica at the college and it was part of my job as a full-time teacher to attend to patients at the Out Patient Clinic and the Wards of the hospital.

If you wish to organize seminars on homeopathy by Vijay and Daxa Vaishnav for your school or study group, feel free to contact us.

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