Sepia - A Homeopathic Remedy for Mothers

Motherhood: at it's best, it can fill our days with joy, sweetness, and contentment. Yet, on the worst days, being a mother can be one of the hardest challenges of life. The ups-and-downs of pregnancy, the constant demands of children, the feeling that we will never be able to have a single moment to ourselves; these feelings seem to just come with the territory of being a mother. But is there a better way?

There is one well-known homeopathic remedy that is of immense help to mothers. It can help those bad days feel less dire and dramatic, and make them happen less often. Homeopathic Sepia to the rescue!

What is Sepia?

photo from sci-news.com

Although the word Sepia is commonly used to describe the reddish-brown tone of old photographs, the origin of this word is actually the Latin word for cuttlefish. Cuttlefish ink is a rich brown color, and it was used as an ink or drawing medium for thousands of years. Homeopathic Sepia officinalis is a remedy made from the ink of the cuttlefish.

Never-Well-Since...

While homeopathic treatment of chronic conditions is typically not do-it-yourself, there are certain chronic ailments that are somewhat easier to treat. These are ailments where there was an obvious trigger, known as a Never-Well-Since event or exposure. For instance, chronic ailments following head injuries are often successfully treated with Natrum sulph or Arnica, and ailments following a broken heart are often successfully treated with Ignatia or Natrum mur.

Homeopathic Sepia is listed as a top remedy for the following Never-Well-Since events/exposures [1 - Hahnemann Revisited: A Textbook of Classical Homeopathy for the Professional]:

• Childbirth
• Nursing
• Postpartum depression
• Hormonal treatment
• Birth control pill
• Hysterectomy
• Puberty
• Menopause

Clearly, Sepia's healing action has a particular focus on hormonal-induced states in women. While it is not a cure-all for each-and-every mother, nonetheless a large proportion of mothers can benefit from Sepia.

Characteristic Mental/Emotional Indications for Sepia

As with all homeopathic remedies, Sepia will work best when it matches well with the mental, emotional, and physical symptoms that a person is exhibiting. The mental/emotional picture for Sepia is one of this remedy's most striking features.

The classic picture of a Sepia woman includes:

• mothers who feel overworked and/or overwhelmed,
• irritability or anger specifically triggered by one's children and/or spouse,
• feeling less affectionate or apathetic towards one's children and/or spouse, 
• a desire to escape, even for just a few minutes of solitude, 
• "loves her husband and children dearly but is too exhausted to feel anything but the need to get through the day's work and survive to the next," [2] and/or
• feeling "overly conscientious about family responsibilities and thus excessively guilty about any desire or effort to avoid them" [3].

Women often assume that these feelings are just a natural part of motherhood. They may feel guilty about having these feelings or try to deny that they exist. Nonetheless, Sepia can help the body and mind become more balanced so that these feelings occur less often and with less intensity.

Additional Indications for Sepia

Some additional indications for Sepia include:

• reduced or absent desire for sex,
• feeling better from physical activity and/or dancing,
• postpartum depression and/or irritability,
• urinary problems after pregnancy,
• weeping while relating her symptoms,
• premenstrual symptoms including irritability and aversion to sex,
• hot flashes,
• nausea during pregnancy which is worse from fasting and smells or thoughts of foods,
• pregnancy-induced varicose veins, hemorrhoids, and/or vaginitis, and
• a wide range of other symptoms including allergies, headaches, insomnia, backaches, and literally hundreds of other conditions.

Although Sepia's overall sphere of action includes a wide variety of symptoms, that does not mean it is "the" remedy for all of those conditions. There are over a thousand different homeopathic remedies, and common symptoms such as headaches are associated with hundreds of different remedies.  For instance, in my homeopathic software, 845 remedies are listed under "constipation" and 1,249 remedies are listed for "headache".

What makes homeopathic remedies so effective is that they are selected specifically for each individual. No homeopath would recommend Sepia for every person who has a headache. However, if the person is a mother who is exhibiting some of Sepia's characteristic mental/emotional indications (described above), then Sepia is likely to be a good match.

Success With Sepia for Mothers

In my own life, I have found Sepia to be tremendously useful in helping to balance my emotions and leave me feeling contented with motherhood:

• During my second pregnancy, I developed irritability and anger that I had never experienced before. By the time I found homeopathy nearly three years later, I was often blowing up at my children and felt quite overwhelmed and exhausted. Some days, when my husband would return home from work, I had reached the point where I felt like running away, and I would have to go for a solitary walk just to escape for a short time. I felt guilty for having these feelings, and didn't want to admit them even to myself. Sepia, along with a few other well-chosen chronic remedies, has made a huge difference. I now rarely feel irritable, and I never feel irritability or anger to anywhere near the same magnitude as I used to. I no longer experience that desire to run away, and I no longer feel overwhelmed by the demands of motherhood and homemaking.

Some examples of treatment with Sepia from the homeopathic literature include the following:

• "A 35-year-old woman became pregnant again soon after weaning her second child, then 22 months old. By six weeks she was exhausted and nauseous before mealtimes and would have to eat a little something to relieve it, but the smell of roast chicken and other favorite foods made her feel even sicker and forced her to lie down to try to sleep. Also sensitive to odors like soap and perfume, she felt better when she remembered to exercise, although at their worst her symptoms immobilized her and made her crabby and apathetic. Sepia 30 soon wrought an amazing change in her: within two weeks she had regained her strength and appetite, feeling only minor nausea occasionally from strong perfume. She remained in good health and went on to give birth at home without any difficulty." [3 - Homeopathic Medicines for Pregnancy and Childbirth]
• "A woman of 26 consulted me for irregular periods, the interval averaging 35 to 40 days, often with brownish staining around the midcycle. After a home birth three years ago she had nursed the child for a year, with hemorrhoids and constipation developing and her periods getting off track during that time. Although reluctant to speak about her personal life, she was openly resentful of her husband, who was devoted to the child but highly critical of her and scornful of her opinions, and she could no longer tolerate making love with him. After a round of Sepia... her periods quickly reverted to normal, while her other symptoms improved significantly, and she herself became much more assertive with her husband. No further treatment was needed." [3 - Homeopathic Medicines for Pregnancy and Childbirth]
• "...emotional apathy may develop from some profound sorrow or disappointment in a reserved individual who cannot allow herself to feel because she cannot afford it. A case in point was a 26-year-old woman with amenorrhoea [the absence of menstruation] who, three years earlier, had suffered severely from an unfortunate love... Since that time she had been cold and unresponsive with her family and friends and toward the world in general... She was polite and dutiful, but completely indifferent... Initially there was no dramatic change. Sepia can be a slow starter. Yet on a visit two months later she was a different person - not carefree or even happy, but more caring and responsive, and her menses had resumed. No further remedy was prescribed, since the single dose had obviously reached some deep level of her emotional disharmony and was beginning to heal it. Instead, the remedy was allowed to continue dispelling her 'stilled' or suppressed emotions, as she blossomed into a warm, lovely and now happy human being." [2 - Portraits of Homoeopathic Medicines]

Dosage and Potency Guidance

I generally advise starting with homeopathic Sepia in the 30c potency, although for some people it may be more appropriate to start with a lower or higher potency depending upon their individual sensitivity level. When used very soon after the precipitating event (such as pregnancy or childbirth), it is possible that only one dose is needed for the body to restore balance. When there has been a time lapse between the event and the usage of Sepia, more than one dose may be needed.

If the Sepia state has become part of the chronic symptoms picture (with symptoms lasting more than 6 weeks), a good rule of thumb for simple dosing is to wait-and-watch for several weeks after the first dose to see if the Sepia is making a positive difference. With all homeopathic remedies, the least number of doses is always the best. Homeopathic remedies work by stimulating the body to heal itself. Anytime there is a noticeable improvement, no more doses should be given unless the symptoms start to regress (or unless there is a plateau, where the symptoms get better to a point but then stop improving). And if no improvement is observed within 3 doses of taking a remedy, the remedy should be discontinued.

While Sepia typically works quite well for treating mothers, in cases where the Sepia indications are long-standing it is possible that some other remedies will be needed before Sepia can do its work. For instance, if there have been significant traumas, losses, or drug-exposures in the meantime since the Sepia state was induced, those more-recent events/exposures may need to be treated before Sepia will be able to be effective.  In those instances, consulting with a well-trained homeopath is more likely to lead to long-term success with Sepia.

References

[1] De Schepper, Luc (2001). Hahnemann Revisited: A Textbook of Classical Homeopathy for the Professional. Santa Fe, NM: Full of Life Publications.
[2] Coulter, Catherine R. (1998). Portraits of Homoeopathic Medicines: Psychophysical Analyses of Selected Constitutional Types, Vol. 1. St. Louis, MO: Quality Medical Publishing, Inc.
[3] Moskowitz, Richard M.D. (1992). Homeopathic Medicines for Pregnancy and Childbirth. Berkely, CA: North Atlantic Books.

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor or licensed healthcare professional. I am a homeopathic practitioner whose services are considered complementary and alternative by the state of New Mexico. The uses of homeopathic remedies described herein are provided for educational use only.

Affiliate Disclosure - Links to Amazon are affiliate links. If you use these links, your price remains the same, but I earn a small commission. Thanks for supporting this site!

The Desk Cycle - Easy Physical Activity Booster For Desk Workers

The Desk Cycle is a small stationary bike that fits under most desks. It allows a person to easily incorporate physical activity into times that would normally be sedentary, such as reading a book, watching TV, or while working on the computer.  I received a complimentary Desk Cycle and my family has been testing it out for the last few weeks.

The Desk Cycle has turned out to be useful to all four members of our family, so I'm excited to share our experiences with it. In this post I will focus specifically on the use of the Desk Cycle by my husband and myself while working on a computer.

Our Immediate Impressions

The Desk Cycle was well-packed and easy to assemble with the supplied tools. Given that there are so many poorly made products on the market these days, we were surprised by how well-built the desk cycle is. It is sturdy and has rubberized feet that keep it from slipping away while being used, though at higher resistance levels the bike can slide away if it's on a smooth surface. There is a simple solution included with the Desk Cycle, a Velcro strap used to secure the bike to your chair.

The Desk Cycle is amazingly quiet while in-use; we were able to use it unobtrusively while doing a variety of tasks. The Desk Cycle has an attached display unit that shows the speed and distance, along with other information. We have found the display unit to be easily read while the bike is under a desk, however, the display unit can be moved to the desktop using the supplied stand and extension cable.

Fitting the Desk Cycle Under Desks

For reference, we thought it would be useful if we included some measurements of our desks and legs. I am fairly short at 5 feet 1 inch, but my legs are a little long for my height such that petite pants are always too short for me. My inseam (from crotch to floor) is just short of 30 inches. My husband is 5 feet 10.5 inches, and his inseam is 32.5 inches.

At-Home Desk Measurements

• Height to bottom of keyboard tray - 23.75 inches 
• Desk height - 28.75 inches 
• Depth of desk - 23.75 inches without keyboard tray extended; 32 inches with keyboard tray fully extended 
• Seat height - 20 inches 

Husband's Work Desk Measurements

• Height to bottom of keyboard tray - 26 inches (it has a support arm in the middle of the tray that extends downward, but doesn't seem to have any effect on using the Desk Cycle since it is in the middle of the tray) 
• Desk height - 30 inches 
• Depth of desk - > 5 feet since it is a corner desk Seat ht: 18 inches

How Does the Desk Cycle Work?

The Desk Cycle is quite simple to use. It has a knob that allows the user to easily choose among eight resistance levels. The resistance levels are actually achieved through the use of magnets, with Level 1 being fairly easy and Level 8 requiring quite a bit of effort.  The Desk Cycle fits well under most desks but can also be used while sitting on a couch or chair away from a desk.

My Husband's Experience Using the Desk Cycle at Home and Work

My husband has to be a little careful when using the Desk Cycle at our home desk, as he can bump his knees on the keyboard tray while cycling if he's not paying attention. For him, the Desk Cycle actually fits better under his desk at work than under our desk at home. At work, he is able to easily cycle without hitting his knees on his desk due to a combination of a higher keyboard tray and lower seating position.

The desk cycle is so easy to use while working that my husband has had to be careful to not use it too much, at least until his muscles become accustomed to it. He has been easily cycling about 5-8 miles per day at resistance level 2 on the Desk Cycle and is looking forward to going further once he is ready. His knees, which have always been problematic, were initially a bit sore from using the Desk Cycle, but they are getting into the groove of being able to use the Desk Cycle.

We wondered if the Desk Cycle would be a useful tool to help my husband overcome the disadvantages of his desk job. 40+ hours per week of sitting at his desk for over 11 years have given my husband chronically tight, weak lower back and hip muscles. After just a few weeks of using the Desk Cycle, my husband is able to tell that it is having a positive impact; his lower back and hips are more flexible and feel stronger. Though he has a long way to go, the short-term improvement has been surprising. Combining the Desk Cycle with some yoga stretching has even allowed him to begin doing some light strength training, which was previously hindered by his back and hips.

My Experience Using the Desk Cycle at the Computer Desk

I typically exercise 6-7 days per week with yoga, walking, hiking, gardening, and/or strength training. Nonetheless, I do sit at a desk ~15-20 hours per week. Our at-home desk, where I do most of my blogging and homeopathic consulting, works well for me with the Desk Cycle. I can easily cycle without having to rearrange anything.  

Resistance level 2 or 3 works well for me without breaking much of a sweat or messing up my typing abilities. My posture is actually much better while using the Desk Cycle, as I tend to sit up much straighter while cycling instead of slouching on my chair. Typically, if I am sitting for an extended period of time I will have some stiffness when I stand up, but I've noticed that if I cycle while I'm sitting I feel much less stiff when I stand up. 

Overall Impressions

Overall, my husband and I are very pleased with the Desk Cycle. It is a fabulous tool for helping us increase our physical activity levels and improve our physical health while at a desk. Although my husband and I have substantially different levels of physical health, the Desk Cycle has proven to be effective and enjoyable for both of us. In fact, the only real disadvantage is that testing out the Desk Cycle has made me want to have another one, so that one can remain at my husband's workplace and one can be used at home.

Affiliate Disclosure - Links to Amazon are affiliate links. If you use these links, your price remains the same, but I earn a small commission. Thanks for supporting this site!

Homeopathic Ignatia - Remedy for Grief, Heartbreak, Homesickness, Disappointment, and Emotional Stress

If I could have have just one homeopathic remedy on-hand for acute emotional stresses, it would be Ignatia amara. From grief to homesickness to disappointment, this remedy is indispensable for many of life's emotional stresses. Like all homeopathic remedies, Ignatia works by stimulating the body to fix whatever is wrong, be that on the emotional, mental, or physical level. Rather than suppressing symptoms like conventional medicines do, homeopathic remedies actually work with the body to heal the underlying problem. In the wake of an emotional stress, Ignatia can help the body and emotions become re-balanced, just as they should be.

Emotional Stressors

Ignatia is known to help with the following types of emotional stress:

• Grief, such as after the death of a loved one or pet
• Heartbreak or relationship troubles
• Homesickness
• Disappointment or failure
• Hearing bad news
• Worrying about a loved one, such as following a specific event such as a car crash or medical diagnosis)

Symptoms That Often Point to Ignatia

Some of the symptoms that may be present when a person will benefit from Ignatia include the following. These symptoms do NOT have to be present in order for Ignatia to be indicated, as they represent just a few of the many possible symptoms that can indicate Ignatia.

• Sighing and/or yawning
• Sensation of lump in throat or stomach
• Mood swings or alternations/mingling of tears and gaiety
• Unexpressed emotions (silent, withdrawn)
• Paradoxical symptoms (sore throat relieved by swallowing, toothache relieved by chewing, etc.)
• Any symptoms that appear in the wake of an emotional stress (grief, heartbreak, loss, etc.)

Success With Ignatia for Emotional Stresses

Some examples of using Ignatia for acute emotional stress from the homeopathic literature include the following:

• "I was called to a young girl who during several weeks had vomited frequently and who was rapidly losing strength and weight. She told me that she had no pain in the stomach or anywhere else... Her illness had followed a grave mental upset. Since then she would not speak to anyone, had become very morose, and she wept often. These happen to be the leading symptoms of Ignatia. She was therefore given... Ignatia..., and immediately the vomiting came to an end, and the girl lost her melancholy disposition and became perfectly normal." [Materia Medica Viva, Vol. 12]

• "One thin, nervous, alabaster-pale girl of twelve, suffering from growing pains in the legs, had not been placed in the honor section of her class. High expectations of herself had been cultivated by her parents, so she was mortified and began to feel an aversion to everything connected with her school... a dose of Ignatia... was prescribed. Shortly afterwards, one evening at dinner, she volunteered, 'You know, I'm really glad I didn't make the fast track in school. Now I have more time for extracurricular activities. I've signed up for drama and glee club, and I think I'm going to love them!' Thus, instead of brooding on her failure... she cheerfully and confidently went on to something else." [Portraits of Homoeopathic Medicines, Vol. 2]

• "Another Ignatia-requiring situation is homesickness, as was perceived in the case of the ten-year-old... boy at camp, who begged his mother to please let him come home... The ... mother sent her son some Ignatia instead, to be taken twice a day until he felt better. After several days, there were no more pathetic phone calls and the parents received a bracing postcard: 'The food here is wonderful, the activities are just great, and my cabin leader is a real neat guy!' " [Homoeopathic Sketches of Children's Types]

In my own family, Ignatia has worked well for various emotional stresses in daily life. One such example was a couple years ago, when one of my daughter's chickens was taken ill. That same night, my daughter was suddenly ill, with a high fever and by the following day she was quite ill. Ignatia proved to be the right remedy for her, and quickly cleared up her acute illness.  On subsequent questioning, my daughter told me that she had been worried that her chicken was going to die.

Since then, there have been several other times when my daughter has felt grief over animals dying, and I've been able to give her Ignatia earlier before any physical symptoms have developed. I've used Ignatia for myself, as well, at times when I've had large disappointments that I kept dwelling on, and other times when there has been loss or grief. Each time, Ignatia has allowed me to quickly get out of the rut I was becoming mired in, and  re-normalize my emotional state. 

Dosage and Potency Guidance

I generally use homeopathic Ignatia in the 30c potency for treating acute emotional events. When used very soon after the precipitating event, typically only one dose is needed for the body to restore balance. When there has been a time lapse between the event and the usage of Ignatia, sometimes more than one dose is needed.

With all homeopathic remedies, the least number of doses is always the best.  Homeopathic remedies work by stimulating the body to heal itself. Anytime there is a noticeable improvement, no more doses should be given unless the symptoms start to regress (or unless there is a plateau, where the symptoms get better to a point but then stop improving). And if no improvement is observed within 3 doses of taking a remedy, the remedy should be discontinued.

While Ignatia typically works quite well for treating acute emotional events, in cases of long-standing feelings of grief or loss the selection of the appropriate remedy is typically more complex. Ignatia might still be helpful in those instances, but often the chronic state will instead morph into needing a different remedy such as Natrum mur, Phosphoric acid, or Aurum metallicum. 

References

[1] Vithoulkas, George, Materia Medica Viva, Vol. 12, pp. 2677-2723, International Academy of Classical Homeopathy, Alonissos, Greece 2009.

[2] Coulter, Catherine R., Portraits of Homoeopathic Medicines, Vol. 2, pp. 107-151, North Atlantic Books, California, USA 1988.

[3] Coulter, Catherine R., Homoeopathic Sketches of Children's Types, pp. 163-168, Ninth House Publishing, West Virginia, USA 2001.

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor or licensed healthcare professional. I am a homeopathic practitioner whose services are considered complementary and alternative by the state of New Mexico. The uses of homeopathic remedies described herein are provided for educational use only.

Affiliate Disclosure - Links to Amazon are affiliate links. If you use these links, your price remains the same, but I earn a small commission. Thanks for supporting this site!

Homeopathic Remedies for Treating Vaccine Reactions

Although my husband and I have made an informed decision not to vaccinate our own children, I believe that the decision of whether or not to vaccinate is a fundamental right of parenthood. For parents who choose to vaccinate, or for people who are compelled to vaccinate by law, I wanted to share information about how homeopathy can be used to treat vaccine reactions.

Click Here to View Vaccine Flyer

Vaccine Reactions 

The unfortunate truth is that vaccine reactions do really occur. Sometimes the negative effects are obvious, and other times the effects take longer to develop and have a detrimental effect on long-term chronic health. According to the National Vaccine Information Center [1]:

 "Some vaccine reaction symptoms include:

• Pronounced swelling, redness, heat or hardness at the site of the injection;
• Body rash or hives;
• Shock/collapse;
• High pitched screaming or persistent crying for hours;
• Extreme sleepiness or long periods of unresponsiveness;
• Twitching or jerking of the body, arm, leg or head;
• Crossing of eyes;
• Weakness or paralysis of any part of the body;
• Loss of ability to roll over, sit up or stand up;
• Loss of eye contact or awareness or social withdrawal;
• Head banging or onset of repetitive movements (flapping, rubbing, rocking, spinning);
• High fever (over 103 F)
• Vision or hearing loss;
• Restlessness, hyperactivity or inability to concentrate;
• Sleep disturbances that change wake/sleep pattern;
• Joint pain or muscle weakness;
• Disabling fatigue;
• Loss of memory;
• Onset of chronic ear or respiratory infections;
• Violent or persistent diarrhea or chronic constipation;
• Breathing problems (asthma);
• Excessive bleeding (thrombocytopenia) or anemia."

Can Homeopathy Really Help?

Homeopaths have long known that there are specific homeopathic remedies that can help counter the negative effects of vaccines. For instance, in the 1800's homeopathic remedies were found to work well to counter the negative effects of the smallpox vaccine. J. Compton Burnett M.D. even wrote a whole book filled with cases where homeopathic Thuja was able to reverse vaccine-induced damage in his book, "Vaccinosis and Its Cure by Thuja", published in 1884 [2].

Disclaimer: The uses of homeopathic remedies described in this article are provided for educational use only. 

Thuja - The Top Remedy for Ailments From Vaccination

Homeopathic Thuja occidentalis is the remedy most often considered for ill effects from vaccines. As described by Catherine Coulter in Portraits of Homoeopathic Medicines Vol. 3, "Although it was originally noted for its helpful effects in negating smallpox vaccine reactions, "Thuja has proved to be invaluable in a number of the wide range of physical and neurological disorders whose onset can be traced back to the time of inoculation: repeated middle ear infections, eczema, asthma, enuresis, chronic nasal catarrhs or diarrhea, sleep or eating problems, head-banging in infancy and excessive rocking in the older child. It is either the prime remedy for a particular affliction, the cleanser after inoculation, or a supportive remedy to Silica, Sulphur, and others" [3].

Dr. Margaret Tyler also wrote of numerous cases of vaccinosis cured by the use of homeopathic Thuja in her book, Homoeopathic Drug Pictures [4]. Some examples from her book include the following:

"Small girl, ever since vaccination, pustules on legs, or alternately, when these disappeared, epileptic fits. Thuja quickly cured.  

"Small boy, purulent onychia [infection in the fingernail], very intractable. Nail removed and thumb healed. Then abscesses in different parts of the body, till it was discovered that he had been eight times vaccinated by a persistent and conscientious G.P. Thuja promptly ended the trouble... 

"Years of incapacitating headaches in the mother of a very noisy family of young children. Much vaccinated. Was given Thuja. This was some thirty years ago. Seen recently. 'Never had a recurrence of those headaches.'"

Clearly, Thuja is a hugely beneficial remedy for dealing with negative after-effects from vaccination.

Other Helpful Remedies

Beyond Thuja, homeopathic Silicea is one of the more prominent remedies for dealing with vaccine reactions. Silicea is known to have helped with post-vaccination convulsions, nausea, diarrhea, skin eruptions, and swelling of the upper arms. Other remedies such as Arnica, Ledum, Calcarea carbonica, Mezereum, and Sulphur are also known to be helpful in treating vaccine reactions. The homeopathic form of the vaccines themselves has also been used by some homeopaths with good success, such as using homeopathically potentized DPT vaccine. Some more remedies that can be helpful after vaccination are described here and here.

The whooping cough (pertussis) vaccine, which is the "P" in the DPT, Tdap, or DTaP shot, is known for producing more negative after-effects than other vaccines. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website acknowledges that "mild problems" occur after the DTaP shot in up to 1 out of 3 children, and also lists "moderate" and "severe problems" which are known to occur in lesser numbers [5]. In Portraits of Homeopathic Medicines Vol. 2, Catherine Coulter recommends the following uses of homeopathic remedies to counter the negative effects of the whooping cough vaccine:

"If the parents decide to vaccinate the child against whooping cough, homoeopathic remedies can play a significant preventive role in mitigating the vaccine's ill effects. Several procedures are possible. Hypericum, the principal remedy for nerve injuries, can be administered in medium potency prior to the injection, thus minimizing damage to the central nervous system. Shortly after the injection the remedy to give is Ledum ('ill effects from punctured wounds': Boericke), also in medium potency, to counter the ensuing high fever or inflammatory reaction. Thuja can also be administered preventitively, to avert or minimize future ill-effects of vaccination; it should be given soon after the shot, before any symptoms have developed.

"If the child reacts violently to the vaccine (high fever, high-pitched screaming, excessive drowsiness, fainting, convulsions, holding of breath, etc.), either Ledum should be repeated more often or other remedies should be tried: Belladonna for the high fever, Chamomilla for "arrested breathing suddenly in children' (Kent), and so forth." [6] 

Disclaimer: The uses of homeopathic remedies described in this article are provided for educational use only.  

Dosing Information

As a general rule of thumb, 30c is a medium potency that can be used successfully for most people. However, for newborns or anyone with hypersensitivities, lower potencies (such as 6c) may be more appropriate.

Typically, if there is no obvious improvement within 3-4 doses of any particular homeopathic remedy, the remedy should be discontinued.

With all homeopathic remedies, the least number of doses is always the best. Anytime there is a noticeable improvement, dosing needs to be slowed down and observation is key to determining when to give any further doses. Homeopathic remedies work by stimulating the body to heal itself; once the body has started healing itself no more remedy is needed unless the symptoms start to regress (or unless there is a plateau, where the symptoms get better to a point but then stop improving).



Disclaimer: The uses of homeopathic remedies described in this article are provided for educational use only.  I am not a doctor or licensed healthcare professional. I am a homeopathic practitioner whose services are considered complementary and alternative by the state of New Mexico. The uses of homeopathic remedies described herein are provided for educational use only.  

References

[1] National Vaccine Information Center, If You Vaccinate, Ask 8! What You Need to Know Before & After Vaccination, retrieved from http://www.nvic.org/Ask-Eight-Questions.aspx
[2] Burnett, J. Compton, M.D., Vaccinosis and Its Cure by Thuja; With Remarks on Homoeoprophylaxis, The Homoeopathic Publishing Company, London, England, 1884.
[3] Coulter, Catherine R., The Child and "Vaccinosis", Portraits of Homoeopathic Medicines, Vol. 3, pp. 107-116, Quality Medical Publishing, Missouri, USA 1998.
[4] Tyler, Dr. M.L., "Thuja", Homoeopathic Drug Pictures, pp. 1012-1024, B. Jain Publishers Ltd., New Delhi, India 2004.
[5] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Possible Side-effects From Vaccines, retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vac-gen/side-effects.htm#dtap
[6] Coulter, Catherine R., Silica Appendix, Portraits of Homoeopathic Medicines, Vol. 2, pp. 102-106, North Atlantic Books, Berkeley, USA 1988.

Links to Amazon are affiliate links. If you use these links, your price remains the same, but I earn a small commission. Thanks for supporting this site!

My Daughter's Orthodontics - Three Year Update

I've received a few requests lately to post an update on my daughter's journey with her orthodontic treatment.  

My daughter, Alina, is almost 10 years old, and she's been using an orthodontic appliance for nearly 3 years. We started Alina's orthodontic treatment early so that we could make the most of her growing years. Rather than using braces, which are well known to not work very well in the long-term, we are using an orthodontic appliance designed to stimulate the palate and jaw to grow larger.

Despite a nutrient-dense diet, Alina's palate and jaw did not naturally develop large enough to accommodate her adult teeth. After researching alternatives to braces and talking with an excellent pediatric dentist who specializes in developmental orthodontics, we decided to use a plastic myofunctional appliance made by Ortho-Tain.

How Alina Uses Her Orthodontic Appliance

Alina wears her Ortho-Tain orthodontic appliance every night while she sleeps. Because we started her treatment early, she does not need to wear the appliance during the daytime at all (whereas if we had waited a few more years before starting, she would have needed to wear it at night as well as for a few hours in the daytime).  Alina tries to remember to bite down hard on her appliance a few times whenever she puts it in her mouth, to strengthen the muscles in her mouth and jaw and further encourage her palate to enlarge.

Alina has been very cooperative with this whole process and has done a fantastic job of wearing her appliance. Her orthodontist is very pleased with her progress and gives her all the credit for being the one to do the work of wearing the appliance and following his instructions.

Our Results From Three Years of Treatment

Over the course of her orthodontic treatment, Alina has progressed through three sizes of orthodontic appliance. This means that her palate and jaw have grown significantly so that she was able to progress to increasingly larger appliances. Currently, Alina has lost 8 baby teeth.  Based on the size of her adult teeth, the appliance Alina is currently using may be the last one she needs (but we will know more when she loses more of her baby teeth).


And now for the pictures!

Pre-treatment (April 2014) - Alina's baby teeth have no space between them (minus the one spot where she is missing a tooth)

February 2017 - Her beautiful smile, after almost 3 years of orthodontic treatment

There is more space for her adult teeth on the bottom now compared to in the last update I posted

There is plenty of room for all of her adult teeth thus far

For information about our journey into orthodontic care, check out the rest of the articles in this series:  

My 7-Year-Old Needs Orthodontics! EEK!
Why We're NOT Using Conventional Braces
Alternatives to Conventional Braces
Selecting an Orthodontist or Dentist, and Our Rapid Results   

My Daughter's Orthodontics - One Year Update

 

Have you tried any alternatives to conventional orthodontics? What were your results?

5 Things That Are Making My Life Easier

I wanted to share a list of a few things that are making my day-to-day life easier lately. Most of these aren't dramatically life-changing, but they are things that save me a little time and effort. #3 actually is a life-changer for me, and I'll describe more about that below.

1. Laundry Sorter

I do laundry throughout the week, so that it never turns into a huge, time-consuming job.  Until recently, we used a plain old laundry basket for our dirty laundry. Each time I was ready to start a load of laundry, I would have to spend a few minutes sorting out the laundry for the day. It wasn't a huge hassle, but I felt like there was room for improvement.

A few months ago, we splurged on a 4-section laundry sorter.  This may not seem like much of a splurge to many of you, but for me, spending over $30 on a non-essential laundry sorter seemed like a big deal.

But you know what? This laundry sorter was totally worth the money. It saves me a few minutes each day when I do laundry, and our closet is much tidier, too, without the inevitable piles of sorted laundry. I love the convenience of our new laundry sorter, and the 4 compartments help me in making sure our clothing colors keep looking as they should. (If there is interest, I could also blog about my system for laundry that keeps our colors looking good, spreads the workload throughout the week, and works well for my sensitive-skin family members.)

2. Larger Butter Dish

Nutrient-dense butter is an essential part of my family's healthy diet. In the winter months, especially, I find that KerryGold butter has the richest yellow color (and this color indicates the presence of nutrients, especially carotene and vitamin A).

Since KerryGold comes in a 1/2-pound block, previously, I had to cut the KerryGold butter in half in order to fit it in my butter dish. However, I received a lovely new butter dish for Christmas that is big enough to easily accommodate a full block of KerryGold butter. Now we can keep a 1/2 pound of butter on the counter and ready to easily spread on toast or muffins. This is one small convenience that is making my day-to-day life easier.

3. DoYogaWithMe.com

I've been using DoYogaWithMe.com for several years now. I love that this site has high-quality, free yoga videos with excellent instructors, and I love that there is a great variety of videos available. There are many videos to choose from ranging from Beginner to Advanced, and from just a few minutes long to over an hour long.

I've been doing yoga once or twice a week for awhile now, but recently I was feeling a pull to make yoga a more-frequent part of my life. This year, DoYogaWithMe hosted a "Transform Your Life 30-Day Yoga Challenge". In completing the 30-Day Challenge, I learned that:

• daily yoga is possible, even with my busy life,
• it is worth it to make time to occasionally do full-length (60+ minutes) yoga classes, 
• in addition to being good for my physical health, doing yoga frequently leads me to greater mental and emotional well-being, and
• starting my day with yoga right after waking is a fantastic way to get me in a good mindset for the day ahead.

Even though the 30-Day Challenge is over, I've been continuing to do yoga every day, and it feels great!  I presume that there will eventually be days that I skip yoga, but for now, this is a habit that is enriching my daily life and making it easier for my life to feel balanced and whole.

4. Uber-Strong, Foldable Grocery-and-Errand Bags

Because I only grocery shop every two weeks, I tend to buy a whole cart full at a time. My reusable bags end up crammed full at the grocery store, or crammed full of library books, and with such heavy usage I tend to go through reusable bags fairly quickly. Many of the bags I have tried wear out and have to be thrown away in about a year.

About a year ago, I was gifted with a couple EnviroSax bags, and they are amazing! EnviroSax bags have a weight capacity of 44 pounds (!!), they easily fold up small enough to fit in my purse, they are beautiful, and they have held up without any signs of wear in the last year. I loved those bags so much that I asked for some more for Christmas, and was so happy to throw away my old bags (which were literally falling apart). My EnviroSax bags are now my go-to bags for groceries, library books, trips to the park, and more.

5. Knife Sharpener

Since I spend quite a bit of time in the kitchen, my knives get dull fairly often.  I've never taken the time to learn how to properly use a whetstone or rod knife sharpener, but thankfully I don't have to. We've been using a Wusthof 4-Stage Knife Sharpener for awhile now, and have had great results with it.

This knife sharpener works especially well for us because it has separate knife sharpeners for Asian and Standard knives. My beloved Santoku knife gets sharpened with the Asian sharpener, and the rest of our knives are sharpened with the Standard sharpener. This knife sharpener is very quick and easy to use, and it fits easily into a kitchen drawer.

Do you have any favorite products or websites that are making your life easier lately?

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Our Daily Homeschool and Housework Routine

Having routines for homeschooling and housework helps our lives run more smoothly.  Sure, there are weeks when the routine gets thrown completely out the window, but most of our weekdays follow a routine which is fairly predictable.  Using a routine helps ensure that my kids have minimal resistance to doing housework, because they know what to expect and what is expected of them daily.  Our routine also makes our exploration of academics more effective: because my children know that I am only available for academic pursuits for a set time each day, they are motivated for us to do as much as we can while I am available before I start my work hours.

It's been several years since I blogged about our homeschool routine, so I thought I'd post an update about what our days are looking like now. My kids are now 6 and 9, and what currently works as a good balance is to incorporate learning and housework both throughout the day.

Morning Routine

I let the kids sleep as late as they want to in the morning.  They are usually up and out of bed by 7:30 or 8am, and then we start our morning routine. Our morning routine is an essential part of getting our day going in the right direction. On days when we have skipped our morning routine, we seem somewhat directionless and disoriented, with more-frequent sibling squabbles and making it less likely that we will have a beautiful homeschool day.  

From start-to-finish, our morning routine takes about 60-90 minutes. I have a few different methods for ensuring that everyone stays on-task during our morning routine, but the method I use most often is putting on a music or Spanish CD after breakfast for us to listen to as we go about our routines.

• Read-Aloud and Breakfast - We start with a read-aloud first thing in the morning, either while snuggling on the couch or while the kids are eating breakfast. (Lately, our morning read-aloud has typically been a picture book or Life of Fred). One of my children eats at a rather slow-and-steady pace, so there is usually plenty of time for me to read aloud after I have finished my own breakfast.
• Kitchen Family Work - The kids and I work together to empty the dishwasher each morning.  One child is assigned to empty the silverware basket, and the other puts away all of the children's dishes, which are stored in a low cabinet.  I put away the remainder and empty the dish drainer. 
• Morning Chores - We each have our own chores to do every morning.  The children alternate days on washing and loading the breakfast dishes into the dishwasher. On the alternate days when they are not washing breakfast dishes, the children each do another chore, such as vacuuming the living room, scrubbing a bathroom toilet or sink, or straightening up the craft/project table. The children also feed and water the dog daily. My own morning chores include starting a load of laundry, cleaning up dog poo outside, and filling the birdfeeder.
• Bedroom and Self Care - We each make our beds, brush our teeth, and get dressed for the day.

School Time

2-3 days per week, after our morning routine we have school time. Our school time lasts for 1-2 hours, which may not sound like much time, but we usually accomplish quite a bit in that short time.  Because we use the Leadership Education philosophy, I am focusing on nurturing my children's love of learning and I do not force the kids to participate in school activities.  However, they enjoy this part of our days, and happily choose to participate.

• Alternate Weeks - The children have alternating weeks where they get to choose what we will do during school time.  They love this!
• Physical Activity - Our school time often includes a short walk or bike ride, as we all feel better when we are getting plenty of physical activity.  Sometimes the physical activity will segue into an extended nature study time. 
• Academic Resources - The children can choose from our many curriculum options. The academic resources that my children choose to use most often are:
• Math games
• Life of Fred math book
• Bedtime Math book
• Mystery Science
• Our current read-aloud chapter book

 

Lunch and Free Play/Work Time

After our morning school time 2-3 days per week, we have lunch and then free play/work time.

• Lunch - I usually make a quick lunch for the three of us around 11:30AM.  We eat together and then I clean up the dishes.  
• Free Play for Kids - The kids have 2-3 hours of free play time. They often have long imaginative play sessions during this time. My 9-year-old also often uses some of this time to work on crafts/projects. Knowing that they have this time scheduled for free play each day makes my kids more motivated to dig into school/academic topics in the morning before I go to work in the computer room.
• Work Time for Mom - I work for 2-3 hours on homeopathic appointments/casework, blogging, writing for Real Food and Health Magazine, or homeschool planning.When the weather and my work allow it, we will all go to the park for this time so the kids can play there while I work on my portable computer.

Away-From-Home Days

2 to 3 days per week, we have outside-the-home activities such as homeschoolers park day and book discussion group, field trips, errands, or hiking with grandma. On those days, once our morning routine is finished we head out into the world.  We usually return home in the early afternoon by around 1:30-2:30pm, just in time for our afternoon routine.

Afternoon Routine

Our afternoon routine is an essential part of our days. Without our afternoon routine, I am more likely to be grumpy and burned out in the evening, and the kids are more likely to be bickering and discontented. Because my kids and I each have some amount of introversion in our personalities, the afternoons give us time to recharge on our own. Our afternoon routine usually lasts from about 2:30-4:30pm.
 

• Clean Up - Because the house is often quite messy by the time the kids are done playing for 2-3 hours, we work together to quickly get things back in order.  
• Team Laundry - The kids and I work together to fold and put away a load of laundry. 
• Quiet Time - We each go to a separate room for 1-2 hours.  During this time, the children play quietly, listen to audio books, read, color, or work on projects. They often meet up partway through quiet time, and are free to play together so long as they don't get too rambunctious.  My own Quiet Time includes my daily nap for 10-15 minutes and some combination of yoga, reading, studying, and internet/email usage.

 

Late Afternoon and Evening

Our evening routine includes dinner, free time and our bedtime routine, which ensures that we have fairly consistent bedtimes.

• Clean Up and Chicken Chores -  The kids clean up their Quiet Time messes (minus anything they are still using). My daughter generally does her daily chicken care chores after Quiet Time, too.
• Dinner Prep - I get to work on preparing dinner, and meanwhile the kids either play or join me in the kitchen.  I usually spend 45-90 minutes making dinner.  The kids set the table with napkins, silverware, and drinks for dinner.
• Family Dinner - My husband returns home from work at 5:45pm and we have a family dinner together at 6pm. Afterwards, my husband usually washes the dinner dishes. 
• Evening Free Time - Then there is free time for all, including playing, discussing, reading, creating, going for walks, etc.
• Bedtime Routine - Around 7:45pm, we start our bedtime routine. We do a quick full-house tidying up, which ensures that the following day we will start with a fresh, reasonably tidy house. The children can have a small snack, and then brush their teeth and get their jammies on. I often practice piano or read on my own while the kids are doing their bedtime routines. If the kids finish their bedtime routines before 8:15pm, they may have a few minutes of "quiet energy burst", during which they run and jump around for the last time of the day.
• Nightly Read-Aloud -The kids and I meet up on the couch around 8:30pm.  I give my 6-year-old son the opportunity to do some reading practice, which he chooses to do about twice a week. My 9-year-old daughter often enjoys reading aloud to us from a nature book during this time, too. Then the kids settle in to trace their penpal letters, color, sew, or draw while I read aloud. I often start with a chapter from a history or geography book, and then move onto our current chapter book.
• Bedtime Reading - The kids and I move into their shared bedroom around 9pm. They settle under the covers and I finish reading from our current chapter book. Lights are out around 9:15pm.

Do you like having routines, or are you more of a spontaneous person?What routines that help your days run more smoothly?

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