Autumnal Woes are helped by Homeopathy

Goodbye Summer 2023! It is with much sadness that I see you give way to autumn.

In homeopathic repertories, you will find symptoms for "aggravations in autumn." They can be very general symptoms, meaning that multiple body systems are affected in the autumn, or very specific, such as asthma is worse or constipation arises or neuralgia in the arms happens every autumn. Of course the other seasons are covered in the repertories as well — winter, spring and summer. Not everyone is affected by seasons, but take a minute to think about your own body. Does periodicity play a role in your symptoms? Do you dread certain seasons and, if so, why?

Homeopathy is all about taking notice. Forget diagnostic terminology because what are those terms but manmade labels that distract us? Instead, place focus on what your body is actually doing. Instead of saying, "I have eczema," consider saying something like "a rash appears on my hands and is very itchy in the morning. It is worse (meaning itchier or redder or more scaly, etc.) from being uncovered, and it feels better (meaning symptoms improve) when I use ice cold applications - either cold air or cold water." These details are called "modalities" and homeopaths need them to come to the correct remedy for your specific condition. A person whose eczema is made better by heat, and whose itchiness is worse in the evening would need a different remedy than one whose eczema is improved by cold and itches more in the morning.

Being observant is the key to finding a good remedy. And understanding what is different or unique about your symptoms is also important. For instance, everyone who has eczema has an eruption, so using the symptom "Skin, eruptions" is not overly helpful. It can be taken, but the more detailed symptoms are needed too, especially since "Skin, eruptions" in the Complete Repertory 2023 has 1,217 remedies in it. How would you decide which of those 1,217 remedies is needed if you do not get more details? The good news is that the symptom "Skin, eruptions, cold washing/bathing ameliorates" only has 12 remedies in it (in the Complete Repertory 2023), and when you combine that symptom with a few other highly focused symptoms, about the itching or the scaliness etc., you can find the remedy that is the best fit.

Focused observation is the "art" of homeopathy. Some homeopathic practitioners—the most successful ones—intuitively know which symptoms are critical to choose, and therefore pick the most fitting remedies for their patients. Although I have my CCH (Certificate of Classical Homeopathy), and therefore have good knowledge about the science of homepathy, the art has been more difficult to master. I write about homeopathy since I haven't yet found a level of consistency with its art that satisfies me.

Autumn and winter are my least favorite months. I recently noticed that all three books in the Castlewood series take place in the spring or summer, so autumnal woes are very real to me. It's funny how our preferences come out in so many ways!