Positive Health Online

Background

When Vicky Smith, 28, from Honiton, Devon was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) two years after the birth of her second child, she was devastated. The condition developed fairly rapidly and within a short time she was confined to a wheelchair or crutches. The prognosis did not look promising when Vicky started to lose her sight. As her condition worsened her doctors told her the nerve damage caused by the MS meant that the possibility of regaining her sight was remote.

Vicky takes up the story: "Not being able to walk was immensely limiting for me but when I changed from a person with 20/20 vision to a virtually blind one, it was a huge shock. My husband had to take charge of much of our domestic life including the childcare as my sight gradually deteriorated from blurry vision to almost complete blindness," she said.

Consultation

After advice from her sister, who was studying with us at the Contemporary College of Homoeopathy in Taunton, Vicky decided to visit the clinic. The clinic is run for the benefit of people who want to try homeopathy but may not be able to afford to pay for health care. We encourage referrals from local GPs and hospitals. The clinic is the only one of its kind in the UK, run by qualified and student homeopaths, and it offers free treatment and free remedies.

Up until this point, Vicky had been treated by her doctor and she had not been to see a homeopath before. She says: "The first noticeable difference is the amount of time you are given in the session and then it's the detail of the symptoms - physical and emotional – which are of interest to them. I really appreciated being able to express my frustrations over not being able to walk and above all not being able to see."

Vicky's homeopath was Simone Guest who had not seen a patient with such severe pathology before. She says, "On her first few visits she had to be led into the consulting room; she could not walk unaided and of course her vision was virtually nil. At this time our assessment of her case involved deciding which of her symptoms was the most limiting for her. Her lack of sight and inability to walk were clearly at the top of the list, but in addition she had experienced continuous bleeding since her second child had been born. So here was a patient who, on top of the classic MS symptoms of numbness, pins and needle sensations and pain, was weakened further by a constant, albeit slow, haemorrhage from her uterus."

Treatment

Simone prescribed the remedy Phosphorus for Vicky. She was given Phosphorus in an LM potency, which is particularly useful for chronic pathology as the dose is very gradually increased each time it is taken. This avoids aggravations and provides the gentlest homeopathic healing.

Vicky immediately reported that she was experiencing headaches, skin rashes and sudden bright flashes in her eyes. Simone was pleased to hear this since it indicated that the remedies were getting a reaction from Vicky. She noticed that at times the pain in her legs was excruciating, worse than it had been before, but in temperament she felt much calmer. This is a common reaction to homeopathic remedies. Patients will often experience a sense of emotional well-being although some physical symptoms may be worse for a short time.

At her second visit, a month later, Vicky reported being able to distinguish light and dark and then, six weeks after starting the Phosphorus, the bleeding from her uterus stopped. This was a breakthrough and much sooner than we had all expected. A few weeks later Vicky had her first normal period for nearly three years.

The Phosphorus LM was continued along with Avena sativa and Hypericum which were both given as nervous system support remedies. Vicky's symptoms slowly improved and over the next few months inevitably there were good times and bad times, until one morning, ten months after beginning the treatment, Vicky woke up and could see out of her right eye. "Everything was out of focus – but I could see!" she says. She returned to see Simone at the clinic and six weeks later she woke up, this time from an afternoon sleep, and she could see out of her left eye.

Now Vicky has good vision from both eyes and has confounded her doctors with her recovery as she is also now walking without crutches and she gave birth to her third child in the autumn of this year.

Vicky's case is one of many heart-warming stories that we have successfully treated at the Contemporary College clinic. Clearly she had age on her side, but before she started homeopathic treatment her prognosis was grim. Now she is able to look after her children and most importantly see them grow and develop.

Conclusion

Many patients of homeopathy, whether suffering with fairly minor complaints such as recurrent sore throats or from a seriously chronic condition, like Vicky's, express their relief at being able to talk about all aspects of themselves in the consultation and their appreciation that these symptoms are all taken into consideration when the remedy is prescribed.

Some commonly treated conditions using homeopathy include digestive disorders, hormonal imbalances, respiratory conditions, circulatory problems, skin disorders, recurrent infections, stress-related problems, anxiety, grief, depression, chronic conditions, behavioural problems, childbirth, pregnancy, side effects of drug treatments and many more.