Positive Health Online

Introduction

Finding the correct remedy (the simillimum) in homeopathy can often be a very difficult and demanding process, as the homeopath has to scan literally thousands of potential remedies. More often than not, the remedy given is a 'guestimation' on the part of the practitioner until the patient returns the following month and is able to report whether or not it has worked. My colleague Charles Wansbrough and I wanted to find a technology that would give us some kind of instant feedback so that we could achieve more certainty of the positive outcome of any given remedy.

With this end in view, we began to use Biolumanetic technology in our homeopathic clinic. I refer readers to an article written by Charles[1] in which he explains the technology in some detail. However, in brief, the technology creates an altered environment. Polaroid photographs when taken in this field produce anomalous images of the subjects - either fuzzy or with multiple images. After years of research, the founder of Biolumanetics (Patrick Richards) concluded that people suffering from health challenges usually produced fuzzy or distorted images when photographed within the field, while healthy individuals produced clear and 'normal' photographs. A further development revealed that when subjects held a correct remedy or appropriate medicine for their condition and were photographed within the field, totally clear images were obtained. In our clinic we have adapted Patrick's technology to the selection of homeopathic remedies. A normal homeopathic case is taken and then the patient will be 'tested' with various remedies until photographic clarity is obtained.

Advantages of the Technology

We have been using the technology in our clinic for the past four years and so far the results have been very encouraging:

* Significant reduction of treatment period. Because we are able to be precise and accurate in our prescriptions, many patients require only two or three visits. This is in stark contrast to normal homeopathic practices where patients may have to return to the clinic month after month to achieve the same results;
* Precision homeopathy. As we are able to test remedies before administering them, we are able to test out more unusual or only recently proved remedies. These remedies are often more precise and thus more effective. A homeopath operating without the technology will often use more well known or clinically tested homeopathic remedies as he or she will not want to take the risk of giving an unknown remedy;
* Greater transparency within the clinic. Normally the patient has to rely on the integrity of the practitioner to find the best remedy for him/her. In our clinic, patients are able to assess the accuracy of the prescription through the clarity of the resulting photographs. We are no longer able to hide as practitioners and the patient participates more fully in the clinical process.

Below we present four summarized case studies, which reflect our use of more unusual and lesser known remedies in our clinic and which also reveal the greater efficacy that can be achieved using Biolumanetics.

Case Studies

Case 1

Our first case concerns a 40-year-old businessman called Tony who came to us in October 1999 suffering from severe arthritis. This went back to his childhood when at the age of nine he was diagnosed with Still's disease, an arthritic condition affecting his hips and left knee joint. He was treated with a combination of cortisone injections and physiotherapy and the condition gradually cleared up. After the age of 17 he was virtually free of problems until three years ago when his son was born. Tony's ankles swelled up and he suffered from ankylosing spondylitis of the spine. The arthritis affected most of his joints now - ankles, knees, hips, elbows, toes and knuckles. The pain he experienced was like a constant dull ache. When Tony hobbled stiffly into our clinic, he reminded us somewhat of the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz. Tony's sleep was badly affected as the pain in his joints seemed to be aggravated at night and he tossed and turned in an attempt to get into a comfortable position. He was also aggravated by alcohol and certain foods such as pork and tomatoes.

Tony told us that he had been under enormous stress over the past three years since starting his own business and he had been under incessant financial pressure. He gets angry and frustrated but has very little means of venting this. He often shouts at himself but seldom at others. He says that he feels "bound and taut". He admits to being stubborn and intransigent and fiercely independent. This stems back to his childhood. His father was in the army and a rather closed-in individual who never really communicated with his son. His mother was an alcoholic and the marriage was difficult. His first attack of arthritic pain occurred two weeks after starting at boarding school when he was being bullied by other boys. The bullying continued for about six months during which time Tony said he just "took it" as at the time he felt there was nothing else he could do. Tony feels that this stoic acceptance has continued throughout his life. These days if verbally attacked or criticized he will usually keep his reactions within and reveal nothing. On the other hand, he is terribly self-critical and tends to blame himself when things go wrong or when he has not achieved enough.

We decided to prescribe the remedy Granite as the first remedy. This remedy is made from Connemara granite and was introduced to the homeopathic world by an Irish homeopath called Nuala Eising. We have found this remedy very useful when the patient presents emotionally as somewhat defensive and unyielding, in fact rather like a wall. These types of patients are difficult to treat with other remedies until this wall is penetrated, allowing their systems to respond more easily afterwards.

Remedy: Granite 200C twice a day for three days.

A month later Tony returned saying that there had been a vast improvement. His general mobility was much better and he no longer felt that he was hobbling around. He reported that he felt much less tense, was more relaxed and less prone to outbursts of anger and frustration. Tony's sleep had improved markedly as the pain in his joints had reduced. He no longer tossed and turned in his sleep. His energy was much higher and his appetite had improved.

We continued to treat Tony with the remedy Granite, changing the potency to a LM potency which he could take every day. The improvements were maintained. Tony started to swim and his body was virtually clear of pain except for his fingers and ankles.

By June 2000, we and the patient felt that the situation had now stalled. While Tony was not relapsing, he was no longer improving. He was still having to take two anti-inflammatory tablets each day and if he forwent these he would experience his body stiffening up. We felt that Granite had probably done all it could and that Tony required another remedy to progress further. We decided to give Strychnine, a remedy which is rarely used in homeopathic practice but which is similar to Nux vomica.

Remedy: Strychnine LM1 7 drops a day.

At the next consultation in July 2000 Tony reported that within a few days of taking the remedy the ankles had eased up considerably and that the only pain he was experiencing was in his hands. He had been able to reduce his anti-inflammatory drugs to one tablet a day and had started to play golf. He reported that his irritability was now more expressed and he was able to discharge it more quickly, and furthermore that he didn't get as irritable over trifles as before.

We continued with the Strychnine, taking Tony up to the next potency up - LM2.

He returned two months later in September 2000 saying that the arthritis had now gone except for in his left index finger. The ankles had been clear of pain for the last three months. His energy was high and he was playing golf and had started to jog. He had also bought himself a motorbike, a classic bike which he had coveted for many years but which he would not have been able to ride before because of his arthritis.

By January 2001 Tony was able to come off the anti-inflammatory tablets entirely without suffering any ill effects. In fact, he said that he felt marvellous off them. Within a week of stopping them, he said that his whole mentality had changed; he was feeling far more positive and had more energy. His body was completely clear of arthritis except for some stiffness in his left index finger.

At this point we discharged the patient, suggesting that if he experienced any relapse in his condition he should make another appointment. Six months later we bumped into Tony in a street near our clinic. He reported that he was still feeling well with no return of the arthritis and that he and his wife had decided to sell their house in London and start a new life in Cornwall.

Case 2

Our patient was a 19-year-old male student of classical singing called David. He had been diagnosed with glandular fever three weeks prior to coming to see us. His glands were up everywhere and he generally felt very fatigued, depressed and irritable. His throat was sore and hoarse and he had a continual dry cough. He also was experiencing aches and pains around his back and shoulders.

On being questioned about sources of stress recently, he admitted that he found college quite difficult. He felt quite intimidated by singing in front of his classmates and found concerts nerve-racking. He said that prior to a concert he felt weak in the knees and felt like throwing up. Generally he was a mild natured young man, a little self-conscious and concerned with what others thought of him. He sometimes felt apprehensive if he was in the house on his own or if everyone was asleep upstairs and he was downstairs. He was mildly afraid of the dark. He found the competitive atmosphere in the college difficult and slightly claustrophobic. He actively disliked crowded places and being touched by strangers in the tube.

After taking the case, my colleague and I were unsure what remedy to prescribe. Pulsatilla seemed the closest remedy but we felt it did not totally cover the case. In any case it did not produce clarity when we had the patient hold the remedy. After photographing David with several remedies, we finally had him hold the remedy Mimosa pudica - a remedy which is virtually unknown in the homeopathic world; we had read only one case where this remedy was used successfully. We were relieved when Mimosa pudica produced a totally clear photograph of David and decided to prescribe it in the 200th centesimal potency twice a day for three days.

The reason why Mimosa pudica was chosen was that the nature of the plant appeared to reflect somewhat the nature of our patient. The most evident trait of Richard was his sensitivity and the way he would withdraw from uncomfortable situations. This activity is not so dissimilar to the movement of this small tropical shrub which when touched or shaken will stimulate its petioles, causing each pair of leaflets to close upwards against one another and the main stalk to drop about 60 degrees. It also closes at night.

Five weeks later David returned to the clinic reporting that his energy had gone up immediately after taking the remedy but that his cough, which had previously been dry, had started to become more productive and he was coughing up a lot of mucus.

We decided not to prescribe anything at this point but wait as everything seemed to be moving in the right direction.

Six weeks after this David returned saying that he felt very well. After the productive cough, large eruptions had appeared on his face - great sores which now have cleared up. He also had had an episode of diarrhoea and a stye had developed on his right eyelid. His energy was now "brilliant" and he said that he felt far more organized and efficient than before. Furthermore, he reported that he felt much less insecure in himself and more confident; he is not so worried what people will think of him and has been speaking his mind more openly and allowing himself to say "no" more often. His mother, who accompanied him, confirmed that David was much more certain now about what he wanted to do and was more assertive and decisive. So we see here that Mimosa pudica proved to be not only a curative remedy for the patient's presenting complaint but also had a more overall beneficial effect on David's personality. The appearance of the discharges after the remedy (the skin symptoms, stye, productive cough and diarrhoea) was also an indication that the remedy had acted profoundly, eliminating toxicity from David's system.

We telephoned David three months later to check up on him and he said that there had been no recurrence of symptoms and that his energy remained high and focused.

Case 3

This patient was a 46-year-old female library assistant. She was suffering from systemic lupus, probably since seven years of age, but the condition had only been diagnosed six years ago. When Susan was seven she had had a lot of problems with her joints, although at the time they had called it 'growing pains'. At 16 the condition worsened when the patient's knees started to swell and inflame. At that point she was diagnosed with 'polyarthritis'. Currently, however, Susan's main concern is her chest, which becomes badly affected whenever there is a change of weather, especially during the autumn and winter. She becomes hoarse and then the chest starts to feel heavy and full of mucus, which she finds difficult to shift. The heaviness of the chest makes Susan feel exhausted. She has been using homeopathy for the past few years and the remedies help acutely but the condition always returns. Susan's joints are also affected. Her wrists, hands and knees will swell up and become painful. The pain will be a dull throb. She tends just to spray 'Deep Heat' on the joints and then goes to bed and rests. However, she says that the chest symptoms are actually more debilitating than her joints and she fears the onset of wet weather.

On asking Susan about her past history, it emerged that she was sexually abused throughout her childhood by her mother's boyfriend. Her father had died when she was aged five and her mother started another relationship. All of this had been suppressed by Susan until she visited a hypnotherapist for treatment for insomnia. During the course of this treatment, the memories of her early life and abuse started to rise to her consciousness and she realized that she had been abused by this man from about the age of six to ten. He would enter her bedroom and place a pillow over her face to prevent her from screaming out. When she was ten the abuse stopped because the man was killed in a motorbike accident. Susan said that one of the most difficult things to deal with was the complicity of her mother who knew what was happening but did nothing to protect her daughter. She has had to do a lot of therapeutic work to come to terms with her past.

It seemed likely that the lupus had most probably started during Susan's childhood and was her system's response to the horrendous abuse she had suffered. We felt that she had dealt extremely well with coming to terms with the painful and terrifying memories that had started to emerge. With such a complex case history, we were a little uncertain how to treat Susan but felt that our first prescription would have to help her with her chest symptoms which presented the greatest challenge to her system. We gave her Sambucus nigra 200C once a week for four weeks. Sambucus nigra is derived from the elder tree and is noted for its respiratory symptoms.

At the second appointment, Susan reported that during the last couple of weeks she had been a bit chesty but it had not been as bad as usual. She had also experienced some improvement in her joints. She had been feeling more confident overall and not as anxious regarding a forthcoming job interview. Also her energy had increased and her level of irritability was less.

There was some improvement in all of Susan's symptoms. We were still a little uncertain of our prescription, but Sambucus nigra still elicited a clear photograph so we decided to give it again but in an LM potency so that Susan could use it daily.

Prescription: Sambucus nigra LM1 7 drops a day.

Two months later we were delighted to hear from Susan that she was doing really well and had experienced no more problems with her chest. She said that by this time of the year she would normally be suffering really badly with it. Considering that she was working and also doing an evening course, Susan felt that her energy levels were really good. Furthermore, her joints were not as painful. This seemed to us a much more positive response to the remedy and we decided to increase the potency to LM2.

Prescription: Sambucus nigra LM2 7 drops a day.

Susan returned to us three months later and said that she had absolutely no problems with her chest over the winter period while everyone around her had been coming down with colds and flu. Also the improvement with the joints had maintained itself. Susan reported that she had passed her course, which had further increased her confidence and she was feeling more stable emotionally, focused and relaxed in herself.

We didn't see Susan for another seven months. She only returned to us after the death of her mother. This had left Susan feeling guilty for not having sufficiently forgiven her mother for the past and regretful that they hadn't managed to become closer before she died. Despite these uncomfortable feelings, Susan's chest had been fine with no relapse of symptoms. We gave Susan six doses of Sambucus nigra 200C to take away with her. The case is still ongoing and we anticipate that Susan will require further homeopathic treatment at infrequent intervals.

Case 4

This case concerned a 19-year-old girl called Catherine. Her main problem was her feelings of insecurity with regard to her father. He left when the patient was six years old. She has the feeling that he doesn't care about her and feels very rejected by him at times. "He will do anything for my brother though." Her boyfriend apparently will replicate this behaviour - "He will often prefer to be out with his mates rather than with me" - leaving her with a similar feeling of rejection.

Her father's departure from the family was very traumatic for Catherine. She recalls that it was Christmas Day and her parents were rowing. Catherine's mother packed all their clothes and took the children to their Nan's for a few days. When they returned to the family house, their father had cleared out his wardrobe and gone. After that our patient recalls that she became very clingy to her mother and developed a fear of being alone.

Temperamentally Catherine is placid rather than fiery. "It takes me a long time to get angry if I am hurt. I listen to everyone's problems but no one listens much to me. I like to be with others and dislike being on my own. My mum went away for two weeks and I didn't like it. I wanted her back once she had left. I had to keep going out of the house as I didn't like being on my own."

There was a profound sense of forsakenness in our patient with regard to both her father and her boyfriend. A girl who felt immense neglect. As she pointed out, all of this could be traced back to the divorce of her parents and the subsequent wound she experienced. She longed for the closeness she felt with her father prior to the age of six when he left the family.

Normally one would instantly think of the remedy Pulsatilla in a case such as this, but it produced a completely fuzzy picture when we photographed Catherine holding it. We considered other remedies such as Magnesium carbonicum and Thuja but the remedy that produced a crystal clear photograph proved to be Kauri, a remedy made from the bark of the ancient New Zealand conifer, Agathis australis; Kauri had been only very recently proved and we had virtually no clinical knowledge of its effects. We had prescribed it once before in a case of a man who had a difficult relationship with his father and it had been very effective. The crystal clarity of the photograph gave us the confidence to prescribe it in this case.

Prescription: Kauri 200C twice a day for three days.

Catherine returned a month later and reported feeling fine and happy. She found that she was able to say "no" more easily to a friend of hers who had invited her to a party. Catherine didn't have the money to go out and chose not to go. This was a first for her - "I wouldn't have done that before." She also reported standing up to her boyfriend and he had said, "You are not how you used to be." She added that their relationship was much better in general and they hadn't had a row for a long time. Furthermore, she said that she didn't mind being alone so much without her boyfriend and she was allowing him more independence.

Our patient's base photograph was clear and she was evidently doing well so we decided not to prescribe anything at this point.

The following appointment was about 4 months later and the person who arrived at our clinic was a very different being indeed. She seemed much more robust, showing no signs of the previous forsakenness. When asked about her relationship with her father, she said that she no longer felt angry with him and that even though they do not spend a lot of time with each other, she no longer feels rejected by him. They are able to talk and to get on with each other. She agreed that the wound she had experienced at the age of six had been healed and that she was now able to get on with her life. However, she was still experiencing problems with her boyfriend who tended to wind her up by referring to other women and by criticizing her body. However, instead of bursting into tears or having a row with him, she now stands up to him. "I said to him the other night that if he was going to carry on like that I didn't want anything more to do with him." She says that she will throw stuff back and feels much more emotionally fiery than before. "I don't put up with much now. Even at work people will ask me to do this and that. Before I would have said 'yes of course I will do it' but now I will say 'no, I can't do that at this moment.'" The patient is more able to be on her own. She can now go out by herself and can even be in the house on her own without her previous feelings of insecurity. "At work everybody says they can't believe how happy I am. I am flying around, laughing and joking."

References

1. Wansbrough Charles. Biolumanetics and classical homeopathy. Positive Health. Issue 50. March 2000.