Ouch!!!! Arnica to the Rescue....
As I write this month's newsletter, I'm busy watching the Winter Olympics every evening on TV. With every bump and bruise I see in the making, I invariably think to myself, I hope these athlete's have some Arnica handy!
Indeed, I recently read that gold-medal-winning skier,
Lindsay Vonn, used homeopathy to treat the painful
shin injury that almost prevented her from competing.
As Will Taylor, MD was quoted in my book Impossible Cure, sometimes it's hard not to believe that God put Arnica Montana, a little yellow mountain daisy, on Earth in
order to convince people of the powers of homeopathy! Arnica is probably the most popular homeopathic remedy, and for good reason. It has numerous applications, but it is best known for its amazing utility in treating cases of blunt
injury and trauma.
Last year, I was visiting a cousin in Buffalo when someone called to report that his teenage son Alexander had suffered a mild concussion while skiing in Colorado. Alexander was checked out by a doctor and released, but was still
shaken and a bit out of it. I suggested that they get some Arnica. Within just a few minutes after taking it, Alexander felt immensely better. The experience was so striking that it caused both him and his family to become true
believers in homeopathy. Up until then, they had remained quite skeptical, despite my enthusiasm.
Arnica has several keynotes that can remind you to use it. First of all, it is the first thing you should think of in case of a fall, a broken bone, or some other kind of injury. It has great application to bruising, bleeding, and
soreness. Often the person will be obviously injured, but will insist that "they are okay" when they definitely aren't. They may be in shock and may fear being approached. Just think about how you might feel after a bad
tumble and you'll get the idea. Because they tend to fall so often, Arnica is also a great friend to the elderly. My 94-year-old mom has taken it innumerable times. The remedy truly has the ability to alleviate serious bruising, pain,
and that "rattled" feeling.
But Arnica has many others uses as well. Because of it's application to soreness, many people find that it can really help alleviate arthritic pain. Arnica is also quite useful for jet-lag, with that feeling of being "out of it,"
sometimes also with a feeling of soreness while lying in bed. Arnica is also the first thing to try after a jarring and achy dental appointment.
Interestingly, Arnica can also sometimes be useful in cases of acute infectious disease as well. When my son Max had a case of whooping cough, it was not the typical whooping cough remedies that helped him (for example,
Drosera is a typical whooping cough remedy), but rather, it was Arnica that saved the day. I decided to try it because Max's eyes had become bloodshot from all the coughing. This unusual symptom pointed to Arnica, and a day
after taking it, the whooping cough gone.
