How to Give Water Doses
In the November 2010 newsletter, I began discussing the issue of dosing. This month, I'll continue by describing how to perform water dosing. In a future newsletter, I will discuss the difference between the various potency systems --
X, C, and LM.
As I discussed in November, Hahnemann's preference toward watery doses (in contrast to dry pills) in the latter part of his life was motivated by at least two factors: 1) the doses could be tuned more easily to avoid aggravations in
sensitive patients; and 2) doses could be repeated more frequently and safely without risking an aggravation. Hahnemann believed that the reason for this was that water dosing slightly alters the potency of the remedy with each dose.
Since Hahnemann felt that it was best to avoid repetition of the exact same potency of a remedy, he grew to prefer water dosing over dry pills.
Water dosing can be used with any potency of any remedy. A dry remedy pill is simply diluted in a bottle of water, often mixed with a very small amount of alcohol (which is used as a preservative). A typical procedure is to place 2-3
remedy pillules in a 4 oz. bottle and fill with very clean filtered water. The larger the bottle, the more mild the dosing will be. Leave enough room at the top to allow for shaking and add about a 1/4 tsp of alcohol (brandy or vodka
is fine) as a preservative. If alcohol cannot be taken, it is okay to use just plain water, but the bottle cannot be stored and used for as long. Once the pills have melted, shake the bottle vigorously 10-20 times. You now have your
medicine bottle.
Taking a dose from this bottle consists of several steps that can be modified to suit the sensitivity of the patient:
* Shake the bottle a fixed number of times. 5 to 10 shakes is a typical number. The more shakes, the more potent. It is possible that very sensitive patients can only tolerate 1 or 2 shakes. Each shake should be extremely hard. A
typical procedure is to hit the bottle against a padded surface or the palm of the hand. Wait a couple of seconds between each shake.
* Take a dosage amount from the bottle -- usually between 1/4 tsp to 1 tbsp. A typical amount is 1 teaspoon. The larger the amount, the stronger; the less amount, the milder.
* For non-sensitive patients, the dose can be taken directly from the medicine bottle into the mouth. Hold the dose in your mouth for a few seconds before swallowing.
For sensitive patients, the following added dilution procedure is used:
* Place the dose into a fixed amount of water (a dilution glass). The amount of water in the dilution glass can vary between 1/4 cup and a pint (or more). The more water, the more mild the dose. Stir. Take a fixed amount from the
dilution glass into the mouth (usually a teaspoon, but this too can be varied), as described above. Safely discard the rest of the contents of the dilution glass. (Note that skin contact with the liquid can be like "getting a dose",
especially if the person is very sensitive.)
* If a patient still cannot tolerate this amount, create another dilution glass by taking an amount (e.g., a teaspoon) from the first dilution glass and diluting it in a 2nd dilution glass. Stir and give a dose. (This procedure can be
repeated as often as needed so that the patient can tolerate the dose).
Please note: it is possible that certain patients tolerate some types of potencies better than others, even if liquid dosing is used. For example, some patients do better with LM potencies, others with C potencies, some with X
potencies. Similarly, some patients do better with low potencies and other patients with high potencies. I will discuss these differences in a future newsletter
