When to Repeat in Liquid Dosing

As I have discussed in previous issues of the newsletter, dosing is often the most confusing part of homeopathy, not only for patients, but for practitioners too. Previous newsletters covered:
* What potency? Dry vs. water? (November 2010)
* How to give water doses (January 2011)
* Potency: What does it mean? (March 2011)

In this article, I will discuss a question that is not even well understood by many homeopaths -- when to repeat the liquid dose.

One misunderstanding that many have is that water doses should be given daily. While we did follow this procedure in my son Max's cure, I have grown to realize that this is not always the best procedure. The repetition of water doses should be determined by the response of the patient. Of course, this is true for dry doses, so it makes sense that it would be true for water doses as well. In fact, the same general advice applies: repeat as needed.

One reason why homeopaths recommend daily water dosing is that it can be difficult for them to monitor their patients on a day-to-day basis, and it can also be hard for patients to discern what is going on. The whole process is much more subtle. So expert water dosing requires often-herculean time-management skills on the part of the homeopath and a patient who has learned to become a skilled observer. In my experience, though, most autism parents are very good observers of their children and should have no problem once they get the hang of it.

Let's assume that a remedy is actually helping. How do you know when to repeat? To be most effective, it is necessary to be able to distinguish between an aggravation and a relapse. Each patient will manifest these two things differently, according to the unique characteristics of their case.

In my son Max's case, for example, an aggravation was characterized by a kind of low-level hyperactivity and feeling of agitation. This would sometimes occur even though other things seemed to be improving. A relapse, however, was characterized by a subtle loss of cognitive, behavioral, or speech skills that he had already gained. It felt like he was moving backwards.

Another way to think about this is: a relapse is a return of things that had improved; an aggravation is an intensification of symptoms that are already there, but usually in a way that is not very deep or central to improvement in the case.

Once you understand these two patterns in your case, you can adjust the dosing accordingly:
* When you see a relapse, redose. If redosing is still not improving things, it is time to move up to a higher potency.
* When you see an aggravation (but are still seeing improvement), do not redose.

You will probably find that a relapse occurs in a regular way. For example, if you give a dose and see improvement for 3 days, followed by a slight relapse on the 4th day, then give a dose every 3-4 days.

What if you are seeing no change at all -- neither relapse nor aggravation? Then you should continue dosing on a regular basis. You can also up the frequency of dosing, increase the number of succussions (shakes to the bottle), or even the amount given, in order to get some kind of response. If you still see no changes for quite some time (a few weeks), it may be time to talk to your homeopath and find a new remedy.

What if you are getting all new symptoms without any kind of improvement? Talk to you homeopath. They may need to select a new remedy.

What if you are only seeing aggravation, without any improvement? If you had been seeing improvement for quite a while, then this is actually a positive sign. It means that it is time to start cutting back -- the frequency of doses, or the number of succussions. If you still see only aggravation, it means you are done taking remedies for a while. Often patients will take huge leap forward at this point.

Good luck! I know this sounds daunting, but liquid dosing is easy once you get the hang of it. It will also make you a much better observer and will deepen your understanding of how remedies affect the human body.

Impossible Cure Newsletter -- June 2011

JUNE 14! -- NCH Webinar by Amy Lansky on Autism Treatment!

When to Repeat in Liquid Dosing

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