Written by Kay Southcombe, Registered Homeopath Practitioner
Over the years that I’ve been in practice, I’ve always enjoyed helping parents learn how to use homeopathic remedies to treat their children for some of the common complaints that occur throughout childhood. By understanding the basic principles of homeopathy and having a range of remedies on hand, you can do a lot to alleviate symptoms in your children and stop mild ailments progressing into full blown illnesses.
And it can be so satisfying! To hear your child developing a croupy cough in the middle of the night and to be able to consult your book, give the indicated remedies, and then to find she is much better in the morning instead of much worse, is immensely satisfying and empowering.
It doesn’t take much to develop confidence in using a small range of common remedies, and the more success you have the more confident you will get.
Of course it doesn’t replace professional advice especially for ongoing conditions or for conditions that aren’t responding to treatment, but many times you will be able to nip things in the bud before they become established. A croupy cough doesn’t need to develop into full-blown croup. A cold doesn’t need to go on for two weeks. Teething pain doesn’t need to be so painfully distressing.
Treating at the first sign of illness is ideal. And the best people for this are you, the parents, because you are right there. And let’s face it – illnesses often tend to start at inconvenient times when practitioners are unavailable, like the end of the day or in the middle of the night. If this happens, you can consult your book, choose the best indicated remedy from your kit and you might even find that by the next morning your child is brighter and better.
This sort of speedy recovery doesn’t always happen of course, especially if you miss the first signs of something developing. Sometimes a cough or cold does get through to the keeper but with continued treatment, it usually results in a milder version of the illness and a quicker recovery.
Such childhood ailments like teething can’t be avoided, but you can do a lot to alleviate the associated pain and discomfort with the remedy Chamomilla, among others.
The same with bumps and bruises; Arnica will become your ally if you have a child who is prone to the odd ‘tripping over’ or ‘falling off’ event. It soothes the pain and helps to heal the bruised tissue.
And Apis will be useful for bites and stings.
You may also be able to calm your child’s over-excited state and help settle them into sleep with remedies like Coffea.
And what is extremely helpful about homeopathic medicine is that children love taking their medicine! It is sweet and palatable, and there is usually no trouble at all in getting your child to take their prescribed doses.
The remedies are derived from many sources but the majority are prepared from plant, animal or mineral base material, which are made into highly dilute substances through a unique method of preparation. They are commonly given in the form of small pillules made from pure cane sugar.
Being a natural, gentle and holistic medicine, homeopathy is ideally suitable for treating children. It aims to promote a return to good health by stimulating the body’s own natural healing ability. And there are no adverse side effects associated with homeopathic medicines and they can generally be taken alongside other therapies.
For a private consultation with Kay, you can book online here.
MAMA’s Homeopathy for Children Introductory Course will be coming up on Saturday 30th November, and during this two-hour intensive session you will learn from MAMA’s resident homeopath Kay, some basic guidelines about homeopathy and how you can help your children through this natural and holistic medicinal practice. Click here to confirm your place!
