Help for the Flu

I first became acquainted with homeopathic remedies in early 1980 through Dr. Pitcairn’s Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs & Cats (by Richard Pitcairn and Susan Hubble Pitcairn). At the time, I had enough pets to qualify for a Permanent Home for Animals on our five acres in Colorado, and I fed and treated my charges as naturally as possible. A local veterinarian was open-minded enough to provide just the right support, so I had ample opportunity to treat health problems alternatively.

In his book, Pitcairn uses a variety of methods to treat pet health problems. Utilizing homeopathic remedies was among them. One of my first experiences with the power of homeopathy was in the treatment of hip dysplasia in Sherman, my large, then three-year-old dog.

By conventional standards, our veterinarian expected Sherman to be unable to walk by the age of six. I studied Pitcairn’s book and followed the treatments recommended for hip dysplasia, postponing conventional care while still under the veterinarian’s supervision. By the time I discovered Pitcairn’s book, I had already been utilizing other natural treatments mentioned by him: Nutrition and vitamin supplementation, herbology, naturopathy, manual therapies, acupressure and oriental medicine and flower essences. This was to be my first introduction to homeopathy.

Over time, I started treating myself and family with homeopathic remedies, as well. After a few years, I found that I was using homeopathy as an “alternative” treatment more and more exclusively, on both my family and my pets. A side effect of this was that in treating our acute symptoms homeopathically, not only did we recover more quickly from each illness, but we became healthier. Our doctor and veterinarian communications were soon left to “healthy” check-ups. Both doctors watched as the health of our two-legged and four-legged family members changed direction over the years.

With the onset of school, combined with the upcoming seasonal change, some adults and children tend to “catch” colds and flus from one another. (This is the time for those who consider themselves a skeptic to try homeopathy.) When I started treating my flu symptoms homeopathically, the response was (to me) incredible and most welcome. You can get the same results that I did in my early days with homeopathy.

Following are six homeopathic remedies commonly indicated in the treatment of influenza (the “flu”). If you don’t find your symptoms listed below, you probably need a remedy which I haven’t covered in this article. Keep in mind that the symptoms listed are “true” symptoms—i.e, the original disease symptoms before taking over-the-counter or prescribed medicines. For example, if you initially had a stuffy nose that changed to a runny nose after using a decongestant, the “stuffy” nose is the more important symptom to consider when searching for a remedy. (There are exceptions to this, but they are beyond the scope of this article.)

1. The person needing Arsenicum album is restless, fearful, aching and irritable. He or she will sip water and prefer warm over cold drinks. The smell and possibly even the sight of food will be disturbing. Pains are burning, and the person is usually worse after midnight.
2. Bryonia is indicated for “The Bear.” (Doesn’t that conjure up an image?) The person will be irritable, quiet and want to be left alone. Symptoms come on gradually. A cough may accompany this flu, and the person may hold his or her chest during the cough due to chest pain. Usually joints are described as aching, rather than just muscles. Motion in any form will make the person feel worse. He or she will have a dry mouth and lips, and will be very thirsty—for large amounts at one time.
3. Have you ever been so achy during a flu that you felt like your bones were broken? In this situation, consider Eupatorium perfoliatum. The person will experience a deep aching in the bones, and even the eyeballs are sore. He or she may feel “wiped out,” unable to exert the least effort. The person is thirsty for cold water, especially as the chill begins to come on (which, if you think about it, is an odd symptom).
4. Gelsemium is a remedy frequently indicated for the flu. Think of the four “D’s”: Droopy, drowsy, dizzy, dull. Gelsemium symptoms come on gradually: The chills, aching, lassitude and fever. The person needing this remedy will be thirstless. He or she will be apathetic and indifferent to life, lying quietly due to weakness. The person will describe a feeling of heaviness, and you will notice how his or her eyelids are droopy. Sometimes the face is flushed.
5. Nux vomica can be indicated when a cold has developed into a flu. The person will be irritable, chilly, sensitive to noise and odors, worse from cold or open air, and better by lying down and from warmth. Despite sometimes sweating under the covers, this person will remain covered, rather than tossing the covers off and on as his or her temperature fluctuates. A stuffy nose at night and in the open air which drips during the day and in a warm room are additional symptoms which might be present. Overstraining the system from stimulants and overwork to loss of sleep can bring on a Nux vomica state.
6. The person needing a few doses of Phosphorus usually won’t show the severity of the illness. Think of this remedy when a child with a fever of 104 degrees continues to play happily. Colds that go down into the chest, accompanied by a dry, tight cough, often respond to Phosphorus. The person will be thirsty for ice cold drinks, but may vomit them within 15 minutes. Laryngitis, with or without pain, can be a symptom of a Phosphorus flu, and the person might even lose his or her voice completely.

A common response to a correct remedy can include a burst of “healing” energy, and, if expended before fully recovered, the person runs the risk of relapsing and substantially slowing his or her convalescence. If you find a remedy which helps your symptoms, it is best to continue to rest and give yourself at least 24 hours more nurturing than you think you need.

How did I get from Sherman’s hip dysplasia to the flu? Both came early in my homeopathic experience. (People who know me won’t have wondered.)

By the way, Sherman recovered from hip dysplasia and lived to a ripe old age.