MANAGING PAIN WITH HOMEOPATHY

New American medical dictionary gives the meaning of pain as,Hurt; This one word carries a big load behind it.

Asa Hershoff in his book " Homeopathy for Musculoskeletal healing " explains "pain" as follows. " Pain is a biochemical neurological and psychological event that occurs when an impulse,stimulated by tissue changes, travels through nervous pathways and reaches the brain."

Pain can be induced by the nerves,ligaments, bone coverings,joint linings, and muscles.The sensation of pain as felt by the patient may not be enough when looking for a homeopathic remedy, it is the subjective quality of the pain which is very important in finding the correct remedy.

To understand the subjective quality of pain one has to be keen enough to listen to the patient as he/she expresses the pain in their own words.It is converting the words of the patient into appropriate rubrics and then applying it to determine the medicine is what constitute good homeopathy;

We will now see what are the types of pains and their further subdivision.

TYPES OF PAIN.

SHARP PAIN:
Can be of the following types,
Stinging, like a bee sting, splinter like.
Cutting, like cutting with a knife.
Stabbing, like plunging a dagger or knife.
Pricking, like poking with a pin.
Stitching, as if using a needle.

SHOOTING:
Drawing, Pulling.
Twisting, Digging, Boring.
Radiating, Lancinating.

SPASMODIC:
Cramping, Grabbing, Jerking.

BURNING:
Cold needle, Hot needle.




STIFF:
Contracted, Constricted, Band - like.

PRESSING:
Compressive,Crushing, Squeezing
Pinching, Gnawing, Tearing.

CHANGEABLE:
Wandering, Shifting, Erratic.
Throbbing, Pulsating.

LAME:
As if dislocated, as if broken, as if sprained.

SENSATION:

It is defined as a kind of feeling as the result of a particular type of stimulation; something of which one becomes aware through the use of one's senses. Now pain is also a sensation and Asa Hershoff explains it as " Neurologically,pain is due to a combination of heat,touch, pressure, and PAIN RECEPTORS in the tissues"

Now that we have a good idea of pain,which is an important symptom, as such it will have three components,which are, Location, Sensation, and Modality. Another adjunct to this is the Concomitant.This in itself could be another symptom;Thus in dealing with pain all these factors must be considered to arrive at the right choice of homeopathic medicine.

TYPES OF SENSATIONS:

NUMBNESS:
Heaviness, Pressure

STIFFNESS:
Contracted, Constricted, Band - Like.

DEFORMITY:
Nodosities, Osteophytes, Contractures.

PARAESTHESIA
( A burning, tingling sensation often felt in neuritis)
Formication, Tingling, Crawling, Prickling.

TREMORS:
Trembling, Twitching, Shaking, Jerking.

RESTLESSNESS:
To remove stiffness, to relieve pain, from nervous agitation.

TEMPERATURE:
Coldness of the area, chills, heat or warmth, burning sensation.

WEAKNESS:
Pain as if paralyzed, Lame, Awkward, Uncoordinated

ATROPHY:
Emaciation.

SPASM:
Tension, cramps.

Swelling

MEDICINE OFTEN USED IN PAIN
There are many medicines for pain in homeopathy,depending on the location and nature of pain.It is not possible to discuss all of them in this small blog; How ever a few are being mentioned here for information.

If the readers find this blog informative, useful and get the benefit of using some of the medicine to their advantage, my labor would have been rewarded;

ACONITUM: Sudden,violent,acute onset.Shooting pain.Tearing ,cutting or bruised.
Burning pain. Bursting pain,Pulsating pain, like boiling water.

APIS: Stitching,darting, or Stinging pain. Burning sensation like hot needles.
Pain may migrate suddenly from place to place.It has special affinity to the knees, shoulders.

ARNICA: It is the first remedy , for Trauma, injury, bruising.
Sore, bruised pain ,whole body feels like been beaten up;
Hypersensitive to pain of parts laid on;

ARSENIC: Burning, shooting, tearing pain,with Chilliness.
For Sciatica,( from cold or working in cold damp places) intermittent sudden attack of pain worse at night.
Burning like fire,like hot needles,boiling sensation.Tearing, sharp,drawing or shooting.

BELLADONNA: Pain, sudden violent, intense onset of vascular congestion.( e.g Headache with intense onset,heat, flushing and throbbing.) Throbbing,pulsating, Stabbing like a knife burning.Pressure in forehead,pressing i or out, as if bursting.( tip- BIRDS- burning, inflammation, redness, swelling)

BELLIS: Trauma, like Arnica but for deeper tissues,intense soreness;
( read my blog "Bellis if Arnica fails" )

BERBERIS : A well tested remedy for Kidney pain.( and for expelling calculi of kideny);
Stitchig, tearing, low back pain ( Sacral pain). Radiating in any and all
direction.Low back. One-sided pain ,upper lumbar, or entire lumbar spine.
Foot pain, cutting and burning pain on stepping or standing on balls of feet, though weight on heels is no problem.
Pain i soles like a nail.Left knee painful ,worse rising from a seat. Swollen,and stiff.

BRYONIA:
Headache Symptoms,
Starting in morning, on first moving eyes, gradually increasing in PM.
Heavy head. Crushing weight.pressing in or bursting out.
Back of the head, frontal, into cheeks or eye, right or left.
Spreads to the whole body from the occiput or temple.
While stooping, feels as if the brain would come out.
Other symptoms: Stitching, sharp, cutting, drawing.
Onset could be gradual or sudden (injuries/fracture)
Stiffness in neck, tension in nape.
Stitches from Scapulae and spine through to heart.
Tearing, and drawing pains in lumbar and sacral spine.

CAUSTICUM

Tearing , drawing pain .Burning, rawness. In joints, bone.
Soreness of parts lain on. As if broken crushed, sore all over.
Sciatica, worse coughing, lying on back.
Tension of neck,worse bending the head back, better bending head forward;
Bruised and drawing pain in Coccyx.
Dislocation of hips,inflammation,extends down or into abdomen.

CHAMOMILLA.

Tearing, drawing, stinging pains seem unbearably intense.
Pain,neuralgia,or any other complaint coming on after anger;
Low back having contractive or bruised pain, radiating to abdomen,genital
area worse stooping, lying, menses.Feels bruised . Worse night ,driving a person
out of bed.Must walk about.Stiffness on sitting.
Sacrum pain, radiating to the thighs,or gut.Worse menses, night.
Sciatica pain tearing,from buttock to feet with cramps, stiffness, weakness , heaviness
worse rising, stretching.
Hip pain worse night or lying on opposite side.Stiffness in thigh.
Pain in knee,calf,better drawing the limbs up.
Cramps in legs, cracking of knee joint.Foot pain worse motion.
Upper limbs,pain in shoulder,down arms.Numbness of arms,feel asleep.

RUTA GRAVEOLENS:
Aching soreness,Bruised pain, whole body or local involvement, Body part may feel " as if broken" Pain in spine may be felt as if as a result of a fall.
Location where it effects are, with, cartilage, periosteum, bone.
Spine, Neck, Shoulder,Wrist, Elbow, Knee, Ankle. Feet.

KALMIA:
(RHEUMATISM, or NEURALGIA)
Changes place rapidly.
Shooting pains that travel downwards, worse motion
Sharp, sticking, SHOOT DOWNWARDS, from the center outwards.
upper to lower, come and go gradually.
Aching, bruised. Sore, tender, Burning and heat in the spine.
Location of pain:
Neck, pain radiating to shoulder,arms, fingers, head or back.
Thorax, Pain in upper thoracic or between shoulder blades radiating into the shoulder,arm or head,
cracking of vertebrae.
Low Back, Aching and burning pain
Limbs, inflammation of any joint such as knee, hip, wrist, and fingers.

LEDUM:
Pain is of , tearing, pressing. drawing, stitching, ore sore.
Covers,Rheumatism, gout,worse warmth, heat of the bed, worse cold bathing.
Synovitis, Arthritis, of limbs , travel upwards.
Joints swollen, cold, Punctured wounds.
Location wise, rheumatism gout, inflammation of joints of shoulders,elbow, hands, hip, knee,ankles,
feet and heels.Its pain travel upwards from foot, to knee and upwards.
Shoulders, stitching pain, worse on raising the arm
Hands stiff, drawing pain traveling upwards
Knee, Tearing pain crackling, swelling, stiffness worse walking.
Feet, ankle sprain easily,swelling of the feet up to the knee.

Above mentioned medicine are some of the time tested pain medicine of homeopathy.There are others but can not be accommodated in this blog.In this connection it would be wort while to read Dr Asa Hershoff's " Musculoskeletal Healing", and Dr Steven Subotnick's " Sports & Exercise injuries".These are my favorites and have inspired me always;