A blog on homeopathy -- Ruminating on Remedies

Book Review: Asteraceae

12/8/2021

“Those radiant flowers of the sun, plant of our central star: daisies, marigolds and chamomile have become vital remedies in homeoapthy. … The Asteraceae are remedies for ruptures of the mind and body, when boundaries have been broken by accident, violence, abuse or invasion. Invasion can take many forms, such as blood poisoning, parasitical worms, insect-borne diseases, viruses, bacterial infections or hay fever. But it can also mean injuries, surgery, physical and emotional abuse, or malevolent psychic invasion. … They are remedies for restoring a sense of wholeness and integrity to lives fragmented by trauma, and include some of the oldest plant medicines known to humanity.”

Asteracea by Jo Evans is a beautiful book full of stunning full-page color photos and illustrations of the various plants that make up this very large plant family including more than 23,000 species found everywhere except Antarctica (Funk et al. 2004).

This nicely sized tome is divided into two parts. Part 1 is Plant Portraits: 35 photographic portraits opposite full-page descriptions of plants as homeopathic remedies, along with a small box at the top of each page with some key notes as well as botanical details and its traditional uses.

The quick overview of Echinacea angustifolia describes this pink coneflower as a good homeopathic remedy for “Post-viral fatigue syndrome. Coughs, cold, flu. Blood poisoning. Bites, stings, boils. Acute illness that becomes chronic.” [gosh. This sounds like it could be a useful remedy these days!] Echinacea was “originally known as a medicine for blood poisoning and septic states” and primarily acts "on the blood, lymph and lungs" and "has become known as the herbal antibiotic.” Noting various other plants containing cichoric acid “which has been found to have strong anti-viral properties” (Evans 2020, p. 29).

Every page is simply stunning and the descriptions are short enough to keep the interest level high and full of enough information so that the reader gets an excellent understanding of each plant’s homeopathic benefits.

Part 2 provides us with a comparison of remedies, beginning with The Anthemideae, the aromatic herbs which are “some of the oldest medicines known” (Evans 2020, p. 75). Remedy themes and history are interwoven with differentiations and case studies.

A deeper dive into Millefolium comes next, followed by “Bitter Foods: Thistles and Lettuces,” a chapter which follows much the same structure as the Anthemideae section.

“Earthing the Sun: the alchemy of sunflowers.” Similar to the earlier sections, Evans gives us a comparison of remedies within themes. For instance: spleen and wound healing and fevers.

Calendula, Bellis perennis and Arnica each get their own well-deserved separate chapters. The final chapter is The Sundial, based on the remedy Espeletia grandiflora and is followed by a one-page overview of the Asteraceae themes.

This gorgeous book is well researched and heavily cited and worthy of many repeat readings. Though it is presented in a highly readable format, there is so much information contained in these pages it is impossible to absorb it all and thus deserves a prime spot on your shelf for the many return visits you will want to make to it.

Did I mention how beautiful this book is?

For more information, visit: Asteraceae.

Evans, J., 2020. Asteraceae: remedies of the sunflower family. Harlem, NL: Emryss.

Reference list
Funk, V. A., Chan, R., and Keeley, S. C., 2004. Insights into the evolution of the tribe Arctoteae (Compositae: subfamily Cichorioideae s.s.) using trnL-F , ndhF , and ITS. TAXON [online], 53 (3), 637–655.

Plant Portraits, 2021. Plant Portraits [online]. Plant Portraits.

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Book Review: Homeopathy: An A to Z Home Handbook by Alan V. Schmukler

7/14/2021

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Homeopathy: An A to Z Home Handbook by Alan V. Schmukler

This was my first book on homeopathy. All those years ago, this felt like a book of magic spells that I didn’t have the ability to access. I read through it many, many times. I turned down corners and marked up all sorts of pages. I may have even tried a remedy or two, but I’m thinking I probably didn’t. I was too nervous. It felt completely forbidden and a little scary.

In reality, it’s a straight forward book with good, useable information.

Maybe the introduction scared me off. Way back in 2006, Schmukler says, “I call this a handbook for survival, because in the coming years we may find ourselves in survival situations for the following reasons:

1. Natural disasters
2. Terrorism
3. Antibiotic-resistant infections
[Where he writes, “The medical system could easily be overwhelmed by thousands of cases of untreatable infections.” That sounds familiar now that we have lived through 2020!]
4. Exotic diseases
5. Chemical or drug sensitivity
6. Genetic engineering
7. No medical insurance"

Maybe this list was too heavy for my relatively young and naïve self when I first found this book and homeopathy was completely foreign to me. I’ve made it to 2021 and am a little wiser to the ways of the world now. But, even before the nightmare of the last 18 months I had discovered the full importance of homeopathy in all these potential scenarios as well as every day life.

Chapter 1 is a nice explanation of homeopathy, why you would choose it, what it does and a brief history. Chapter 2 dives right into the rules for using the remedies and taking the case.

Chapter 3 starts the nitty gritty. Beginning with “Abscess” and closing out with “Yellow Fever,” he doesn’t quite make it all the way through the alphabet (that's because Zika wasn't widely known in 2006!) but the ailments he includes are meatier than other, similar books (as one might expect when one is writing a book for survival situations).

For each ailment he includes a brief description, followed immediately by a list of suggested remedies, each described in just a few lines. He keeps it simple and succinct. He also suggests a few starred remedies which are highly indicated for each condition.

Example from Homeopathy: Ailments A to Z, pages 198-199:
“Sprains
A sprain is an injury to the ligament around a joint. Symptoms include pain, swelling, and sometimes bruising.
* Arnica: Immediately after the injury.
* Rhus tox: Stiffness and pain, which is worse after rest and better from continued motion. Must keep shifting position.
Bryonia: Worse from any motion, better from pressure, better from lying on the affected part.
Ruta: Tendons, especially the ankle, heel and wrist. Repetitive motion syndrome. Worse after rest.
Hypericum: When nerves are damaged and there is much pain.”

You can’t get much clearer than those quick descriptions to get you on your way to healing.

Chapter 4 is a nice addition of “Organ Remedies” not often found in most “consumer” homeopathy books. Chapter 5 is “Remedy Description,” also known as a Materia Medica in homeopathy-speak.

“Pregnancy and Birth,” “Preventing Illness with Homeopathy,” “First Aid Remedies for Specific Occupations and Activities,” “Economizing: Making Your Remedies Last Forever” are chapters that definitely separate this book from its neighbors on the book shelf.

Schmukler rounds out the book with “Homeopathy Around the World” and “How to Use a Repertory” (which is basically a book of symptoms) and includes a mini-repertory. He finishes the book up with “Remedies for Your Home Kit,” which of course has a nod to some unusual remedies for when the survival situations get tough.

Schmukler, A.V. (2006). Homeopathy : an A to Z home handbook. Woodbury, Minn.: Llewellyn Publications.

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Book Review: Asteraceae

Book Review: Homeopathy: An A to Z Home Handbook by Alan V. Schmukler

Julia Coyte, CHom

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