As it’s Valentine’s Day, I have forsaken my usual philosophical meanderings, for a lighter look at homeopathy for the love-lorn, heart-broken, tender-hearted and the too damn full of love and happiness!
When I talk to people about homeopathy, some are surprised that it can help emotional conditions, and others are surprised that it can help with physical ailments. In fact, it can help with both, and the homeopathic system believes the physical and emotional are not just intertwined, but part of the same imbalance in the person, which must be corrected to restore wellbeing.
This is never more true than when considering the heart, and it is no coincidence that we think of the heart as the seat of emotions, joy, love or grief. Often we will find that after a grief or loss, physical heart problems may occur and there are homeopathic remedies that are designed to deal with these circumstances. One of these is Aurum (Gold), which may help with heart disease experienced after grief, loss of a loved one or of status, such as a business failure, or after retirement. There are homeopathic remedies for all kinds of specific heart problems, such as angina, problems with valves, arrhythmia, or enlarged heart. There are remedies for heart attack, such as Aconite, which is brilliant, particularly in a first heart attack and where there is fear of death.
I don’t want to dwell too long on the physical though, because we’re here today to concentrate on love! Homeopaths use Repertories to help them narrow down the choice of remedy for each individual and their specific ailments. These are like very large dictionaries full of symptoms, ranging from types of headache, through food cravings, to obscure and bizarre delusions, such as the Delusion that he can live without a heart. It is to these repertories that I have turned to discover more about love.
For those married couples celebrating Valentine’s Day this year, there is a remedy for Love for husband. It is Limenitis Bredowii Californica, a butterfly remedy, useful where relationships can become the focus of a person’s life. If you’re not in a relationship at the moment but are yearning for love and sensually enchanted by things, what could be sweeter than Vanilla, one of the recommended remedies. Whether in a relationship or not, you or a partner may experience the pangs of jealousy, in which case Lachesis might be a suitable remedy. Lachesis is the venomous Bushmaster snake, usually shy in nature, but imagine it hissing and biting when provoked and you start to build a picture of a wronged and jealous lover. If things really go too far, Lachesis is one of two remedies listed under Jealousy leading to a crime.
For those disappointed in love, Aurum is mentioned, but the main remedies are Ignatia (St Ignatius bean) and Natrum Muriaticum (Salt). They are both remedies of high ideals, and when people (perhaps inevitably) fail to live up to these, disappointment crashes around them. The same two remedies are also able to help those in love with people in the ‘wrong’ social circles, the symptom listed being: Love for the wrong person, out of social context, e.g. married man or coachman. So, if anyone finds themselves in love with the coachman, that’s the remedy to try! If any of you should find yourselves this Valentine’s Day completely loved-up and dewy-eyed, I say congratulations! But if things get a little out-of-hand, there are remedies for you too. If you experience Love, exalted, in the moonlight you may require some Antimonium Crudum (Black Sulphide of Antimony). Talcott says of this that, “It is suited to the mental condition of some young person passing through the critical pubescent period, whose growing interest in the opposite sex tends to centre unhealthily in some bright Prince Charming, or in some idealized, and perhaps self-created maiden.” What a kill-joy! And talking of which, perhaps there is someone out there experiencing Ailments from excessive joy, although if I were, I think I’d be inclined to make it last as long as possible, rather than taking a remedy. However, the main remedy for this is Coffea (coffee). Think of that feeling you get when you catch that coffee aroma and take your first sip of the day: surely an excess of joy. And for those that are fed with all this Valentine’s nonsense, there are other entries for you: Irritability with desire to be alone; Aversion to company, friends & loved ones; or perhaps Delusions that love is not possible. And, if in doubt, we can always turn to our ever-reliable pets, with the symptom Love for animals. This includes the remedy Phosphorus, which sometimes has a tendency to be too open and impressionable, but is also one of the most affectionate and sympathetic remedies. The symptoms I’ve been talking about here are very specific and some highly obscure or old-fashioned. If you visit a homeopath they would, of course, consider any symptoms within the context of you as whole person and what it was necessary to treat. However, I hope it has been interesting as an exploration of homeopathy for the troubled heart. Whether you see yourself in any of these descriptions or not, I wish you all love, a healthy heart, and a happy Valentine’s Day! If you’ve enjoyed this post please comment, share or join my mailing list. Thank you for reading.
“if anyone finds themselves in love with the coachman”! Great read, as ever.