Homeopathy for your First Aid Survival Kit

Homeopathy for your First Aid Survival Kit   by Bonnie Camo MD

If a natural or manmade disaster occurs and you are cut off from all medical aid, the most important thing to have on hand is a homeopathy emergency kit.  Homeopathy  is cheap, effective, and has no side effects.    This medical science uses natural substances to stimulate the body to heal itself.  Most remedies are made from herbs and minerals.  It is based on the principle that like cures like, discovered by Dr Samuel Hahnemann over 200 years ago in Germany.  Any substance that can produce symptoms in a healthy person can cure the same symptoms in a sick person, when prepared according to homeopathic principles.  You have probably heard propaganda from Big Pharma and organized medicine that homeopathy is quackery, but they are afraid of the competition that could put them out of business.  Anyone who has ever tried it will know the truth.

Emergency kits and individual remedies are available at health food stores and on-line.  30C is a good potency to begin with.  My kits are among the most precious things I brought with me to Italy.

The most useful remedy in your kit will probably be Arnica montana, made from a type of daisy found in mountainous regions of Europe and the US, which has been known since ancient times for its ability to heal wounds and injuries quickly.  This plant was also known and used by the American Indians.  You won’t have to wait for a disaster to put it to use.  It is the first remedy to take after any injury, and the perfect solution for the everyday bumps and bruises, cuts and scratches, and even tired muscles from overwork that come with gardening.  I am a bit accident-prone, so I always keep it handy.   I once punctured my thumbnail with a screwdriver while trying to repair a window crank.  A few tiny pellets on my tongue relieved the excruciating pain in seconds! 

Many home gardeners are getting into beekeeping, not only for the honey, but to help promote survival of the bees that we need to pollinate our gardens.  Bees are under siege from pesticides like neonicotinoids, which have been banned here in Europe but are still widely used in the US.  Einstein reportedly said that if the bees are wiped out, humanity will follow within four years!  Well cared for honey bees rarely sting (they die when they do), but when it does happen, instant relief comes from the remedy Apis, made from bee venom.  Apis is also good for wasp stings and anything that causes burning, stinging, redness and swelling, even allergic reactions to bee or wasp stings.  Wasps decided to build a nest under the eaves right over our front door and frequently stung me.  Apis always relieved the pain and prevented any reaction.

For insect bites, tick bites, as well as puncture wounds, Ledum may bring relief. According to Robin Murphy, author of my homeopathic “bible”  Lotus Materia Medica, if given immediately after puncture wounds, it prevents tetanus. If no hospitals, doctors or tetanus shots are available, it could save you from a very painful death.      

Silica is a useful remedy for helping to expel splinters or shards of broken glass from the body.  Amazingly, it also brings welcome relief for the severe  pain of infected teeth.

Here in Italy, gardeners are not bothered by poison ivy, but I encountered plenty of it in my garden in New Jersey. A homeopathic dose of poison ivy leaf, Rhus toxicodendron, proves again that like cures like.  It is also good for any rash that resembles poison ivy, with redness, swelling, and intense itching. Rhus tox is also well known as one of the best remedies for arthritis, rheumatism, and fibromyalgia.

If you develop food poisoning, with nausea and diarrhea, from eating spoiled food or pesticides, Arsenicum is the remedy that will bring blessed relief.

If you or your children come down with a sudden onset of high fever, with headache, sore throat, tonsillitis or earache, frequently worse around 3 pm, Belladonna is what you need.

For women who are subject to bladder infections, with burning pains and constant urge to urinate, Cantharis works like magic.  I have been called a “maga” ( magician) by people for whom I recommended this remedy.

You don’t have to wait for the breakdown of society to take advantage of homeopathy to overcome and even prevent the flu.  Most readers are probably aware of the dangers of flu shots, which contain brain-damaging  mercury and many other disgusting elements you wouldn’t want in your body or that of your children, born and unborn.  Vitamin D 5000 iu per day prevents the flu if taken long enough to get your levels up, but if it’s too late for that and you do start coming down with symptoms of any type of flu, or even the common cold, Oscillococcinum will usually relieve it within a day.   Another handy cure for colds is a medicine made from onions,  Allium cepa.  Since peeling onions makes your eyes water and your nose run, it is a good match for cold symptoms, and cures them homeopathically.

For burns (including sunburn) , Urtica urens, made from stinging nettle, relieves even intense burning, itching and vesicles.  Aside from homeopathy, many people are aware of the burn-healing power of Aloe vera, whether the gel from a drug store or just a fresh leaf from the plant itself.   It’s easy to keep an Aloe plant growing on your windowsill. They grow very well here in south Italy.  I have about a dozen, and they keep multiplying.

If disaster strikes, many people will suffer from severe anxiety, fright and shock, emotional trauma  and fear of dying.  These natural reactions can prevent you from coming to grips with the dangers you face.  Aconite  restores your mental equilibrium and allows you to find solutions to promote your survival.