What to expect at your first homeopathic consultation

If you are new to homeopathy, your first consultation will probably be very different to other medical appointments you have had. For a start, it is likely to be much longer and the questions asked will extend beyond those of the immediate problem. In this blog post, we look at what to expect at your first consultation, so you are fully prepared.

A Complete picture of you

Your first consultation will take between one and a half to one hour. The homeopath will need this amount of time to gather a complete picture of you and your condition. They will ask you detailed questions in order to:

Clarify the chief complaint(the reason for your visit) as well as your health goals and priorities.
Understand what current or past treatment you’ve had, plus any formal diagnosis or pathology results
Investigate the symptoms related to your chief complaint, including onset, location, anything that aggravates or ameliorates it.
Take a broader health history, including investigating potential causes for the current symptoms, past health complaints and family health history.
Obtain information about your general physical, emotional and mental state, covering sleep, energy levels, diet, stress levels, etc.

Follow up appointments are usually around 5-15 minutes and provide an opportunity to update your practitioner on changes to your health.

After taking your medicine

Patients often report a change to their mental or emotional state – they may feel a sense of wellbeing, optimism and relaxation. It’s very common for babies and children to fall asleep after taking a remedy, which is a sign that it is working.

The speed with which you feel relief will depend on the condition being treated and how you individually respond to homeopathy.

In acute ailments, this can be very fast indeed but in more chronic conditions, your recovery rate will depend on the nature and duration of the illness and on your individual vitality. Patience is key here. There are rarely any “quick fixes” particularly when conventional medications are also (or have been) taken.

Next will be the physical changes. These will occur in a certain order, rather than all at once. When an issue is resolving, it will move out (like the ripples in a pond) rather than simply disappearing.

You may also experience an aggravation – the temporary appearance of new symptoms or intensification of existing ones. These occur as part of the initial rebalancing effect and are harmless, mild and usually short-lived.

Remember, your homeopath will be able to provide personalised support and advice at every stage of your treatment.

Homeopathy is safe for people at all life stages including babies and pregnant or breast feeding women. Unlike some conventional drugs, homeopathic medicines are non-addictive with no dangerous side-effects.

A homeopathic remedy triggers our innate ability to heal

Taking a homeopathic remedy gives an energetic stimulus to our self healing mechanism. And that will trigger a process of rebalancing on a deep level. This happens both in acute and chronic conditions when we take a remedy. And in acute situations the remedy response is often quickly noticeable. In chronic situations this healing process can be more prolonged; although positive changes in general wellbeing are most often noticeable soon after starting the prescribed remedy. In general; it is not realistic to expect instant resolution of a problem that you have lived with and build on over a long time, with one consult or one remedy.

What to expect after taking a homeopathic remedy

How you respond to a remedy is an individual matter. It all depends on your present situation and how you have come to this point. Looking at your present health complaint and crisis. It also depends on how vital you are and how long you have been suffering from ill health. When was the last time you remember feeling truly balanced? In great physical, mental and emotional health, in other words truly healthy?

Your (health) history so far may consists of many layers of unresolved and suppressed symptoms, treatments and emotional traumas. Those may have over the years build up like a stack of pancakes. And have ultimately worn down your resilience and ability to cope and be well. You can see that this situation may be complex and needs detailed analysis. And will not just disappear with one consult or one prescription but will require time and involve a process.

When a remedy is prescribed for you; it triggers your body into doing what it can and must do to restore the balance for you. Your body is always set to keep you as healthy as possible considering limitations put on it. And your present state of health is the best your body can do at this time.