Keeping Fit and Healthy with Homeopathy
When setting yourself “new years resolution goals” you don’t have to wait until the beginning of the year to do so. Finding a balance between life and exercise isn’t easy, but if you set yourself small achievable goals at first, and increase them as you go. The first couple of weeks are always the hardest challenge both mentally and physically in keeping the momentum going and don’t give up.
Getting Back to the Gym
If you’ve just started exercising after a hiatus, you may discover some muscles you wish you’d never felt. After all your excitement and willingness to take care of yourself, you may overdo it on your first day at the gym. You wake up the next morning saying, “Ouch, what have I done?!”
According to The Merck Manual, more than six out of ten people who start an exercise program drop out in the first six weeks due to injury. So should you become a spectator, or can you help yourself get over an exercise injury? Listen to your body, don’t over-do-it straight away!
Homeopathy may offer the quickest, gentlest, and safest relief for sports injuries. It is surprising we don’t hear that more from professional athletes that use homeopathy. Homeopathic remedies may shorten the duration of almost any injury to one-third of its projected length. Let’s start our tour through the world of common exercise injuries and give you the power to speed up the healing process. Always remember to consult your health practitioner for a correct plan in restoring oneself back to health.
Oops, I Think I Sprained Something
Sprained ankles are a common injury and can occur during sports or recreational activities. A sprain occurs when ligaments become over-stretched or torn. If you land on the side of your foot during aerobics and suddenly feel swelling and a bruised sensation, Arnica (leopard’s bane)* will come to the rescue. This mountain flower is called “king of the sports remedies” for its ability to absorb blood, reduce swelling, and relieve pain quickly. Arnica is indicated when the injury becomes bruised, feels worse when touched or jarred, worse from motion, and worse at night. The injury feels better with cold applications.
Another homeopathic remedy for sprains is Rhus Toxicodendron (poison ivy). Use Arnica first to absorb the blood and reduce swelling, then follow with Rhus tox to heal the sprained ligaments. Any ligament injury, anywhere in the body, will respond quickly to this remedy. An injury needing Rhus tox will feel stiff and worse from damp, cold, and at night. The swelling is better from rest, but the person feels restless and can’t get comfortable in any position. The pain is worse when starting to walk but feels better after continued motion or with warm applications.
Aching Elbows
Every tennis player dreads “tennis elbow” or epicondylitis, which often starts from trying out a new racket, stringing a racket too tightly, or playing too eagerly after an injury. Some other activities that put excessive or repetitive stress on tendon attachments in the elbow include: golfing, weight training, pitching ball, hanging wallpaper, and painting ceilings.
Ruta graveolens (herb-of-grace), Bellis perennis (daisy), or Rhus tox can stop that nagging ache. If you need Ruta for tennis elbow, you may have tingling in the hand. Ruta shares characteristics with Arnica and Rhus tox. It is mainly indicated when the periosteum (the membrane surrounding the bone) has been affected. You may feel stiffness, as in conditions relieved by Rhus tox, and have a bruised feeling like those who need Arnica, but moving around makes the pain worse.
Bellis works more deeply than Arnica. Try Bellis, which can be a specific remedy for tennis elbow, when Arnica or another remedy doesn’t completely resolve the injury. An injury needing Bellis will be swollen and bruised and will feel worse from touch, hot bathing, and getting chilled. The injury feels better from motion, cold applications, and rubbing.
Endorphin Junkies
If you’re afraid of starting exercise because you are new at it or are coming back after an injury, take Arnica before the workout. You will be amazed at how well you can keep up. For the aerobics fanatic who puts too much strain on her knee joints, Ruta can specifically address knee problems like sprains, tendonitis, cartilage tears, and bursitis. If there’s a weakness in a lower limb and the knee gives way when climbing stairs or on rising, the injury may benefit from Ruta (see other indications above).
Feel invigorated after step aerobics class? If you’ve been overly enthusiastic, you could develop knee strain. Bryonia helps red, swollen, tender, inflamed knees that feel worse with motion or touch and better with rest or local heat. A knee that needs Bryonia will have stitching pain when walking, painful stiffness, and weakness.
Did you sweat a lot during your workout, then forget to cool down and dry off before heading out into the cold weather? And by the time you get home you are having to crawl out of your car because of severe stiffness in your low back! Rhus tox put can help you get back on track the next day.
All Stretched Out
Running late to your yoga class and forget to warm up? You could easily over-stretch a muscle or tendon if you push yourself too far, too soon. Most yoga injuries, like ligament sprains and muscle strains, are caused by repetitive isometric strain or over-stretching. These injuries can occur at the wrists, shoulders, neck, hamstrings, knees, along the spine, and at the sacroiliac joint, which links the spinal column and pelvis. An over-stretched muscle or tendon may get relief from Arnica, Bryonia, Rhus tox, or Ruta. Low back strain needing Rhus tox feels worse after exertion and from bending. After resting, the back stiffens up, and you feel restless and need to stretch. Local heat helps the pain.
If you tend to have an all-or-nothing attitude and push yourself at yoga, you may get a low back pain requiring Nux vomica (poison nut). With the stitching pain, you feel irritable, and you must sit up to turn over in bed. The pain is worse with motion, cold, and touch, and is worse in the morning. It feels better from warmth and pressure.
If your low back and sacrum constantly ache and feel heavy or stiff, Phytolacca (poke root) may help. You feel restless and compelled to move, but motion doesn’t help the pain (opposite of Rhus tox). Pain in the low back radiates to the lateral thighs down to the knees and toes.
Cramping Up
Muscle cramps can occur when a little-used muscle is over-exerted. The sudden cramping pain feels as if the muscles have gathered up in knots. Cramps can occur in any sport at any point during the exercise. Magnesia phosphorica (magnesium phosphate) eases muscle spasms and cramps, especially in the legs and feet.
Swimming Away Your Stresses
People often choose swimming because it reduces the load on the joints. But too much swimming and poor technique can lead to “swimmer’s shoulder.” This overuse injury involves inflammation in the supraspinatus and/or bicep tendons. If you’re feeling shoulder pain, Rhus tox or Ruta may help. See your doctor for a diagnosis, and have a swimming instructor evaluate your stroke.
Taking a Remedy
Always seek advice from a qualified Homeopath before taking a remedy, especially if you haven’t done so before, this is to ensure you are being prescribed the right remedy to help support you in your recovery. In general, a 30c potency is a good choice for most exercise-related complaints. If you continue to have problems after following these directions, consult your qualified homeopath and/or physician. Dissolve one pillule in half a cup of water, and use this throughout the day; take one teaspoon every 15 to 30 minutes, decreasing the frequency as you start feeling better. Stop when you feel completely well.
Homeopathy offers support in restoring our body’s balance, health, and vitality on mental, emotional, and physical levels. It’s important you seek professional advice from a qualified registered homeopath or your GP to ensure you are receiving the best possible treatment for all that you are experiencing.
Would you like to learn more about homeopathy so you can help your community, family, friends, and animals? The College of Natural Health & Homeopathy offers NZQA accredited Diplomas in Homeopathy. Study fully online, part-time, and from the comfort of your own home, anywhere in the world!
Start your journey today in becoming a Homeopathic Practitioner, and apply now in our NZ Diploma in Acute Prescribing with Homeopathy!
Adapted from source
Luc De Schepper, MD, PhD, CHom, LicAc