To cancel the appointment because homeopathy is a load of crap?

[HowdoIgetbacktothe80s]

I’ve had chronic health issues for years. These issues are getting worse and completely ruining my quality of life.
Despite lots of tests, consultant and GP appointments via the NHS, I am definitely getting worse not better.
I know and appreciate the NHS is on its knees but I am fed up waiting up to a year for consultation appointments, having them cancelled at last minute (one was even cancelled whilst I was in the hospital waiting room ffs!) and when I eventually get seen it is often a rushed 10 minute appointment. I am getting nowhere fast and pretty desperate right now despite investing so much in the hope of feeling well and trying many things myself. I don’t want to keep taking up NHS space when someone worse off than me needs the services, I would love to find someone out there who can help me heal.
I am contemplating turning to ‘alternative’ healthcare. I asked on my local town’s FB group for recommendations and several recommended a local homeopath.
I have had a 30 minute free call with her. She was so very lovely and for the first time I felt listened to and validated.
She explained how she had experience of my health issues herself and how homeopathy could indeed help me. She said that because my issues were long standing it would take some months to start to feel better.
So I have booked to go and see her in a month.
The consultation is £100 with the homeopathic tinctures being an additional £25 which she said would last about a month and I would probably need to see her for several months. Each follow up appointment will be £80 (probably every other month or so). She wasn’t pushy at all and it was left up to me to make any decisions.
I have told my dh and friends and they think it’s a utter waste of my money and homeopathy is nothing more than a placebo. They truly believe I will not get better via this route but am now having a wobble about it as it is a lot of money for me if it doesn’t help.
Of course if you look on the NHS website it will tell you much the same. But the NHS hasn’t been able to help me and I am now at a loss, stuck in limbo land and getting desperate.

What is everyone’s opinion or experience on homeopathy?
Should I pursue this route or cancel now?
I dare say that am going to get flamed on here. I know I am probably grasping at straws but I just want to feel better.

YABU - homeopathy is useless, you may as well throw the money down the drain don’t be so gullible!
YANBU - I believe in homeopathy, it works

Always good to remember that homeopathy is only really effective when treating conditions resulting from carrying too much money around.

I think acupuncture has more success than homeopathy - you could try that if you wanted to try an alternative therapy.
or spend the money getting a private second medical opinion .

Someone I was at uni with retrained as a homeopath. Nice girl, OK at the book learning but the most gullible and lacking in common sense person on our course. Very easily swayed by other people, no opinions of her own.

She is probably an effective homeopath because she is a good listener and very personable, and honestly believes in her magic water.

Sorry, voted the wrong way round OP. If you are going to waste hundreds of quid do so on something more fun.

If "Alternative Medicine" worked, it would just be called "Medicine".

You will get no benefit out of it except maybe a placebo. You'd get the same effect by buying a packet of sugar pills and taking one every morning.

It might actually be worth trying (the sugar pill thing) if you have no other options honestly. The placebo effect can be very strong sometimes and still works even when you know what you are taking can't do anything.

I once had all my post surgery pain go away after a saline injection despite fully knowing it was just saline.

I hope you do mange to get some help from the NHS soon but throwing money at scam artists will just leave you sick AND poor.

By the way John Diamond wrote a book called Snake Oil about his ventures into the world of alternative medicine - it's well worth a read. He specifically mentioned the benefit of feeling cared for by a friendly practitioner who had the time to show kindness and really listen.

You said you can afford the initial private medical (proper) consultation but not the tests - have you looked at paying in installments? Our local private hospital has a payment plan option if you are 'self funding' .

OP I can really empathise with you. I'm a scientist and know better than anyone the utterly bonkers reasoning behind homeopathic medicine, and yet when I was chronically ill and conventional medicine wasn't helping me, I sought a homeopath. A family member said it changed their life and cured all their ills, so I thought, why not? Maybe it'll help me.

Unfortunately alternative medicine tends to prey on desperate people looking for a cure.

In all I was given about 15 different remedies. Sorry to say, none actually helped.

Don't be like me, save your money.

Some complementary medicines or remedies are great - herbal for instance, massage, osteopathy for specific things like back problems. They could be worth looking into to ease your symptoms at least if the NHS is failing to find a root cause.
Homeopathy on the other hand, magic water. Or placebo at best (not knocking that but if you are questioning it it probably won't work).
You have to be careful with alternative medicine.

Homeopathy is the poster child for pseudoscientific gibberish. When you said she was lovely and spent time with you (after detailing your unfortunate NHS experiences) you pinpointed the reason people think it makes them feel better. One scientific fact you might be interested in: given the level of dilution they claim for the 'active' ingredient, you're just as likely to have the same amount of Hitler's urine in your 'medicine'. Mind it doesn't turn you into one of history's worst dictators.

It's only worth a try if you're happy with throwing money away on something that has no benefit at all beyond the placebo effect.
The mind is a very powerful thing, which is why some people believe it's effective. But it really is nothing more than the power of suggestion.

It sounds like being listened to was something that was really helpful for you mentally, if not physically. Because the mind and body can be very intertwined, would some form of talking therapy be helpful to you?

StressyMcStressFace 😂😂

This is the awful thing. They make money out of people's desperation and give them false hope. It should be banned.

It works for some people in the sane way that a placebo does. If it were cheap , and not a middle class alternative to actual medicine , it would not work as well. My friends pay hundreds of pounds every couple months for it and sing it’s praises but I think it’s because they don’t want to believe they’re wasting their money.

*same way

SleepingisanArt I haven’t looked into that. I thought it was self pay or insurance options but I will look into that.

Came to share the Homeopathic A&E vid but see someone beat me to it 😂.

As others have said the mind is incredibly powerful - the placebo effect has been shown to cure a lot of ills. I studied it when doing psychology years ago - it’s fascinating stuff.

Homeopaths are charlatans. They make me very angry having seen the bollocks they use to sell both fertility treatments and cancer treatments. Cruel. Preying on desperate people is unforgivable IMO.

I’m sorry about that sanabria, it’s amazing how all sensibility seems to fly out of the window when we become desperate. I do feel like a desperate, old fool right now!

This is exactly how I feel. Thank you for saving me typing time!!!

😂

Complete waste of your money. Can you pay for private consultation with a qualified doctor instead?

@SeriouslyLTB you’re welcome 😄.

Like a previous poster I’m very science minded but nearly got conned out of a huge amount of money when we had fertility issues. I had a sudden realisation of what I was doing and phoned to cancel - they threatened to take me to court for the money, I responded they were welcome to but I would ensure that the newspapers had the full story of how they preyed on vulnerable couples. Strangely didn’t hear another word from them 🤬.

I had a friend who gave me a course of a few months for bad hayfever …. I didn’t get hayfever for around 5 years after …

@Dimondsareforever i grew out of my hay fever too. It’s been fabulous. I assure you drinking water didn’t cure your hay fever.