HOMOEOPATHY FOR CHILDREN

[MadameSin]

Any of you used homoeopathy for their children rather than conventional meds?

[MadameSin]

exexpat I never refer to Wikipedia as any old Tom, Dick & Harry can contribute to it. I get the jist however.

[nocake]

I'm a good parent so if my DD has a health issue I use evidence based medical treatments. That means I don't waste my time, or money, on homeopathy which is not evidence based and is nothing more than water and sugar pills.

[MadameSin]

amistillsexy you've been hanging around this board for as long as I've been on the Special Needs board by the looks of it! You know them well

[exexpat]

Fair point about wikipedia, though I think that is a reasonable summary. The NHS gives a very similar view.

[MadameSin]

nocake Do you think you would seek an alternative if you were in my shoes, given the side effects to drugs like Ritalin? - a serious question btw.

[PacificDogwood]

Hahneman simply stipulated that you treat like with like - he pulled the theory out of his hat like a magician does a rabbit.
And it is just water...

Having said that, water IS good for you

[PacificDogwood]

I am no fan of Ritalin being prescribed and overprescribed.
However, the reason it had unwanted effects is because it has desired effects as well.
Water makes you pee.
I am not aware of any changes to behaviour.

Taking, say, fish oil capsules in the hope that this will have an effect on how the brain processes sensory input and emotions has at least some theoretical chance of success.

[TondelayoSchwarzkopf]

Is that the choice you have? Amphetamines OR magic sugar water.

I don't envy your position btw, it's just homeopathy is not the answer.

[exexpat]

...and homeopaths' ideas of 'like' are rather loopy. There is another thread running about a remedy made from fragments of the Berlin wall; the same manufacturer offers a series of remedies made from different brands of cigarette, eg Silk Cut. Not quite sure what that is meant to cure - lung cancer, maybe?

[IAgreeCompletely]

hermoine

You have got me thinking....

Not only can I kiss things better but I also have magic plasters, carrots that ACTUALLY make you see in the dark and hugs that make tears disappear.


I am quite Woo'ish afterall .

[amistillsexy]

Madame, I've got my and my Bingo game board

I've also got a very chilled out 9yo with ASD, who has been woo-ed up to the max, and (recent Houdini impressions notwithstanding) is doing very well on it, thank you very much

I don't think I'll be telling anyone on here about my recent obsession with Bach Flower Remedies, which are ACE

[MadameSin]

Pacific was thinking the same thing about water ... tis wonderful and keeps us all alive and kicking! Oh dear, I must have the makings of a bad parent as was considering it for ds .... I should probably hand myself into social services now

[nocake]

I would look at the side effects of any drug that was being prescribed. They all have side effects but you have to balance them against the benefits.

Instead of homeopathy where you don't have to worry about side effects because there aren't any... just as there aren't any benefits. You might as well give your child a teaspoon of water as that will have exactly the same effect.

[PacificDogwood]

Well, I think homeopathy is woo and wouldn't bother with it myself.

However, if you are always going to be left wondering what might have happened if you tried, Madame, then try it (if you can afford to). I too don't envy you your position. Homeopathy won't do any harm.
Ritalin can turn lives around, sometimes does a little good, sometimes does nothing. Its sideeffects are reversible on stopping the drug.

I think I know what I would try first, but am not in your shoes...
Good luck

[GiraffesAndButterflies]

Do you think you would seek an alternative if you were in my shoes, given the side effects to drugs like Ritalin? - a serious question btw.

Seeking an alternative to Ritalin is perfectly rational. Regarding magic water/sugar pills as a sensible alternative is not. The best you can hope for is a placebo effect.

[MadameSin]

Yes Tonde they are my only choices. Am wondering if possible heart damage, appetite suppression, depression, anxiety and stunted growth are a worth while trade off for him to get decent GCSE's A serious question to all non fans ... are your comments based on personal experience or opinion?

[GiraffesAndButterflies]

Wonderful stuff that allows children to heal themselves naturally.

That's amused me... Homeopathy certainly does allow people to heal themselves naturally, given that it's the same thing as giving them a sugar cube!

[k2togm1]

Op if you want to look at other ways of managing/treating (sorry not sure what would the appropriate word be) ADHD have a look at a book called simplicity parenting (forget the authors name, sorry).

[PacificDogwood]

Bach's Rescue Remedy is 27% alcohol - no wonder it chills .

As a non-fan (but with big sympathy for people seeking help for their health problems, particularly when they are beyond the ken of conventional medicine) my aversion to homeopathy is based on a conventional medical education and my utter and total inability to persuad myself to believe any of the theory behind it when I looked in to training in homeopathy. I could just not bring myself to peddle this nonsense and feared that what with having a 'Dr' in front of my name and dealing with worried/ill/upset people all the time, I'd actually be guilty of taking advantage of them.

So, no. NOT a fan.

[curlew]

No. If they need medicine, they need something that works. If they don't need something that works, then they don't need medicine.

[GiraffesAndButterflies]

Madame my comments are based on science. If homeopathic treatments worked the way they claim to it would defy the laws of chemistry. It just is not possible, any more than the pills can make you levitate or be invisible. Clinical trials over and over have shown this, there's just no wiggle room I'm afraid.

That said, in your shoes I'd probably be willing to try to get a placebo effect going if there was any chance it could help. So you could buy him a homeopathic remedy on the off chance it would do that, just don't be under the illusion that you're buying anything other than sugar pills- and pay accordingly!

[MadameSin]

Am a master of parenting book and have read Kim John Payne's book .... I think I'm a good mum and parent my son well. I manage his behaviour well and he responds well to me. His issues are in the class room where I cannot be ....

[BOF]

No, and I never would. I think it is deeply unethical of homeopathy companies to market to parents actually, if it means they eschew actual medical help for real issues.

If I want to harness the placebo effect on a small child who has nothing serious wrong with them, I might give them a smartie and tell them it's medicine. If I think they are actually unwell, I take them to the doctors.

[Spero]

No. And I note with interest how my one and only homeopath friend dropped it like it was hot when her child got meningitis. Thank god.

[LoveSewingBee]

I don't believe in homoeopathy apart from the (sometimes very powerful) placebo effect. However, I do sometimes use herbal therapy and aroma therapy and find them useful.