Marie and the Menopause

Marie was a woman of a “certain age”, entering menopause. Symptoms

were making her life miserable. Up to 20 hot flushes a day caused sweat to
drench her clothes, leaving her cold and clammy. The burning in the palms
of her hands and the soles of her feet made them feel as though they had
been dipped in hot water and at the height of each flush, Marie craved cold
drinks. She hadn’t had a decent night’s sleep since the flushes began.

Marie complained that she now lacked energy and found it hard to get
going. She described thinking as trying to “wade through porridge” and said
her memory was hopeless. On top of that, she was irritable and moody. Her
husband was taking the brunt of these changes, and their marriage was
under strain.

On questioning Marie about other symptoms, I found she also suffered

from asthma – something she had had since her late 20’s. She was on
inhalers to both prevent and control the symptoms but even now had to be
careful around flowers, as their fragrance could cause her to wheeze.

Regular pulsating migraines were also a problem. They would occur on the
right side of Marie’s head, beginning in the neck and moving upwards to
settle in her forehead and eye. Many times, Marie felt nauseated with the
migraine. Belching or vomiting would relieve the pain but only for a short
time. She would also crave sour things and want to lie in the dark. Once
asleep, the migraine would pass. Not so long ago, Marie had been getting
these migraines once a week but since beginning the menopause they had
been less frequent and not so intense.

Following the Prescription…

Marie’s menopausal symptoms were similar to those treated by the
homeopathic remedy, Sanquinaria Canadensis. Within a week of its
prescription there had been a dramatic improvement. The hot flushes had
reduced by half and Marie reported a significant increase in energy. I
advised her to continue with the remedy.
A few weeks later, at Marie’s first follow-up appointment, an interesting
story unfolded. Marie was now having only one to two mild hot flushes a
day and her burning palms and soles were a thing of the past. With these
changes, her sleep had also improved. Marie’s asthma was less of a
problem and she was now able to breath deeply and easily. While pleased
about these positive changes, Marie was concerned about some other
things that had happened.

Not long after our previous phone call, Marie had been taken by surprise
with a migraine. Where recent ones had been relatively mild, this one was
intense – just like those she used to suffer from before the hot flushes
began. Also, her right shoulder had been painful for a few days, just as it
had been all those years ago before treated by a cortisone injection by her
doctor. Marie was now concerned that these events could be a sign of
things to come. She could still remember how painful those days had been
and there was no way she wanted to return to them.

Another unusual thing was that although Marie’s asthma had improved, it
had been replaced by hay fever – something she had not had since her mid
20’s. Marie told me that hay fever had been a serious problem for her
during her childhood. She had used “masses of medication” just to get
through school. At the age of 26, surgery had been performed to remove
the nasal polyps caused by it. Thankfully, the hay fever had settled not long
after and since then she had been completely free of the burning, itching
and sneezing – until now!

Other problems that had returned from the past included dizziness that
occurred when Marie turned her head suddenly and painful heartburn after
an evening meal. Although these symptoms had returned for one day only,
Marie was concerned they could return in full. What was going on?

What Does it all Mean?

When a homeopath hears a patient tell of past symptoms returning, there is
always a feeling of excitement – the outcome for that person is likely to be
good! Any “return of old symptoms” indicates that the homeopathic remedy
has stimulated the Vital Force to not only heal the current problem but to
also work back through suppressed layers of ill-health that have
accumulated with time.

Previous tutorials have explained how we work against our body’s efforts
to heal itself by choosing medicines that suppress rather than support our
symptoms. While suppression will make us feel better for the short-term, it
can not heal deep energetic imbalances. Instead, suppression creates the
very thing we are trying to avoid – deteriorating health. It weakens our
vitality making us less resistant to disease and other health problems in the
future.

This is exactly what happened to Marie.

Her hay fever from had never truly been healed, but only partially
suppressed. With this outlet no longer available, Marie’s Vital Force had to
find a new way to relieve its energetic imbalance. It chose nasal polyps.
When the polyps were surgically removed, another outlet was found:
asthma.

Through shoulder pain, vertigo, migraines, menopausal symptoms,

confusion, poor memory, and mood changes, the story continued. Constant
suppression and weakening vitality eventually led to her brain and
hormonal system being affected.

The appropriate homeopathic remedy reversed Marie’s downward spiral.

Today, I am pleased to say she is a healthy and happily married
menopausal woman who continues to use homeopathy as her first form of
treatment whenever the need arises.

Sanguinaria Canadensis – What a Remedy!

Homeopathic Sanguinaria is prepared from an herb that occurs naturally in
the United States, Canada and India. It goes by the common name of
Bloodroot and is an unusual remedy in that many of its symptoms occur on
the right side of the body. Health complaints that can be treated by
homeopathic Sanguinaria include: headaches and migraines; hay fever;
asthma; reflux and heartburn; coughs, bronchitis and pneumonia; bursitis
and shoulder pain; nasal polyps; tuberculosis; and menopausal symptoms.
People needing Sanquinaria can have low energy, feel irritable, and find it
difficult to concentrate. They may crave cold water and spicy or sour food.
Burning sensations are common, especially with hot flushes, on the palms
and soles, in heartburn and hay fever, or with vaginal or penile discharges.
Sufferers often describe the sensation as being burnt by hot water or
steam. Hayfever and asthma can be triggered by strong odours or flower
pollens and will commonly be followed by diarrhoea.