What will the Doctor or pharmacist prescribe?

You will be offered/told to take the following:

Nasal corticosteroid sprays - Corticosteroid medicines are synthetic derivatives of corticosteroid hormones that are produced naturally by the adrenal glands. Natural Corticosteroids have many important functions in the body, including control of inflammatory responses. Synthetic Corticosteroid medicines are used for their effect in controlling inflammation, and corticosteroid nasal sprays are used for the localised treatment of nasal allergies.

The Scientifically proven effects of taking these drugs are:

• increased appetite and weight gain
• deposits of fat in chest, face, upper back and stomach
• water and salt retention leading to swelling and oedema
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• black and blue marks
• slowed healing of wounds
• Osteoporosis
• Cataracts
• Acne
• Muscle weakness
• thinning of the skin
• increased susceptibility to infection
• stomach ulcers
• increased sweating
• mood swings
• psychological problems such as depression
• adrenal suppression & crisis

As a side effect you may experience some relief from your allergic rhinitis symptoms, but inevitably with long term use you will begin to experience the effects of the poison.

What is interesting is that when we are under stress our body produces this steroid as part of its survival mechanism. Long drawn out stress results in similar symptoms to the side effects of corticosteroids.

• blood sugar remains high

• high acidic level inside the body
• demineralization of bone ( the bodies fluids are acidic and so are burning away at the joint sites)
• raised blood cholesterol levels and vasoconstriction - both of these two leading to arteriosclerosis.
• memory impairment
• weight gain as oestrogen is sitting in the fat cells.
• chronic stress affects the effectiveness of the immune system
• inflammatory agents cytokines and self-generated responses autoimmune are no longer contained by circulating cortisol and so auto immune disorders like arthritis result.

Antihistamines are used to control the symptoms of allergies such as hay fever. They work by preventing the actions of histamine, which is a substance produced by the body as part of its natural defences. It is stored in cells called mast cells, in almost all tissues of the body and is released when the body reacts to a foreign substance (known as an allergen).

The released histamine binds to its receptors (H-1 receptors) causing a chain reaction that includes an increase in blood flow to the area, and the release of other chemicals that add to the allergic response. (Itching is one of the results).

Antihistamines work by blocking histamine receptors, therefore reducing the reactions that cause itching

The Scientifically proven effects of taking these drugs are:

They dry the mucous membrane of the nose but many of them also cause sleepiness and other problems, especially in older people like headache; blurred vision; constipation; dry mouth; dizziness; difficulty passing urine; and confusion; drowsiness; dry mouth, nose, or throat; gastrointestinal upset, stomach pain, or nausea; headache; increased appetite and weight gain; thickening of mucus

Less common effects

Acid or sour stomach; belching; blurred vision or any change in vision; clumsiness or unsteadiness; body aches or pain; confusion (not with diphenhydramine); congestion; constipation; cough; diarrhea; difficult or painful urination; difficulty in moving; difficult or painful menstruation; dizziness; drowsiness; dryness of mouth, nose, or throat; early menstruation; fast heartbeat; fatigue; fever; gastrointestinal upset, stomach pain or nausea; heartburn; hoarseness; increased appetite and weight gain; increased sensitivity of skin to sun; increased sweating; indigestion; loss of appetite; joint pain; muscle aching or cramping ; muscle pains or stiffness; nausea; nightmares ringing or buzzing in ears; runny nose; skin rash; swollen joints; stomach discomfort, upset or pain; tender swollen glands in neck; thickening of mucus ; tremor; unusual excitement, nervousness, restlessness, or irritability; vomiting

As a side effect you may experience some relief from your allergic rhinitis symptoms, but inevitably with long term use you will begin to experience the effects of the poison.

(This is just a basic over view of what happens when the body is stuck in trauma).

For an alternative homeopathic perspective on treating hay fever go to:

Find a Cph Qualified Homeopath or Clinic in your area.

Treat your hay fever at an affordable price at the College of Practical Homeopathy’s Teaching Clinic.

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We are heading towards spring and summer at a great rate of knots and for many of us the prospect of warmer weather sunny days and general feeling of wellbeing is a welcome break from the grey winter months. For others (2 to 3 million people in Britain) the spring and summer herald in the nightmare of itchy noses, streaming eyes and continues sneezing – the hay fever season. So now is the time when the wise start preparing for this by using an alternatives medicinal approach such as homeopathy to cure the problem.What is hayfever?

Hay fever (also called allergic rhinitis or pollinosis), is an allergy characterized by sneezing, itchy and watery itchy eyes, a runny nose and a burning sensation of the palate and throat. (Inflammation of the nasal passage forces fluid out of the nasal tissues, resulting in a runny and blocked nose).

These symptoms are caused by a reaction of the immune system to an environmental trigger. With hay fever the body’s immune system overreacts to external substances such as pollen, house, dust, and feathers as if they were toxic and the end result is irritation and inflammation.

Are there underlying causes of hay fever?

These appear to be:

• Environmental triggers such as dust, moulds, pollens, grasses, trees, and animals.

• Food allergies, especially milk, wheat or sugar can both cause or aggravate existing allergies.

• Stress/emotional trauma appears to aggravate (may also cause!).

For an alternative homeopathic perspective on treating hay fever go to:

Find a Cph Qualified Homeopath or Clinic in your area.

Treat your hayfever at an affordable price at the College of Practical Homeopathy’s Teaching Clinic.

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From one perspective the heart and blood can be seen as corresponding to love. As blood gives life, so love gives life meaning and direction. The heart symbolizes all aspects of love, from the romantic to the divine. When the heart energy is not in harmony we may experience:

• sadness/ lack of laughter and joy
• forgetfulness
• insomnia
• depression
• hysteria
• irrational behaviour
• excessive dreaming
• insanity

As a homeopath I see many clients who have HBP, either as the primary symptom or secondary to other things that they have come to see me for.

From a homeopathic perspective the risk factors like obesity and smoking and alcohol abuse must be addressed. Moderate aerobic exercise is helpful. People with primary hypertension do not have to restrict their physical activity as long as their blood pressure is controlled. Regular exercise helps reduce blood pressure and weight and improves the functioning of the heart and overall health.

Looking at mental emotional causations is important especially when treating primary hypertension. Ailments from grief or shock seem to be the main aetiologies. On going stress and low grade anxiety can increase blood pressure.

So does Homeopathy provide an alternative?

One year later, after following homeopathic and Naturopathic treatment regime David is off all his medication, and all the symptoms he came with are gone. He has instituted life style changes - exercise, diet, supported by homeopathic remedies and is in control of his health.

The College of Practical Homeopathy’s ”Homeopathic Directory” to find a Cph Qualified Homeopaths, Practitioners, and Clinics in your area.

Benefit from affordable homeopathic treatment for both you and your family at the College of Practical Homeopathy’s Teaching Clinic.

Tags: alcohol abuse, depression, diet, excessive dreaming, exercise, forgetfulness, GP, HBP, health, high blood pressure, homeopathic remedies, homeopathy, hypertension, hysteria, insanity, insomnia, irrational behaviour, obesity, smokingalcohol abuse depression diet excessive dreaming exercise forgetfulness GP HBP health high blood pressure homeopathic remedies homeopathy hypertension hysteria insanity insomnia irrational behaviour obesity smoking

I have observed lots people like David who started their drug journey with a little visit to the GP and ended up so sick without questioning it.

It’s important for people to weigh the quality of their life with the misery of chronic poisoning by their GP’s. The GP never once asked David why he thought the blood pressure was up. What they had was a drug customer for life, (who if they had been bothered to look at David’s family history, was heading towards diabetes, angina, rheumatoid arthritis etc…

There is more to life then just trying to fix the symptoms or taking away the bodies warning light that something is wrong with chemicals that add to the problem.

Surely curing is finding out the cause of the problem and removing obstacles so the patient feels well again and full of energy. It can’t possibly mean we impose other symptoms from the medication we are giving to force those symptoms to go away.

It seems madness to give chemical therapy without establishing the causes of the problem – once David got actively get involved in being a part of his own healing he began to get better.

For an alternative homeopathic perspective on treating high blood pressure visit:

The College of Practical Homeopathy’s ”Homeopathic Directory” to find a Cph Qualified Homeopaths, Practitioners, and Clinics in your area.

Benefit from affordable homeopathic treatment for both you and your family at the College of Practical Homeopathy’s Teaching Clinic.

Tags: angina, chemical therapy, diabetes, family history, GP, HBP, high blood pressure, homeopathy, hypertension, rheumatoid arthritis, symptomsangina chemical therapy diabetes family history GP HBP high blood pressure homeopathy hypertension rheumatoid arthritis symptoms

Are there underlying causes of HBP?

High blood pressure with no known cause is called primary or essential hypertension. Between 85% and 90% of people with high blood pressure have primary hypertension. If this many people have primary hypertension why not find out what is going on in their lives? From an allopathic perspective primary hypertension is incurable, but they try to control with drugs that suppress the symptoms to prevent ‘complications’.

High blood pressure with a known cause is called secondary hypertension. Between 10% and 15% of people with high blood pressure have secondary hypertension.

Stress stimulates the adrenal glands to release the hormones adrenalin and noradrenalin. These hormones stimulate the heart to beat faster and more forcefully, most arterioles to constrict, and some arterioles to dilate. The arterioles that dilate are those in areas where an increased blood supply is needed (such as in skeletal muscle—the muscles controlled by conscious effort).

Stress also stimulates the kidneys to decrease their excretion of salt and water, thereby increasing blood volume.

The kidneys also respond directly to changes in blood pressure. If blood pressure increases, the kidneys increase their excretion of salt and water, so that blood volume decreases and blood pressure returns to normal.

Conversely, if blood pressure decreases, the kidneys decrease their excretion of salt and water, so that blood volume increases and blood pressure returns to normal.

Many kidney disorders can cause high blood pressure, because the kidneys are important in controlling blood pressure. For example, damage to the kidneys may impair their ability to remove enough salt and water from the body, increasing blood volume and blood pressure. In 5 to 10% of people with high blood pressure, the cause is a kidney disorder. Such disorders include renal artery stenosis (narrowing of the artery supplying one of the kidneys), kidney inflammation, and injury.

The problem with the medical drug based approach is that the drugs create further stress on the body and in particular the kidneys and adrenal thus starting the negative downward spiral into reliance on more drugs.

For an alternative homeopathic perspective on treating high blood pressure visit:

The College of Practical Homeopathy’s ”Homeopathic Directory” to find a Cph Qualified Homeopaths, Practitioners, and Clinics in your area.

Benefit from affordable homeopathic treatment for both you and your family at the College of Practical Homeopathy’s Teaching Clinic.

Tags: allopathic, HBP, high blood pressure, homeopathy, hypertension, kidneys, renal artery tenosisallopathic HBP high blood pressure homeopathy hypertension kidneys renal artery tenosis

By now if you have followed the previous blogs you should be clear what your primary motivation for taking the big step in changing your life and have thought through some of the secondary factors that help you make decisions – be warned recent scientific evidence shows that most of us make major life decisions on emotions (think secondary factors) rather than logical (primary) – a bit like buying a new pair of shoes because you like the colour (feelgood factor) but they are not in your size!

So if you have clarified your needs the next step is to check out the course providers – the Alliance of Registered Homeopaths (www.a-r-h.org ) ‘Which Course Guide’ will give you a base to start from, as will the Society of Homeopaths ‘Register of Course Providers’. (www.homeopathy-soh.org) . Then, if you can do the leg work by internet – visit the websites of individual course providers – ask for a prospectus etc and shortlist those you consider might meet your needs.

Now visit your short listed college/s when it’s in action, to observe how things work and talk to the students – particularly those in their Graduation Year. If you find yourself motivated, enthusiastic and challenged then it’s probably the course for you!

NB: If after joining a course you feel you have got it wrong do not be afraid to change. It is better than wasting three or four years on the wrong course and never ending up practicing!

Visit the CPH website for further information on Homeopathy, including clinics, advice, education and training http://www.college-of-practical-homeopathy.com

Tags: academic course, alliance of registered homeopaths, course providers, health, homeopathic college, homeopaths, homeopathy, homeopathy college, practical homeopathy, society of homeopathsacademic course alliance of registered homeopaths course providers health homeopathic college homeopaths homeopathy homeopathy college practical homeopathy society of homeopaths

Having clarified your primary reasons for training or studying homeopathy you should bring in the secondary factors to help you make the final choice.

These are:

a) location – students often opt to go to a local college because traveling is easier but if the course is not right for you then it can be an expensive mistake in the longer term.

b) venue – similarly many students make the mistake of choosing a course because they like the venue. It is the course itself that should be the key factor!

c) reputation and recommendation – these can often be historical and therefore out of date – courses change over time so it is worth spending time with current final year (and if possible) graduates to see what they think of the course.

f) registration/accreditation – At present there is only one externally assessed registration system and only about a third of colleges are registered. See FAQ’s on Accreditation and registration www.collegeofpracticalhomeopathy.com for further details.

g) cost – this varies from college to college – be clear that you are comparing like with like – e.g. full time may be two or three year. In addition check what extras you have to pay for as some colleges provide clinical practice as part of a course, others require you to take (and pay) for Anatomy and Physiology Modules as an extra. You should look at the overall cost, including all extras and not just the annual cost, and then divide by number of years to get a true comparison.

e) other supporting factors – you may like to consider:

• whether the college has offices, clinics and teaching rooms in one building or is spread around as this can affect the feel of belonging to a college. Does it provide a base for a ‘community’ of student homeopaths?

• openness to new communications technology – both with providing and accessing resource materials and to taking cases by phone and by email

• Graduate and alumni programmes after graduation

Tags: academic course, alternative, clinic training, college cost, complementary medicine, health, homeopathic college, homeopaths, homeopathy, integrated teaching, location, practical homeopathy, practitioner developmentacademic course alternative clinic training college cost complementary medicine health homeopathic college homeopaths homeopathy integrated teaching location practical homeopathy practitioner development

The final primary question in choosing a course is will this particular course (note this does not mean college!) suit me and my learning and career needs? You should consider the following when making your choice.

• Class size – some colleges have very large classes – some students prefer this as they can hide at the back, are not challenged and they will not be missed if they find the lecturer dull. (This will not help to build a firm foundation on which to base a career, particularly in the first year when it is important to get a grasp of the basics). Small classes are much friendlier, give time to ask questions, get to know other students and tutors well, but are also more challenging as it is less easy to hide or avoid issues. Remember you will learn as much from other students as you will from lectures and tutors over the duration of a training and so it is vital to join a course that recognises this and supports interaction between students.
• Integrated teaching programme – Explore this in depth as many courses claim they provide an integrated programme but in reality just run a timetable of different subjects based on tutor availability – ask final year students how integrated the course is - not the tutors!
• High quality written handouts – look for decent written support material - avoid those courses that rely on you to record or take notes during lectures as this is a poor form of learning (about 3 -7% of information is retained and often some of this is wrong). Also look for colleges that make use of electronic transfer of material as this means you end up with a comprehensive set of notes that you can fit to your learning needs and that will be a source of reference and comfort for the rest of your career.
• Tutors – All colleges use sessional tutors –This is a more difficult area to assess as you will also not get too much of an opportunity to test them before joining a course so it is a question you should be asking existing students. Remember we all have very different ideas and prejudices around Tutors – the standard of tutoring varies drastically – a good tutor should make you think, not tell you what to think! Try and get an overview of the teaching rather than just comments on one or two tutors as these can be very subjective.
• Clinical training – homeopathy is best learnt ‘hands on’ – some colleges do not allow students near patients until third or fourth year – others have a much more open attitude and aim to get students seeing patient/taking cases and prescribing as early on as part of the course.
• Practitioner Development Module – At the end of the day you can be extremely knowledgeable about homeopathy but not be able to run a practice, or you can be an average homeopath and be very successful. This is because in order to be successful you need to have a range of personal skills, drive, personality, understanding of you own boundaries etc, as well as business skills above and beyond homeopathy – planning, marketing and financial management skills.
• Drop out rates – look at how many started a course and how many actually graduated – do not take verbal assurances for this but ask for evidence – always talk to graduate year students

By this point you should be shortlisting colleges in the same category .i.e degree course with other degree courses. (Warning - if you find you are comparing CPH with a degree course then you are probably making your decision on secondary factors and not primary ones!)

For further information on Homeopathy Courses which are Fun, Exciting and Enjoyable.

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If your primary motivation for studying homeopathy is that you just want to get a degree and homeopathy looks interesting then maybe a degree based academic course would be suitable for you. If you:

• are under 21, a University degree is probably a better bet as you can get a student loan, it will give you time to mature and explore a range of alternative and complementary medicines (but do not expect that there will be a job waiting for you on graduation – something to bear in mind when you have a loan to repay)

or

• have any severe learning difficulties or physical disabilities you should definitely consider a degree course as they have much better support systems in place than the small private providers who will not be able to match the extra support systems the Universities have access to. (Not being a confident learner is not a severe learning disability and a good course will help learn in a way that suits you best).

At this stage it is probably better to choose a course that covers a range of complementary approaches rather than specializes too early on just one area.

Also be warned some colleges are telling prospective students that a degree will be compulsory in a few years time but this is manifestly not true. (If a college tells you this – be aware – their other promises are as likely to be of the same value!).There is no intention to make a degree a requirement for entry onto a Professional Register. Indeed the sector is more concerned with whether degree based courses are capable of producing successful working homeopaths. A Degree will not lead to employment as a homeopath as there are almost no job opportunities as such for graduates in homeopathy. This is because the profession is 98% self employment – there are a few jobs in the NHS and these are normally reserved for medically qualified Doctor and Nurses with homeopathic training. Academic courses tend to focus on what is necessary to pass exams and this detracts from really understanding the underlying principles of homeopathy and how to apply them. Often leads to a very fearful student who is too frightened to practice.

At CPH our experience of current degree level courses is that they do not give the skills necessary to set up and maintain a practice. (Increasingly we are finding students who want to practice give up those courses and apply to join our courses but are at least a year behind our students).

Visit the CPH website for further information on Homeopathy, including clinics, advice, education and training http://www.college-of-practical-homeopathy.com

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If you make choices that are based on secondary factors rather than primary factors then you are likely to end up on the wrong course. The problem is people think all colleges are basically the same and therefore base their decisions on secondary factors such as location, venue, reputation, cost, individual tutors, friends etc.

Remember that choosing the wrong college and having to change can be expensive – training to be a homeopath can cost in excess of £10,000 and wasting a year on the wrong course will not only demotivate you but be expensive as well.

Our suggestion is that you get clear what your primary motivation is and then look at the secondary factors to help you decide between specific colleges.

There are three primary questions you should be asking yourself.

1) ‘Do I want a successful career as a Homeopath’

2) Do I just want to get a degree and homeopathy looks interesting?

3) Will this particular course suit me and my learning and career needs?

Whats your primary motivation - if it is

1) I want a successful career as a Homeopath’

then your first option should be to look at a practical based vocational course where your experience is taken into account and you start to see patients early on – the only real way to become a successful practitioner.

Prospective students are often confused about approaches to homeopathy – many colleges only cover the so called ‘classical’ method’ which is a bit like having a mechanic who can only work on Smart cars – there are only two colleges in the UK who provide a genuine practical training – one in North London and one in Birmingham.

For more information:

Click below to obtain or download our free guide on choosing the right course.

Visit the College of Practical Homeopathy’s ”Homeopathic Directory” to find a Cph Qualified Homeopaths, Practitioners, and Clinics in your area.

Benefit from affordable homeopathic treatment for both you and your family at the College of Practical Homeopathy’s Teaching Clinic.

Tags: alternative, complementary medicine, courses, education, health, homeopathy, location, motivation, practical homeopathy, successful career, training, tutors, venue, vocationalalternative complementary medicine courses education health homeopathy location motivation practical homeopathy successful career training tutors venue vocational