The Art of the Follow-up Appointment

You might be wondering how to get the best results from homeopathy?

Many people think a practitioner prescribes a highly individualized remedy, and then all is done. But homeopathy is not like allopathy - where you might visit a physician’s office, have them review your symptoms and make a prescription, and then you may have little contact with that physician again - unless you’re still feeling bad.

One of my teachers once said, the getting the ‘right’ (or most individualized/accurate prescription) is only 10% of the case. The rest is management.

That’s right - the rest is case management.

For practitioners of homeopathy, and other forms of complimentary medicine, case management is key to the resolution of symptoms, and seeing a person all the way to the full picture of health. This method is counter-intuitive to our society’s way of believing that you are given a pill and then the symptom should resolve, and that’s it.

Homeopathy works by stimulating the body’s immune system to heal itself. In my practice, in an intake appointment, we review the entire health history and look at every current symptom (both physical and emotional/mental) in detail. We create a complete picture of the symptoms, including, intensity/frequency/duration of each. This way, as the case progresses, we are both able to agree that we are seeing progress, as symptoms resolve.

In homeopathy we have many tools. Constitutional remedies, acute remedies, musculo-skeletal remedies, intercurrent remedies, mental/emotional remedies. The art of the follow-up requires the practitioner to work with the client in an active partnership, over a period of time, to remove layers from a case, as the person moves towards resolution of symptoms - or, homeostasis.

So, how do you get the best results from homeopathy?

  • Be committed to the process of healing - know that you are an active participant in your own health. Symptoms that took years to acquire, can take some time to resolve.

  • Commit to the follow ups - people who commit to regular monthly follow ups for AT LEAST six months, see much better results

  • Be curious about the process - ask questions, read about homeopathy - it is a fascinating system of medicine!

  • Be highly observant of yourself - keep a journal of what you notice about yourself - homeopathy can be many things at once: subtle and fast-acting. People typically notice that symptoms “fall away'“, or that they feel more in balance overall, both physically and mentally.

In health,

Lizzie

Lizzie Martinez, MA, MHom, CCH is a classically trained homeopath and integrative medicine practitioner in Austin, Texas. She treats clients around the world via TeleHealth. She is in general practice, for both chronic and acute illnesses. She has written for several national publications, and is a sought after speaker for Healthcare Independence, homeopathic education, and more. See more about her: www.lizziemartinez.com