The reason for writing this post is to clarify when to use what homeopathic medicine for pain. Arnica Montana, in recent years, has become a household name for pain. Arnica is the “go to” homeopathic medicine that massage therapists, sports enthusiasts and, even more recently, plastic surgeons use for pain, bruising and inflammation. Arnica works very well for pain from muscle injuries, surgical trauma and overworked muscles.
Even though I recommend it regularly and have used it many times for minor acute trauma, I had an opportunity about a year and a half ago to really test arnica’s abilities. I sliced my foot open as I walked past a pole saw, yes, I was more worried that my cat was chasing a squirrel, and; therefore, was not paying attention to where I was going, I was wearing sandals so I sliced open the top of my foot, and I might say, quite cleanly to the bone, that is, if a dirty pole saw can make a “clean cut.” I had never seen what the skin tissue layers look like live, but was so intrigued years back when The Body Exhibit came to Tampa Florida.
The three inch slice on the top of my foot included a severed tendon to the pinky toe. Before I really even saw the open wound on my foot, I reached down and covered it knowing I had to stop the bleeding. I dragged myself inside so I could get my arnica and took a 1m potency. It didn’t take but a few minutes and a few doses before I felt no pain and then felt confident the bleeding had stopped.
While waiting a week for insurance approval, I continued to take the appropriate homeopathic and herbal medicines for each different tissue involved in the injury. Arnica for muscle tissue and inflammation, but I also had tendon and nerve damage that required their own medicines. Hypericum for the nerves and Ruta for the tendons. My surgeon was not confident he would be able to find the tendon ends 9 days after the injury without making a vertical cut up my leg and warned me I may have an extra wound and scar to deal with. He was also not confident that the tendon would heal after being apart for 9 days.
Post surgery was most amazing to me. As soon as I was awake and able, I took four homeopathic medicines to begin the process, arnica from the trauma of the surgery to stop inflammation, bleeding and pain, Ruta for the tendon, Hypericum for the nerve pain and damage and Calendula for the skin. I did not need pain drugs and only took a few doses of these homeopathic remedies and didn’t have any pain for the first two weeks after surgery. One night two weeks after surgery, I woke with a pretty strong pain and took arnica and went back to bed. Three weeks after surgery and the removal of the stitches and the pin in the pinky toe, I was told I would wear a boot for about nine weeks after surgery as tendons heal slow, but three weeks and four days after surgery, I was confident my foot was healed, and I began my rehabilitation.
If you have interest in learning more about homeopathic medicines for injuries, colds, flus, allergies and more, contact me at 305-812-1844 or theresagilmoreap@att.net. I also help my patients build a first aid kit so they can quickly treat at home.