In my last blog post, I talked about how long healing takes – and I gave a very vague review of what it might look like. The reality is that healing is different for everyone.
Over the past few months, I’ve been lucky enough to treat a patient who has demonstrated a beautiful, yet non-linear, healing journey, peeling back those layers of health. She has given me permission to share a glimpse into her journey, which has really only just begun…
June
This patient came to me in June with a history of joint pain, irritable bowel syndrome, and cysts. As time did its thing, she began to notice a worsening of these symptoms.
The main complaint today, was the joint pain in her hands, knees, and hips. A palp
able cyst was returning (which contributed to hip pain) since having surgery to remove past ones years ago. The irritable bowel remained the same as it has most of her life. Also worth noting, was that she suffered a great loss many years ago, in which the grief still remained.
Her general, daily, joint pain in June was a 5/10 on the pain scale, but it was constant and restricted her walking and general functioning – our benchmark was that she could manage about 40 minutes of walking before she would need to sit down. She would experience “wobbly” knees after too much use. Her hands would seize up about once a week, causing 9/10 pain.
I prescribed one remedy.
July
She reported that after the first dose of the remedy she felt 85% better. As the month went on, that declined to about 60-70% better.
Overall, hand seizing had not happened at all, she could do 3 hours of walking/errands without needing to rest, but the left hip/cyst pain worsened – the cyst was palpable and the pain would often wake her at night – hitting a 6-8/10 on the pain scale. (Sometimes things get worse before they get better)
Sleep had been rocky and she felt a slight fear of going to sleep. The fear was felt in her solar plexus and a tightness in her head, she connected this feeling to when she experienced that loss many years ago.
We went through a couple more remedies as she developed a cold sore, then a slight skin irritation, a cold or two. Some worked better than others and we soon returned to the original remedy after seeing it was the remedy that best suited the case.
September
She had an ultrasound for her cyst, that was booked earlier this year - there was nothing there and her hip pain was gone. A layer was removed.
We repeated the original remedy a few more times and in November, grief came to the forefront. She expressed frustration that after all these years, the grief was still there. A desire to lay in bed and cry occupied her mind. Tears would come at the slightest memory.
It should be noted that a worsening of an old symptoms, can often mean it is coming up to the surface, ready to be faced. In this situation, we had worked through many physical symptoms and now the grief was ready to be resolved. Better out than in...!
November
I prescribed a remedy specific for grief, my patient took it once, then waited.
Two days after the dose, she reported “the weight was lifted”, she stated she was able to enjoy the memories of her loved one rather than have it put her into tears. The fear of going to sleep had lessened, though still there slightly.
We’d peeled back another layer.
December
As winter hit, the joint pain became aggravated with the temperature fluctuations. I’d advised her to take the remedy acutely anytime the joints flared up - or when she saw a temperature dip was being predicted. I asked what the average joint pain was (when the weather cooperated) and she stated a 1-2/10, sometimes 0, but "...when the weather changed from cold to mild, I could barely move”. She took the remedy once and felt better by the next day.
January
This brings us to present day. The one symptom that seemed to stay stagnant was the irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), however it was also the symptom that had been around the longest, over 40 years, so likely one of her deepest layers.
As of our most recent follow up, we are now starting to see shifts in her IBS. Up until now, there was no rhyme or reason to the IBS. It would cycle between constipation and diarrhea on the daily, but she noted this past appointment that it now occurred for “only a few days” every 2-4 weeks, otherwise bowel movements were relatively uneventful.
The reason I chose to share this case, was that it outlined the layers of health that we accumulate. From the cyst, to the joint pain, to the grief, to the small ailments like cold sores and skin irritations – the process of healing is never linear and often times we cycle through a couple of remedies to get the results we need. Not everything improves at once, and it may not be immediate relief - we are complex beings with years of experiences to heal.
Be kind to your body, give it time to heal. Thank it for working hard on this journey, it's the only body you've got!
For more information on how Homeopathy can help you individually, book a curiosity call with me!
In good health,
Paula
