Eczema Chronicles: One Month

(Read Part One Here.)

(Read Part Two Here.)

This month has been pretty eventful in regards to my daughter’s atopic dermatitis.

I stopped the use of Sulphur 30X because you’re not supposed to use a remedy consistently for a long time. Now, that doesn’t mean it is no longer working, it just means I’m not using it. Without a homeopathic doctor, none of us should ever use a remedy for any long duration. There are complicated reasons for this, but the main thing to remember is that while you may need to redose later, long term continued use is rarely a good thing in homeopathy. It doesn’t usually help anyway when you use it that way, so the point is often mute. The main thing though is, I am not a homeopathic doctor, so I try to follow the OTC indications.

At one point, I was about to switch to Graphites 30X for a few days to see if that would peel another layer of Ayla’s eczema away. The Sulphur 30X had made the weeping and oozing go away, but the dry scaly looking eczema you see in adults so often was still there. I gave one dose of Graphites 30 X. And the very next day, she was having a healing reaction.  I could have considered it an aggravation and a loss, but the flare up came out following an increase of her appetite and an increase in ability to get to sleep. That meant it was healing from the inside out.  Also, the worsening was very fleeting. I didn’t even manage to get a picture of it, because I had lost my camera that day. (We’re in the middle of a move.) Lastly, it started flaring on the upper half of her body, then over the course of two days, worked its way down. Since the change happened and was dramatic, I didn’t redose.

This is one of the reasons why I think people should consult with a doctor before treating something chronic with homeopathy. Unexpected things can be confusing. Since the one dose was doing something, I did nothing more for a week except continue on with coconut oil just as a daily moisturizer.

By the end of that, this is what she looked like. Obviously much much better. But still, it was there:

After using nothing for several days and watching the rash come and go into different areas and make its way down her body, I found she was interested in more foods than she has ever been before. Also, I noticed many varieties of poops in her potty.  It was obvious her body was getting rid of stuff.

Then, while we were out at the new property we are moving to, I thought she got into some Poison Ivy.  It might not have ever been Poison Ivy, or if it was, the next remedy got to it before it could ever blister. I really have no idea. It might even have been just more healing making its way out, which I didn’t think of before I gave her this next remedy. I just panicked at the new type or leg bumps and gave her Rhus Tox. That’s what I used for Poison Ivy myself.

This accidental remedy actually seems effective in progressing her healing in a gentle way. Her itching is even less than it was after the Sulphur. Everything is even more improved than after the Graphites.  Take a look at what she looks like after a few days of Rhus Tox:

She is all peach on her arms and her legs. It’s obvious that she had had a problem in her skin there before, but it’s doing pretty well.  Her torso is completely clear now.

The only problem with this is that I don’t know if this healing was just a continuation of the Sulphur or of the Graphites or if it’s from Rhus Tox. That is PRECISELY whyI feel the next step in our journey is to contact a homeopathic doctor.  If she relapses or doesn’t continue to progress as she is, I will want to know which of the three (though it may have been all three) was most beneficial. We’ve worked with a homeopathic doctor before. The only reason we hadn’t done so when she was much younger is because we were working so closely with our pediatrician and allergist that I didn’t want to confuse the issue, knowing full well that homeopathy can make symptoms appear worse at first.

It’s been quite a journey thus far with homeopathy and my daughter’s skin. We are for sure better off because of it. More importantly, this journey has shown me that even eczema isn’t too stubborn to be healed with homeopathy. Her healing has been significant, but I’m not comfortable trying any more remedies on my own. I just don’t want to confuse things. We’re on a good path right now.  Some homeopathic remedies will cancel each other out. I don’t want to get in over my head.

Right now, I will just wait it out. I know that sometimes remedies take a while to work completely. Having introduced three remedies, I don’t want to complicate things… Mostly because this is the avenue that I am going to pursue for her. This trial has made it clear. She responds well to homeopathy for her atopic dermatitis. Now, I want to take it to the next level with a homeopathic doctor. See, another good reason to consult a homeopathic doctor when OTCs don’t fix things completely is because they have different remedies, potencies and dosages that are available to them that are not available to us OTC.

I think I would have preferred to see a homeopathic doctor for her in the beginning instead of an allergist, but when it comes right down to it, I wanted proof that my daughter had the allergies that she did because I wanted proof that we needed to stop vaccinating.  So, if I had to do it again, I don’t think I would have done it differently, but I wish I would have. As much as an advocate for natural living as I am, as much as I know my rights, I still needed that allergist’s and pediatrician’s approval. I can’t for the life of me figure out why. Reflecting on my choices and my fears, I simply can’t figure out why I wanted their approval to handle this naturally, but I did. And as much as a hypocrite as I sound right now, somehow, even now, I’m glad I got it.

 The statements in this article have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.