By now you may be aware that homeopathic remedies are not to be confused with herbal medicines. Homeopathic medicines, whilst using many plant remedies, is not exclusively focussed on the plant kingdom. Samuel Hahnemann's (the founder of homeopathy) great legacy included the discovery that any substance when 'potentised' could act as a remedy. Thus, we use susbstances from the animal kingdom, the mineral kingdom and even ethereal energies (which we call imponderables).
One fascinating and yet amazingly useful subset of remedies are the MATRIDONALS. These are remedies prepared from substances such as mother's milk, placenta, amniotic fluid, umbilicus, folliculinum, hormones and vernix.
Lorraine Grayston MCPH MARH beautifully expresses the process of our gradual separation from our mother:
Being born means ‘taking on’ a body, mind and emotions and heralds the self as a unique and distinct individual with our own unique birth chart and life experience that colours our thoughts and emotional being, our individual experience of life. As we journey through life we can move further and further away from a sense of who we really are and the connection to the all-that-is. Our journey becomes remembering the journey home, remembering that all things are connected, all things share the same breath.
Here are a few of these remedies and their indications:
LAC HUMANUM - this is the milk from one mother. Its themes are related to the feeling of separation and nourishment. Often the patients that need this feel needy, they crave cuddles and attention or they push it away. They can feel detached from everything. They may have digestive problems like IBS. This remedy can look a bit like Pulsatilla in its outlook.
LAC MATERNUM - is the milk from a number of lactating mothers combined. The picture is one of not having fully incarnated. They may be an IVF baby. They feel foggy, confused about their identity, unsure of their boundaries. They may be clumsy and have difficulty thinking. Men who need this remedy may feel insecure about their masculinity.
OXYTOCIN - this is the 'cuddle hormone'. Its role is to ensure bonding. We produce Oxytocin when we are having sex and intimate relations. These patients either reject touch, hugs etc or they have a deep craving for touch.
PLACENTA - This important connection between mother and baby enables nourishnment to be passed from the mother to the foetus and waste products to be taken away. In homeopathy it can be used where there is a relationship between two people that carries on even though officially the relationship is over. For example where one partner is dependent on another for financial security. Or where a person just wants to curl up and withdraw from life. There is often a lot of resentment, anger towards the partner or parents.
UMBILICUS - Often useful where a person is undergoing some transition where they are becoming more themself. For example, giving up drugs. The cord has been cut and the person regains some independence. However, there is often a lot of pain and resentment felt by the patient towards anyone involved in birthing who have unintentionally hurt them.
Matridonal remedies are an absolutely essential part of the homeopath's materia medica.
I would like to end this blog with another quote from Lorraine Grayston:
"Being born means ‘taking on’ a body, mind and emotions and heralds the self as a unique and distinct individual with our own unique birth chart and life experience that colours our thoughts and emotional being, our individual experience of life.... Homeopathy can and does meet and celebrate this uniqueness, this diversity – and the matridonal remedies can help us as individuals to both remember this uniqueness and our connection to the all-that-is."
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