I just wanted to praise Jennifer for finally getting me a good night’s sleep after almost 3 years of my children’s night waking and night terrors. Hopefully it’ll help somebody else.
I have a 3 year old that has been suffering from night terrors, for the past 18 months since her little brother was born. When he was born, he started with being hospitalised at 2 weeks for bronchialitis for a couple of weeks, then colic and then it turns out he’s allergic to everything, from dairy to dust mites. I was at my wits end, because he just screamed 24/7 and when he would finally get to sleep, my daughter would start with the horrific night terrors, which would mean hysteria for anything up to 45 mins.
My sister suggested a homeopath (I had already tried cranial osteopathy and everything else to no avail), and so was slightly dubious, but how wrong was I. I went to Jennifer Gordon in Ballsbridge (086 359 4557) who listened to me for an hour whining about my kids, and was so sympathetic and understanding. She gave me a couple of different things to try for both kids and my god the difference in both of them is unbelievable.
The medicine for the night terrors worked immediately and we had our first full calm night for her in months and she now only gets them maybe once every 2 weeks. My son’s eczema cleared up within the week and he is without a doubt a different child. Happy, calm, everything you could wish for. Anyway, I know this sounds like an ad for Jennifer, and I swear it’s not, but she just improved our life to such a degree that I think she deserves some praise and hopefully if anyone is thinking of homeopathy this will give them the push to give it a go. Anyway, I’m now like a bloody missionary, boring all my friends about it by spreading the good word! — Female, age 27
Once again I am reminded in my practice where homeopathy can fill the gap, where conventional medicine and treatments are unsafe or ineffective, when it comes to treatments for babies suffering from colic pains and other problems in assimilation and digestion.
In the past month, I have seen weeks-old babies crying or screaming for hours each day or night, struggling with wind and explosive bowel movements, or twisting and turning in a futile attempt to relieve pain from cramping. In some cases the babies are being breastfed so issues around formula intolerance or incompatibility are not a factor. This is often especially difficult for the breastfeeding mother as she can begin to wonder if something is wrong with her breast milk or her own diet. She can feel as if she is doing what is best for her baby by nursing, only to watch her baby suffer and scream in pain. I am always very supportive of the mother to continue nursing as we begin to treat the baby to improve their digestion and assimilation.
Coping with a baby who spends hours crying in pain with no apparent consolation can be exhausting, both physically and emotionally, for both parents. These parents come to me depleted on every level and frustrated because nothing seems to help their child, and hours of crying or screaming feel unbearable. Conventional doctors say that many babies will ‘grow out of it’ within 12 to 16 weeks, but this can feel like a lifetime for the exhausted parents hoping this will be the case.
As a homeopath, I am looking at why the baby is in pain with the intent of improving their overall digestion, assimilation and elimination. Unlike conventional medical practitioners, I am not looking at symptoms except as indicators of what homeopathic remedies might address the underlying causes, by stimulating the baby’s own innate healing process or immune response.
Details as to what the baby is like when he or she is in pain (twisting, arching back, drawing her legs in, etc.), the time that the pain is at its worst, any relief from a bowel movement or passing wind , among others, will lead me to choose a remedy that is most similar (homeopathic) to her symptoms. Even the smallest detail will help me to select one remedy over another. For example, the common colic remedy Colocynthis (made from the bitter cucumber) addresses pains during which the baby draws her legs up and inwards. The remedy Dioscorea (made from the wild yam) addresses colic pains in which the baby arches backward. The precise symptoms, from a homeopathic viewpoint, are very specific indicators of what the body needs to heal itself.
Homeopathic remedies are made from highly-diluted substances derived from plants, animals, or minerals and are safe to take when pregnant or nursing, and in the treatment of babies and children, and alongside conventional medications.
While colic pains can initiate a visit to the doctor to rule out a serious condition, I have had a great deal of success with parents reporting a significant improvement in their baby’s condition within hours, and in some cases complete relief within weeks, which in turn improves the baby’s overall mood and restores sleep patterns. One mother told me only last week that it was as if she ‘got her baby back’ — another example of the power of homeopathy!
