Wise Traditions Winter 2016

In Praise of Menfolk, A Homeopathic Thank You

Joette Calabrese, HMC, CCH, RSHom

Published in Wise Traditions, Winter 2016, “Homeopathic support for menfolk”

Maybe it’s because I’m a mother who has raised three boys of my own. Or it simply could be my observations as a former feminist who has mended her ways. But have you noticed that men have been coming up with the short end of the stick in the last decade or so? I have.

For instance, there are programs specifically designed to help girls enter the sciences; large companies are obliged to hire a certain quota of women while men get overlooked; and then there’s the way the education system approaches boyish behavior in grade schools. The expectation is that boys need to act more like girls.

It saddens me that we don’t celebrate masculinity enough and instead berate men and expect them to “chick-a-fy.” Indeed, in Western countries the tide against women turned in their favor decades ago. As such, I sometimes wonder whether female entitlement programs are undermining men.

THERE’S A DIFFERENCE!

In case anyone has failed to notice, men are different than women…and if I may say, delightfully so! I witness these differences every day in my practice. Although the homeopathic medicines I use are not always different depending upon the sexes—arthritis is met with Rhus tox whether it’s found in a woman’s fingers or a man’s knees—there are cavernous differences in the homeopathic choices for men’s versus women’s emotions and hormones, for example. Allow me to elaborate. When a woman is experiencing emotional turmoil, such as feeling overwhelmed by her motherly duties, the medicine that most often corrects the problem is Sepia 200 or Ignatia 200. But when a man is overwhelmed by his responsibilities, he is frequently helped by the medicine Aurum metallicum 200.

GOLD METAL FOR MEN

Aurum metallicum (homeopathic gold) is an appropriate choice given that men often work in demanding fields that require a stoic posture, and it can be a homeopathic savior if these stresses result in depression and a state of feeling overwhelmed. “The patient may feel no connection to life, existing in a dark and isolated void,” says Roger Morrison of Aurum metallicum in his Desktop Guide to Homeopathy. Those in need of this medicine report an inescapable desire to step away from responsibilities. This is often accompanied by chronic fatigue. Even if a man suffers only from chronic fatigue, the medicine has been shown to address it.

Interestingly, Aurum metallicum is also one of our most prominent medicines for loss of male sexual prowess. It is called for when there’s a low sperm count, lack of sexual desire and impotency. It is also one of our best homeopathic medicines for angina, particularly palpitations that are worse at night as the result of emotions and anxiety. It’s not uncommon to see this list of sufferings all connected to the same man. Using Aurum metallicum 200 once every other day for a period of many weeks will often set a man straight.

FOR QUIET ANGUISH

Another medicine that is a powerful antidote to the woes of men is Staphysagria. In today’s climate of high unemployment for males, with women more readily hired in the workplace, many men find themselves at home for months, even years, after being laid off. This demoralizing state can cause a quiet anguish. Even after finding a job, this mental state can leave men more susceptible to physical ailments, as well as continually troubled emotions. Such sufferings are palpable and can result in depression, self-deprecation and shame. Staphysagria 200 can restore men’s optimism, thus helping to point them in the right direction. In my experience, Staphysagria 200 taken once per day for days, weeks and even months, in some cases, is enough to pick a man up off his knees by offering hope of a brighter future.

Can any of these medicines be useful for women, too? Certainly. However, men suffer differently than women.

REPRODUCTIVE CONCERNS

Take men’s reproductive concerns: prostatitis, which is inflammation occurring in the prostate gland, is a common condition in older men that is best met with the homeopathic medicine Thuja occidentalis. It consistently has helped reduce inflammation, and also correct urinary suppression and many other male urinary and prostate disorders. We are directed by Dr. William Boericke in Pocket Manual of Homeopathic Materia Medica that “Thuja occidentalis is particularly curative of pain and burning felt near the neck of the bladder with frequent and urgent desire to urinate, as well as general prostatic enlargement.” It also happens to be a principal medicine for men who have been over-vaccinated, such as those who have served in the armed forces.

I’m reminded of Albert, who was told by his doctor that the swollen state of his prostate was such that it needed to be treated or else he would be more likely to contract cancer in the future. An interesting aside is that the Stanford University-associated website Pelvic Pain Help declares, “Most of the men we see who have been diagnosed with prostatitis are type A personality, successful, intelligent, ambitious and responsible.” Perhaps this fact was not taken into consideration when Albert’s doctor prescribed antibiotics in spite of not finding a bacterial infection. Albert used his type A personality to seek a more intelligent solution. That’s when he found Thuja occidentalis 30 and took it twice daily for about two months. He also took Saba serrulata 6X each day within a few minutes of taking the Thuja.

The second night after taking the two medicines was significant because Albert slept all night without waking to urinate his usual three to four times. Not having any prior experience with homeopathy, he chalked it up to coincidence. By the following week, though, when the sensation of sitting on a rubber ball had diminished and the urgency and dribbling had improved, he was so impressed that he shared the good news with his brother who suffered from the same condition, and his brother, too, resolved it with Thuja occidentalis 30 and Sebal serrulata 6X.

A GESTURE OF APPRECIATION

Despite our society’s decades-old battle against masculinity, I’m not worried about men. That’s because I believe they have testicular fortitude. Indeed, how else would they have forged the seas, traversed the skies, built and piloted planes, composed great symphonies and conquered foes for the good of their families and society? Allow me to offer this small gesture of appreciation with tiny pills of homeopathy to the sex that has achieved so much and that I believe deserves our deepest respect and care. It’s the least that I, as a woman, can do to show my gratitude.

This article appeared in Wise Traditions in Food, Farming and the Healing Arts, the quarterly magazine of the Weston A. Price Foundation, Winter 2016.