If You Can’t Stand the Heat … Grab the Belladonna

Whew! Summer has come with a vengeance, hasn’t it? Indeed, as most of the United States bakes in a meteorological oven, it’s hard to get my mind off the subject of heat.

So, what homeopathic medicine do we think of when we think of painful symptoms involving redness and extreme heat?

Why, Belladonna, of course!

I’ve written about Belladonna many times before, and what all of those posts have in common are symptoms with significant components of heat and pain.

Keep in mind that Belladonna is not a moderate medicine. So, I’m not talking about a bit of warmth; I’m talking about extremely HOT! (Yes … all caps with an exclamation point!) Plus, a case for Belladonna is generally not just a little ouchy; it’s downright PAINFUL! (Again, with all capital letters and a big ol’ exclamation point!)

Let’s review what we’ve already discussed in blogs past. Belladonna is generally considered for the pain associated with cases affecting soft tissues, such as tonsilitis or strep throat, otitis media (ear infection) or swimmer’s ear, pressure-induced ear pain, conjunctivitis, tooth pain, sinus pain, gout, boils, violent eruptions of prickly heat, skin infections, ingrown toenails, headaches and even migraines.

And, of course, Belladonna is a premier medicine for fevers. (Remember, HOT! and PAINFUL!) But don’t fall prey to commercial medicine’s viewpoint that every fever should be reduced. No. Fevers are a natural reaction to disease and illness — a necessary reaction! I urge you to re-read my blog post “Get Your Kids High: Fever Is Good” to refresh your memory on my opinion on fevers, based on the work of several excellent conventional doctors.

So, I could just close out this blog post now, having made a fairly impressive case for including Belladonna in one’s homeopathy kit in the 30^th potency.*

However, let’s get back to the subject at hand. It’s hot outside!

When heat creeps into the triple digits, the vulnerable among us are often susceptible to hyperpyrexia, otherwise known as heat stroke, heat prostration, sunstroke or heat exhaustion. No matter what one calls it, the symptoms can be any combination of weakness, dizziness, redness and severe headache.

Obviously, we approach this condition with common sense solutions, such as rehydrating and getting out of the heat and sun. However, homeopathy, as always, is a good adjunct to prudent self-care.

Keeping in mind our clues of HOT! and PAINFUL!, Belladonna 30 has been shown to address hyperpyrexia when employed every 2-6 hours, gradually expanding the time between doses to twice daily until very much better. However, if the effects of the heat have created a more severe, acute situation, then perhaps utilizing this medicine every 15 minutes for the first hour is worth consideration before stretching it out to 2-6 hours, then twice daily.

There’s also more information on heatstroke in an older blog I wrote called “Sickening Summer,” which provides a few other considerations and differentials.

It’s important to always keep in mind that homeopathy is medicine — not a vitamin or herbal supplement. Belladonna is not used because it’s hot outside, but rather for specific pathologies that arise after becoming considerably overheated.

Additionally, the chosen dosing schedule should reflect our respect for homeopathy as a medicine. We employ homeopathics only when needed and only as often as needed. Then we back off as improvement ensues, halting the medicine completely when we are very much better.

And as each Remedy Card clearly states (scroll down to get your free Remedy Card for this condition), as always, halt the use of any homeopathic if there’s no improvement.

But when the condition displays extreme pain and heat — with capital letters and exclamation points — we know where to turn. Indeed, if we can’t stand the heat, we grab the Belladonna. So, keep it handy in your homeopathy kit, especially in this broiling summer.

Try to stay cool, my friends. You might want to try my sons’ homemade electrolyte rehydration beverage. It’s a yummy way to avoid heat prostration in the first place.

Pass on the good news of homeopathy!

Warmly,

*Some of the older blogs may mention lower potencies of Belladonna that are now very challenging to purchase because of the FDA’s recent assaults on homeopathy … at the behest of Big Pharma, I’m guessing. But generally, the 30^th potency will suffice if that’s all one can procure.

P.S. Annual subscribers to Joette’s Mighty Members, your free gift is available now. Yes, it’s another downloadable eBook, a “Remedy Reference Guide” of all of my blog posts from 2022. Add it to your Mighty Members collection of previous years’ blog posts, all the way back to 2013!

The power grid often succumbs to weather as hot as this. So, storing my blog posts offline will allow you to look up conditions and medicines even when the internet is down. It’s a great way to remain self-reliant and Mighty in any circumstance.

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