Using Homeopathy While Breastfeeding

 

 

Mother’s Day was last Sunday.

While it may be over for some, I still have mothers on my mind. In fact, I’ve decided to devote the entire month of May to the unique needs of moms.

Seldom is there a dearer bonding time for a mother and child than nursing. But because nursing is so precious, the pressure on a new mother may feel overwhelming, and difficulties may seem all the more burdensome.

I previously discussed the homeopathic remedies that should generally be avoided or used with caution during pregnancy in my blog post, Answering Questions: Homeopathy During Pregnancy.

However, since then many of you have asked if there are homeopathic medicines that should not be used during breastfeeding.

Let me begin with this: Homeopathy is medicine, meaning it should be used with the respect that it deserves and within the context of its intended use.

For example, there are homeopathic medicines that are specifically for drying up mother’s milk. If one were to use these medicines, I would expect an appropriate response. If taken with little regard for their power, the response may not be what one is seeking. So, we don’t use medicine for drying up milk if the goal is to produce an abundant amount.

Having said this, for garden variety conditions (such as coughs, colds, injuries, emotional concerns, etc.), I can’t think off the top of my head of a medicine that could be of any consequence to the ability to nurse.

However, as you might imagine, specific homeopathic remedies can be very beneficial if needed.

Bryonia, for example, is a stellar match for breast issues. Here’s a writer-downer:

Think “BB” — Breasts and Bryonia.

Breast pain is well-met with Bryonia 30, twice daily until very much better. It’s certainly not the only medicine that could be used, but it’s one of the first we at least consider.

I discussed mastalgia in more detail several years ago in Breast Pain: When Even Hugs Hurt.

What’s mastalgia? It’s simply a 25-cent word for breast pain. Sometimes, medical terms make conditions sound more complex than they are. I’ve had clients say, “I have painful breasts, but what if it’s mastalgia?” as though there were a sinister diagnosis lurking around the corner.

No. Certain medical terms mean precisely what the symptoms describe. The term mastalgia is derived from the Greek word “mastos,” meaning breast and the Greek word “algos,” meaning pain.

Mast-algia. Breast-pain.

In the same manner, some people think, “I don’t have arthritis; I just have joint pain.”

Well, what do you think “arthritis” means? It’s New Latin derived from the Greek words “arthron,” meaning joint, and “itis,” meaning inflammation. If you have inflamed, painful joints, you have arthritis.

In my years of practice, I have observed that it’s human nature for folks to surmise that their condition is unusual or rare. However, in most cases, your illness is not unique. It’s been suffered before, and it has been treated before with homeopathy.

For mastalgia (breast pain) — regardless of cause from menarche to menopause — the homeopathic answer is generally Bryonia 30. Even when boys passing through puberty have sensitive or swollen breast tissue, we turn to Bryonia 30, again twice daily until very much better.

But Bryonia also has another use applicable to breasts. When there is a lack of milk supply during nursing, Bryonia 30 twice a day can help encourage more milk to come in.

Of course, as is the nature of homeopathy, there is more than one way to skin a cat. Other remedies can help increase milk supply.

For instance, many women also have great success with Cinchona officinalis 200 (China 200) twice a day. However, be watchful should you choose this medicine. China can create such an abundance of milk that the baby can become apprehensive about latching on, as though to say, “Yikes! Here comes Niagara Falls!” So, keep in mind, you’re only trying to feed one baby — not feed a nation! Once the remedy has shown improvement, we often halt its use and resume only if/when needed.

A thorough education in homeopathy will help you narrow down which homeopathic medicine would be best applied in your particular situation, taking all of your concomitant symptoms into consideration.

In honor of all moms this month, I am relaunching Feminopathy: How You Can Correct Female Ailments Using Safe, Inexpensive and Effective Homeopathy at a special 10% discount. Consider it my Mother’s Day gift to you! We spend so much of our time and energy nurturing others in our family and community, we sometimes don’t prioritize taking care of ourselves!

If you are going to be the healer in your family, you’d best be healthy yourself!

I recommend that you master addressing your own needs first through my Feminopathy course. Future family illnesses will be no match for a mom who has kept herself in tiptop shape.

And remember — all of my Mighties (Joette’s Mighty Members) qualify for an additional 10% discount on course purchases. If you need assistance getting your discount, email contact@practicalhomeopathy.com for more information.

Armed with a more profound knowledge of homeopathy, you will become the hero among your family and friends.

What better way to pass on the good news of homeopathy?!

 

Warmly, 

 

P.S. Download my free infographic: The Three Feminopathy Fates: 13 Common Conditions, 13 Practical Solutions. It’s just the tip of the iceberg of what you’ll learn in the course, but a helpful reference guide for you to print and keep at hand.

P.P.S. Some moms find they lose too much fluid during breastfeeding, especially in the hot summer months in warmer climes. As a follow-up to this article, later this week, I will share with my Mighty Members a wonderful testimonial from a student who resolved her dehydration with help from homeopathy. Watch for it on Thursday, Mighties!