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Homeopathy for sports, exercise and dance

2003; Elsevier BV; Volume: 26; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/s0161-4754(02)54102-6

1532-6586

Jonice M. Owen,

Complementary and Alternative Medicine Studies

With an on-going search for effective natural alternatives that help with pain management while speeding healing time, many practitioners implement homeopathy in their treatment regimens. Homeopathy is widely used as an adjunct to many physical medicine practices. When implementing any treatment method into practice, it is essential to familiarize oneself with homeopathy by obtaining adequate training, exposure, and reference texts upon which to rely. In today’s fast-paced practice setting, we must also be able to adapt homeopathic application and prescription to our practice. Finding modern, easy to use homeopathic texts that may be readily referred to during a workday is problematic. Homeopathy for Sports, Exercise and Dance is a viable solution to this dilemma. This well-written book was formatted in a manner which makes it easy to “quick find” information, and it is also a great cover-to-cover read. It is the type of book you may add to your reference shelf if you are new to homeopathy and want to jump right in. If you are a veteran homeopath you may also find the text worthwhile. The author’s method of prescribing homeopathic preparations for sports-related treatment is useful in a range of chiropractic and sports situations. This modern homeopathic book, focused on musculoskeletal issues, appears to be the best currently available text of its kind. The text is broken down into sections that outline homeopathy, sport’s injuries, and homeopathic treatment applications. Further organization include the following: homeopathic intervention in first aid, homeopathic intervention for specific sports injuries, homeopathic treatment of common athlete-related conditions, and a brief but comprehensive description of applicable homeopathic remedies (a Materia Medica section). Three aspects of this book that I found to be of great benefit were the thorough yet simple explanation of homeopathy, illustrative case histories, and a continual focus on the holistic health approach. To elaborate, this text is addressed to a wide range of readers, such as sports physicians, athletes, team sports coaches, and an array of sports and exercise instructors. The informational approach is directed to a broad cross-section of the sports world without losing application for the advanced homeopathic practitioner. It clearly describes homeopathy: where it came from, how it is used, and how to use it yourself (or how your athletic patients and local trainers are using it). The many case descriptions of specific sports injuries include information about the injuries, indications for using homeopathic intervention, and the specific response and follow-up of each sports enthusiast; this may be useful for self-instruction and patient instruction. Lastly, homeopathy, like chiropractic, looks at the whole person. In the case of sports and specific-area injuries, local attention is applied with the focus of the total athlete. This attribute compliments the whole-athlete approach of many sports physicians. Lastly, the author gives an adequate description of various strengths or “potencies” used in homeopathy. He uses his style of treatment/remedies strengths, which may be appropriate for those new to this field. However, if the reader has a more extensive homeopathic background, the treatment recommendations may be overlooked and replaced with your clinical experience and or preferred method of giving remedies. There are 3 areas of the book I found to be drawbacks: This book was written with a United Kingdom (UK) readership in mind; it is a textbook and it renders homeopathic strength/potency recommendations which those familiar to homeopathy may disagree with. This book was written in Wales and oriented to UK readers, especially osteopathic physicians who are more prevalent in that region than chiropractic physicians. Further, Appendix I for Homeopathic Suppliers and Organizations is oriented to UK readers. There are no diagrams in this book, and a picture is worth a thousand words. Therefore, we must refer to illustrated materials in other sources to clarify points made in the book, perhaps not a great drawback for many readers. For the most part, this is a great source book for homeopathy. This book explains many homeopathic concepts and practices for those involved in physical medicine, sports medicine and/or sport-related activities; it is an excellent addition to any reference shelf. If you are not using these remedies, you may still find the book useful as a reference. Many of your patients may be using these remedies, and you will be able to inform yourself to their benefit.