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Kora was a 4 yo girl with autism when I first saw her in 1999.
Her mother knew nothing about homeopathy, (and would not to this
day had my car not broke down in their neighborhood!) The circumstances
forced me to stay overnight with my aunt Linda, who was acting as
a 'respite parent' for Kora's mom.
Kora made some friendly eye contact as she lined up her toys. Her
speech was unintelligible. Linda told me Kora's problems had started
soon after receiving the MMR vaccine at 3 years of age. One of her
main difficulties at school was dealing with transitions from one
activity to another, which would lead to obstinate resistance and
temper tantrums. As I waited for the call from the repair shop,
I talked with Linda about homeopathy, and the approach we use to
deal with various problems.
I asked Linda, 'Does Kora have any fears? 'Oh yes', Linda answered,
'she's terrified of thunderstorms'. 'Hmmm'... I thought, that's
a relatively distinct symptom. 'How about foods?--Does she have
any foods she really likes or dislikes?' 'Yes', Linda said, 'she
likes spicy food, the spicier the better!'
Now I had two distinct symptoms, when 5 minutes before I had no
expectation of even taking a case!
'How about physical problems?', I asked, 'has she had any unusual
physical complaints? 'Well', Linda replied, 'she broke her foot
jumping on the trampoline'. 'Do you mean she fell off the trampoline?',
I asked. 'No', Linda answered, 'her foot broke just while she was
jumping on the trampoline itself'.
Finally, I asked Linda about any other personality characteristics
Kora demonstrated. 'Her mother tells me it drives her crazy to have
Kora always asking to go outside, and then as soon as she gets outside
she wants to come back in'.
At this point, I felt confident about the remedy choice, but the
next step was to convince the mother that a total stranger was offering
to help her daughter with some strange remedy! Her mother called
me, we talked about homeopathy and the safety of remedies, and she
decided to think about it.
I returned home, my car now repaired, and after 2 weeks had figured
Kora's mom had decided against the remedy. But a few days later
I received an excited call from Kora's mom, telling me that she'd
decided to give the remedy to Kora after all. For the first week,
Kora had experienced an aggravation of her symptoms, including irritability
and stubbornness. Her mom then said 'but after a week everything
suddenly cleared up, and for the first time Kora looked at me and
said 'Hi Mom'.'
Kora's problems with transitions began to quiet down, as did her
desire to go outside and then come back in. Her teachers at school
started noticing the difference, and began telling mom at about
three month intervals 'I think Kora needs that homeopathy remedy
again'. Likewise, Kora's speech therapist was so impressed she called
me to ask more about what had been done.
The rubrics I used were:
Mind: Fear of thunderstorms
Mind: When at home, desires to go out, and when out, desires to
go home
Generalities: Desires spicy food
Generalities: Bones, complaints of, brittle
The remedy chosen was the very well known Calcarea Phosphoricum.
She was given a single dose 1M, and she's continued to do
well with this same potency. She gets repeat doses about every 3
months as indicated by an early return of stubborn behaviors, etc.
This was one of the most gratifying experiences I've ever experienced
in homeopathy, and demonstrates how a remedy can enhance other supportive
modalities for children with special needs. When Kora first began
with the homeopathy about 4 years ago, she was at the first percentile
for overall cognitive and social development, in spite of having
participated in adjunctive therapies for the previous year. With
each successive evaluation since that time, that number has increased
so that now she's at the twenty-seventh percentile. Her mother and
father regard the homeopathy as a miracle, and her mom is willing
to speak to anyone about her experience.
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David A. Johnson CCH, RSHom (NA) is a certified
classical homeopath and professional member of the North American
Society of Homeopaths. He completed his homeopathic training at
the International Foundation for Homeopathy and the Northwestern
Academy of Homeopathy. He taught clinical medicine at the University
of Wisconsin and Augsburg College Physician Assistant Programs,
and is an instructor at the Northwestern Academy of Homeopathy in
Minneapolis. E-mail daj@chorus.net.
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