Publisher – Narayana Verlag
First English Edition 2016
ISBN-978-3-95582-092-3
Translated from the Spanish by Sandra Benassini
960 pages
Price – 36 Euros
Weight – 720g
This is a mammoth work. The list of the advisory team and collaborators comes to three pages. In the foreword by Denise Collins we are told that this is the second edition – the first edition being written 15 years previously – and that Manuel presents various solutions to emergency problems which include insights into Chinese medicine as well as standard allopathic and homeopathic approaches. Major emergency situations are covered and also situations such as deep sea diving and mountaineering. There is also a Foreword by the President of the AMBH in Barcelona, Maite Bravo.
In the Preface by the author we are told that what motivated him to write a First Aid Manual was his experiences with mountaineering accidents, including one he recounts, in which he was responsible. He also explains the new additions to this edition which include the incorporation of conventional medicine, and Diver’s disease, jet lag and prophylaxis. There are revisions in the sections on radiation injuries and poisonings, and 64 new remedies have been added to the Materia Medica in addition to the 128 remedies of the first edition. There is a Quick Guide at the beginning of each section. A version of this book for smart phones is being prepared with links to more detailed information.
The introduction is the usual fare which is ubiquitous for homeopathy books, i.e. All about homeopathy. The second part is an interesting read about the use of the spoken word as a therapy. He quotes many famous people here, from Freud to Kent and gives cases treated with ‘psycho-homeopathy’. I loved the one on how to stop thumb sucking and will try it with my grandchildren. The third part of the introduction is The Scientific Evidence for Homeopathy.
The second section of this book is Resuscitation in Emergencies and includes assessment, cardio arrest, Automated External Defibrillator (AED) and the usefulness of homeopathy and acupuncture in emergencies. In the 4th part of this section is a very useful chart in which the first column is Pathology, a second column on how to deal with that pathology by conventional medication and a third column of Homeopathic Remedies and Acupuncture e.g. Electric Shock/ CPR/ Nux Vom and Pressure point R1. At the end of this section he gives the dosages for the conventional drugs he has suggested (if any) for the Pathology and there are diagrams of how to locate the acupuncture points.
The third section is Accidents, beginning with the Quick Guide of the trauma and suitable remedies. He then goes through each trauma and discusses it and the remedies in detail. We are told how he compared Arnica 30 with the 10MK potency and found that the 10MK works with a greater efficiency.
Wound healing is described in a similar way. The author explains a simple way of relieving the pain from phantom limbs using a mirror. Tetanus prevention is discussed here and he even deals with scars and keloids which are beyond an emergency wound. There are sections on haemorrhages, sprains, dislocations, shock, fractures, head injuries, coma, dental, chemical injuries and so much more.
There are sub sections on post trauma injuries e.g. spinal, surgery; rabies prevention, bites and stings including specific remedies for specific snakes, in fact you name it and it is there! There is a big subsection on accidents involving mountains, including high altitude. Underwater problems are also discussed, such s decompression. There is also what I see as a tropical section all about cholera and dysentery which continues with a discussion on botulism and poisonous mushrooms. Following this are the emotional traumas, where many situations are discussed such as grief, financial stress, work, status and sexual abuse. Many of these sub sections include case histories which are always interesting for homeopaths to read, especially if you are like me and want to see if you arrive at the same remedy! Finally there is a sub section on prophylaxis for travellers which includes side effects from vaccines.
The penultimate section is about building a first aid kit, from basic to expert to expedition and a complementary kit for mountains, sailing and diving, and radioactivity.
The last section is the very comprehensive Materia Medica of 192 remedies which will be so useful to have in my clinic, even for non first aid cases. Many remedies start with a description of what it is and where it comes from, as well as keynotes of the mental and emotionals, physicals and modalities. Good use is made of highlighted words with a bold font so they spring to view easily.
Overall this book is an amazing resource for the home as well as a travel companion and a necessity for the clinic. I know I will refer to it frequently.
First Aid with Homeopathy contains a massive amount of information in a compact size. My only concern was that the paper seemed a little thin because as I was reading through it, the pages were getting the well-thumbed look. However, for the purposes of this review I tried to tear the page slightly and found it far more difficult than I thought! This shows a good quality paper has been used.
Who is this comprehensive work for? In one word, everyone, be they laymen, traveller, homeopathic student or experienced professional homeopath.
