More About Antidoting

I get a lot of questions about antidoting of the remedy. What substances will effect the remedy and will it antidote? The word antidote means to counteract. This would indicate that the substance is capable of antidoting the remedy and counteracting it. Most people consider the "it" to be the remedy.

This is misunderstood by most people including homeopaths. If the remedy is nothing but an energetic vibration that has become part of the material substrate of water, with a very small amount of alcohol to prevent the growth of bacteria and algae, then the antidoting substance in question is not mixing chemically in our bodies and counteracting the remedy. There is nothing there for it to counteract since the persons vital force has either accepted the remedy energy or not.

If there is resonance with the energetic remedy then the vital force can respond. This IS the healing response and the secondary action of the remedy. Too often we assume that the remedy is like a drug that has material substance and is circulated in the body. By taking coffee or some other "antidoting" substance it makes the remedy stop working.

The remedy never is actively doing anything. It is the vital forces response to the remedy that is interfered with, not the remedy. If the vital force is no longer in response, after it has been responding, we too often refer to this as "antidoting". This term is a bit of a mistake because it is linked to the remedy and not the person.

There are many different ways to antidote or counteract a persons response to the remedy. Coffee is a substance that is well know to interfere with the vital force response to the remedy. I am unsure what is in coffee that effects the person. It most likely is some alkaloid since a person can drink tea that is caffeinated and not suffer the same as coffee.

Other common substances are camphor, strong smelling oils as in essential oils, strong smelling fumes as from paint or turpentine, etc., herbs and herbal formulas, and drugs, over the counter as well as prescription, especially psychoactive drugs. Some say chocolate, mint, and other foods can be listed in the antidotes.

The remedies themselves can be altered by some of these same substances. This would be antidoting the remedy. If the remedy is exposed to strong sunlight, strong electromagnetic fields, x-ray, microwave etc. it can alter the energy of the remedy in the bottle. This is true antidoting.

The reality is that anything can antidote the person. Anything that can alter or shift the energy of the person is enough to change the vital force expression and the response to the remedy is no longer present. Strong emotional events as in the loss of a loved one, physical trauma, prolonged stressful situations, etc. can all shift the vital force away from the response to the remedy.

When this is noticed it is appropriate to repeat the last dose of the remedy taken, usually in the same potency. If repeated interference is keeping the person from the healing response then a higher potency may be necessary to re-inspire the vital force. If a situation is so prolonged as to render the prescribed remedy useless then the case must be re-received and and a new remedy found.

It is important in starting any new case to have the person remove as much of the potential "antidoting"substances from their lives as possible. This includes their ingestion as well as protecting the remedy in the bottle. Otherwise it is difficult to know if the person is in response to the remedy or to the "antidoting" agent.

Drugs are so commonly prescribed that most clients these days are taking them when coming to see the homeopath. Clear cases without any influences are very rare. I find that when a person has been on a drug there is a habitual and usual response to the drug that becomes a part of the persons case. These drugs seldom contribute to antidoting. The reason for this is that being a part of the persons picture of disease it is incorporated into the present disease expression.

In an ideal world it would be nice if every client was not taking drugs and a purer picture of disease could be known, but this is just not the case. I find that if the correct and best remedy is given there is a noticeable response from the person. They will be able to talk about changes during their follow-ups. It is always good to eventually have the person work with their prescribing physician to stop the drug therapy. Sometimes this is harder to accomplish than not, but it is always the goal.

Because drugs have the ability to suppress some symptoms, but never heal, the temporary relief that people receive sometimes makes them reluctant to remove the drug. I hear often how a person is feeling better after taking their remedy and that they thought they didn't need it anymore. This can happen even after explaining the healing process to them. I will ask if they are taking their drugs and they will say yes. They just didn't want to stop them. So education is equally as important to good homeopathic treatment as the remedy is.

Another common behavior happens when a person drinks coffee or does something that they have been warned about that could interfere with their treatment; they will again stop the remedy. The idea in their mind is that they shouldn't take the remedy if they drank coffee etc. This again requires educating them as to the process of their healing and the importance of taking the remedy.

In the end the whole issue of antidoting has to do with a persons sensibilities. In the acute sense, this is in regards to their reactive nature to strong influences or to their sensibilities in understanding the healing process.

As homeopaths we need to have a very clear sense ourselves of what antidoting is. We need to be able to ask the right questions in regards to what the person has experienced if we suspect that some part of the healing response has stopped. We also need to be able to educate our clients so they can benefit from a a continued healing response of the vital force and avoid this idea of "antidoting" .