Do you own one of those homeopathic remedy kits, with 18 or 36 different remedies? Or have you built up your own collection over the years?

I bet that kit has more uses that you think!

Here are 6 situations and 12 well-known remedies that you can use at home to help your holidays go more smoothly.

Let’s start with the preparations!

1. Anticipation

Gelsemium: Weak and Trembling

It seemed like a great idea last August when you happily invited a dozen of your extended family to join you for Christmas, but now, as the time gets nearer, you’re losing courage and you don’t know how you’re going to manage it.

Your legs and arms feel like jelly. You keep needing to sit down and a simple trip to the shops leaves you exhausted. Time is passing but very little is getting done as you feel less and less capable.

Gelsemium is a remedy more often thought of for influenza, but it’s also a classic for this kind of anticipation or stage fright where you are literally weak with anxiety.

Children too can benefit (school nativity play, anyone?). This is the child who knows their lines, is fully prepared but at the last minute becomes paralysed by fear and stands there unable to get a word out. Another Gelsemium situation is anxiety before the Christmas exams, if the weak and wobbly picture fits.

A simple dose of Gelsemium can boost courage and help prevent or treat all of these situations.

Argentum Nitricum: All Keyed Up

The Argentum Nitricum (Arg Nit) picture of anticipation is quite different. Here your tension and strain can be evident for days or weeks before the event and it tends to be more externalised e.g. a lot of pacing or restlessness.

You are likely to be on high alert, and will probably be waking early long before the day, worrying and planning and trying to foresee all eventualities.

As the time gets closer, loose bowels are a classic symptom of Arg Nit, as is a craving for sweet things.

Like Gelsemium, Arg Nit is a suitable remedy for performance anxiety of any kind, from the stage to exams to hosting a party.

A dose of Arg nit can quickly calm the nervous energy, allowing you to focus and shine in the way you want to.

2. Exhaustion

Arnica

Whether caused by long shopping trips, too many late nights or long hours standing in the kitchen, Arnica has a well-deserved reputation for easing muscle aches and pains after unaccustomed exertion.

A dose or two of Arnica can give you a second wind to keep going if you need to, but do make sure to rest up again as soon as you can!

3. Excitement and Sleeplessness

If you habitually suffer from sleeplessness, you may be better having more individually targeted treatment in the form of constitutional homeopathy.

In this post, I’m talking about the kind of occasional sleeplessness that comes on from happy occasions and excitement.

Coffea

Maybe you’ve returned home from a party with your head buzzing from all the pleasant conversations you’ve had? Maybe that Irish Coffee after dinner is keeping you awake? For this kind of sleeplessness, a remedy called Coffea can help you relax a get a good night’s sleep, ready to enjoy another happy day tomorrow.

Coffea is also one of the remedies to think of for children who are too excited to sleep in the run-up to Christmas. A keynote of Coffea’s state of alertness is that all the senses are heightened, so your child will hear the slightest noise and be aware of lights and movement going on in the house that they normally wouldn’t notice.

Aconite

If your child’s sleeplessness in more tinged with anxiety or fear (perhaps of the red-suited man himself!) then Aconite may be the remedy to suit.

Aconite is also the first remedy to think of when fear of flying threatens to spoil your Christmas trip away.

Which brings us nicely to:

4. Travel and Jet Lag

One of the most pleasurable aspects of Christmas is the way people will travel long distances to be together.

When your visit is short you won’t want to waste any of it to the fatigue that goes with time-zone hopping.

Good old Arnica can come to the rescue here again. The typical symptoms of Arnica are feeling tired, achey, sore and bruised. It’s a great remedy when you find yourself too over-tired to sleep.

Jet-Lag Combination Remedy

My favourite jet-lag remedy is a combination of 5 remedies. This can be given easily, without having to worry about matching individual symptoms.

To make it up, get a small bottle of water and add one pill each of Arnica, Bellis Perennis, Chamomilla, Ipecac and Lycopodium, all in the 30c potency.

And so to Christmas Day ….

5. Cooking: Accidents in the Kitchen

I hope you’ve got some help with all that peeling and cutting and cooking and roasting. They do say that many hands make light work. (“They” also say that many cooks spoil the broth!)

Calendula and Cantharis

If a finger happens to get sliced along with the brussel sprouts or if someone gets a burn, don’t forget that your kit contains Calendula to help with healing and Cantharis for scalds and burns.

6. Overindulgence

Despite your best intentions, with so much, and such variety, of food lying around, the risk of overdoing it is high. Once again, your trusty kit will come to the rescue.

In this part of the world, the traditional Christmas fare involves a lot of fatty food and some pretty hard to digest combinations – turkey and bread stuffing with bread sauce and gravy, plum pudding or trifle with brandy butter, custard or cream – it’s no wonder you might feel bloated!

Pulsatilla

This is a remedy for distension, burping or flatulence after creamy or fatty food. It is one of several remedies for nausea, heartburn or acid reflux. Food may leave a long-lasting taste in your mouth and your meal can feel heavy, like a stone in your stomach.

Carbo Veg

Carbo Veg is another great remedy to think of when there’s a problem with trapped wind, distension or sour burping. The abdominal distension can even cause breathlessness and burning in the stomach can extend up to your throat.

Nux Vomica

This well-known digestion remedy is used for everything from heartburn, nausea and stomach pain after (over) eating to hangovers and constipation.

Irritability and impatience are confirmatory symptoms of this remedy.

Nux Vom is a great “morning after” remedy, though I have it on good authority that it takes 2 or 3 doses, perhaps half an hour apart, to bring noticeable relief.

Arsenicum

If you’re unfortunate enough to suffer severe cramps, diarrhea or vomiting after some festive indulgence and you suspect food poisoning (especially from meat), Arsenicum could be the remedy to save the day.

If the culprit is fish, think of Carbo Veg and if shellfish, the first remedy to think of is Lycopodium.

How to Dose

There are several possible ways to dose. Here’s a very gentle way:
Put 2 or 3 pills of your chosen remedy into 200 mls of water. Take a spoonful or a sip of the mixture as one dose.

How often you need to repeat the dose will depend on the intensity of your symptoms. This could mean anything from every few minutes to every few hours. If you’re dealing with an acute physical pain such as a cut or a burn, you might repeat every 10 minutes until relief is obtained. If your need has to do with ongoing stress or an emotional upset, you may find ease from a sip every hour or two.

The important guiding principle is that you watch for improvement and as the symptoms improve, the intervals between doses can be lengthened or the remedy can be stopped. When improvement wears off, repeat the dose.

Don’t keep giving the remedy after you’re better. It’s like pushing a car down a hill – once the car takes off, there’s no need to keep pushing.

Likewise, don’t keep giving a remedy if it’s not helping. In an acute situation, it should be clear after 3 doses whether you have the right remedy. If you are seeing no change, the remedy is probably not the best match for your symptoms.

That point is so important that I’m going to say it twice: Homeopathic remedies need to match the symptoms of the case. If the remedy is not a good match, it won’t have the power to help you.

Have a Great Christmas!

I hope there’s something here to help you get more use from your homeopathy kit this Christmas.

That’s what homeopathy is all about – a helping hand when you need it, reducing your stress and making life easier.

Wishing you all the best for the Christmas season!
From Carmel @ Leinster Homeopathy

Disclaimer

This blogpost is intended for informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Never ignore professional medical advice in seeking treatment because of something you have read on this website. If you think you may have a medical emergency, immediately call your doctor or medical emergency services.