Stephanie2

The "brand" we mostly use is "Helios" which is ordered from England (our homeopath uses this). At times I use "Washington Homeopathics" for acute remedies, which I ordered online. I do not follow titers b/c my boys' titers were never elevated to begin with. Personally, (and this may sound naive) I don't care whether or not they are carriers and I strongly suspect that they are not (b/c they only get strep during the normal times of year when most other kids get it). Also, last year when my 4yo tested positive for strep, I did a follow-up 48 hour culture once all the pandas symptoms went away and it did come back negative. But I HAVE heard of homeopathy putting people into carrier state, I have no idea if it's true. As long as the pandas symptoms are under control I am happy.

So to clarify, the A2 milk is less reactive (ear infections, mucous, etc.)? That is what I am finding for all of us. Personally, I dont' get all congested after consuming the raw goats milk like I do with cow milk. Also, I seem to tolerate it better in terms of lactose intolerance, but I'm not sure I have consumed enough to be sure. Also, the pasteurization process kills off enzymes that help one to digest milk. So with the raw milk you still get the enzymes so there is less likelihood of developing a milk allergy to it. You also get good bacteria. We were doing raw camels milk for awhile (becoming a trend in the autism community for it's anti inflammatory properties), but the cost is rediculous. For my sons to consume the prescribed amount it would cost $600-800 per month.

We use Angelica Lemke who is located in NYC, but she does skype appts so you don't have to travel. www.asdhomeopathy.com You don't have to go off all meds to do homeopathy but they do tend to work against each other. Antibiotics, steroids and especially psych meds tend to be a real issue, however you can slowly wean off of them with the remedies on board to support the process. i'm not gonna lie, taking my boys off antibiotics and sending them out into the world "uncovered" was the hardest thing in the world, I was on pins and needles. But we were in a desperate situation with the antibiotics not working and causing damage, so for me my back was against the wall and I really had no choice. This is something you have to be ready for. And I highly suggest the book Impossible Cure by Amy Lansky before making any decisions.

I have recently added raw goats milk to my boys' diets without any setbacks that I'm aware of. Not sure where that fits into the a1 a2 issue...

I haven't been around this forum lately, but I wanted to drop by just to give our update. It has been 13 months since I switched my two pandas sons to classical homeopathy (after previously doing antibiotics, ivig, steroids, spironolactone, LDN, tenex, B12 shots and many many supplements). My boys are still well-controlled with just their homeopathic remedies and 4 supplements (no meds, not even ibuprofen). During the last year we had positive strep tests 3 times and I suspect a 4th infection as well. Each of my boys used an antibiotic during one of the infections, but the rest of the infections were completely cured/managed with just their remedies. And actually the one antibiotic that they both received was kind of forced on us, it's a really long story (one kid had a ruptured ear drum and the other had mild pneumonia and we would have been "medically negligent" to not use standard meds). In addition to the strep being managed by their remedies, I have also been able to manage yeast, klebsiella, clostridia, and alpha and beta hemolytic strep, all found in previous and current stool cultures. I have not had to use any antifungals or antibiotics (prescription or natural) for these infections. Like I said, I could go on all day, but the important part is that my boys no longer suffer severe pandas symptoms or severe symptoms from gut infections, even in the face of a severe strep infection. We live a largely normal life, after 5 years of complete dysfunction. After one year of homeopathy, I have learned how to nip pandas/strep in the bud most of the time (literally in 20-30 minutes many times). I have also learned that there is a lot of "user error" involved in homepoathy, both on the part of the homeopath and the patient or parent (which is why I suspect some people don't get the same results and quit early on in the game). A year ago, i truly did not know when/how to use the strep nosodes, or even when to dose their constitutional remedies. I have spent the last year learning to do this by reading books and talking to other moms who are traveling the same road. And our homeopath has become a pandas expert in the past year, so she is much better at managing strep infections/pandas than she was a year ago. For those who were following my blog, I know it seems like I have dropped off the face of the earth LOL, I guess in some ways I have. I have also been treated by our homeopath (I, too, suffer from pandas) and in my new healthy state of mind, I have been unable to "go back there" if you know what I mean. In some ways I feel as though I have abandoned the pandas community (dropped my involvement with PRN, etc.) but I am just trying to enjoy my life for now and just spend time with my boys and manage their health to the best of my ability. To those who have sent me PM's, I will do my best to get to them in the next few days. best wishes to each of you!

I used to think "homeopathy" referred to "all things alternative" but that is a misconception that most people have. Under the umbrella of "alternative medicine", homeopathy is one of many forms of medicine (there is also traditional chinese medicine, accupuncture, herbs/ayurvedic, integrative medicine, chiropractic, and the list goes on and on). I have done almost all of them at one time or another for my pandas/autism boys, including conventional medicine (antibitoics, IVIG, steroids, ibuprofen, tons of anti-inflammatory supplements, etc.) and NOTHING has even come CLOSE to what "classical homeopathy" has done, not only for my boys, but for my husband and I. I do not exaggerate when I say that between the 4 of us we had about 25 different health problems in this house. ALL of them have either gone away or are being managed very well. Life-changing! The goal of homeopathy (unlike some other forms of medicine, even other alternative medicines) is to cure the condition and prevent new ones. With that said, for some reason, homeopathy is usually the last resort for most (as it was for me) and I don't get it. For the record, we do classical homeopathy...there are other forms of homeopathy out there of which I have no experience. Hope that helps!

I would think it is, however, it would depend on the health of the mom. For example, I was not in good health, nutritionally and otherwise, when I nursed my second son. Not to mention, I had an amalgam removed right before his pregnancy, without proper protocol, so I imagine he was getting a healthy dose of mercury with each feeding. Anyway, we tried camel's milk and there did appear to be an anti-inflammatory effect, and also my youngest had a much needed growth spurt. I had to stop it cuz it seemed to exacerbate their asthma. But I am going to restart it soon cuz it may have been coincidence.

Girlfriend, are we friends on FB??!! If not, we need to be! I can see you will be moving and shaking things up in the pandas community!! Also, i'd like to get you into our little homeopathy group on FB (most of us use PF or Angelica Lemke, but some use Ullman and other hpaths).

www.asdhomeopathy.com www.homeopathicservices.com

Actually, I am not doing this exact protocol. For those doing classical homeopathy it would be best to substitute sulphur with the constitutional remedy (or an acute remedy carefully selected by an experienced homeopath). Furthermore, in an attempt to stay within the bounds of classical homeopathy, I am not combining the two together at the same time. I have been instructed to dose the constitutional remedy when the symptom picture is more mental/emotional, and the strep nosode when the symptom picture is more physical (sore throat, congestion, fatigue, body aches, even vomitting, headache, leg cramps). With that said, many times both are dosed on the same day if the symptom picture changes that rapidly. I, myself, have experienced this wild ride: get a sore throat, take the strep nosode, and next thing you know my sore throat is gone but paranoia/OCD/depression kicks in, then I take my constitutional remedy and the mental symptoms go away. I am then good to go, or I may have to repeat several times until I am clear of all symptoms for good. Not to toot my own horn, but in the past few months I have gotten very good at knocking out strep in this house with the above approach (also our homeopath has gotten some really good experience with many pandas patients and is also getting very good at guiding us...

I didn't read the replies, so maybe this has been mentioned. But my first thought regarding the steroids is that the initial improvement proves it is pandas (or some type of brain inflammation) and then the backslide might have to do with the side effects from the steroids. My sons usually end up in steroid-induced psychosis around day 4 or 5. Not pretty. Also, steroids can decrease the function of the immune system, and we all know these boys need a properly funcitioning immune system to remain "sane". FWIW, we have had tremendous success with classical homeopathy. My boys are not on antibiotics anymore and are much more stable than ever before.

I also want to share a great article/paper regarding the homeopathic treatment of strep for anyone interested. There is mention of pandas toward the end of the paper. This paper basically depicts how aggressive one needs to be when dosing remedies for strep when there is an active strep infection (although I did not have to dose this aggressively with my husband recently, so I suppose it depends on the severity of the infection). http://hmssny.org/2005/07/a-homeopathic-approach-for-the-treatment-of-streptococcal-pharyngitis/

A few months ago I posted a 6 month update stating that we were relying solely on my sons' constitutional remedies to control strep/pandas. We are now coming up on 10 months and still going strong. The road has not necessarily been easy, but compared to what our lives looked like before homeopathy, well there is no comparison. Things are so much easier, we can actually have a semi-functional existance. Both my husband and I are also being treated and have overcome our own "mental health" hurdles, and continue to impove each day (I have recently discovered that I definitely have a textbook case of pandas, which mostly comes across as paranoia and a "nervous breakdown" when I get strep or when someone in the house has strep). My own remedy, sometimes combined with the strep nosode, fully resolves my own pandas symptoms, along with several other health issues I had. Don't get me wrong, my boys still get strep and they also still react to it if someone in the house has it. But the difference is that the symptoms are so far under the radar now that I can't even identify a pandas exacerbation anymore. Recently, all four of us had strep and I didn't know it until I happen to get culture results back 5 days into the boys' illnesses which confirmed strep. I was completely shocked. After getting the results I was able to look at the situation and then realize that...yes, one of the boys was being a bit more clingy than usual...and yes, the other one was flipping light switches from time to time. But that's it!!! They used to be completely debilitated by strep. Our whole house used to be completely debilitated by strep. To give a few more details for those interested in or familiar with homeopathy, my boys' cases have moved mostly away from the mental "plane" and onto the physical "plane", meaning that most of their problems now exist mainly with physical symptoms. This is the standard path of healing. The goal is to keep moving forward and off the physical plane all-together, except for minor issues such as colds, etc. The physical illnesses the boys have been dealing with have not been easy, though. Eli, my oldest son (7), recently had a bout of strep which caused a mild flare-up of asthma/croup (he hasn't had asthma in several years), a very high fever (he has never been one to get high fevers) and a ruptured ear drum. Mentally, I saw some OCD in the form of flipping light switches here and there. While this was happening with Eli, Bradley, my youngest son (3, almost 4) actually ended up in the ICU after a febrile seizure and a bout with pneumonia (and of course, Group A strep). Due to the severity of the boys' issues and the fact that I, too, was sick and sleep deprived, we were forced to allow antibiotics for the first time since starting homeopathy. I was not able to treat both boys with homeopathy since I could not be in two places at once (otherwise I could have at least treated Eli who was not in the hospital), although I was able to pull Bradley out of respiratory distress while he was in the hospital with a remedy for pneumonia (shhh...don't tell the nurses!). Unfortunately, the antibiotics caused one of my boys to get a yeast infection and the other to get clostridia. Both of them became aggressive. I was forced to stop both of their antibiotics early and go back to their remedies to get on top of the aggression (my oldest son spent an hour kicking, biting, slapping me, etc.). They are both fine now, but I was once again reminded how severe these boys' behavior problems used to be when we were using antibiotics. Also, Bradley developed steroid induced psychosis on his 4th day of steroids (prescribed for the pneumonia), causing me to stop the steroid early, as well. Bradley now suffers from rather severe asthma and I have been forced to pull him from school to keep him from all viruses, etc. Eli has also had several severe episodes with asthma, one of which landed him in the ER recently. As disheartening as these trials have been, I would take life-threatening physical impairments over pandas/autism any day. And I don't say that lightly. That is how severe their pandas symptoms used to be. In speaking with the boys' homeopath and her assistant, they feel that the severity of the boys' physical issues is due to the speed at which I have been going in terms of moving up the potencies of their remedies. Not to mention I have added in camel's milk and "juicing" to their protocols each day. Apparently this is too much detox, too soon. I have since attempted to back off the potency of their remedies (we were all taking the 10M potency and we are now back down to 30c and 200c). Do I regret throwing too much at them? Maybe a little, only b/c Bradley's life has been on the line several times recently. But do I regret ridding these boys of 90% of their pandas symptoms? Nope! A few other gains: all chiari malformation symptoms are gone, tremendous improvement in speech apraxia, much more socialization, NO meds, very few supplements needed. I'm sorry to those who have contacted me with questions in the last couple of months. I will still try to get to your emails, etc., I'm just very busy dealing with our new set of illnesses and trying to put our lives back together in-between!

thenmama, thank you that is very helpful, I am going to print those out and bring to neuro, I think I have another one in my files. His neuro and I have actually discussed possible O/M movements before but it was never set in stone. He wanted to do a cat scan to rule out neuroblastoma, but I declined b/c I knew it was not cancer, I just knew it, and it turns out it is most likely strep related or seizures.

Peglem, that's an interesting thought, the thyroid. He certainly did spike very fast. Tpotter, I usually do not use tylenol b/c it reduces glutathione which is a very important antioxidant in children with autism/pandas. BUT motrin was not cutting it alone so I am having to do both. This is the most aggressive fever I have ever dealt with in either of my boys. I can't miss a dose of either one or we get a spike, and we have already had a return of mild seizure activity, had to throw him in the bath. Not getting much sleep here...

My youngest pandas son last night had a febrile, focal seizure. He stopped breathing for the first 30 seconds, scare of my life, he still wasn't breathing as I was calling 911 and my neighbors were flurring around the house to help me as my husband wasn't home. You can only imagine the scene! Anyway, I suspected seizure activity with him back when he was 15 months during his first ever pandas exacerbation. He is now 3.75. Long story, but I did the full neuro workup and consulted with two neuros and they concluded that they could not rule in or out the seizures unless a "real seizure" happens and I happen to witness it - which happened last night. Anyway, back to the first episode when he was 15 months and had strep. The "movements" went away as the other pandas symptoms went away. They came back (very mild) the next couple times he had strep/pandas. Then they were gone for a long time, even with strep infections. I have no idea if he currently has strep right now, but this seizure happened during a very sudden onset of illness last night and a very rapid rise of temp. We went to the ER and then returned. While he was sleeping last night, just as his tylenol was wearing off, I witnessed some mild seizure activity. I guess my point is that this is most-likely not a "one time" febrile event. Has anyone else seen or suspected seizure activity that waxes and wanes, specifically, with strep infections? With or without fever? I need to go back to the neuro on monday and he is a pandas-friendly guy, thought I would run some of your thoughts/experiences past him.

Yes! I have been able to get my boys off all antibiotics with classical homeopathy with this group in NYC, they have tons of pandas experience. www.asdhomeopathy.com PM me if you have questions, but check out the site, they do have a reference somewhere in there about pandas.

My boys started having pandas symptoms abruptly at the ages of 15 and 20 months. After several years of abx and the resultant clostridia, we have jumped ship and moved to classical homeopathy which has been a lifesaver in numerous ways for my severe pandas sons (who also had autistic features, chiari malformation, severe food allergies and asthma, constipation, you name it). They have been off all antibiotics since January and April and our lives are returning to normal.

I don't think I saw the post/thread you are referring to, but I agree with dh

http://hmssny.org/2005/07/a-homeopathic-approach-for-the-treatment-of-streptococcal-pharyngitis/ A Homeopathic Approach for the Treatment of Streptococcal Pharyngitis by Anthony Capobianco, DO [This paper was originally presented at the Annual Meeting of the Homeopathic Medical Society of the State of NewYork, New York City, NY, April 2004, and appeared in the American Journal of Homeopathic Medicine, Vol. 95 No. 2, in Summer 2005.] Abstract: This article consists of a discussion of a novel and, homeopathically-speaking, non-classical approach, developed by AU Ramakrishnan, for the treatment of Streptococcal pharyngitis. The method is based upon a large body of clinical experience in the treatment of both Streptococcal illness and the carrier state of the bacillus. Said method employs exclusively the remedies Sulphur and Streptococcinum in frequent repetition (of liquid dilutions). Keywords: streptococcal infections, a protocol for treatment of; streptococcal pharyngitis, a protocol for treatment of; Sulphur, streptococcal infections, in the treatment of; Streptococcinum, streptococcal infections, in the treatment of [see Editor's Note at the conclusion of this article.] “The physician’s highest calling, his only calling, is to make sick people healthy — to heal, as it is termed.”(1) - Dr. Samuel Christian Hahnemann When speaking of Streptococcal pharyngitis, homeopathic books usually backpedal, advising allopathic management, presumably due to the therapeutic difficulty and potential seriousness of the condition. Given the longstanding record of success with other serious infections, and even the most advanced autoimmune and degenerative end-stage illnesses, including neoplasia, it seemed plausible to this writer that Strep throat could also consistently and exclusively be treated homeopathically. Clinical experience has yielded an approach one might consider with regard to a pharyngeal Strep infection or carrier state. Because of a consistent pattern of favorable results, it appears, preliminarily at least, that many patients stand to benefit from this approach. From his landmark book on a homeopathic treatment of cancer, and allied conditions due to allopathic cancer therapies, Dr. Ramakrishnan justifies the use of specifics in certain instances, stating that “… in acute ailments and highly specific types of illnesses (such as cases of poison ivy, chickenpox, high fevers, or influenza) a limited number of medicines appear to work best, regardless of personality type. These are called “specific remedies,” in that they address the specific disease itself rather than the patient’s complex of physical, mental, and emotional symptoms.”(2) Although not as serious as cancer, it could be argued that Strep pharyngitis warrants a similar increased tempo and range in prescribing. This would be because of a brief window of opportunity for correct treatment coupled with the potential severity of pathology in vital organs, affording a narrow margin for error. This might also be seen as justified, due to the inconsistency of results when solely using well-indicated acute remedies prescribed on physical, mental and emotional symptoms. [Editor's Note: Said inconsistency of results must obviously be critically dependent upon the skills of the prescriber and the available signs and symptoms of the patients at hand. Surely, many cases of Streptococcal pharyngitis are most ably handled with the classical homeopathic approach.] Another way of saying this could be that “because of the severity and in many cases urgency of this condition, the individuality of the patient must yield to the ‘specificity’ of the disease itself.”(3) Also relevant is that “one [may be] dealing with a measurable pathology and not with subtle imbalances of the body’s energies, and therefore less subtle methods of prescribing are required.”(4) Group A Streptococci is responsible for about 19% of all upper respiratory tract infections, but the incidence varies according to clinical setting.(5) Streptococcal pharyngitis is seasonal in nature with the highest prevalence during the winter and early spring. The highest incidence is found in crowded populations such as military bases and in school-aged children, and evenly distributed between males and females.(6) The incubation period for Group streptococcal pharyngitis is two to four days, followed by abrupt onset of sore throat, malaise, fever and headache. The “classic syndrome,” including temperature elevation, tender tonsillar lymph nodes (at angle of jaw), and grayish-white exudate on the tonsils occurs in less than ten percent of cases of strep pharyngitis and may occur in other types of pharyngitis as well (hence, the presence of all three “Strep predictors”— exudate, adenopathy and fever — are actually not very predictive at all. (7)). Importantly, cough and rhinorrhea are not usually present with Strep throat. The only clinical feature specific for group A Strep infection is a rarely occurring “sandpaper” textured, scarlatinaform rash (scarlet fever), characterized by a diffuse red blush appearing on the trunk early on, which spreads centrifugally and blanches with pressure. A week later the skin desquamates in large sheets, particularly over the palms and soles. The diagnosis of streptococcal pharyngitis requires a quick strep antigen test, throat culture, or both, because clinical findings are usually not specific.(8) The majority of the approximately two dozen patients treated this way were initially diagnosed, followed and re-checked with the help of the Quidel In Line® Strep A test. This test was primarily used because the sensitivity is reportedly 92% and the specificity 99%, and overall agreement between Sheep Blood Agar (SBA) culture and QuickVue® was stated to be 96%.(9) In addition, a follow-up retesting method that yields rapid results helps determine the need for potential homeopathic remedy changes during the course of treatment. Occasionally, SBA culture would be ordered or requested by parents to validate the rapid anti-Strep antibody test. As many as ten percent of throat cultures are falsely negative;(10) therefore it is recommended to obtain two swabs from each patient if using this method as a primary or secondary method of supporting the diagnosis. Some argue that rapid Strep tests render the throat culture obsolete. Strep carriers have positive cultures but do not have Streptococcal pharyngitis by any other criteria (clinical findings, antibody titer rises, or risk of acute rheumatic fever; therefore, in one sense, these cultures might be considered by an allopath to be “false positives”). Also, probably fewer than half of those diagnosed with Strep throat (clinically and with culture) are at risk for acute rheumatic fever.(11) However, all are considered worthy of treatment because a susceptibility to harbor the pathogens exists in carriers. In adults over the age of fifteen without a prior history of acute rheumatic fever (ARF), first episodes of ARF are extremely rare (as in the case of Strep pharyngitis. ARF most often occurs in children; the peak age-related incidence is between 5 and 15 years (12)). The allopathic goals for treatment of Strep throat in such adults are for amelioration of symptoms, the prevention of local suppurative complications, and the prevention of spread. Early antibiotic dosing in the first two days is required for symptomatic relief (the duration and severity being perhaps only modestly reduced with early antimicrobial therapy); in untreated patients, fever, malaise, and sore throat are self-limited, abating in three to five days.(13) Therefore, patients fifteen years of age and older might not be limited to a window of opportunity for homeopathic treatment that younger patients at risk of ARF are considered to be. (A one week, or so, pediatric working window for homeopathic treatment is based upon some evidence that antibiotics most effectively prevent ARF if prescribed within ten days of the onset of pharyngitis.(14) Elsewhere it has been said that “in patients being treated (allopathically) to prevent the occurrence of ARF, therapy within seven days of onset of pharyngitis is sufficient. The mean latent period of ARF is nineteen days, with a range of one to five weeks.”(15)) Also, since symptoms alone, which abate relatively quickly, can mislead one into a false sense of security, intercurrent laboratory testing during the course of homeopathic treatment, if at all possible, is recommended. To this author’s knowledge, all patients with an active infection or in a carrier state were successfully treated when two homeopathic medicines were prescribed aggressively. Of these, two female children required two courses of treatment (a review of their immediate family histories suggested evidence of sycosis).These were a combination of homeopathic Sulphur and Streptococcal nosode, administered simultaneously (to increase compliance). Many times a “fall back” prescription of Sulphur 1M and Streptococcinum 200C was administered anywhere from every ten to twenty minutes to one-half to one hour (dry pellets diluted in a four ounce medicine or larger spring water bottle, succussed ten times before each dose, with instructions to keep refilling the bottle with water), while awake, for at least two to three days, then four times per day after negative re-testing at two to three days, usually for a total of seven days, or so (with an upper limit of ten days, if needed). The consistent response to both of these remedies suggests that this prescription reflects a remedy for the genus epidemicus (as per discussion in paragraph number 241 in Hahnemann’s sixth edition of the Organon of Medicine) for Group A beta hemolytic Strep pharyngitis, tonsillitis or pharyngotonsillitis. The results obtained with both remedies also suggest that addressing the disease on two levels constitutes a stronger method of attack. With an extended periodicity of occurrence over the course of years, beyond a seasonal peak incidence within a single year, Strep susceptibility might even be viewed in terms of a larger “season.” Indeed, a cyclic pattern of disease incidence involving decades has appeared in scientific literature.(17) In addition, epidemiologic observations suggest the organism itself has the capacity for increased virulence.(18) Follow-up of the patients so treated to date have not presented any signs or symptoms, cardiac, renal or otherwise, to suggest that the prescription acts in a suppressive way. It is encouraging to note that when asked the question if suppression occurred from the use of homeopathic medicines, Dean Crothers, MD stated “yes, but rarely,” basing his reply on two cases amidst thousands of patient visits.(19) On the other hand, repercussions of allopathic suppression are everyday observations in homeopathic practice. Interestingly, Sankaran describes the main feeling of Sulphur as that of being “scorned, suppressed, put down, criticized … made to feel humiliated, his pride hurt … embarrassment. There is a constant effort, a struggle to come up again … to be someone, to know something, to earn respect … The struggle is for ego and honor … The effort and the feeling are both psoric .. .” (20) It’s almost as if the staging area of conflict for the verbally unsophisticated child with a domineering, hyper-critical parent or teacher, perhaps, takes place right in the throat (anatomical junction between mind and body). In a wider sense, Whitmont discussed Sulphur as symbolizing the basic polarity and conflict of the soul as it embraces and is torn between spirit and matter. (21) Sulphur has been called the “common denominator” and has the most symptoms of all remedies proved.(22) A reference to Streptococcal infections and Sulphur appeared in Grandegeorge’s recent discussion of a Sulphur case of Streptococcal erythema of the legs. (Elsewhere in his insightful book, The Spirit of Homeopathic Medicines, he cites the remedy Ailanthus glandulosa for Strep throat/scarlet fever and states that Aurum metallicum [thematically, "Transgressing the Law of the Father"] children are extremely sensitive to hemolytic streptococcal infections.) With Sulphur, one might consider Hahnemann’s “king of antipsorics,” the universal sickness, or Kent’s equating of psora to the sinful state of mankind,(23) affecting all of humanity. This could offer a clue as to the justification of its common use; a lesson epitomized by the well-known story of the early twentieth century homeopath, whose entire pharmacy consisted of Sulphur. It is also interesting that Whitmont mentioned “Strep Intestinal nosode” to be considered in addition to Tuberculinum, when Sulphur fails to act; that is, when the seemingly indicated remedy does not work. (24) The usual method of administering the second dose when the remedy exhausts its action is not employed since time is of the essence, there being little room for error (the bulk of the treatment involving lay dispensing) and frequent repetition is apparently required. If a remedy reflecting a constitutional state is discernable (e.g.; Mercurius solubilis, Pyrogenium), it may be given intercurrently, in alternation with the two simultaneously administered Strep remedies. Begin a one week course, or so, of homeopathic treatment immediately following a positive quick Strep test (read at 5 minutes with a timer — a positive generates any shade of red, even a faint light pink color (a “low positive”), in addition to a blue control line). There is some evidence that antibiotics most effectively prevent acute rheumatic fever if prescribed within ten days of the onset of pharyngitis, justifying the initiation of antibiotics, in allopathic circles, if the patient has had symptoms that initially began seven (or more) days earlier.(25) This one week (with a ten day upper limit) working window underscores the importance of an immediate patient encounter, in conjunction with a rapid lab test, to confirm the presence of Strep for suspicious sore throats. This is so that homeopathic treatment can begin as soon as possible since the physician can lose up to a few days due to uninformed caretakers or children minimizing symptoms out of office visit fear. An approach that is a synthesis between frequent remedy administration of the remedies on a regulated (not “as needed”) basis, and an intensified “wait and watch” follow-up regimen, is suggested. Therefore, repeat the physical exam and laboratory testing in two to three days (successful homeopathic treatment should withstand the scrutiny of objective laboratory follow-up.(26)), especially if symptoms are the same or worse. (If compliance to follow-up is unlikely and antibiotic intake is imminent, one might consider forestalling this in order to allow homeopathy to work by writing a prescription for antibiotics to be dated for, and filled three days after the onset of pharyngitis associated with a positive Strep test. These might be started at that time if the frequency, intensity and duration of the symptoms, and/or the follow-up appearance of the pharynx, according to home caregiver flashlight inspection, remains unchanged or becomes worse, despite aggressive homeopathic treatment.) However, by day two or three the patient, regardless of age, usually subjectively feels better and objectively appears less toxic or acutely ill. If the day two to three repeat testing is negative, one can begin to allow dosing at intervals of four times a day for the remainder of the week. If positive (rare), review compliance of the regimen with the patient’s caretaker; it might be necessary to reiterate the importance of frequent dosing or to change the remedy prescription for the remainder of the week. On rare occasion, a medically oriented or otherwise competent parent has been entrusted with a quick Strep kit and instructions to allow re-testing after two or three days following lab confirmation and treatment of Strep, and to report on findings at that time. If a patient seems to not be improving at day two or three in terms of a positive or low positive test and/or a failure to experience a decrease in symptoms, including but not limited to fever, exudates and/or adenopathy, continuation of the original prescription to allow more time and/or dosing and re-testing at day seven is scheduled. In this instance, a patient may need more than two or three days of the initial very frequent non-prn dosing protocol, because of factors including patient or caretaker non-compliance. One might consider re-testing the patient at day 4, 5 or 6 to be able to change the dosing interval and/or remedy potencies, if necessary, before the week expires. If the patient is reliable and compliant, but not able to be re-tested at day two or three, re-testing at day seven or so, after the onset of the illness, can be performed. The patient should try avoiding others during this week and should be free of fever or illness (preferably with a negative test) before contact with others (school, etc.). Consider examining, testing and treating all symptomatic people who have come into contact with documented cases of Strep or Strep carrier states. One can also re-test a patient already treated with this method at a future visit to confirm “for peace of mind” that Strep carriage did not become established. What follows is a case illustrating the clinical application of the approach when a ten day upper limit course of treatment is opted for in light of an expiring seven day, “just to be on the safe side,” window of opportunity. M.K., a twelve year old, and daughter of an alcoholic father, presented to another physician complaining of “an earache,” fever, slight hoarseness and sore throat with difficulty swallowing for two days. She was found to have exudates on the left tonsil with a positive rapid Strep test. The mother refused to medicate, deciding to wait for consultation until my return from medical meetings. Four days later I was able to see her; at that time she had another positive rapid Strep test with an accompanying otitis externa on the right side and bilateral otitis media, as well. She was started on Sulphur 1M and Streptococcinum 200C every 15 minutes, while awake, with instructions to return for re-testing in 48 hours. At this two day follow-up, now day six into her illness, she was again found to be positive on a second repeat rapid Strep test. A decision was made to treat for a total of ten days, the patient to continue taking the remedy mixture, now with the addition of Streptococcinum viridens 1M, the most commonly required back-up or remedy substitution, chosen. Five days later, on day eleven, she stated she was, and appeared to be, significantly improved, was re-tested once again and was found to be negative with the rapid Strep test. A year and a half later she presented with a right earache, this time found to have ipsilateral cerumen impaction with a red pharynx. A rapid Strep antigen test was performed and was negative. Eight months following this, fever with upper and middle respiratory signs and symptoms resulted in another rapid Strep testing which was negative; a clinical diagnosis of infectious mononucleosis was made. To date, three months later, she remains well. One might consider this approach for all affected by Streptococcal infections; specifically, pharyngitis, scarlet fever and post-Streptococcal glomerulonephritis. One might also consider utilizing homeopathic Sulphur and Strep nosode, in cases of thyroid or inflammatory joint disease, following a history of antibiotic or antipyretic suppressed Strep throats with or without tonsil and adenoid (T&A) surgery, as well as other Strep-related syndromes (suppression sequelae), such as Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal Infection — “PANDAS” (common manifestations being obsessive compulsive disorder and tics). A current case of a six year-old girl with the deeper beta-hemolytic strep skin infection, ecthyma, of approximately six months, recalcitrant to topical antibiotics, is clearly responding to the remedies. Lastly, third trimester Group B Streptococcal vaginitis might also benefit from this approach. The salient risk of allopathic antibiotic suppression is worth mentioning, because of antibiotic resistance occurs at an alarming rate among all classes of mammalian pathogens.”(27) These considerations coupled with an opportunity to heal conflict of a profound and fundamental nature have prompted the writing of this paper. It is the aim of this preliminary article to offer the possibility for a consistently effective homeopathic approach to be considered for the benefit of patients of all ages with Strep pharyngitis. About the Author: Anthony Capobianco, DO, has practiced homeopathy for twenty years on Long Island, NY. He is ever grateful for his teachers, especially, Dominic Masiello, DO, Dr. A.U. Ramakrishnan and Christopher Whitmont, MD. [Editor's Note: The above article describes a method of treatment of strep throat employing two homeopathic remedies routinely, said method apparently verified by repeated clinical success. The peer review committee approved its publication with the consideration that this protocol could well provide therapeutic recourse in those cases of streptococcal pharyngitis failing to manifest adequate symptoms upon which to base an appropriate individualized homeopathic prescription, which, in the committee's view, remains a superior method of non-suppressive treatment, when achievable. Further, the author's recommendation of close follow-up of treatment results, both clinically and with laboratory testing, is encouraged.] References (1) Hahnemann, Samuel. Organon of Medicine, 6ed, trans. Kunzli, MD Jost, Naude, Alaine and Pendelton, Peter, J.P. Tarcher, Inc., Los Angeles, 1982, p.9. (2) Coulter, Catherine R. and Ramakrishnan, MBBS, MF Hom. (London) A.U.A Homoeopathic Approach to Cancer, Quality Medical Publishing, Inc., St. Louis, Missouri, 2001, p.2. (3) Ibid. (4) Ibid. (5) Lauer BA, Reller LB, and Mirrett S. Journal of Clinical Microbiology, 17:338-340, 1983. (6) Wannamaker, LW. New England Journal of Medicine, 282: 23-31,78-85, 1970. (7) Reilly, MD, Brendan M. Practical Strategies in Outpatient Medicine, 1ed, W.B. Saunders Co., Philadelphia, 1984, p.7. (8) Barker, MD, Randol L., Burton, MD, John R, and Zieve, MD, Philip D. (ed.s) Principles of Ambulatory Medicine, 3d ed., Williams & Wilkins, Baltimore, 1991, p.308. (9) OuickVue® insert, Quidel Corporation, San Diego, CA, August 2001. (10) Reilly, MD, Brendan M. Practical Strategies in Outpatient Medicine, 2ed, W.B. Saunders Co., Philadelphia, 1991, p.7. (11) Ibid., p.7. (12) Braunwald,MD (ed), et al.Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine, McGraw-Hill Book Co., NY, 15ed, p.1341. (13) Barker (et al), pp.308, 9. (14) Cantanzaro, FJ et al. Symposium on rheumatic and rheumatic heart disease; The role of the streptococcus in the pathogenesis of rheumatic fever. Am J Med 17:749, 1954. (15) Barker (et al), p. 309. (16) Hahnemann, op cit., pp.67,8. (17) Masiello, DO, Dominic. Personal communication, mid-1990′s. (18) Braunwald, op. cit. (19) Crothers, MD, Dean and Herscu, ND, DHANP, Paul. Homeopathic Suppression: A Forum, Journal of the American Institute of Homeopathy, Winter 1997-98,vol. 90, No.4, p.174. (20) Sankaran, Rajan. The Soul of Remedies, led, Homeopathic Medical Publishers, Bombay, 1997, p.196. (21) Whitmont, Edward C. Psyche and Substance: Essays on Homeopathy in the Light of Jungian Psychology, 2d ed, North Atlantic Books, Berkeley, CA, 1982, p. 77,78. (22) The British Institute of Homeopathy, LTD., general diploma course material. 2003. 2003. 2003. (23) Whitmont, Psyche and Substance, p.79. (24) Whitmont, MD, Edward C. Level l Course in Homeopathy study group lecture, Sherman, Connecticut, 1995. (25) Reilly, p. 78, 79. (26) Masiello, DO, Dominic. Personal communication, mid-1990′s. (27) Braunwald, op. cit., p.763.

I think this post certainly speaks to the incredible power of homeopathy. I do have a few thoughts on what has been said. First, I want to point out that there are different types of homeopathy, and many would agree that classical homeopathy tends to be the safer (and more effective) choice. Many people have reported incidents with sequential homeopathy that scared them. I even had quite an experience with my chiropractor (before starting classical homeopathy) which scared me half to death! He did a combo of accupuncture and a combination homeopathic remedy (had about 15 remedies in it) one day. By the time he was done I was practically in tears. By the time I got home I was literally in tears and telling my husband that I wanted to commit suicide and I told him to stay with me and make sure the safe is locked, etc. When I went back to the chiro and told him what had happened, he told me that he moved too fast and released too many emotions all at once (emotions that NEEDED to be moved out, after having spent 4 years on lexapro, but were moving out too fast). Later to find out that if you are going to have accupuncture done you need to see someone who has had YEARS of training, preferrably in china. Same with homeopathy, YEARS of training. Did I ever take that homeopathic remedy again? No way. But my chiro was not a trained classical homeopath. He took a certification course at Univ of Miami School of Medicine :/ On the flip side, just the other night my 3 year old was having a SEVERE asthma attack and I was the only one home. I turned on the nebulizer and literally had to sit on him to try to get him to breathe it (husband wasn't home), but his adrenaline was pumping and I was no match for his super human strength. I gave up and ran for a high potency asthma/croup remedy, I popped a few granules in his mouth and within minutes he was not gasping for breath and he was barely wheezing. A few hours later he woke up wheezing/coughing/choking, another dose of ashtma remedy and he was asleep again within minutes. Seriously, this was a severe attack which would have landed us in the ER administering steroids, even if I HAD been able to do the neb. I know this from experience. And this is not the first time I have had this scenario play out. Anyway, I read these accounts of homeopathy-gone-bad and really I can't say it surprises me. There are so many homeopaths out there, doing so many different types of homeopathy. Homeopathy is trial and error. Just like in conventional medicine, I suppose the wrong remedy given at a high enough potency for a long enough time can cause permanent damage (although I suspect a good classical homeopath could reverse it). Just like in conventional medicine, it is IMPERITIVE that the patient be educated about homeopathy and how it works and what the path toward healing looks like and what symptoms indicate that something is not right, etc. Just like in conventional medicine it is so important to talk to other moms, do your research in choosing a practitioner, and whether it be your gut feeling or guidance from God that you rely on, go deep and seek out the path you should be taking for your child. I have been sitting here trying to figure out what happened in Chemar's case and quite honestly am considering running it by our homeopath b/c I know she would be able to tell me. But if I had to guess, my guess is that the remedy stimulated the path-to-cure in the opposite direction than it should have been going (I'm thinking agaricus was chosen, not based on the overall constitutional weakness of the patient, but on the physical symptoms, tics/add...what have you. if this is true, this is very dangerous and not the proper way to do homepoathy at all). I tend to think that the remedy must have been administered in very high potency and the symptom picture was not being monitored closely enough. Interestingly, many an autism patient has been cured only to later develop pandas. My 3yo included. I have seen this happen during homeopathy with several kids, but it happened with my son just on diet and supplements alone. He abruptly came out of his autism world and literally one month later had his first pandas exacerbation (sudden onset and very severe). My only guess as to why this happens is that, according to Herring's Law of Cure, symptoms move out from the most severe to the least severe (and later out of the body leading to permanent cure). Is pandas a "stop along the way" from autism to neurotypical? On the flip side, treating my older son's PANDAS made his AUTISM much worse (antibiotics killed good bacteria, leading to clostridia, leading to the worst autistic features I had ever seen in him). This would be (if you believe in Herring's Law of Cure) b/c we were "suppressing" pandas and driving his illness deeper into the body, creating more serious pathology. Thanks to homeopathy, we no longer need antibiotics...for strep OR clostridia. With all of that said, the following link explains Herring's path, or law, of cure. Very thought provoking. http://turningleafhomeopathy.com/aboutHomeopathy/pathOfCure.aspx This brings us to the work of Constantine Hering, a student of Hahnneman. Hering brought homeopathy to the United States in 1833, and became known as the 'Father of American Homeopathy'.1 He formulated a Law of Cure, based on what homeopaths were able to observe about the path of healing in successful cases. The law states generally that as cure progresses, symptoms move away from the vital center of the individual, to manifest in less dangerous ways. This is based on three observations: • As cure progresses, symptoms tend to move from the center towards the periphery. In other words, from inner organs out toward the skin. • Symptoms tend to move from above downwards and toward the extremities. For example, a case of psoriasis formerly seen on the neck and trunk but now seen only on the hands and lower legs has progressed toward cure. • Symptoms tend to move from more vital to less vital organs. For example a child who formerly had a neurological disorder but now has seasonal allergies, with no remaining neurological symptoms, has progressed toward cure. Understanding Hering's Law of Cure is crucial so that not only the practitioner but also the health care consumer can assess whether any therapy is beneficial to overall health. One implication of this law is the idea that suppressing a set of symptoms can lead to a deepening of disease, because removing symptoms means blocking the safest 'vent' available to the vital force. Because the underlying disturbance is still present, the defense mechanism will be forced to go to 'plan B' to cope with it. For example it is commonly observed in homeopathy that children with asthma often have a history of eczema which was suppressed with medications. When the correct remedy is given, the asthma disappears and the eczema often returns briefly. When and if it does come back, interfering with it once more by suppressing it, for instance with cortisone cream, can cause the asthma to return, whereas letting the eczema run its course as the body heals itself can result in permanent cure of both conditions. Photo by jurvetson more Note that because orthodox medicine does not recognize the Law of Cure, a child who once had eczema and later gets asthma is considered successfully cured of eczema, while the asthma is seen as a new problem – bad luck! This is a result of treating diseases, not people. If a homeopath were working with a child with eczema, and the eczema left but later asthma developed, the homeopath would understand that she had failed to help that person. To stimulate the vitality in the right direction could not result in the development of a deeper problem. Understanding Hering's Law of Cure can lead us away from a quick-fix mentality, toward an appreciation of the healing efforts of our bodies and a respect for symptoms as 'best attempts of the vital force under the present conditions'. It can lead us from an emphasis on blocking those attempts to assisting the defense mechanism by boosting it in the direction it has chosen. In doing this, we provide the extra energy needed to allow the vital force to complete a measure of cure. Each time we do so, the burden of disease is lessened and vitality increases, making the next healing step easier and at the same time raising the threshold of susceptibility to new stresses. In this way we enter one of the most rewarding paths imaginable: the upward spiral of healing.

OK, at this point I do not plan to attend the conference but still plan to be in town. Airial95 yes I will chat with you soon regarding locations for dinner cuz I have no idea, thanks!

I will eventually get around to sending out an email to the contacts that I have in Florida, but I wanted to put feelers out regarding a dinner gathering in Tampa on Nov. 12 (Saturday). The National Autism Association Conference is that weekend at Trade Winds Resort (there is a pandas presentation on Friday). I may or may not be attending the conference, but either way I plan to be in town b/c I have friends (pandas/autism) who are attending the conference and I have a cousin in town who will have just had a baby that I am planning to stay with that weekend (killing lots of birds with one stone). I plan to have dinner (etc. ) on Saturday night with some other pandas mommies who are coming into town and I thought maybe some others would like to meet up with us? Let me know...

I have RLS, it does not hurt (maybe he equates the uncomfortable feeling with pain?). My 6yo gets leg cramps with pandas/strep exposure.

I normally dilute all remedies, whether they are the constitutional rememdy or an acute remedy, but since he was screaming and I had my other son outside with the neighbor, I had to act fast and I just popped a few tiny granules under his tongue. It worked very well that way. They have no taste (if anything you can taste the sucrose they make it with so it tastes like sugar), or you could dilute them ( in a tablespoon of water or so) and just give a couple drops of that. I had arnica on hand as part of a 100-remedy kit I ordered from Washington Homeopathic Products. You do not need to get through a doctor, and you can also get arnica at whole foods, health food store and some pharmacies. You should look for 30c or 200c potency (I used 30c, but I would think for a severe and prolonged exacerbation you would need 200c). The full name is arnica montana.