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What if I were to tell you there are homeopathic medicines made from each year's flu virus?
For 150 years homeopaths have been using two medicines, Thymuline and Influenzinum as flu prevention. Influenzinum is a nosode.
Nosodes are homeopathic remedies made from a small amount of inactive disease material rendered safe and non-toxic by a homeopathic laboratory. By introducing a miniscule amount of disease substance into the body it stimulates the body to develop resistance to the disease.

Gathering nettle seeds this fall. Nettle has two flushes each year. Both spring and fall. 

Homeopaths use a wide variety of nosodes; basically, if you think of any infectious disease, we have the nosodes for them. Hepatitis, sexually transmitted diseases, tropical diseases and childhood diseases are a small example of nosodes the profession has used for over one hundred years. They are used judiciously by qualified clinicians, each with their own unique prescribing protocol. Influenzinum is widely available and sold at most pharmacies and natural food stores without a prescription. Other nosodes, such as those for more serious diseases are only prescribed by a qualified homeopath and are not available over the counter. While skeptics abound, and even I was a skeptic when I learnt about them in school, I am a firm believer in them because of my own personal experience and now, twenty years of professional experience using them. 

New family member, our rescue pup Oliver. He is such a sweetheart! He's 17 months now. 

The Homeopathic Vaccine? 

For years, the use of influenzinum was called, “the homeopathic vaccine”. And you can see why. Just like a vaccine, a small amount of the biological material is made into a medicine prescribed seasonally, on a set schedule. However, calling it a vaccine is incorrect, and doing so creates hostility from the medical establishment toward the homeopathic community. Homeopathic remedies are not a substitute for a vaccine. They work differently, and trying to compare them undermines homeopathic medicine and fuels the age-old feud between these two professional communities. Homeopathic medicines are essentially vibrational medicine. They are diluted so only nano-particules remain, and work by activating our Qi, or vital force, which in turn stimulates the immune system. Whereas vaccines, also produced from the virus or bacterium or its genetic code, stimulates the body’s immune system directly.

Garden harvest. My favourite thing to do each summer morning is gather flowers for tea. On the left my favourite tomato, Black Krim. 

Thymuline 

Thymuline is often used alongside Influenzinum. Thymuline is a homeopathic medicine made from the thymus gland. The thymus is responsible for producing white blood cells which are responsible for defending us against many kinds of infections. The thymus also secretes hormones which enhance immune function overall. Homeopaths use Thymuline to support immunity during the change of season, times of stress or travel, allergies, and in the case of a slow or difficult period of recovery.   

Hollyhock Garden on Cortes Island. I spent a wonderful week there this summer. 

Homeoprophylaxis

Using remedies such as Influenzinum and Thymuline when you are not sick, but as a protective measure during seasonal illness is called homeoprophylaxis. The typical dosing schedule is once weekly, for 6 weeks every spring or autumn. This method of homeopathy is not practised by all homeopaths, and for those who do, it's recommended on a case by case basis depending on health history and recent vaccine schedules. I don't prescribe influenza homeoprophylaxis for everyone, I don't think it's always necessary. But I do recommend it for those who are vulnerable, exhausted, or at risk of complications.

The finished nettle salt. This is one of my all-time fave things to make. Nettle seeds contain minerals, and also support the endocrine system. And I love the taste. 

When You Do Get Sick: Homeopathic Remedies for Cold & Flu

Okay, so perhaps you took Influenzinum and Thymuline as a prophylaxis once weekly for six weeks and you still got sick. What now? Here are a few common remedies I recommend keeping in your medicine cabinet.

Gelsemium

This is the classic influenza remedy for slow-onset, heavy, "paralyzed" states. The patient is drowsy, dull, has heavy eyelids, they are trembling, and weak, with heavy limbs and a chilly sensation running up and down the spine. Notably, they experience thirstless despite having a fever. Sometimes they have a headache, for Gelsemium is occipital, often with a band-like pressure. They may also experience sneezing, watery nasal discharge that excoriates the upper lip, and a sore throat with difficulty swallowing. Their cold or flu may have come on from damp weather, emotional excitement, anticipation, or bad news. Those needing Gelsemium may have a tickling dry cough with hoarseness.

How To Use: 30C or 200C, one dose repeated every 2-4 hours in acute flu until improvement, then stop.

Arsenicum album

Indicated for flu with anxiety, restlessness, and marked prostration out of proportion to the illness. The patient is chilly, wants warmth, and sips small amounts of water frequently. Nasal discharge is thin, watery, and burning, excoriating the nostrils, with violent sneezing yet no relief. They may experience a dry, suffocative, wheezy cough, worse lying flat and after midnight (1-3 AM), with a feeling of tightness in the chest. Arsenicum is also for GI-involved flu with vomiting and diarrhea. The patient may be fastidious, fearful, and clingy, wanting company. They feel worse from cold and feel worse 1-3 AM; and feel better from warmth and warm drinks.

How To Use: 30C every 2-4 hours; 200C for more intense states, repeated as needed.

Bryonia alba

For dry, painful, hacking cough and flu where the guiding characteristic is that everything is worse from motion and better from being still, and resting. The patient is irritable, wants to be left alone, and is intensely thirsty for large quantities of cold water. Mouth, lips, and throat are dry. The cough is dry with stitching chest pains; the patient holds the chest or lies on the painful side for support. If a headache is present it is frontal, splitting, and worse from any movement or coughing. Illness can begin with a slow onset, often after exposure to dry cold winds. Their symptoms are worse from warmth in the room, exertion, and touch (except firm pressure); better from rest, cool air, and lying on the affected side.

How To Use: 30C every 2-4 hours; 200C in  intense cases, spacing as improvement begins.

Ferrum phosphoricum

This is a remedy when symptoms are sudden but mild to moderate. Fever is low to moderate with a mild, tickling, dry cough that may be worse at night or in the morning. A sore throat, mild earache, and nosebleeds may be present. A key note: the patient is weak and tired but not as debilitated as Gelsemium or as restless as Arsenicum. They feel worse from night, 4-6 AM, worse from any movement. It is also a go-to for cough with blood-streaked sputum and early chest colds in children or sensitive individuals.

How To Use: 6X tissue salt, 2-4 tablets dissolved under the tongue every 30 minutes to 1-2 hours in acute phase; or 30C every 2-4 hours.

Seraphina