Homeopathic alternative to Calpol?

[bauble99]

We've got an 18 month old child starting at one of our nurseries soon whose mum has refused permission for us to give him Calpol if required. She has said that she will bring in a homeopathic remedy instead. Does/has anyone used/d this? Does it work? And if so, how quickly?

[yULeYSEES]

is it belladonna? I've uses this for temps before and it works. There are homeopaths on mumsnet that will help you.

[bauble99]

No idea yet, as she'll bring it in when her child starts.

[Prufrock]

Yes homeopathy works.

Homeopaths don't believe that a normal high temp needs to be brought down - the temp is not an illnes, it's the body's response to an illness, and by removing the temp, you impair the body's ability to fight off the illness. Having said that, I do give Calpol when I feel it's necessary for pain relief but that's only been 3 times in ds's 18 months, and not for 2 years for dd.I believe it isn't going to cure my dd/s, but it is going to make them more comfortable.

There are many homeopathic alternatives for fevers - hopefully this mother will bring the right one each time. If she has chosen the correct remedy, you should see a result very quickly - ds was recently a perfect picture of a chammomilla baby, symptoms matched exactly, and within 5 minutes of being given the remedy his temp was down, his face was far less red and he was no longer an irritable grump. If however she has just grabbed an off teh shelf homepathic remedy it is unlikely to have any effect on either fever or pain, and you should feel free to keep telling her that it is not working.

Also- any homeopath would say that for very high temps 40+, or where there are convulsions, a rash, or difficulty breathing, there should be immediate referral to a conventional practitioner.

[bauble99]

Thanks Pru. I must admit to feeling uncomfortable about not being given the option to use Calpol. I also note your comments about 'off the shelf' remedies. She has also specified no raw milk (she will allow him to have milk in sauces etc.) no sugar (except sugar in raw fruit), no puddings/desserts at all (except fruit) real nappies only, no barrier creams except a homeopathic one which, again, she will provide.

She has been told to make sure that if called to collect him due to illness she is able to collect him asap if the homeopathic remedy doesn't work (I'm not pre-judging that it won't, it's just that I've never seen it in action) and she will need to be aware that we will take her child to hospital if necessary where he will probably be given conventional medicines.

[baka]

I avoid calpol like the plague, as it sends ds1 wild. Agree the correct rememdy can work very quickly (ds2 with croup- gave him aconite and within 5 minutes was asleep- obviously you don't mess with croup so had it not worked I would have taken him to a and e).

She sounds quite hard work to have as a customer though! Good luck!!! (if I stopped ds2's pudding- I dread to think!)

[bauble99]

TBH I'm curious to see these remedies in action. My FIL is a homeopathic human and veterinary pharmacist and Mr Bubble grew up being treated with homeopathy. I have no experience of homeopathy at all but am willing to be converted. I'm pleased to see that you all recognise that A&E treatment should be used though, if required. I was recently 'first on the scene' to a traffic accident (young bloke came off of his motorbike, bad leg injury with blood loss) and had to tell a woman and her Rescue Remedy to get out of the way. Is Rescue Remedy a homeopathic treatment? Or am I confusing it with aromatherapy?

[mojomummy]

why did you tell the woman with the rescue remedy to move away ? are you a doctor ? It's a flower essence & is excellent for shock/stress. I've had it before going under GA for operations. I give it to my DD, DH, DM, someone in a shopping mall who cracked her head open.

[Prufrock]

Rescue remedy is a flower essence - it's a similar principle, but not recognised as true homeopathy.
It probably would have helped though - I use it for shock/stress, but obv. only in conjunction with conventional first aid. actually I'm more likely to use arnica in case of accidents tahn rescue remedy - it really is excellent both for the mental symptoms and to stop/mitigate bruising.

If she does just bring in , for example, chammomilla, and tell you to use it every time he has a fever, I would challenge her - unlike paracetomol, which has a chemical action to stop any sort of pain/fever, homeopathic remedies must be matched very particularly to the exact symptoms exhibited, and that's not something you should be expected to judge. Just for a bog standard fever there are 6 remedies that I know of (and I'm only just starting to learn this stuff - actually I've just posted my second assignement on fevers!) She does sound a bit like hard work - IME properly trained homeopaths will always recognise the value of conventional medicine.

[pupuce]

I have a different perspective...
I could be that mother bauble....
When my kids went to nursery and later childminder - I also refused the use of any drug... actually they wanted us to sign a consent form (for giving Calpol) before they joined and I declined and they were fine with it... we did cloth nappies etc
I would have loved to stay off puds and sugar and to an extent we are but not completely off them as my kids go to school now. For a while my kids went to nursery with home cooked food - despite the nursery cooking on the premises.
DS is 6, DD is 4 neither have NEVER had any medication... DS had arnica once. They are not ill or if they are it's like this WE when DD vomited in the night and then complained of a headache...I did wonder about the headache and using calpol but instead took her to bed with me and she slept whilst I read. She was better by lunchtime... 24h bug but I did keep a close eye on it.

So if her child is not well, she can come and collect it. Calpol doesn't always have to be used. It is her choice and it may well be that her child never needs it... clearly mine have not.

[bauble99]

mojomummy. I'm a nurse, not a doctor. Luckily, the second person on the scene was a doctor and fortunately one who had recently worked in A&E. The young bloke had a compound fracture and was in shock. Whilst I'm sure that Rescue Remedy is wonderful stuff, it was more important at the time to assess the guy properly and she was repeatedly getting in the way. Rescue Remedy after assessment would have been fine.

[mojomummy]

Hi Bauble99 - I must say when I say to medical people about it, they do look at me as if I'm bonkers ! Still, I do find it a great help & it's worked well with my DD, who wouldn't have a clue what it is.