Healing the Discord in Healthcare

As a resurgence of interest in homeopathy has been taking place in North America and Europe over the last 25+ years, there has been an increase of events and media propaganda aimed at discrediting homeopathy and ultimately removing it from public access. Those who practice or support homeopathy are urged to fight these attacks and defend the profession and availability of homeopathic remedies.

Feeling in danger or under attack are experiences we can relate to as individuals as well as collective members of a larger group. From this larger group perspective, we can compare this type of aggressive action against homeopathy to an uncomfortable symptom of the body – not pleasant, but there as an outlet of a deeper disturbance.

Like everything emerging into the world, Homeopathy was born with ancestral inheritance. Its founder Dr. Samuel Hahnemann, although a genius, was hardly a diplomat! From his position as doctor, scientist, teacher and writer, he loudly attacked the conventional medical system and those who practised it. But contending causes contention and the energy surrounding homeopathy’s birth has continued to influence its course throughout its 200+ year history.

As long as we believe ourselves to be targeted by enemies, we will respond with “dis-ease” feelings of suspicion and fear. However like our bodies, our societies are parts of a larger system and whenever one special interest grows too strong, the resulting imbalance will need to be reconciled and encompassed in order to reach a new harmony. Whether the new state is reached through aggression and war or through conscious cooperation will dictate the health and stability of the emerging status quo.

In practice, homeopathy views disease as something present within the totality whose motivation is simple – to stimulate growth and evolution. With each new patient, the homeopath must ask “What needs to be healed here?” Is this a superficial pathology or does it have roots in a deeper conflict that when resolved, will not only eliminate the physical symptom but also move the person to a higher level of freedom, function and expression?

Without challenges, we do not develop. The old expression “What won’t kill you makes you stronger” can be applied to all facets of life, from the global to the personal. We can see ourselves surrounded by enemies we must battle - or by forces of evolution, furthering our shared totality. If we approach dis-eased conflict as a challenge to stimulate growth, the path to resolution will open and enemies become partners.

Just as homeopathy takes this approach in personal health, so we can apply it to the global conflict within healthcare. What is seeking to be cured here? How is this situation a force working to promote greater growth and evolution for all, well beyond the homeopathic community? Healing doesn’t come by opposing the symptom; it comes from addressing the underlying dis-ease. As long as we remain protectionist about particular kinds of healthcare and view other systems as threatening, we create division and an “us vs. them” kind of mentality. Instead of experiencing our commonality, cooperating and learning from each other, the philosophical/political/economic alienation amongst healthcare modalities has created a playground of bullies and victims, each constantly trying to improve their position relative to the others.

Rather than being defensive, this is the opportunity to embrace these challenges and explore our own delusions of “otherness,” to step outside the dynamics of attack and defense and work to heal the divide. Consider a healthcare environment where all modalities are respected, appreciated and utilized for their strengths, rather than condemned for their weaknesses. Because at the end of the day, it isn’t about homeopathy or allopathy or governments or multi-national corporations; it’s about addressing what needs to be healed, and taking the most appropriate action from there.

Susan Drury, RSHom (NA), CCH, RSCHom is a registered member of the North American Society of Homeopaths, the Canadian Society of Homeopaths and the Council for Homeopathic Certification. She regularly publishes homeopathic articles and newsletters and through her private practice and educational outreach, is dedicated to supporting people in their journey to improved health and well-being. Susan provides homeopathic services to North Vancouver, West Vancouver, and the rest of the Lower Mainland, BC. She can be reached at 604-671-7863 or druryperry@shaw.ca.