Interview with Amy L. Lansky, Ph.D.

Author of Impossible Cure

http://www.renresearch.com/autism.html

Rebecca:
At the core of your book is the story of how your son was cured of autism by Homeopathy. What drew you to this system of healing?

Amy:
I had been interested in alternative medicine for some time, mostly for myself. Like most people, I was a dabbler -- picking up things in health food stores, taking a Tai Chi or Qi Gong class, etc. My first real introduction to homeopathy was an article in Mothering Magazine (a progressive parenting magazine) about the treatment of childhood behavioral problems. The author, Seattle naturopath Judyth Reichenberg-Ullman, ND, claimed to have a success rate of 80% in cases of ADHD. We were already struggling with my son's autism at the time (he was 3 1/2) & somehow this short article immediately struck a chord with me. I got a referral to a homeopath the very next day. The rest is history.

Rebecca:
How does Homeopathy differ from “regular” medicine?

Amy:
Homeopathy has a completely different perspective about what health, disease, & cure is all about. Like many systems of alternative medicine, homeopathy does not view & treat disease in terms of isolated physical or mental symptoms -- headaches, foot fungus, depression. Instead, all of the physical & mental symptoms that a patient is experiencing are viewed holistically -- as part of a single “disease”. Their headaches, fungus, & depression are viewed as symptoms of a single underlying condition that must be treated.

In “regular” medicine, each symptom is treated separately, usually with a different medicine, & often by a different doctor. It's not unusual for a person to be taking 10 medicines every day. From a homeopathic standpoint, these medicines are usually just suppressing or palliating the symptoms, not curing them. In fact, such medicines are viewed as dangerous, because they simply “push around” the symptoms, without treating their fundamental cause.

In contrast, a classical homeopath will select a single remedy that corresponds to the entire symptom picture of a patient. Remedy selection is highly individualized, because everyone is different. If 10 people came to a homeopath with migraine, each one might receive a different remedy. A successful prescription is also holistic in its effects -- it can lead to a cure of the entire person. It is not unusual for a single remedy to improve sleep function, regulate the menstrual cycle, remove migraines, improve mental outlook, & clear up back pain. My book is full of amazing first-person anecdotes of wide-ranging cures. I've experienced them myself.

Rebecca:
What can Homeopathy help heal?

Amy:
As the title of my book, Impossible Cure intimates, Homeopathy can heal many things that people think are impossible to cure. As you know, my son was cured of autism. Under the care of an experienced homeopath, patients can find cures, or at least substantial improvement, for most forms of chronic disease -- e.g., allergies, asthma, migraine, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, depression, anxiety, hyperactivity, arthritis, & much more.

Homeopathy, of course, can also treat acute diseases -- both bacterial & viral -- very effectively. Many moms know that a how-to book & remedy kit in the home can do wonders in these situations. Treatment by a professional homeopath, however, is usually preferable. Homeopathy also has a 200 year history of success in treating even the most virulent of epidemics -- cholera, typhoid, flu, diphtheria, even smallpox.

Rebecca:
When is Homeopathy not useful?

Amy:
In general, once pathological tissue changes have occurred that are difficult for the body to remove or repair, homeopathic cure becomes more difficult. Homeopathy can help the body to heal itself, but when even this is not remotely possible, it too becomes more limited.

For example, homeopathy can't set a broken arm or close an open gaping wound, but it can help the body to heal the broken bone & the wound faster. Homeopathy can enable the cure of cancer because the body often has the potential to absorb or expel tumors, but I have never heard of a homeopathic cure of Type 1 diabetes, because the pancreas is simply too damaged to repair itself & produce insulin anymore. Fortunately, most diseases are functional; that is, they reflect an inability of the body to work optimally. Homeopathy has the ability to restore this functionality.

Rebecca:
How does Homeopathy work?

Amy:
That's a good question! From a biochemical viewpoint, homeopathy's mechanism of action is still not understood. Homeopathy is an “energy” medicine, as is acupuncture. The remedies are thought to operate primarily on the body energy or, as homeopaths call it, the vital force. It is here where disease is thought to originate, & it is here where cure begins. A repaired vital force can enable the body to function properly again & heal itself.

The way the remedies operate is according to homeopathy's central therapeutic principle -- the Law of Similars. Homeopathy's founder, Samuel Hahnemann (a German physician of the early 1800s) discovered that if a substance could cause the symptoms of a disease, it could also cure that disease. His first experience of this was with Peruvian bark (the source of quinine), which to this day is used as a treatment for malaria. He took some Peruvian bark himself & soon developed the sweats and sensations of malaria. When he stopped, the symptoms went away. He deduced that this was why Peruvian bark cured malaria -- because it could also cause malaria symptoms in healthy people.

Homeopaths choose a remedy for a patient based on this same law. They try to find the substance that has been proven to cause symptoms similar to those being experienced by the patient -- both mental & physical. Giving this remedy to the patient creates a kind of action/reaction response -- the remedy acts (produces the symptoms being experienced), & the body reacts in counteraction by removing the symptoms.

Of course, it's a bit more complicated than that. As many of your readers might know, homeopathic remedies are prepared from ultra-dilutions of natural substances. The pill you take might be made from arsenic or from a flower, but from a chemical standpoint, there is not even a single molecule of arsenic or flower in it. Instead, the “energy” of arsenic or the flower has been transferred into the ultra-dilution that was used to prepare the pill. Most scientists would say that there's nothing inside it at all!

Being a scientist myself, my book tries to tackle this issue from a scientific point of view. It includes a discussion of several medical trials that prove that homeopathy does work (& that its success is not due to the “placebo effect”), & it also discusses how homeopathic remedies might actually be working. In particular, recent research in biophysics has shown that there really might be something in homeopathic ultra-dilutions; somehow, the structure of the water in them has been changed. In the past 10 years, more & more scientific results have begun to support the findings of the homeopaths from the 1800s. Within the next 50 years, the validity of homeopathy may finally be proven in the lab.

Rebecca:
Are there many Homeopathic practitioners in America, and where can we find them?

Amy:
Unfortunately, there aren't as many well-trained homeopathic practitioners out there as I'd like. For example, there are only about 300 certified classical homeopaths in the USA & Canada. You can find them at www.homeopathicdirectory.org.

Some naturopaths, acupuncturists, osteopaths, & chiropractors also practice a bit of homeopathy. My advice is to pursue serious homeopathic treatment only with a practitioner who uses homeopathy as their primary modality. Unfortunately, there are also some people out there who say they are doing “homeopathy” but whose services have nothing to do with homeopathy -- even if they are handing out “homeopathic” remedies. My book provides guidance in selecting a good homeopath & preparing for homeopathic treatment.

One of the reasons for the low numbers of homeopaths in the USA is that homeopathy isn't licensed by any state. So most homeopaths, like most alternative practitioners, have to operate in a kind of legal gray-zone. Luckily, health freedom laws are being passed or promoted in several states right now that will make the practice of many safe unlicensed forms of alternative medicine (including homeopathy) completely legal. I was involved in the passage of a health freedom law in my home state of California in 2002.

Rebecca:
What other alternative healing processes have you explored?

Amy:
I have tried traditional chiropractic, network chiropractic, ayurveda, Qi-gong, Reiki, massage, acupuncture, cranio-sacral work, and traditional osteopathy. Since my son's cure from autism (which began in 1995), my family primarily uses homeopathy. We occasionally see a traditional osteopath & I find Reiki very helpful too.

Rebecca:
What do you hope readers will take from your book?

Amy:
My primary motive for writing Impossible Cure was to let everyone know about homeopathy -- & to provide them with enough information so that they too can find a cure. I want to give people hope & knowledge.

Most people are not being well-served by the current health care system. They should know that there is another way -- a way that is usually safer, more effective, & much less expensive, especially in the long-term. Given my own experiences, I find it completely unacceptable that homeopathy is probably the least-understood form of alternative medicine today.

Of course, I am especially motivated to reach other parents with autistic children. My son's cure was a miracle & I want other children to be saved as well. It's not simple though. Homeopathic treatment of something as serious as autism (or any other form of chronic disease) cannot be done through self-treatment. People need to learn a lot about homeopathy to find a well-trained practitioner & stick with it. A well-educated patient is crucial in homeopathy because patients must be active participants in their own treatment.

Happily, I can report that I personally know of several families who have pursued homeopathic treatment of their autistic children because of my book. Many of these children are already showing great improvement. Saving one more life makes all of my efforts worthwhile. Thank you Rebecca, for helping me to reach many more people with my message!

Rebecca:
If this remarkable system of healing has caught your interest, do check out my review of Impossible Cure. & get yourself a copy, it is fascinating!

http://www.rebeccasreads.com/interviews/authors/021504_lansky_interview.html