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When people ask me what homeopathy is, I ask if they’ve ever used Arnica. I ask this because most people, even those who have never heard of homeopathy, have used Arnica. Why? Arnica is a primary first-aid remedy. It is highly effective for treating bruising and is easily found in most pharmacies.
Arnica Montana (affiliate) is commonly known as the leopard’s bane. It is a plant indigenous to Europe and mainly cultivated in North America. The word ‘Arnica’ is derived from the Latin meaning ‘Lambskin’ because of the wooly-textured leaves. However, ‘montana’ depicts mountains, i.e., where the plant grows. The remedy Arnica montana is prepared from the roots of its plant. Before it was scientifically proven to have medicinal properties, locals used to pop it into their mouths in cases of falls, injuries, and pains.
Arnica has been used in homeopathy to treat various fresh and old injuries. It can treat the acute and chronic effects of injuries that leave a sore, bruised feeling all over the body. The patient feels restless and cannot find a comfortable spot to rest.
Arnica is vital in many conditions but is renowned for its action on injuries. It can be given for primary and minor injuries, where the bleeding is concealed and the skin stays intact. Arnica is also known to have antibiotic and muscle-relaxing properties. Arnica is an excellent post-surgery remedy.
Arnica’s chief action is on the blood and blood vessels, particularly on the capillaries (small blood vessels). It is known to absorb blood. It also has antibiotic properties, hence preventing septic conditions. On the muscles, it acts as a muscle relaxant and relieves the tension of the stressed parts.
Arnica for Bruises
A bruise is a bluish-black discoloration that forms under the skin. It may sometimes look like a blood clot.
Arnica is a fantastic remedy for such complaints. The bruises could be due to any reason, be it a mechanical trauma or due to weak capillaries. It has been clinically seen that sometimes people tend to have a random bruise here and there, and the patient himself is not aware of any trauma at the site. Such bruises can arise due to the outflow of blood from the tiny vessels owing to the weak capillary walls. This is how Arnica can do wonders in such cases; it affects the weak capillary walls, strengthens them, and causes constriction of the dilated small vessel, stopping blood flow. It can affect these vessels and increase their power to retain the blood. It is an excellent remedy in the first stage of injury, where much bruising has been done, and the pain is intense but diffused. Thus making Arinica a primary first aid remedy.
It can also be given for bruises from a blow to the stomach or other organs. The bruised parts are very sore, and the soreness is much greater than the size of the bruise. The patient can barely afford to move or touch the affected part. Arnica can help with soreness and tenderness in such cases and heal bruises.
I recommend that all women take Arnica after labor and delivery. It helps to heal the internal wounds of the uterus but also heals any damage that may have been done to the bladder. I didn’t take it after two of my deliveries, and in both of those, I developed a bladder infection within days of giving birth. Afterward, I learned how important Arnica is!
Arnica for Hemorrhages
Arnica has a beautiful capability of reabsorbing blood. It can be given for hematomas (blood collection under superficial layers) and conditions where there is concealed bleeding, the blood has escaped out of the capillaries, but the skin remains intact—such conditions when there is no sufficient tone in the fibers of the vessel to hold the blood. The vessel walls then ooze out blood.
These hemorrhages are a result of blunt traumas without causing any open wounds. An important thing to note in cases of injuries where there has been bleeding is that Arnica should only be used once the bleeding has stopped (either by suturing or once the wound has gone through the stage of initial clot formation). It is a well-indicated remedy for cases of retinal hemorrhages and helps quickly resolve the condition. It can also be given in cases of epistaxis ( bleeding from the nose), especially after an episode of injury to the nasal area. The number one injury that causes nose bleeds is from picking the nose. This information was helpful for me in convincing a six-year-old to leave her nose alone.
Arnica for Infection
Arnica has often proved beneficial for cases where the wounds tend to form pus, which could be avoided with its use. It can be given in cases of pyemia and septicemia as a result of trauma. It often happens that after a blow or contusion, the patient gets restless, has a lame sore feeling all over the body, tosses and turns on lying down, and cannot find a spot soft enough to make him feel relaxed. This could or could not be attended with fever. In such cases, Arnica has proven to be an excellent remedy. It can remove bacterial infections in the background owing to its antibiotic properties, healing the concealed bleeding under the skin and other consequences of an injury.
Arnica for Sprains
A widespread type of injury that almost everyone has faced at one time or another is a sprain due to a misstep. It can be caused by the twisting of the foot in an undesired manner. It is a very common type of injury seen in sports or wearing high heels. Such cases of sprains where even wearing the shoe could seem too tricky can be marvelously healed with Arnica. It relaxes the tension of the twisted ligament and helps manage the pain, soreness, and lameness of the part affected. The black and blue appearance of the sprained part goes away in a surprisingly short time. This is another reason we include Arnica as a primary first-aid remedy.
Arnica for Fractures
Arnica is mainly given in fractures of the head or spine, with the compression of the brain. It very well manages cases where the patient goes into an unconscious state after an accident, where there is a head injury, or the spinal cord may be involved. It can minimize the post-injury effects. Its influential role in helping people after an injury puts Arnica under the special category of treating head injuries.
Conditions that arise after a head injury (whether recent or past) can be effectively treated with the remedy. For example, epilepsy following an injury to the head, loss of memory, speech problems following an injury, etc., are also effectively cured with Arnica.
Fractures of the bone may require Arnica, both externally and internally, to relieve the swelling of the limb. People often develop localized muscle twitching after a fracture, which is nothing but a reflex of the fracture. When treated with Arnica, they feel significantly better with respect to the pain, swelling, and tenderness. Arnica helps speed up the healing process and prevent infection and deterioration of the bone.
Arnica for Myalgia
A widespread phenomenon clinically seen is that once a disease has taken its course and resolved, it leaves a trail of unrelated complaints behind. For instance, after an episode of flu, people complain of muscular pains. They cannot relate it to any other event but to the illness that they have suffered in the past. Such pains (though they have no direct relation to the disease they have suffered from) cannot be ignored. This is where Arnica can prove valuable. It is an underestimated remedy in such cases of myalgia (muscle pains), where the muscle pains have started as a consequence of a disease.
It can also be given for sore and tender muscles caused by overtraining, whether at the gym or at work. I wrote about using Arnica for soreness following traveling.
Other Clinical Conditions Treated with Arnica:
- Concealed Injuries
- Typhoid Fevers
- Gout
- Black Eye
- Fractures
- Sprains and Strains
- Meningitis
- Mechanical Otitis
- Epistaxis
- Myalgia
- Haematuria
- Hydrocele
- Uterine Prolapse
- Metrorrhagia
- Boils
- Septicemia
- Appendicitis
- Postpartum Haemorrhages
- Bed Sores
- Headache
- Bronchitis
- Diarrhea
- Dysentery
- Haematuria
How to Dose Arnica
Homeopathic medicine Arnica is recommended in the potency of 30C. It can be repeated frequently in recent, fresh injuries. In cases of past injuries, it can be used in high potencies but with infrequent repetitions.
It can also be applied locally as a tincture, but not on broken skin.
Arnica and Other Homeopathic Remedies
Arnica follows well after Aconite, Apis, Ham, Ipecacuanha and Veratrum album.
- It is complementary to Aconite, Hypericum, and Rhus tox.
- It antidotes the effect of Camphor.
- It is followed well by Acid sulph.
How to Use Arnica
Arnica can effectively treat mild-to-moderate injuries at home. A 30 c potency of Arnica can be taken internally 4- 5 times daily. Its use should be discontinued once the desired relief has been achieved. In cases where the injury is severe and blood loss is uncontrollable, one should immediately contact the local hospital.
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