Omnia Gullia divisa est in partes tres as you learned in school, on beginning Caesar. All patients, too, are divided into three classes, as regards surgery: those who have an irresistible yen for it, at any price; those who will never submit to it, no matter what the “or else!” and those who can be swayed by sense, expense or consequence. For the first, I commit them to Irvin Cobb and his Speaking of Operations.
May they continue to “enjoy poor health”, and vie with their neighbors! As to the second, I embrace them in spirit, for one can do ones homoeopathic best with them, without let or hindrance, neither family nor friends can cavil, the decision and the bad outcome, if any, is at their door, and only praise at the doctors if he cure or abate. It is to the third group that I would talk, as follows:.
Operations can be obviated by good homoeopathy in a large percentage of cases, and in a very high percent if the patient is a chronic homoeopathic one. For one of the aims and advantages of our work is to raise the threshold of disease susceptibility and prevent illness, or rather, natures need of illness, in adults particularly.
To diverge for a moment into the philosophy of sickness: Acute disease in the adult is an outcropping of chronic trouble, whether brought on by unhygienic (that is, unnatural) thinking or living, or by the occasional need of a vent, or by a suppression or by any lowering of the vitality which permits a sickness to develop often with its concomitant bacteria getting unruly, which organisms should be harmless guests of the healthy economy.
Acute disease in the child is necessary and admirable in the form of the so-called “diseases of childhood,” the exanthemata for instance. Hence our objection to the suppressive prevention of these valuable illnesses by the conventional public health methods of sera and vaccines in addition to the introduction thereby of foreign growth rhythms from animals, and to the introduction by injection methods which violate Natures protection. Certain other kinds of disease it is to be hoped the child will not need to have, such as rheumatic fever, malaria, etc. But if it does, proper homoeopathic remedies should bring it through fortified and not weakened.
The best preventive for chronicity recurrent attacks in adult or child is the constitutional homoeopathic remedy, chosen by individualization based on the totality of the symptoms, which is Natures own request and guide. The same can be said for frequent attacks of so-called surgical troubles: tonsillitis, appendicitis, piles, duodenal ulcers, bleeding fibroids and many others.
If first seen in an acute stage, an acute remedy must be picked; and it must be THE SIMILLIMUM. If the disease is a tricky and dangerous one like appendicitis, follow your blood counts, your patient, and temperature ratio, the look of your patient, have a surgeon in consultation who is not only good, but at least knows what wonders your remedy can do to protect your reputation and reassure the family WATCH LIKE A HAWK and be SURE you have the right remedy: nine out of ten cases will clear without surgical intervention.
Then INSIST that they treat chronicity with you to prevent recurrence. Returning attacks in children can be well controlled: in my hands Sulphur often does yeoman service here; Phosphorus too, where the abdomen is full and exquisitely tender and you might think of Belladonna save for the nausea from hot drinks and the false appearance of well-being in a child you know to be critically ill.
Once I was badly fooled by a boy but not in the way you think! Lower right quadrant tenderness, with rebound pain, temperature 104 F. and W.B.C. 20,000, with 80 p.c. polys, pulse slow (72); family wanted operation, so, I weakened and sent him to the hospital, but not before giving the restless lad what? Pyrogen of course, 10M., one dose. The surgeon agreed on appendicitis and on operating; behold right mesenteric glands, and nothing else. Appendix perfect. The boy never showed T.B.C. symptoms after Bacill. followed by Sil., no return of gland trouble before or since, though it was in both parents families.
Just as counterpoint let me cite another case: Lady, 69, no history of “indigestion attacks” or appendix upsets; under homoeopathy for years, sudden attack of R.L.Q. pain with vomiting, rebound tenderness, W.B.C. 10,000, polys 78 p.c. fever 100 F., pulse rapid but good; held her side and flexed knee, thirsty, wanted to be let alone. Bry. 1M., one dose and placebo. Averse to operation. Blood count rose to 14,000, poly 92 p.c., fever 102 F. Rectal showed tender mass in right fornix.
Became restless, worse at early night: Rhus tox. 1M. Next morning fever lower, pulse 120, nervous moments by me! Surgical consultant said, “Pray, but not operate.” Pyrogen 2c., three doses once an hour. After the second patient had a chill and turned blue (perforation) followed by diarrhoea for several hours of masses of foul pus. During this she felt better and went on to a quick recovery.
No symptoms of ileocaecal or ovarian pain or adhesions. Bowels perfect. Health excellent for the year since. “Pretty lucky,” said the surgeon. “Hurrah for homoeopathy,” said I, and “Three cheers for my subsequent health and pocketbook and homoeopathy,” said patient.
Do not misunderstand me, sometimes we must all recommend operation for fulminating cases, first seen too late, or unwisely purged by officiously devoted families. But not nearly as many need to be operated as are: and in my experience the ones medically cured do far better.
Both patients and doctors need to remember that operation not merely mechanical, tends to be suppressive, to close a vent before the cause is cured, which even a plumbar knows leads to trouble! The law of cure in chronic disease that symptoms disappear in the reverse order of their coming is balked by an operative scar as a stream by a dam. Let Nature find her vent under the guidance of the remedy.
Surgery may be needed for the removal of a mechanical obstruction, but cure the PROCESS first, before you cut out the end product (pathology) or disease will follow in more vital regions, where it can not be cut out.
