Homeopathy and HIV
I have treated many hundreds of HIV+ patients, mostly patients who are already on anti-retroviral treatment (“combination therapy”). I have a special interest in HIV/AIDS both as a homeopath and as a gay person.
I've seen homeopathy being very effective in treating:
- The emotional effects of being HIV positive
- Physical symptoms that relate to the infection
- Side effects from conventional treatment (nausea, diarrhea, peripheral neuropathy, liver deficiency, fatigue etc)
I've also seen homeopathy help patients who have not reached the threshold of needing antiretroviral treatment. By keeping patients healthy and balanced homeopathy might slow disease processes down but it CANNOT REPLACE ANTI-RETROVIRALS IF YOU NEED THEM.
I’ve practised in Maun, Botswana, for 9 months. The clinical results we've achieved there treating patients with HIV were excellent – most patients there have shown marked improvement on both the emotional and physical planes within 2-3 consultations.
It is important to emphasize that, like in any condition, as a homoeopath I treat the person and not the disease. While homeopathy can help the health of an HIV positive patient, there's no evidence to suggest that, on its own, it can control it.
Man, 42 years old, HIV+, on HAART, CD4 - 340. Complains of loss of erection, loss of pigmentation of the skin in patches, anxieties about his health and future, unable to deal with the implications of the diagnosis.
Prescription: Agnus Castus 30 to address the sexual issue, Arsenicum 1M for the anxieties and Carcinosin 200 to address the skin symptoms and the feeling of hopelessness. Each remedy once a week for 4 weeks. Reaction: after a month the patient is considerably better. Due to the depth of the case treatment has to be continued for a long while, and the remedies changed often. After 12 months, back at work, he reduces clinic visits to once every 3 months. CD4 is 470, and no further conventional medication is needed apart from HAART.