COVID-19

The Pandemic

Like many others, with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic we went to video conferencing for patient appointments. While many people still choose video conferencing for its convenience, in-office appointments are preferred for initial appointments and first follow-ups whenever possible. However, while the office has a separate entrance, it is in a home that shares the central heating and air condition system. Consequently if, on a day a patient is scheduled to come into the office they have an active contagious illness (e.g., a cold, influenza, COVID, etc.), or have recently been exposed to one, we ask them to reschedule to a video conference. For video conferencing we use Zoom conferencing. If video conferencing is not technically feasible, a phone consultation may also be possible.

Long COVID

Lingering symptoms following a COVID-19 infection (commonly called “Long COVID”) can be very serious, even debilitating. It is also sometimes called long-haul COVID, post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC), long-term effects of COVID-19, or chronic COVID. Regardless of a person’s vaccination status, long COVID is a risk following any COVID infection, even a mild one. Currently research suggests that the risk goes up with repeated infections. Conventional medicine has really struggled to find medications to make much difference. Fortunately, naturopathy and, in particular, homeopathy has a fairly good tract record of helping the body heal itself from this condition. This is possible because, unlike conventional medicine, we are not trying to “treat the disease” with pharmaceuticals, instead we are working on strengthening the patient’s own healing mechanisms.

Vaccine Injury

Fortunately, given that hundreds of millions of vaccines are given yearly, remarkably few cause vaccine injury. However, no type of vaccine is completely free of examples of serious injury. Regardless of how rare it is, if you or your family member has been injured by a vaccine it can be a tragedy.

Remember, it is normal to have temporary mild symptoms following a vaccine as your immune system gets activated against the vaccine target. These are a sign the vaccine is working. However, if a reaction following a vaccine was severe or lingers beyond 72 hours, it is then appropriate to seek naturopathic or homeopathic care. In my many years of practice I have been able to help many people who have had significant reactions to previous vaccines. It is important to emphasize that historically homeopathic treatment has been by far the most effective pathway to complete recovery from a vaccine injury,regardless of the type of vaccine!

Current homeopathic patients may find a vaccination will set them back in their improvement. If this happens, repeating their previously successful homeopathic remedy will usually restore their improvement. However, please call the office if this is an issue.

Contracting COVID-19

It is important to know that I am able to help people with all kinds of viral infections, including COVID-19. Naturopaths and homeopaths have along history of helping people recover from acute infections and epidemics. COVID is not an exception.