A person with chronic eczema comes in for a homeopathic consultation. After reviewing the case, I give her a dose of “Sulphur, 30C”. She comes in two weeks later, excited, because the eczema is largely gone, her sleep is better, and she has noticed a desire for healthier, less processed foods.

What does this mean? Is it that she had a “sulphur deficiency”, which the remedy filled? Not at all. In fact, sulphur is a common part of our daily diet, and the amount of sulphur in one dose of a remedy is miniscule. Skeptics actually point to this issue to “prove” that homeopathy “cannot possibly work”. There is far more elemental sulphur in one bite of broccoli than in the dose my client took, which began to heal her of her eczema.

What’s going on is mysterious and also profound. Homeopaths believe that each substance in nature has not only the molecular and elemental components we think of as its chemical or physical makeup, but also an energetic imprint that is locked into this physical matrix. The process of repeatedly diluting the substance in a neutral medium (such as either distilled water or pure ethanol), and succussing, (vigorous mixing) does something profound. The energetic imprint loosens from the physical substance and infuses into the surrounding medium. With each round of dilution and succussion, the unique energetic imprint is released from the source substance. It is this imprint that is the healing component of homeopathic remedies.

So, after 12 rounds of dilution and succussion, pure elemental sulphur is brought to “Sulphur 12C”. One drop of this remedy very likely has no more than a single atom of sulphur from the original source. And yet, it is infused with a unique imprint that, when the remedy is administered, communicates powerfully with the client’s vital being.

In this regard, homeopathy is much closer to other “energy medicine” modalities such as Reiki, acupuncture, or Qi Gong – than it is to physical medicine treatments such as herbs, nutritional supplements or vitamins. When a Reiki practitioner holds her hands and “transmits” Universal Reiki Energy, the client can feel a shift across the room. When a needle is gently inserted into a toe, and the client’s shoulder pain lifts and his sinuses start to clear – that’s energy at work. Certainly the needle itself is not drilling its way towards the sinuses to clear them!

Here’s my analogy for how the remedy effects change in a person. You tell your child to go clean his room before he can watch TV. Just a few words spoken, a few vibrations of air with less than a micro-watt of total power, and yet his whole being now shifts into organized action, cleaning up the room. If you come back in 15 minutes, he might still be busy cleaning up, in which case you need to do or say nothing further. However, if he has gotten stalled or distracted, you simply say again, “Remember, no TV until the room’s cleaned up”. This is another miniscule input of sound energy, and he gets right to work cleaning up again!

Our remedies give microscopic amounts of energetic input in the same way. They remind the organism to get organized and activate towards a healing goal. The body does all the work, and has all the intelligence needed to bring about cure, healing and wellness.