We are a Lawless People

Now that the smoke and dust after the terrorist attack in Mumbai have settled, the blame game has started with the govenment blaming Pakistan, the different ministries blaming each other for intellegence failure or lack of action, the political parties blaming each other for being soft with the terrorists and the people blaming the politicians!
It is time for introspection. How about blaming ourselves? Isn't the common Indian citizen also to be blamed? We are a lawless people. Every individual who gave sound bytes or was part of any organisation that held rallies in the aftermath of the attacks is a part of his lawlessness. How many of these celebrities who vied for attention in the media have never broken the laws of the land or helped breed corruption? Have they never jumped the red light at the traffic signal or gone over the zebra crossing at the intersection? How many of these people have been very proud that their underage children are ace drivers?
Spitting on the road, smoking in public, breaking the queues at bus stops, greasing the palms of policemen and officers in every government or municipal office. Small ofences- but commited by us everyday.
Then there is the trend amongst the people to take the law in their own hands (ofcourse with the backing of political parties). Armed with the news and TV channel crew, they crash into the offices of hapless victims, who have been branded by the mob as the perpetrators of crimes, blacken their faces and make sure that the television camera has the best angles. What is a disturbing trend is that most of the time, they use the services of matronly homemakers who seem to enjoy being the upholders of the law.
In this state of lawlessness, the government and its machinery are mute witnesses. They do not even make efforts to curb this because they might antagonise their vote banks.
My student died last week due to this lawlessness. A girl who had a promising career ahead of her. She was standing by the door of a local train when a mobile phone thief, who was waiting on the tracks, hit her with a stick so that she would let go of her phone. Unfortunately, she lost her balance and fell off the train to be severed into two. And the authorities- they expressed their helplesness- the city's population is too big for them to handle esp. since they have a very small work force.
"Such small incidents happen in a big city like Mumbai"- R.R. Patil, ex Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra.

For homeopathic consultation for your symptoms you may visit Homeopathic Healing or send an e-mail to office@drvaishnav.com to meet the Homeopathic Specialists.

Disclaimer: A detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by good and qualified homeopathic specialists is necessary to treat the complaints that appear during any disease. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease. 

The Psyche of a Terrorist

A lot of people, esp. mental health professionals, have come up with theories about the psyche of a terrorist. Why does one become a terrorist? What is going on inside his mind? What could be the mental make-up of this person?As homeopaths we have our theories too! We wonder what precipitates the change from a 'normal' peace-loving human being to a terrorist. If a terrorist visits a homeopath for treatment, the case history may reveal a lot of reasons behind his turning into a terrorist. Perhaps there has been a history of the death of parents and friends at the hands of some organization or regime and now they want revenge. There may have been also a long history of domination, religious or otherwise, by a country or religious group and now this person has grown intolerant of the same. Some of these individuals may have changed over the years after a history of sexual abuse or rape in the past.Many of these individuals may be suffering from psychosis with delusional traits. They may have various fixed ideas that are difficult to change, e.g. a delusion that everyone is an enemy, or that he and his people are persecuted, or that he has been betrayed, or he has to murder. Gradually these thoughts seem to be a reality and then he has a desire to atack others; to kill. He becomes discontented and is estranged from society. There is a contempt for mankind and he develops a hatred for others and seeks revenge.This destructiveness is seen along with cowardice. The terrorist would resort to acts of violence against innocent individuals by planting explosive devices without ever exposing his personal identity. He may communicate with the media or the government through anonymous messages.One aspect of terrorism that is quite obvious is the underlying religious fanaticism. He calls himself an anarchist or a revolutionary or a martyr and he wants his religious beliefs to be heeded by the world. Using his religious fanaticism, he may incite others to join him in the senseless acts of terror.If a person came to us and we saw some of these features in his history, we would think of giving him homeopathic medicines like Merc sol, Sulphur, Anacardium, Nux vomica or Staphysagria. These might hopefully change his outlook towards life and turn him into a humane human.If a terrorist is in custody and exhibits the symptoms described above, homeopathic medicines like Stramonium and Hyoscyamus may help control his delusions, make him less destructive and remove his hatred and intolerance for others and other religions.

For homeopathic consultation for your symptoms you may visit Homeopathic Healing or send an e-mail to office@drvaishnav.com to meet the Homeopathic Specialists.

Disclaimer: A detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by good and qualified homeopathic specialists is necessary to treat the complaints that appear during any disease. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease. The above-mentioned drugs are just a few of the remedies and are mentioned solely to create awareness about the efficacy of homeopathic medicines.

Smoking banned in public places

I always thought that the Health Minister had grown too big for his boots. He had been dictating his terms to others and functioning more as a tyrranical despot till he made smoking in public places an offence.
Smoking, that includes passive smoking, is a definite health hazard. Not many people know that those who sport moustaches and smoke are at a greater risk because the smoke as well as the other compounds (read toxins) released are adsorbed onto the bushes on the upper lip. These are then continuously inhaled even after the last butt has been stubbed.
What about smokers who genuinely care about their family and don't smoke in their house? I have a neighbour who does not want his kids to inhale the nicotine that he is blowing in the wind. The smart thing to do is sit outside his flat which unfortunately is adjacent to mine and puff away to glory. So what if my children are allergic to the smoke and get recurrent chest infections. His loves his kids too much and won't let them suffer. I have shooed away the people who work for him in a small home office that he and his wife run in their apartment. When they smoke outside my apartment, they have to face my wrath, but I haven't been able to be as ugly with their employer who after all is a loving father.
Homeopathy has a medicine called Caladium that can reduce the craving for tobacco. I might just lace my neighbor's water with it so that he quits smoking!

For homeopathic consultation for your symptoms you may visit Homeopathic Healing or send an e-mail to office@drvaishnav.com to meet the Homeopathic Specialists.

Disclaimer: A detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by good and qualified homeopathic specialists is necessary to treat the complaints that appear during any disease. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease. The above-mentioned drugs are just a few of the remedies and are mentioned solely to create awareness about the efficacy of homeopathic medicines.

A Stormy Adolescent Affair

Adolescence (Latin adolescentia, from adolescere, to grow up) is the period of psychological, social, and physical transition between childhood and adulthood.
As a transitional stage of human development, adolescence is the period in which a child matures into an adult. This transition involves biological (i.e. pubertal), social, and psychological changes.
It is a time of rapid physical development and deep emotional changes which can be confusing and uncomfortable for child and parent alike.
This is what I think you should know about preventing problems associated with adolescence.
DietYour child's nutrition is important to the overall health.
Proper nutrition can also prevent many medical problems, including becoming overweight, developing weak bones, and developing diabetes.
It will also ensure that your child physically grows to her full potential.
The best nutrition advice to keep your adolescent healthy includes encouraging her to:
Eat a variety of foods
Balance the food eaten with physical activity
Choose a diet with plenty of grain products, vegetables and fruits
Choose a diet low in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol
Choose a diet moderate in sugars and salt
Choose a diet that provides enough calcium and iron to meet her growing body's requirements.
A balanced diet with regular exercise and a proper amount of sleep will go a long way in maintaining the state of health.

Hygiene
During adolescence hygiene is very important to remove oils and body odour.
They must be told the importance of washing their face, underarms, pubic area, and feet daily.
Have your children wash their hands frequently to decrease the spread of germs, especially before eating and after using the bathroom.
Underwear should be made of cotton for better air circulation. Tight jeans also prevent air circulation and can cause friction of the labia (private parts).
Hygienic care revolving around the monthly cycle needs to be conveyed. Girls must learn how to anticipate and prepare for their menstrual cycles so they won't be caught by surprise. Daily bathing and special padding must be undertaken for this cyclical phase of their development.
Tampons or pads should be changed every few hours to prevent bacterial growth; tampons should not be worn overnight.
Avoid all feminine hygiene sprays, douches and scented sanitary products since they may irritate the pubic area.

Reassurance and advice
Reassure your daughter that one breast may develop faster than the other. She may also experience tenderness.
Prepare your daughter for her first menstrual period.
Menstruation may last from 1 to 8 days, and initially the periods may be scanty and irregular.
A warm bath or a hot water bottle to the abdomen may help menstrual discomfort.
Severe discomfort or pain (called dysmenorrhoea) can be easily treated with homoeopathic medicines.
Your daughter might notice a yellow stain on her panties. Leucorrhoea or a white discharge is also a common complaint during puberty. If the discharge is white, non-irritating, non-offensive and is not associated with any urinary symptoms, then it is a physiological phenomenon. This can be corrected with the help of constitutional homeopathic remedies. However, an acute onset of leucorrhoea, with an irritation, itching and redness of the parts, may be due to a fungal infection.

Mutual supportParents need to:
Agree between themselves about their basic values and rules.
Support each other in applying them.

Listening to their problems
Adults need to be a source of advice, sympathy and comfort and not pass judgement, be criticising or give routine advice. Listening comes first.
It is always better to spend time on praising good decisions or behaviour.

For homeopathic consultation for your symptoms you may visit Homeopathic Healing or send an e-mail to office@drvaishnav.com to meet the Homeopathic Specialists.

Disclaimer: A detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by good and qualified homeopathic specialists is necessary to treat the complaints that appear during any disease. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease. 

Hey Teacher, leave them kids alone

I used to listen to this popular Pink Floyd number as a child and I think it had a cult following. It still does. My 19-year-old son now listens to Pink Floyd and tries to strum this number on his guitar.
This anthem is still relevant in the present times. I have been teaching for over 23 years and I sometimes feel that this number is a current favorite with the kids because of the reality it portrays.
Teaching, like medicine, is supposed to be a noble profession. I am a doctor as well as a teacher but I can’t completely agree with that statement.
When I was in high school more than 30 years ago, I was in a different era. Personal or private coaching was unheard of at that time. Teachers are now more mercenaries than anything else. The greed to earn more money has driven them to do things that would leave even a shameless person red faced.
Schoolteachers now openly solicit students for private coaching. They zero in on the unsuspecting pupils and talk about their poor performance and drop hints about how their academic graph would improve if the teacher specially coached them. Those who are being privately coached are favored in the class and are given special and easy assignments. Miraculously, these students also get special powers and are able to predict the questions that would be asked in the examinations! Obviously the grades improve. If the schoolteacher is not coaching you, then you are left to fend for yourself and also made to feel like a pariah. You would be ignored completely and even if you give the correct answer to the questions that are asked in class, you are a nobody.
Then there is another class of teachers that would not have the ingenuity to ask you to be coached by them. So they resort to passing sarcastic comments about the students in general. They would rant and rave about the fickle students of the school who trust outside teachers and flock to them for private coaching. They would use every possible trivial incident to insult the students and scare them into believing that they made a wrong choice of the private tutor. To make sure that the students cannot go for their coaching after school, they give a lot of assignments that have to be completed and brought back the next day.
I know of a teacher who told the class that she would not be able to teach them unless they requested the Principal of their school to increase her salary. The school is a private school that has recently increased the fees, ostensibly to pay the teachers a higher salary!
When my son was in junior college (Class XI), the teachers went a step further. They would rarely take their regular lectures and if you had a doubt that needed to be solved, they would say that this would be discussed in their private coaching class.
I have a patient who often comes home feeling insulted and humiliated because of the way the teachers treat not only her, but also her classmates. They all have to suppress their emotions because to react would mean educational suicide. She says that her teacher is only interested in teaching those students whom he is privately coaching. He uses flimsy excuses to cut the marks of the other students and even gives credit of the work done by others to his pupils. Fortunately we have a medicine in homeopathy called Staphysagria that we give her to calm her down and to get over this feeling of indignation and humiliation. It has always worked. At one time, my daughter’s friend developed a severe abdominal colic after her teacher ridiculed her. Once again homeopathy came to her rescue and a few doses of Colocynth took care of the colic and also helped her become less sensitive to the emotional assault.
A young girl was brought to us with severe depression. She did not want to go to school and had remained absent for over a week. She had no desire to talk to anyone and would shut herself up in her room. Her parents often found her weeping and when they would persistently quiz her problems she would say that she wanted to die and end her suffering. We talked to this young girl and traced this depression and suicidal thoughts to the humiliation that she had to go through everyday at school. Her teacher had apparently taken a dislike for her and would use a greater part of her teaching time in trying to insult her and erode her self-esteem. The homeopathic drug Aurum metallicum, helped this girl come out of her depression. The parents were also counseled and asked to take up this issue with the school.
In the kindergarten class and the lower grades teachers, are next to God. Even the parents are secondary to the teachers and whatever the teacher tells the child is the gospel truth. When the child reaches middle school, there is a sudden realization that the teacher is not an angel but a mere mortal. The parents once again rank higher in esteem. Finally in high school, the teacher turns into a devil and the child develops disgust for the petty, mean and egocentric teachers. This translates into a hatred for the school.
So, hey teachers, leave them kids alone.

For homeopathic consultation for your symptoms you may visit Homeopathic Healing or send an e-mail to office@drvaishnav.com to meet the Homeopathic Specialists.

Disclaimer: A detailed history followed by constitutional treatment by good and qualified homeopathic specialists is necessary to treat the complaints that appear during any disease. It is not advisable to resort to self-medication for any disease. The above-mentioned drugs are just a few of the remedies and are mentioned solely to create awareness about the efficacy of homeopathic medicines.