Everything was set and I was ready to go! My friend and I had been trying to get together for weeks and finally, our schedules aligned! My hair was working despite the Florida humidity, my outfit was just right and of course, like clock work, my oldest was suddenly sick!
It always seems to happen that way! To cancel or not to cancel? I had mere hours to make the decision. Her face was flushed, but not in a “I just ran around the block way.” It was a very definitive, large red blotch on her face with bumps that looked like a rash. It came out of the blue, it was hot to the touch and her demeanor had shifted from bubbly to quiet and sad.
“What happened to your cheek honey?”
She shrugged, and said “Nothing, I just don’t feel good”
It looked like someone had slapped her! Right then I remembered something one of my nurse friends told me about! “Fifth disease” which is also referred to as the slapped cheek rash. It can also show up on the trunk of the body and the arms and legs which she had as well.
Photo taken at 4:25 p.m.
Photo taken at 5:25 pm
My heart ached for my sick little one and if I’m being completely honest, my heart might have also ached JUST A BIT for the yummy dinner and fun conversation I was about to cancel!
Or was I?
You see, after 18 years of studying and applying homeopathy, I have learned that my first line of thinking cannot be
“PANIC.”
We don’t make good decisions in that state of mind. In fact, panic will activate your brain’s fear response center, or amygdala, causing an overreaction. This overreaction could be towards a perceived threat, or scenario, or it could be an overreaction to a child’s illness. I wanted to make a good decision for my little love, so I pushed panic aside and told my amygdala to get a grip. Which leads me to my next point:
Know your remedies!
Many of you know the remedy I chose already because you DO know your remedies! I cannot stress how important that is! Sudden onset, red, hot….my first thought was of course Belladonna 30c.
I administered the remedy but not before taking a photo of her little cheek, arms and belly. It’s always helpful to have photos when you’re dealing with something visible like a skin condition, swelling or maybe scar that is healing. It’s a good way to track your progress.
In Dana Ullman’s book, Homeopathic Medicine for Children and Infants,
he says, “Belladonna is a fast-acting medicine. If it is the correct remedy,
you will usually notice instant improvement within a couple of hours
(And improvement is usually noticed within fifteen minutes).”
I gave her two doses in one hour and there was a NOTICEABLE change.
Her mental state improved, the redness had gone down about 50%! I left my husband with instructions for the evening. He administered three more doses (one every hour until she went to bed). By morning, all signs of the rash, redness and lethargy were gone. She was joyful, smiling, and the light was back in yesterday’s sad little eyes!
Photo taken at 7:30 am the following day.
Usually Fifth disease can take 7-10 days to resolve itself, but WE have homeopathy. That first photo was taken at 4:25pm, second at 5:25pm,
& the last photo was taken at 7:30am the following day. In my opinion, 15 hours ain’t bad! Is homeopathy always this fast? No, and it’s guaranteed to be slow if you’re panicked and guessing. But if you know you’re remedies, and you’re willing to tell that amygdala to calm down for a second, it CAN work quickly and efficiently! Sometimes, even quickly enough to get you to your dinner reservations!
