Hi, today's topic is more or less a risqué one. It is not easy for anyone when they encounter a health problem in their life, and while for many, the solution is to consult a physician, for some that are not the way to go.
There are many reasons why some people may not want to indulge an outer point of view to their ailments. From privacy concerns to the low severity of the disease, many people prefer to give the problem a shot themselves. After all, going to the ER is not the first thought when your child scrapes their knee. You get inside the house, get a band-aid, stick it on, and send them to play again. Then why does being your own doctor not the most popular choice when it comes to certain more detailed and more complicated problems.
Here I would like you to note something very important. I am not recommending to sit at home, open up the medicine cabinet and blend a concoction to your liking by taking the support of the information freely available on the internet. Do not do this. If you end up in the ER, and you will, I will not be responsible. But then what am I saying. Let us dig deeper.
A doctor by definition is someone who is qualified to treat you using medications or surgical means as she or he may deem necessary. They have a degree to accompany their expertise and as such, they have years of experience in dealing with healthcare issues. So for anyone who has not treated others or has not studied to treat people, it not the right call to go ahead and recommend a solution for a disease for others or for themselves. But then here comes the tricky part.
Take Joanne (34) for example. She has been suffering from chronic gastritis for 3 years now. She has often struggled with inconsistent bowel movement, stomach ache and acidity at times. She has taken medication and so far her gastritis is under control. She has consulted many doctors and now remembers thoroughly the names of all the medicines which she had had to take in order for her to tackle the symptoms. Joanne met Chris (40) at work, and soon they got to talking about their lifestyle. Chris ended up sharing with Joanne her health problems. Joanne saw a lot of similarities between what she has been experiencing and what Chris is. Can she now, recommend treatment to Chris? She is not a doctor. But she has, in one sense of the word, a specialist.
From this short story what I wanted to stress was that being your own doctor, while heavily criticized by the medical fraternity, is not uncommon. So then should you do it? The answer covers a very grey area.
Throughout this site, houseofherbsjaipur.com there are small formulae which have their benefits. These small combinations often comprising of 3 or 4 herbs are designed specifically so that you can take care of small ailments yourself. But here comes the grey part. You can treat yourself, but only with what you are familiar with. Eating Cloves to reduce teeth pain is an age-old treatment in India. So slef-medicating has been a tradition in a lot of countries. Medicinal herbs take this tradition and sharpen it by categorising the benefits and alotting precise quantities. So then maybe, self-medicating is right.
But in the end you have to make sure that you are always in touch with someone who knowns it better. If you read it somewhere doesn't mean it is true. What should you do then? Follow these steps -
Read a lot about the herbs
Contact the community/author of the formula
Contact someone in your circle who knows
Experiment in small quantities.
If you follow these simple steps you can never go wrong while slef-medicating.
Remember there are no 100% right ways to go about certain things. All you have is 100% wrong methods. So the onus on you is to avoid them and stay as close to the path, that you thing is right, as you can. And pray. Do not forget to pray.
See you in the next one.