Homeopathy isn't a job. It's a calling.
That's what Nancy Sacks and Surain Nunner will tell you. These two practitioners
both entered this field after a profound personal experience left them true
believers in this form of complementary medicine.
Nancy Sacks, who practices homeopathy in California, had been ill most
of her life -- not terminally ill, but she had a chronic feeling of unwellness,
depression and fatigue. She had unexplained rashes and hives. As a child,
she'd had some unnecessary surgeries and that frightened her away from traditional
medicine. Then one day, someone suggested she see a homeopath.
That began a transformation in Sacks' life. Her health improved, and as
a result, her depression went away. "I was gung-ho. I wanted everybody I knew
to go to this homeopath, to learn how you can help heal yourself. The whole
process was wonderful for me."
It was a natural progression for Sacks to become a homeopath herself. "I
went with the thought in mind that I would be able to treat myself and my
family, never really thinking that I would practice full time. But for myself,
homeopathy is a natural affinity. It's like I belong."
It was a health issue for his wife that turned Surain Nunner toward homeopathic
healing. While he was still in school, Nunner learned about herbology and
helped his father, who was a herbal physician, prepare medicines. His sister-in-law
had been a homeopath. When she emigrated to England, she gave her books and
medicines to Nunner.
But it wasn't until his wife became ill that Nunner paid any attention
to the books. Nunner's wife suffered from a sensation of heat and pressure
on the top of her head. As a government employee, Nunner had some influence
with the chief medical officer and he was able to get some medicine for his
wife -- but nothing worked.
"One Sunday morning, when I was sitting in my home, I said to myself, 'What's
in those books?' So I started reading."
After about four hours of studying, Nunner found a treatment. "It was simply
lucky that I had the right medicine. I gave her one dose from the bottle I
had and she was instantly cured. There were no problems left behind. And that
turned my mind totally to homeopathy. There was something in this system of
medicine that we don't understand, and I must learn it."
Nunner recounts the story of a neighbor's friend who was working as a maid
in a doctor's house. A fire broke out in a house when two boys played with
kerosene. Both were burned, but the friend was able to extinguish the flames
by throwing dirt on the boys. In the process of saving them, the woman received
second-degree burns on her hand.
While medical attention was given to the boys, during the frantic commotion
the woman was forgotten. She sought treatment from Nunner. "I gave her some
medicine and in three days there was no burn left and no scar. Today, you
wouldn't be able to tell which hand had been burned."
Many of Sacks' patients have seen several medical doctors before they come
to see her. "They come to a breaking point, where traditional medicine hasn't
worked for them."
Sacks recalls a young patient who suffered from attention deficit disorder
(ADD). "She also had some behavioral difficulties. She'd been on medication
and couldn't play easily with other girls. She couldn't get along."
After some investigation, Sacks prescribed a remedy and reports that the
child was a different person. She was immediately off the Ritalin. Off all
drugs, period.
"The one-dose cure doesn't happen very often," says Sacks.
But it does happen and both Nunner and Sacks have seen it.
The rewards for Nunner and Sacks come from seeing their patient's quality
of life improve.
Homeopathy is a lifelong learning process. "Everything I've learned is
just exciting -- a chance for new information is just a thrill for me," says
Sacks. "There's so much to know. It doesn't matter if you've been in practice
for a year, 10 or 20 years. You never know it all, and you are always still
learning."