In our second blog for Homeopathy Awareness Week, Dr Mollie Hunton remembers the first time she used homeopathy. 

I went on an introductory course in homeopathy and was given three bottles of homeopathic tablets to take home. One was arnica, the second was aconite, and the third was belladonna. I put them in my coat pocket and forgot about them over the weekend. On the Monday morning I was asked to visit a four-year-old who was very poorly with a high fever. He had been delirious during the night, and had a sore throat.

When I examined him, he had severe tonsillitis, glands enlarged in his neck, a high fever, a red flushed face and he couldn’t talk to me because it was too painful. His mother explained that he had been having sever tonsilitis attacks every two months or so for a year. She explained that her usual doctor had always prescribed penicillin, which could take up four or five days to work. During this time, he was unable to eat or drink, and had a high fever.

Looking at the boy, I realised that he was showing exactly the same symptoms as those I had learnt about belladonna. I brought the bottle out of my pocket and asked his mum if she would like to try them. She read the information on the label, and realised the description for the indications for prescribing the remedy were identical to the illness that the little boy was showing.

She shrugged her shoulders and said she would try anything. I put a tablet in his mouth which he sucked. We followed the instructions on the label which said suck one tablet every 15 min until relief. I also gave her a prescription for penicillin. Because I had no experience of homeopathy, I had no idea whether it would work or not. I told her to ring if there were any problems and otherwise, I would see her on Thursday in the surgery.

On Thursday morning they turned up and I asked how he had been. His mum said she was astonished at how quickly the remedy had worked. She had done as asked and had given him one tablet every 15 minutes. After the third tablet i.e. after half an hour, he sat up, said he felt a lot better and could he have a drink. This was very unusual as penicillin would never even been absorbed into the body in half an hour. He was fine until about four o’clock in the afternoon when he had a slight fever and his mum gave him another three tablets, after which he had something to eat. Most unusual for him. He slept well and had no hallucinations. The following morning, he had a slight temperature so another three tablets were given. He did not need any further dosage.

His mum said she was very grateful for the rapid relief of his illness. She had put the prescription for penicillin onto the fire as she had not needed it. Not only did this episode of tonsillitis get better very quickly, but he never again had another one. This episode was so unlike anything that I’d seen before with the speed of recovery, that I decided to try using homeopathic remedies in the practice for wider problems. I was very impressed and often have been since, with the speed and depth of response.

This blog is adapted from a chapter in Dr Mollie Hunton’s new book “Life is a Game of Consequences: How and why  we become ill”. For more information visit: https://molliehunton.co.uk