Homeopathic Medicine

[Hollykins]

Hi! I saw a naturopath 5 weeks ago hoping to get some info on vitamins & nutrition. I was told we would get to that soon but first..... I left with 5 homeopathic tinctures & 7 bottles of teeny tiny pellets. I took them for 3 weeks (1 or 2 x per day & not the 3 as prescribed). I've read that homeopathic medicine doesn't interact w prescribed medications. But how does one really know for sure? Naturopaths say it doesn't. But that's their bias. I've had my 1st Zoladex injection & will start on Arimidex in about 2 months.

The thing is I'm scared to tell my oncologist! When I asked her for the referral she gave me a look that said she didn't want to. I reassured her it was just for vitamin & nutrition information. My family doctor said maybe the 2 doctors could work together. I don't see it happening. Has anyone else encountered this problem? I see my oncologist April 15. I'm thinking I could say he wanted to recommend homeopathic pills & see what she says. Reassuring her it would be in conjunction w my meds if she thought it was ok. Wouldn't it be hilarious if she started jumping up & down & saying "Oh goody! That sounds great!" Btw she is very calm & soft-spoken.

Thanks! Hollykins

[Ditzy60]

Good morning Hollykins. You must put on your big girl pants and tell your oncologist. I’m sure she will appreciate that you want to do anything and everything to help you to get and stay in best condition you can . If the oncologist has reservations about what the naturopath has recommended then she can go through them with you and then you can make an informed decision ! It’s horrible to think conventional medicine and complimentary therapy can’t work hand in hand for the overall benefit of patients. Big hugs Carolyn

[VicReg Partner]

It's important to let your oncologist know what supplements you are taking, some of them can interact with treatment. You could let your oncologist know that you would like her to work with the Naturopath so that you can receive care for both sources and know that one is not interfering with the other.

[TinaLund]

I totally agree- be honest and upfront With your oncologist. I have found that mine is more open than I would have thought so give your oncologist the benefit of the doubt. There are very few limits to supplements and our drug plan. Most are complementary. Keep an open mind and your oncologist will too! Best of luck

[Hollykins]

Hey Ladies! I saw my oncologist this morning. She didn't seem to be against Homeopathy but she did say she didn't know much about it. She suggested I have the pharmacist look at the pills to see if they interact w my meds. I'm not sure about the pills as they are just labelled things like "Metal." The tinctures list 5 ingrediants each so this could be a long process. Anyway, I did ask!!

The rest of the appt. went well. My bone density test says I'm Average. Yeah for average! My liver scan is good. Then I asked the age-old question about ovaries. Give them monthly shots to keep them sleeping or take 'em out. I said what if I never get to natural menopause & have to take zoladex shots for 5 yrs? Or will I need Arimidex for 10 years (when will I ever learn to aske the kind of questions I might not like to hear the answer for?) Well, lucky me I'm Stage 2A so I can do 10 years (of time). If you're Stage 3 you automatically get 10 years. Stage 1 is 5 years. How about I get off with 7 years for good behaviour?

Afterwards I dropped my husband off at work (switched drivers). Then I had tears streaming down my face for the rest of the drive home. Why couldn't I have gotten a mammogram earlier? If I could lose 5% of bone every year on Arimidex & 1-2% on Zoladex that could be 35% for 5 years. What about 10 yrs? Wtf? I guess I will end up taking one of the meds to prevent bone loss cause Calcium, Vit. D. Vit. K & bone-building exercise isn't going to cut it. I won't let myself think about the other side effects. Too depressing. Then again, feeling upset could be partly due to those tempting Mood Swings I've heard Zoladex can cause.

Two things are giving me hope. One is that researchers come up with a drug with fewer ... or No (hilarious!) side effects. The other is that I get some encouraging responses from you wonderful ladies here. 😀

Hollykins