Holiday health tips

Summer holidays have finally arrived and, although they should be fun, sometimes health issues get in the way. Things like travel sickness, hayfever, fear of flying and tummy bugs can all put a damper on your summer break.

My latest newsletter contains some information on natural remedies that can help deal with these sort of problems and make your holidays less hassle. Click here to view this edition and you can also sign up or view past newsletters in your browser

For those of you with clever phones.. here is a QR code for the newsletter.

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It's festival time!

It's June, it is pouring with rain, gale force winds are forecast so it can only mean one thing ..  the summer festival season has started!

Summer for me, and many fellow homeopaths, means helping out at festivals with the Travelling Homeopaths Collective (@THChomeopaths on twitter) who have been providing low cost clinics at festivals and events since 1990. I usually work at Glastonbury and a couple of local ones but with no Glasto this year I'm staying closer to home and will be off to the wonderfully quirky Beat-Herder Festival at the end of the month.

 

The Travelling Homeopaths Collective is a charity set up by Marcus Christo and we see thousands of people every year at festivals throughout the country. We offer treatment for acute conditions such as hay fever, sunburn, hangovers, cystitis, digestive upsets, coughs and colds, anxiety and panic attacks.

One of the best things about festivals is that many people come back to tell us they are feeling better. Most people we treat have no idea what homeopathy is or they are a bit sceptical and so they are often very surprised about how effective the treatment has been.

It is not appropriate to treat long term problems at festivals but if it is something that we feel might be helped by homeopathy we can put people in touch with a registered practitioner in their area.

Many people just pop in for a chat and want to know what homeopathy is - that is fine too. We have plenty of books and leaflets for people to read and we all like a chat over a cuppa!

This year we will be at over twenty festivals throughout the summer from Wychwood this weekend at Cheltenham Racecourse to Bestival in September on the Isle of Wight so have a look here and see where we'll be.

Glastonbury in 2005

Since 2008 the Travelling Homeopaths have held an annual camp which is like their own mini-festival. This year it will be held between 9th and 12th August on an organic farm close to the Uffington White Horse in the Oxfordshire countryside. There will be an array of well-known homeopaths doing talks and workshops but there is plenty for partners and kids too and there will be a children's area, circus skills, story-telling, Indian Music workshop, Night time entertainment, showers, sauna, camp fire and a fabulous Vegetarian Cafe.

For more info and to book your place at the camp

Follow @THChomeopaths on twitter

Mud, mud, glorious mud.. and sunburn

I went to Glastonbury and then the following weekend to Beat Herder. At both festivals I was working for the Travelling Homeopaths Collective who provide low cost homeopathy clinics at various events over the summer. Glastonbury seems a long time ago now but thought I'd leave you a few words and pictures. the weather really wasn't great for most of the time - loads of rain and then scorching sun so a weekend of extremes but we still had a good time.

I really do need to mention the mud. It always amazes me that we only have one word for mud in English, when faced with a wet Glastonbury 'mud' just isn't enough to describe the array of conditions underfoot. Squelchy, rutted, slippery, spongy, welly-sucking are just a few of the words that spring to mind.

In the clinic at Glastonbury we saw the usual dodgy tummies, insect bites, hangovers and a lot of hayfever. On the Sunday when the sun came out we treated a fair bit of sunburn, cystitis and headaches. The clinics are always a great way of introducing homeopathy to people who haven't tried it or who want to find out more about what we do. It's great to get the instant positive feedback as many people we have treated pop back in to say they are feeling much better.

There are always loads of bands to see and highlights for me were Elbow and Mumford and Sons but there is so much more to festivals than the music. There are always some unusual outfits on display amongst the acts and the punters. See here for Cee Lo Green and his extraordinary shoulder pads! I can honestly say that one of the best dressed gentlemen on site this year was my husband, Lyndon. He was sporting a suit made from previous years Glastonbury cotton bags which was made by his very talented mum, Joyce. Whilst walking around we came across Colin the Oxfam steward. He had made himself a hoody out of bags whilst working in a quiet night shift.

Colin and Lyndon - snappy dressers

There are many great cabaret and circus acts too. We usually end up in the cabaret tent for a few hours - we saw Mitch Benn on Sunday who is best known for his musical contributions to radio programmes like The Now Show

Here is Mitch with his homage to Bruce Springsteen - 'Glastonbury - Born in Mud'

Beat Herder in the Ribble valley was a very different experience - much, much smaller and the sun was shining! It is a great venue with some quirky features like shops and a stage in the woods. They also have the unique Beat Herder and District Working Men's Social Club with real ales, barmaids in drag, Beat Herder's Got Talent, bands, cheesy disco and 70's pics on the walls. I could have spent all weekend in there!

A number of local organisations got involved which was nice to see. Project 6 from Keighley were there with info about what support they offer for people struggling to cope with drink and drug issues, Hudson's Ice Cream from Chatburn, Bowland Brewery had brewed a special Beat Herder ale just for the festival, Clitheroe Transition Town stall were giving away veg plants and fruit bush cuttings. The highlight for me was the Clitheroe Ladies Circle tea and cake stall. They were so dedicated to their task of providing cake to festival folk that some of them went home on Saturday night to do some more baking.

We were very busy with the homeopathy clinic at Beat Herder and the festival organisers had offered us a free tipi. Our tipi was opposite the Ladybird Project who were offering free workshops all day to show kids (and big kids) how to juggle, unicycle, hula hoop and much more. Ladybird are at several festivals over the summer and well worth a look - I can recommend their cabaret, great entertainment for all ages.

A pic of the THC Beat Herder team on Sunday night after we'd finished work.

Jane Clifford, me, Angie Zajac and Jenny Howarth

Here is the list of festivals the Travelling Homeopaths Collective will be at over the summer includes Larmer Tree, Cambridge Folk Festival, Stainsby Folk Festival, Kendal Calling, Solfest and many more - I'll be at Beacons Festival near Skipton in mid August so pop by for a chat.

Silent Sunday #2

Homeopathic Camp and festival fun

I have mentioned several times on this blog the great work that Marcus and the Travelling Homeopaths Collective do at festivals. If you are going to a festival this summer there is still time to catch up with them for a chat or some treatment at the Moors festival, Solfest, Lime Tree music festival and The End Of The Road.


THC have a homeopathic camp in the summer and this time it is 11th to 15th August. It has a friendly festival feel for homeopaths, students, their friends and families with lots to keep everyone entertained. Speakers this year include Misha Norland, Kaaren Whitney, David Mundy, Robert Davidson, Jerome Whitney and Michael Thompson. There will also be Indian music, childrens area, storytelling, a sauna and some great veggie food.

For more info see the flyer here

I had a brilliant time at Glastonbury working in the clinic and its always a wonderful opportunity to talk to people about homeopathy and get them to experience it first hand. As it was very hot and dusty we treated a lot more people than usual for hayfever and sunburn and many came back to say they were feeling better after their remedies which is always good to hear.

We seemed to have a lot more people coming in for a chat who were disillusioned with their current treatment and wanting to know if homeopathy might be able to help with longer term problems like depression, menstrual or menopausal symptoms, recurrent infections, ME and chronic fatigue, stress, IBS and many more. We do not treat those sort of chronic problems at festivals so always refer people to a homeopath near where they live.

There have been a lot of negative stories in the press about homeopathy lately so it was lovely to talk to so many people face to face who genuinely wanted to find out more about what we do. Something our critics often forget is that the vast majority of people try complementary therapies because they are not happy with their current treatment and a friend or relative has benefitted from something different. That sort of personal recommendation will far outweigh any number of negative articles in a newspaper or on a blog.

Festival fun

It is that festival time again. I am off to Glastonbury on Monday and will be working with the Travelling Homoeopaths Collective. Our enormous tent is just on the right hand side as you enter the Healing Field. So pop in for a chat if you're passing or are in need of some treatment.

http://www.thc.org.uk

While I'm away if you need some advice or remedies in the Settle area please call my colleague Samantha Glossop 07877 138210

Or you can call the Homeopathy Helpline for advice on 0906 534 3404. A qualified homeopath is available between 9am and midnight every day. Calls cost approx £1.50 a minute but if you are clear on what symptoms you want help with the calls will not last long.

http://www.homeopathyhelpline.com/

Northern Green Gathering 2008

Earlier this month I went to the Northern Green Gathering which was held at Lime Tree farm near Ripon. I was working with the Travelling Homoeopaths Collective to provide a clinic at the festival.

Northern Green Gathering is an annual camping event focused around sustainable living and green campaigns which has been running since 1998. The camp was powered entirely by sustainable means - wind turbines and solar panels - and the aim was to ensure minimal impact. The site also has composting toilets, recycling was encouraged, and all on-site food was organic and vegetarian.

The weather was not kind to us with a fair bit of rain and very strong winds but a good time was had by all. There was loads of stuff for kids to do, a big craft area as well as a permaculture and gardening area and a large campaigns tent where there was information and literature on environmental and other issues.

Our clinic was based in the healing field where there were lots of free classes and workshops including yoga, tai chi, meditation, Tibetan chanting and even how to make softpots (plant pots made out of old tights!)

Lime Tree Farm is a beautiful location and a fine example of conservation in action. The farm has wonderful roundhouse, tepee, lake and a stone circle, a bird hide and woods.

http://www.nggonline.org.uk

http://www.limetreefarm.co.uk/

Glastonbury 2008

I had a great time at Glastonbury and it was wonderful to have some good weather for a change!

I worked as a volunteer with the Travelling Homoeopaths Collective who provide drop-in clinics at various festivals over the summer. Working in the clinic was often a very busy, but rewarding, experience. Many people popped back in to see us to let us know they were feeling better after their remedies so it was nice to have some instant feedback.

We helped with a variety of conditions including dodgy tummies, cystitis, hangovers, coughs and colds, sunburn and skin rashs. By far the most common problem we treated was hayfever. Most people who came to us were taking medication which usually kept their symptoms under control. Spending a few days in a dusty, festival site with lots of unfamiliar pollen and their symptoms came on with a vengeance.

There are several published research papers which show that homeopathic treatment is effective for hayfever. Hayfever is an excellent example of the individual nature of homeopathy. A remedy is chosen based on the symptoms so we need to know what is causing the person the most trouble, is it constant sneezing, itchy and runny eyes, burning nasal discharge, hoarseness or anything else.

Three of the most commonly used remedies for hayfever are

Allium Cepa Burning nasal discharge causing sore nostrils and upper lip, itchy and watery eyes, sneezing

Euphrasia Eyes severely affected with profuse burning and watering, burning and swelling of eyelids, sneezing, nasal discharge which does not burn

Wyethia Particularly good for symptoms confined to the back of nose and throat; dry and intensely itchy; dry wheezy cough

Some of these homeopathic remedies are available over the counter and can be helpful when symptoms appear. However, hayfever is a deep-seated condition, and constitutional treatment from a qualified homeopath over two or three seasons may be able to cure the condition completely. I recommend starting treatment before the hayfever season in order to strengthen general health and reduce sensitivity to pollens.

I thoroughly enjoyed my festival experience, and am looking forward to doing another clinic with the Travelling Homoeopaths at the Northern Green Gathering near Ripon in August.

Travelling Homoeopaths Collective http://www.thc.org.uk/
Northern Green Gathering http://www.nggonline.org.uk