Summer Homeopathic First Aid Series #11

Treatment for Anaphylaxis and Allergic Reactions

Apis mellifica aka honey bee venom aka Apis

Hi,

I just cannot believe it has been another week. School has started. The snowbirds will be returning. I saw Christmas stuff at Hobby Lobby. This year is going way too quickly for my liking, although I wouldn’t mind a bit cooler weather.

Today we are going to talk about a potentially life-threatening situation, anaphylaxis. This can be a severe allergic reaction to a food or an insect bite or anything else. The condition we are talking about is swelling and possibly hives. The swelling of the throat is a very serious condition and homeopathy has shown over and over again its power in reversing this very scary event. 

Apis mellifica aka honey bee venom aka Apis is the homeopathic medicine to have on hand for anaphylaxis. It will also help in allergic reactions that present with swelling, and watery filled hives or blisters and localized areas of redness and inflammation. The person will look puffy, sometimes like there are bags of water under the skin, especially around the eyes. If your eyes are almost swollen shut, Apis is probably the correct remedy.

Other conditions where Apis can be helpful include eye infections such as a stye, pink eye or conjunctivitis, sore throat, swollen tonsils or uvula (the little thing that dangles down at the back of your throat), urinary tract infection if stinging is the quality of the pain and sometimes stings from insects.

Many people think that since Apis is made from bee venom that it should be used for bee stings. This is not really the best choice. Ledum, which we already talked about at the beginning of summer would be the best choice for a bee sting that does NOT have an allergic component. Ledum is for puncture wounds, which a bee sting is. Now, if you were allergic to bee stings and your throat was swelling up, then you would reach for Apis. Not to treat the sting, but rather to treat the allergic reaction and swelling.

People who have allergic reactions such as hives, swollen lips or eyes or difficulty breathing should carry this medicine. If you have a child with a peanut allergy, Apis should be on hand at all times. 

Let’s talk about dosing. For a run of the mill mild to moderate allergy with some hives, but nothing serious or life threatening, you would take Apis 200C every 15 minutes to 3 hours. Spreading the doses out as the condition improves. Stopping when the condition has resolved. For a life-threatening condition, you will need to take Apis 1M as you are heading to the emergency room. For this type of condition, it will likely be taken every 15 minutes for a few doses and then again spread out as improvement occurs. 

I have personally never needed to use Apis, however, my teacher shared many situations where Apis has stopped an anaphylactic reaction for many people she knows. Although, I have strong belief in these medicines, you should always head to the emergency room when someone is having an anaphylactic attack. Hopefully, by the time you arrive, you won’t actually need to go inside.

I am not sure if you can get the higher potency Apis 1M at the health food store, but I can definitely assist you in getting this homeopathic medicine if you want this stronger potency in your first aid kit. Just reach out and let me know if you want to place an order.

For a reminder on how to handle and take these magnificent energy medicines, please read the article on How to handle homeopathic remedies.  If you want to purchase these remedies online, you can use my online dispensary found fullscript. If you are interested in the OHM brand, you can contact me and pick it up at the office.   

I hope you don’t need this medicine, but if you are the caretaker of a child with severe allergies, this medicine can bring you great peace of mind. Until next week, take care.

Toni Eatros, Acupuncture Physician

239-260-4566

www.AcupunctureSolutionsOnline.com