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What is Heilkunst?

Heilkunst was the term used by the German medical reformer, Dr. Samuel Friedrich Hahnemann (1755-1843), for the complete healing system that he created based on natural law. “Heilkunst” is a German word that translates as “the art of making whole” or “the art of healing.”

Dr. Hahnemann’s full system, as set out in his extended Organon of Heilkunst, uses:

  • Regimen: the realm of lifestyle, which includes diet, exercise, nutrition, sleep, hydration, and relaxation, and it sometimes uses the Law of Opposites to correct imbalances.
  • Medicine: the realm of disease proper, which employs the natural Law of Similars using dynamic or energetic remedies to remove disease (called cure), and
  • Therapeutic Education: corrects false beliefs about oneself and the world.

The unique nature of the Heilkunst system of healing lies essentially in the following aspects:

 

  • The Law of Similars: Known since the time of the Greeks, the Law of Similars was based on the observation that no organism in nature could have two similar diseases at the same time; one would always destroy the other. Dr. Hahnemann was the first doctor in history to discover how to utilize this law without risking harm to his patients.
  • Dynamic Nature of Remedies: In attempting to diminish the toxic side effects of crude medicine, Hahnemann diluted and succussed ( shaken vigorously )  these medicines beyond the point where not even a single molecule of the original substance existed within the dilution yet he was still able to observe curative properties. He concluded from this that although no crude amount of the medicine remained, the energetic signature of the original substance must still be present.
  • The Polar Nature of the Living Principle: Hahnemann came to realize that the energetic Living Principle of the patient was polar in nature. This polarity related to the Sustentive and Generative sides of the Living Principle or Life Force of the patient. (Please see the following sections on the Sustentive and Generative Sides).
  • The Sustentive Side or Power: Dr. Hahnemann identified this aspect of the Living Principle as being responsible for maintaining homeostasis or internal harmony within the body. The Sustentive Side usually becomes imbalanced as the result of regimenal deficiency. Through the use of the Law of Opposites, inner balance can be restored. For example, if a patient is lacking Vitamin C, then Vitamin C is increased in their diet.
  • The Generative Side or Power: Dr. Hahnemann’s keen observation led him to discover that true disease was more than a simple imbalance in the body but rather an energetic assault on the patient’s Life Force. Hahnemann called this dynamic aspect of the Life Force that is compromised when disease is engendered, the Generative Power. In health, the Generative energy is essentially creative in nature and is responsible for everything from cell division to the full expression of the patient’s life, or in other words, the patient’s living essence.
  • Tonic and Pathic Disease: Dr. Hahnemann observed that certain diseases had a fixed or constant nature, as they always displayed the same symptom picture whenever they afflicted a person, while other diseases were variable in nature. He called the fixed type of disease “constant” or “tonic” disease. He referred to the variable disease as “pathic” disease (from the Greek “pathos” meaning suffering) as these diseases affected the “feelings, functions and sensations” of the patient.
  • Chronic Miasms: One category of constant diseases required over a decade of research by Dr. Hahnemann to uncover. He referred to these diseases as the “chronic miasms.” These diseases that were originally infectious in nature but had such a detrimental effect on the patient that they ended up being passed on from generation to generation. In effect, he was the first to propose the concept of genetically inherited diseases.
  • Tonic Disease Jurisdictions: Dr. Hahnemann classified constant diseases into particular jurisdictions based on the cause of the disease. These jurisdictions include: homotoxic (toxins), homogenic (physical and emotional traumas), pathogenic (pathogens), iatrogenic (medically induced illness, i.e. medications or surgeries) and ideogenic (diseases engendered by false belief, which he termed the “highest disease”).
  • The Highest and the Deepest Diseases: As a counterbalance to the highest diseases, or those of false beliefs (ideogenic disease), was a category that Dr. Hahnemann referred to as the deepest diseases, or the chthonic diseases, which stemmed from profound fear. It is not uncommon for a disease stemming from a false belief to be accompanied by one of deep fear or terror.
  • The Dynamic Use of Remedies: As a natural, organic system of healing, Heilkunst is constantly evolving. This is most clearly seen in our understanding of the dynamic application of remedies. Dr. Hahnemann’s early use of remedies has broadened further to include low potency remedies to correct metabolic disturbances within the body or to stimulate or regulate organic functioning, as well as a scale based on the Fibonacci series of numbers.
  • Disease and Time: Dr. Hahnemann observed that a patient could have more than one disease at a time. This insight helped to make sense of the multitude of symptoms that a patient may suffer from but it still left the question of how to separate and identify these different diseases. His early observations were later developed by Dr. Constantine Hering in what has come to be known as Hering’s Law, which provided tangible benchmarks for the process of the cure of disease. These latter insights were amended further by James Tyler Kent who observed that the remedial process must proceed in the reverse order of the emergence, i.e. in the reverse order in which they occurred in time.
  • Dynamic Philosophy and the Nature of Health: Dr. Hahnemann was part of a stream of thought in Western philosophy called the Dynamic System, which includes Goethe, Coleridge, the Hunterian physicians, and later Rudolf Steiner and Wilhelm Reich, to name the most important contributors. The Heilkunst system owes a debt of gratitude to each of these thinkers for their contribution to our understanding of the nature of health.
  • A Unifying Principle for Treatment: Dr. Hahnemann’s Heilkunst system provided an underlying framework for understanding health, disease and imbalance. Any remedy, therapy or approach can be carefully integrated within Heilkunst’s cohesive framework of principles derived from natural law. This ensures that not only do you get the right remedy/therapy at the right time but also in the right order.
What does Heilkunst treatment involve?

Three areas of health are addressed when you are undergoing Heilkunst treatment:

  • Regimen: Your life style is discussed to determine what is out of balance in your diet, nutrition, exercise, sleep, hydration, and relaxation. Corrections are made in these areas to bring you back into balance.
  • Medicine: Highly diluted medicines are used to treat any diseases you may have acquired through various shocks and traumas (physical and emotional) throughout your life. You also have an inherited predisposition to chronic diseases, called miasms. Disease is a deeper impairment of your life force.
  • Therapeutic Education: Any false beliefs that you may have about yourself are addressed. False beliefs about yourself and the world are the biggest contributors to disease. You may think that you are not good enough to be successful, and therefore you may undermine your own success. The false beliefs are addressed through discussion with your Heilkunstler.

Regimen

Initially, you will meet with a Heilkunstler for an assessment of your regimen. Are there any imbalances contributing to your dis-ease?  Are you eating enough of the right foods, getting enough fresh air and exercise, and are you able to relax sufficiently?

In this part of the consultation, you will be asked about the many aspects of your regimen, including the supplements that you are taking, and any other therapies you may be engaging in, for example, acupuncture, yoga, massage, and so forth.

You will also be asked for information on any allopathic or conventional drugs or herbs you are taking so any potential interactions and nutrient depletions can be identified.

It’s important to determine what is causing your imbalance: what is related to your lifestyle and what is related to disease? The practitioner can recommend appropriate foods and or supplements to balance your regimen.

Once regimen is addressed, you will learn what a timeline is, and why it’s important to treat the traumas in your life.

Using Medicine – Treating the Timeline

Often after making changes to your regimen, you may still have some disease conditions that need to be treated. Conditions that remain after your regimen has been balanced are rooted in your traumatic history. This is why we ask you to prepare a timeline listing all the traumatic and dramatic events that have happened to you over the course of your lifetime.

A timeline is a chronological listing of the traumatic events in your life, from pre-birth to the present. Your practitioner will want to know the types of events that have had a physical or emotional impact on you.

Physical

  • Pre-birth – ultrasounds or invasive testing, any drugs, smoking, or alcohol by the mother, any emotional shocks to the mother during pregnancy.
  • Birth – difficult labour, forceps, use of anaesthetics on mother, oxygen deprivation.
  • Vaccinations – did you receive any vaccinations in your lifetime?
  • Accidents – car accidents, falls, blows to the head, broken bones, animal bites.
  • Surgical Interventions – tonsils, appendix, dental, circumcision, C-section, vasectomy, hysterectomy, and so forth.
  • Drug Use – recreational drugs, antibiotics, anti-depressants
  • Hormones – birth control pill, hormone replacement
  • Severe Infections – Lyme disease, mononucleosis, Epstein-Barr, measles,
    chicken pox, mumps, TB, pneumonia, and so forth

Mental/Emotional

Traumas involving the following emotions:

  • Loss, abandonment, grief, betrayal, for example: death of a loved one, loss of trust, relationship breakups, and job loss
  • Great fear, anxiety, and stress
  • Anger, indignation, humiliation (especially when the emotions were suppressed), and guilt that someone tried to put on you.
  • Envy, jealousy, or guilt you put on yourself, self-blame, shame.
  • Abuse, whether mental, emotional, physical or sexual .

The Heilkunstler will use the timeline as a general guide for the restoration of your health, using medicine (the appropriate remedies) to remove the shock or trauma.

Miasms

After the removal of the physical and emotional traumas, the inherited predispositions to disease, called the chronic miasms, are addressed.

Therapeutic Education

Health is freedom from all limitations. It addresses the various disorders arising from lack of knowledge and false beliefs, Illusions and delusions, and our deepest fears. It seeks the evolution of one’s mind and consciousness through the realization and activation of one’s unique purpose in life.

How long does Heilkunst treatment take?

This depends on you, and your history, i.e. it is very individualized. Logically, a child with few traumas and interventions will go through the treatment more quickly than an adult who has had a lifetime of challenges.

The number of traumatic events on your timeline, as well as what takes place in your life as you go through treatment (for example, giving birth, dental work, death in the family, and so forth) will determine how long it might take. You can review this with your practitioner to get a general idea from them of the time they expect treatment to take.

Can I do other treatment modalities during Heilkunst treatment or do they interfere?

This is something you definitely need to discuss with your Heilkunstler as it depends on the treatment modality itself.

Is Heilkunst safe for animals? And where do I find someone treating animals with Heilkunst?

Yes, Heilkunst is safe for animals as it is for humans and the same responsible approach is used. You will find a Doctor of Medical Heilkunst trained in the DAHH animal program in the Doctors of Animal Heilkunst directory.

Where can I find a Doctor of Medical Heilkunst?

You will find a listing in the Doctors of Medical Heilkunst (DMH) directory.

Where can I learn more about the training of a Doctor of Medical Heilkunst?

You will find information on the program of study at homeopathy.com and articles, cases and discussions at heilkunst.com.

How many hours of continued education do I need per year to fulfill the IHA requirements?

A total of ten hours per year is needed for each year’s continuing education requirement.

To ensure the education is continuing, the hours cannot be carried over to the following year.

How they measure up:

  • Lectures/Recorded Teleconferences
    A recorded teleconference is equal to two hours. Hahnemann College’s Summer, Winter, and Fall Schools are worth six hours per day of attendance. Attendance at Medical Heilkunst-related conferences, or completion of assignments based on study recordings. Attendance at IHA-sponsored Practitioner Meetings, or completion of assessments based on tapings of such sessions.
  • Enrollment in other programs, studies or courses. Verification of attendance, certification, or a document confirming enrollment, completion, or attendance in an area of study that can further advance the Heilkunst practice and/or knowledge of a an IHA member.
  • Book reviews, articles and approved research on Heilkunst-related issue.
  • Other recommended courses/certifications that qualify.

CPR and First Aid requirements

The IHA strongly recommends the completion of a First Aid and CPR course, which should be updated as required upon expiry. The most beneficial course is First Aid that also includes infant CPR and defibrillation. However, the decision is up to the member, as to which course is more beneficial. For the practitioners who are DAHH members, we strongly encourage you to familiarize yourself with the animal CPR procedures, which you can find at animal CPR.

For those practitioners who have completed both the DVHH/DAHH and the DHHP, it is recommended to have both CPR courses.

Capillary Puncture Certification

For those practitioners who have completed the Dynamic Blood certification and provide Live Blood Analysis. It is part of the recommendations needed to complete the certification program; it is essential for those who will be providing this service.

I’m a client of a Doctor of Medical Heilkunst and I have a complaint as to the professional conduct, where do I go from here?

Please contact the President directly with your complaint in writing and s/he will present the complaint to the Board members.

Designation and Use of “Doctor of Medical Heilkunst”

Generally, in Canada and the United States, the title of “Doctor” in a medical context is restricted to allopathic medical practitioners. In many jurisdictions, the practice of medicine is legally restricted to licensed practitioners, and only allopathic medical practitioners are given licenses. In some jurisdictions, there is no longer a licensing system, but the allowance of the practice of medicine by any and all practitioners, through the carrying out of certain acts (such as surgery, injection, diagnosis and the prescription of drugs) is restricted to “regulated” health professions, again usually allopathic professions.

There is a lot of confusion as to which health professions can use the term doctor. It is also one that is granted to anyone with a PhD in a given field, often non-medical, and some of these do practice in the medical field as well.

The main idea behind the protection of the title of “doctor” is to protect those professions considered part of the allopathic system, that is, medical doctors, and other specialties within the allopathic medical professions. The key is that the public must not be led into thinking that the use of “doctor” by anyone other than an MD or equivalent means that they are being treated by an MD. This comes from the general mindset that “real” medical treatment is from MD’s and anything else is not considered real medicine, especially in serious situations. In this mindset, the only acceptable treatment comes from an MD or equivalent.

The key

  • To make clear that one is not a “Dr.” or “Doctor” as such. For example, using the title before the name generally denotes an MD or PhD. Avoid using the title of “Dr.” or “Doctor” (before your name) and specify exactly what type of doctor is designated. In many jurisdictions doctors of naturopathy, TCM or homeopathy are specified in the designation that follows the name, so it is important to specify exactly what type of doctor is involved.
  • To make clear to all patients in some form that one is not a “medical doctor” in the conventional sense, especially if asked, though generally the public is under no illusions on that score.

At the same time, the awarding of the designation to members of “Doctor of Medical Heilkunst” is to be used by each member within the laws of the state or province they practice in within the context of that practice. The determination as to the laws of each state or province is the responsibility of the practitioner member.

Please e-mail the President directly if you have further questions.

Professional Standards, Ethics & Conduct

Our Professional Standards.

Ethics and Conduct

Our Code of Conduct and Ethical By-laws.

For specific concerns regarding Ethics and Conduct, see FAQs:

  • I’m a client of a Doctor of Medical Heilkunst and I have a complaint as to the professional conduct, where do I go from here?—jump to FAQ
  • Designation and Use of “Doctor of Medical Heilkunst”—jump to FAQ