Soooo — I learned something recently:  I’d previously used the terms “holistic” & “homeopathic” interchangeably. Well, turns out, they are not the same. And maybe you know this already, but I admit I did not.

Holistic veterinary medicine takes a whole-patient approach, considering body, mind, and lifestyle, and may include methods like Traditional Chinese Medicine (or TCM — treatments like herbal medicines, nutritional support, acupuncture, etc.), supplements, and . . . homeopathy.

Homeopathic medicine is based on the principle of “like cures like” and refers to the treatment of disease with highly diluted substances that trigger healing, but in undiluted form, might cause symptoms of that same disease.

…An example, “coffea cruda” (a homeopathic preparation made from coffee) is used to treat patients with “insomnia associated with an overly alert mind.”

In short: homeopathy can be part of a holistic plan, but not all holistic care is homeopathic. 

Anyhow, without even knowing this — & given the throwing-everything-at-the-wall-to-see-what-sticks approach that I’ve been taking, I’d already scheduled a consult with a specialty veterinarian who focuses only on homeopathic medicine. I’m glad I did this earlier, too, because the wait to get in was nearly a month.

Will recap the appointment afterwards (fingers crossed — as always!).

Update

The appointment is recapped here. It did not go as hoped. At all.