Guide to potency and dosage

Not all homeopaths agree on dosage and potency, but as a general rule,
Chronic illnesses (i.e. those that you've had for a long time) should be treated
with high potencies (i.e. 30x - 200c.) and Acute conditions (i.e. those that are
relatively new) with low potencies (i.e. 6x or 6C) There are exceptions,
particularly where an accident started off the symptoms and you might give
the body a kick start with a high potency dose such as Arnica 200c first and
then follow with a lower potency remedy.

Other factors are also relevant for choosing a potency, such as the
homeopathic sensitivity of the patient (more sensitive patients take lower
potencies), and the particular remedy being taken; if in doubt, see your
homeopath.

If you are not 100% sure which remedy to take, usually a low potency, such as
6X, should be taken before a high potency and the patient observed carefully.
If symptoms improve, but not fully, the same remedy should be taken in a
higher potency (such as 30C). If, after taking the low potency remedy, relief is
not felt, or the condition changes, a different remedy should be taken in a low
potency.

Really high potencies, such as 200C, are normally taken in very low doses
(typically once per week) whereas lower potencies are taken every few hours
for a few days. It is generally considered to be a bad idea to take high
potencies often.

Homeopathic remedies should be taken on a clean pallate. Strong flavors, such

as coffee or toothpaste can disrupt the working of a remedy. Once relief from
the symptoms is felt, stop taking the homeopathic medicine. Only take it again
if exactly the same symptoms come back.
The exact meaning of the potency notation is explained on our potency scales
page.

Guide to potency scales

The X, C, and LM refer to the number of parts of the dilutent (water and or
alcohol) that one part of the mother tincture is diluted in. The letters are the
roman numerals so X, C and LM refer to 10, 100, and 50,000 respectively. The
numbers refer to the number of times the tincture is diluted by that amount,
and succussed between dilutions.

So for example, 6x = 1 part in 10, 6 times. So the final concentration is 1 in 10 x

10 x 10 x 10 x 10 x 10, or 1 in 1,000,000.

The letter M breaks with the tradition, and refers to a 1000C dilution, not one
part in one thousand.

Perhaps counter-intuitively, homeopathic remdies get more effective as they

get more diluted. It makes more sense if you consider that the remedy you are
taking is the one that would cause your symptoms if you took it 'neat'.

Occasionally a letter 'H' or 'K' is appended to the potency (for example 30CH,
or 200CK). This refers to the production method and in most cases is safely
ignored.

One further thing to note is that, on mainland Europe, the D scale breaks with
the convention of using Roman numerals, and D denotes Decimal (1/10)
potency, rather than the 500 scale. i.e. 6X in English potency would be D6.

That's the theory, for the practice, see our Which potency to take page.
Format Guide

We offer a number of formats for different purposes:

Pillules, Granules & Tablets Pillules, granules and tablets are the most
common forms of homeopathic remedies and are taken internally. The only
difference between pillules, granules and tablets is the size, with tablets being
larger than pillules, which are larger than granules. These remedies are
normaly placed under the tongue until they disolve.
Ointments, Creams, & Lotions These are applied directly to the affected area,
where the symptom is entirely external, such as spots, bruising, insect bites,
etc.
Liquid Dilution The remedy as a liquid dilution is the basis of the above
formats. Liquid dilutions are also used as remedies in thier own right, most
often where the patient is allergic to the pillule base, or for animals which can
not be persuaded to take tablets. Liquid dilutions contain alcohol as a
preservative.
Tincture This is the starting point for making the liquid dilution. The extract
the remedy will be made from is in a relatively concentrated form, and
consequently the tincture is not intended for treatment directly. However, it
seems that occasionaly, particularly in India, the lowest available potency is
referred to as the mother tincture. Tinctures contain alcohol as a preservative.

The remedy grid

The grid shows symptoms along the rows, and remedies down the columns.
You can see at a glance which remedies relate to which of your symptoms.

The 12 most suitable remedies are ordered by relevance, from left (most
relevant) to right (least relevant), giving weighting according to whether they
are an appropriate match, a good match or an excellent match for each
symptom.
It is ultimately down to your own judgment as to which remedy applies most
strongly. You know best which of your entered symptoms are most relevant
and which do not apply as accurately to you.

You can delete remedies by ticking boxes in the column. You can make a
symptom essential by clicking in the column (as explained in the key).

If you need a tie-break, you might like to describe your stool, or your state of
mind into the search box.

Key to symbols

Not indicated for this symptom

Indicated for this symptom
Strongly indicated for this symptom
Very strongly indicated for this symptom
Tick this column to delete the symptom. The removed symptoms will
still show up on the grid, where they are relevant to other symptoms. Pressing
next again will delete the symptom entirely. To restore it, press your browser's
back button. You can delete as many symptoms as you like at any time.
Make this symptom a priority - When you tick a button in this column,
(and press next) the remedies will be reordered to show how they relate to
that symptom. It is useful when your main symptom has no remedy associated
with it on the main screen. You can only make one symptom a priority at a
time. To remove the priority, mark the bottom of the screen by 'equal
priorities'