Travel is woven into my practice. My first encounter with homeopathy came before a trip to Thailand nearly three decades ago, my clients scatter themselves across the globe with cheerful regularity, and I consult by WhatsApp video and FaceTime when either of us is away. Here’s what a homeopath can usefully offer a traveller — and what belongs firmly with the travel clinic.
First, the travel clinic bit
Vaccinations, malaria prevention and destination-specific medical advice are decisions to make with your GP or a travel clinic — that’s their territory and they’re good at it. Book that appointment six to eight weeks before a big trip. Homeopathy’s place on your journey is alongside that preparation, not instead of it.
Jet lag
Jet lag is on the list of things clients regularly bring me, and it’s a satisfying one to work on because the picture is so individual: some people can’t sleep for three nights, others can’t wake for three days, some land teary and untethered. Alongside a matched remedy, the free advice: get sunlight at your destination’s morning, eat on local time from the first meal, and resist the 4pm hotel nap as you would any other siren.
The travel that suits a small kit
Seasoned homeopathy clients often travel with a handful of remedies for self-limiting mishaps — the bruise, the sting, the dodgy prawn, the sunburn, the first shiver of a cold on a night train. I put together personalised kits for clients before big trips, with plain instructions on what’s for what — and equally plain instructions on when to stop self-prescribing and find a doctor: high fever, persistent vomiting or diarrhoea, anything after an animal bite, anything that would worry you at home. Abroad, worry sooner. There’s more on home kits in the first-aid kit piece.
Your homeopath travels with you
The quiet advantage of video consultations: the work doesn’t stop at departures. Clients have rung me from Mallorca and much further; remedies can be posted internationally or sourced from good homeopathic pharmacies abroad. And when I’m the one travelling, my regulars barely notice — the consulting room is wherever the signal is.
Planning something far-flung, or returned from somewhere and not quite yourself since? Call me on 07956 217 276 — “never been well since the trip” is a sentence every homeopath listens to very carefully.
Homeopathy is a complementary approach: it sits alongside, and never replaces, the care of your GP or hospital team. If you have new, severe or worrying symptoms, please see your doctor or call NHS 111 first — and keep taking any prescribed medication unless your prescriber tells you otherwise.