Potencies in Homeopathy

This is such a vast topic that whilst writing my book The Joy of Homeopathy, trying to condense a definition for my Terminology section into 4 or so lines was a real challenge. Helen who I'm working with to publish the book suggested a blog post on the topic, which was a great idea. If you're here from the book, welcome. If you're here having discovered my website or via the blog, hello too!

When I was first taught potency in College, it's pretty fair to say, it was accompanied by echoes of 'What...? You mean...? How...?' around the classroom that I sat in.

It goes hand in hand with our Law of Minimum Dose, which is quite the step for us, so used to our material world. Two aspects of this are key - one is that we give the minimum dose to enable a reaction to for our client to start their journey towards healing, in terms of repetition, and the second, in a weird twist of ‘really, but how?’ the more diluted and succussed (shaken) a remedy is, the stronger the potency. The power seems to be particularly related to the shaking, the succussion. How I can’t tell you, and to be fair, I have given up trying to really understand. I’m OK with seeing it working. I’m happy to know that I see change. I’m really happy to know that way cleverer people than me are working in many countries around the world investigating the how, demonstrating the efficacy of homeopathy on plants, seeing it work in agriculture and lots more.
 
Much research is frequently self-funded or funding comes from within the industry, which doesn’t make it a level playing field with the world of conventional medicine, but research is ploughing ahead regardless. People’s passion, people’s recognition for something that works, commitment to learning and curiosity about the world around them and this thing that shouldn’t work but clearly does, has much to be said for it. Then there’s the fact our current scientific paradigm says that it can’t work and yet still it does, perhaps makes it all the more fascinating.
 
If I'm totally honest, I can no longer tell you in detail how a lightbulb switches on. Once upon a time I could have told you the physics of it, but those heady A Level Physics days are gone. I don’t care how my car turns on when I turn the ignition key. I’m curious about much in the world, but I see these things working and that works for me. I’m grateful mechanics are way more up on my car than my awareness that it’s metallic dark grey with a fabulous panoramic roof, I’m very grateful my dad knows exactly what he’s doing with it. But do I need to? Years ago, single parenting away, getting my business set up, supporting ourselves with bit jobs on the side, I recognised there were many things I needed to do and know and that I could accept help with others. My car is one I accept help with. I admire those who can do cars too, but I’m OK that’s not me.
 
Similarly, I’m very grateful we have incredible researchers, I’ve met some of them and am inspired by their passion for the topic. My passion is seeing the change on the front line. Being in clinic, working on cases, seeing clients. Seeing results which clients describe as life-changing. That’s my space. And the rest will come. I believe we’re getting close to the ‘how’ and there are several fascinating theories which may well be shouted about soon. They may soon show us how what we do does it. There may be several ways to explain it, and that’s where I think we'll be in the end, that it’s not just one thing. Not just nanoparticles or Exclusion Zone water. Not just the quantum world that will give us clues. But I’m leaving that to the marvellous researchers. I don’t think it’ll be long before we know a whole lot more.
 
Back to potency, commonly used potencies in homeopathy are:

6X, 12X and beyond, these are on the Decimal scale.
 
6C, 12C, 30C, 200C, 1M, 10M which are all classed as being on the Centesimal scale.
 
The LM scale goes from an LM1 upwards and you can start at 1 and work up, or adapt accordingly depending on the energy of our client.

In the decimal scale, noted by an X after the number, 1/10 of the liquid is added to 9/10 of alcohol and shaken (succussed) well. The first dilution is a 1X. The number in front of the X notes the number of times it has been diluted and succussed. A 12X potency of a remedy will have been through this process 12 times.

Our centesimal scale is similar, 1/100 of the starting material or tincture is added to 99 parts of alcohol. That creates a 1C of our remedy. And so on upwards.

Our M potencies have been through this process in the orders of thousands, 1M a thousand times, 10M ten thousand times.

LM potencies, which are sometimes called Q potencies are made by diluting and succussing 1:50 000 of the original tincture/substance.

The short video here is helpful to describe how we make remedies and gives an insight into potency.

We’re always looking at each case as an individual and that means matching the remedy and the potency to the person in front of us.