I first met David when he was 7 and he was already on antidepressants. David suffered dreadfully from anxiety; he had hallucinations, had been suicidal and had a lot of anger bottled up which occasionally erupted. Although David was under CAHMS (Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services) his mum wanted to see if something natural would help, so coming to me was stepping out of their comfort zone into the unknown.David was anxious about most things, especially something new so it was not surprising that coming to me was difficult for him. He had very low self esteem, in fact, he hardly talked to me at all so I explained that I was going to get the information from his Mum, but asked him to join in whenever he felt like it, or contradict if she ever said anything that he didn’t agree with. He didn’t react at all as his mum relayed how he heard voices telling him he was no use and his family would be happier if he was dead. David had tried obeying the voices a couple of times to see if they went away but they told him to do bad things and that frightened him too. She explained how David’s problems affected the whole family, even losing a game could send him into a spiral of doubt and feelings of worthlessness. I also heard that at times he could be very caring, great fun and quite mischievous. None of this got any reaction at all from David, he just barely nodded or shook his head if asked a question.

I prescribed a remedy for David and really hoped to see an improvement on his return visit. I didn’t see him again for 3 months. Again he didn’t talk to me much, he did say Hello and smile – and again he’d nod or shake his head, but a little more readily this time. His mum said:

“There’s still some anxiety but it’s not as bad. He says he does hear some voices but he doesn’t mind as much. He used to always be afraid something would happen but that’s so much better, much, much better. He’s been much more positive about himself, much better but a week or so ago I started to see the signs that things were going downhill again. His voice is much louder, he’s started talking negatively about himself again and he’s not as happy.”

After the consultation I gave the same remedy but in a higher dose. I saw them again 7 months later, and this was his mum’s report:

“He’s been up and down – I’m concerned about him again. He’s been much, much better on the remedy. I’ve repeated it monthly. The psychotic stuff has gone, the auditory stuff is occasional. His agitation levels are quite high again and his suicidal talk is back. He now has an OCD thing and he’s very stressed by untidiness or dirt. He’s very self conscious about his clothes – or even about what I wear. He gets very embarrassed, even if I put something in his lunch box, which he thinks is ‘childish’ he won’t take it out of his box in front of others”.

There’s clearly an improvement, but I’m concerned that the improvement isn’t even greater. After a lengthy discussion I gave the remedy in an even higher dose – actually the highest I’ve ever given.

7 months later they returned. David talked to me a bit, which was a huge improvement, and he relayed a dream to me as well as agreeing with his mum when she reported that he was much better. She said,

“All the sycotic stuff is gone, it went soon after the last remedy and has never come back. His anxiety is still high, but he’s about to start a new school year so that’s not surprising”.

Throughout this time David had only had one remedy in stronger and stronger doses. He clearly needed it – the difference it has made to him and his family has been enormous. Two years later I’ve only seen him once more – and still prescribed the same remedy. He’s not the most outgoing confident lad, but he copes with normal school life, is off mainstream medication and is far happier than he was before he came to me.

This was quite an extreme case but if your child suffers with any sort of anxiety give me a call on 07725 520476 or book a free 15 minute consultation to see how I can help.