Glen Dupree, DVM, CVH, Guest
Waking Times

Our world is full of subtleties that are often overlooked in the rush of modern life. Oftentimes we see what is most evident and believe that to be all there is – we miss the web of more subtle events and objects that accompany the obvious but are hidden to the casual observer. We are satisfied that the easily observable is the extent of what is, and we fail to look “behind the scenes”.

In most parts of life, this approach is sufficient – it allows us to function in the world without being mired in existential questions.

However, in medicine and in the appreciation of the disease process, I think this approach to life has led us far astray.   It has led us to see the obvious symptoms as the whole of the disease. This has led to the conclusion that if we suppress the expression of symptoms, then we have taken care of the disease.

But let’s look behind the scenes for a minute.

The body, regardless of breed or species, is a complex phenomenon. We can see, feel, touch, and measure the physical body but this is only part of the total being. The subtle life force, that energy that separates the living from the dead, is not palpable or measurable but is none the less important to the being. It is at the level of this energetic basis that we find the ebb and flow of life, the patterns that eventually ultimate onto the physical body, that eventually become physically tangible. If these patterns are smooth and harmonious, the physical body reflects a positive state of health. If the patterns are disrupted and chaotic, the physical body reflects an array of “dis-ease” symptoms.

Almost all of the traditional healing arts recognize this life force and its importance to health. It is known as Chi, Ki, Prana, The Innate, and the Vital Force by the various disciplines of the healing arts.

The life force is unrecognized in conventional medicine because it can not be measured in the laboratory or seen under the microscope. Instead, in the Reductionist approach of conventional medicine, the functions of the life force are ascribed to random physiological and biochemical processes, which are measurable.

The reason it is important to look behind the scenes of the symptom is that if we are treating at the level of the symptom, we are treating at the result and not the cause of the disease. Disease is first and foremost a disruption of and a disharmony in the life force that manifests on the physical plane as the various symptoms of disease. To treat curatively, to truly improve the health and vitality of the patient, we must treat at the level of cause – the disruption and disharmony of the life force.

In more practical terms, symptoms are nothing more than the language of the body describing the unseen and unmeasurable disharmony of the life force. We need to take judgment out of the loop – symptoms are not good, symptoms are not bad, symptoms are simply the best language the body can use to tell us of its state of balance and harmony.

If we treat symptoms suppressively or palliatively without addressing their true cause, we are disallowing the body the true expression of its disease, its vent as it were, and are allowing the true disease, the disharmony of the life force, to continue unchecked. This continued disharmony will be shown through increasing severity of symptoms as the life force wanes.

Visit nearly any nursing home and you will see the long-term results of uncured disease that has been allowed to manifest and mature through the life of the individual.

True healing comes from restoring balance and harmony to the life force, not in artificially subduing symptoms.  It is here that Homeopathy excels.

About the Author

Dr. Glen Dupree is a 1982 graduate of the Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine, where he received his training in the techniques and applications of conventional allopathic medicine.After running a solo veterinary practice for a number of years, Dr. Dupree began to note that he was treating the same individuals over and over again for the same “diseases” or worse “diseases” as the pets aged. He also noted a decline in the general health of the pet population as conventional medicine became more aggressive with more vaccines and drugs at the veterinarian’s disposal.He began to rethink the things veterinary school had taught him about medicine. About this same time, his son developed serious health problems which conventional medicine was unable to cure. These events led Dr. Dupree to explore alternative forms of medicine.Through a series of fortuitous events Dr. Dupree was led to the Professional Course in Veterinary Homeopathy taught by Dr. Richard Pitcairn and the rest, as they say, is history. He has since furthered his Homeopathic education through Dr. Pitcairn’s Advanced Course in Veterinary Homeopathy, as well as through studies with various human Homeopaths in the US and abroad. Dr. Dupree was certified by the Academy of Veterinary Homeopathy in 1996.