The Center for Sustainable Medicine

There are at least two formal studies done with returning veterans which showed that acupuncture by itself is actually superior to traditional therapies for treating all the varied symptoms of PTSD–anxiety, flashbacks, depression, nightmares, etc. Simple ear acupuncture also turned out to be one of the most popular, fast-acting, and effective therapies for firefighters and others dealing with the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 World Trade Center events.  I will be giving a talk at the Upper Valley Food Coop (in White River Junction, VT)  Thursday, October 22nd, 2009 at 6 PM about treating nightmares and other symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder using acupuncture. At the talk I will be showing a short film by Laura Cooley, explaining about auricular acupuncture, and then demonstrating typical treatments on ear points for those who would like to experience (or observe) a treatment. Those who have come to me for the treatment of trauma-related nightmares have stopped having any nightmares after one to two treatments, with no side effects. Treatments like these are available here in Thetford on a sliding scale from $25-50, (or in private sessions for $75.)
The talk is free, though I will be accepting donations toward the community clinic.

Didi Pershouse, LAc, CCH
The Center for Sustainable Medicine
Thetford Center, VT 05075
(802) 785-2503
www.sustainablemedicine.org

Cholesterol-lowering drugs such as Lipitor are some of the most dangerous drugs around, causing serious side effects, and blocking the body’s ability to manufacture cholesterol—which is a vital substance in the body for brain functioning and tissue repair. This talk will examine traditional high-fat diets and the healthy populations that ate them—from the Arctic to Africa. It will also look at myths and truths about cholesterol and how our culture has been misled into eating dangerously low-fat diets that create many long-term health problems, including, ironically, obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

November 12, 2009: 6 to 7:30 pm, suggested donation: $10

Upper Valley Food Coop, in White River Junction, VT

For more information call (802) 785-2503 or email sustainablemedicine@gmail.com

About the Instructor:

Didi Pershouse, certified homeopath and licensed acupuncturist, has provided gentle and affordable health care in the Upper Valley for over 15 years. She is co-author of the latest homeopathy textbook: “Vital Expression: A Manual on Homeopathic Casetaking.” She is the local chapter leader for the Weston A. Price Foundation, and founder of The Center for Sustainable Medicine in Thetford Center, VT where she practices homeopathy, acupuncture, and nutritional counseling. She has traveled and taught extensively in the field of alternative medicine. You can read her Sustainable Medicine Manifesto online at www.sustainablemedicine.org

Homeopathy for Parents and Other Caregivers:  Introductory Class with Didi Pershouse, CCH

Homeopathic medicine is one of the most sustainable forms of medicine and well-suited to home care for both adults and children as it is safe, easy to use, inexpensive, and environmentally sound. It is used extensively by primary care doctors in Europe and India. Clinical trials have shown homeopathy to be very effective in treating a wide range of conditions. Knowing how to use a homeopathic first-aid kit and look up remedies in a “repertory” are going to be essential community health care skills for a post-oil economy (as they were for working-class communities in 19^th century New England.)

Here are some cases I have treated recently that could have easily been treated at home if someone in the patient’s family had taken this class:

1. Someone broke out in hives from emotional upset, and the hives weren’t going away even after a full day and night. A single dose of homeopathic apis took them away within half an hour.

2. A woman had a croupy cough that persisted long after her cold symptoms went away. A dose of homeopathic spongia took care of it.

4. A man had continuing swelling and pain in his leg a month later after a skiing injury. After two days on arnica, the swelling and pain were gone.

In this class you will learn the basic principles of homeopathy: how it works, how it is different from naturopathic and herbal medicine, how to look things up in homeopathic reference books, and which kinds of symptoms you can treat at home safely and inexpensively with homeopathy–and which cases you should leave to a professional physician or homeopath.  We will also be looking at some research studies on homeopathy and how homeopathy has been used in epidemic illnesses in the past and present. You will also learn what sorts of conditions should be treated by a professional homeopath, or seen by an MD. This class stands on its own but will also serve as a foundation for future advanced classes on differentiating remedies for:

Colds and Flus

Epidemic Illness

Hiking and Outdoor Injuries

Children’s Illnesses

Gardener’s Aches and Pains

and more…

WHEN: Saturday, September 26th 1-4:30 pm, (the same class will be offered again on November 21^st.)

COST: $45

WHERE: Upper Valley Food Coop, White River Junction, VT

To sign up or for more information call (802) 785-2503

or email sustainablemedicine@gmail.com

About the Instructor:

Nationally certified homeopath Didi Pershouse, CCH, LAc, has provided gentle and affordable health care for over 15 years. She is co-author of the latest homeopathy textbook: Vital Expression: A Manual on Homeopathic Casetaking, and was editor of the preparatory course for the national exam in Homeopathy. She is the founder of The Center for Sustainable Medicine, and the Two Rivers Clinic in Thetford Center. You can read her Sustainable Medicine Manifesto online at www.sustainablemedicine.org

Didi Pershouse, founder of the Center for Sustainable Medicine, was asked to testify last Friday in front of the Committee on Agriculture at the Vermont State House on the use and safety of raw, unpasteurized milk.  The bill, H-125, seeks to allow unlimited sales of raw milk directly from farms that meet the required safety regulations as well as allow deliveries directly to customers.  Pershouse spoke in favor of the bill, with a couple of proposed amendments.

Pershouse’s testimony, lasting about 20 minutes,  (but interrupted by the Attorney General’s testimony) began by pointing out the irony that humans breast feed their children, and pump and store that milk, without any of the precautions used by raw milk farmers. “If we don’t allow sales of raw milk, then perhaps we should require pasteurization of breast milk. A child can reach in its diaper and grab back onto the breast.  A mother doesn’t always shower before breastfeeding.  Why are we so worried about cows milk from clean healthy cows?”  She went on to point out that vegetables also are grown in manure and dirt, and that we don’t require pasteurization of those.  “But, if we are worried about raw milk, then certainly all lettuce should be boiled before eaten, and carrots too. No more crunchy carrots.  Too dirty.”

Finally she pointed out that she could walk into the village store and buy alcohol and cigarettes, which cause hundreds of thousands of deaths each year, yet could not buy the most basic pure food there is:  milk, straight from the cow.

One female representative apologized to the male members present before asking a question about breastfeeding, saying she didn’t want to “embarrass anyone,” then asked “Are there really no government regulations for storing breast milk?”

One of the  amendments proposed by Pershouse was that the language in the bill be changed from “Farm Fresh Milk”  to “Raw Milk”–since that is the term that most consumers use when looking for raw milk, (and “unpasteurized” implies that pasteurization is the normal state of milk.)   The second amendment she proposed was that farmers should be responsible for cleaning all  jars returned by customers. The reasoning given was that if a customer’s unclean jar were to contaminate the milk, the raw milk industry in general would be blamed–rather than tracing it back to a dirty dishbrush, for example.