Homeopathy for Those Stressful Moments in Life
Posted by Dr. Lisa Samet N.D. on Dec 11th 2025
Homeopathy is well known for the help it provides for physical injuries, but it can also be incredibly supportive when you’re dealing with emotional shock, stress, or the after-effects of a difficult experience. If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed or weighed down lately, here are a few remedies that may offer some gentle support – with helpful commentary from the venerable homeopath, E.B. Nash, MD.
If your stress comes on suddenly and hits like a wave. Aconite might be the remedy to think about. This is often the picture after a sudden fright or shock—intense worry, great restlessness, and a sense that something terrible is about to happen. Even sudden pain can trigger this kind of state. It is also a remedy to consider for physical ailments following a frightening shock.
Gelsemium is a good fit when stress shows up as dread—especially before some event you’re worried about. You might feel shaky, weak, or heavy in your limbs, almost as if your body wants to shut down (Nash called it the “trembling remedy”). Many people who need Gelsemium just want to lie down and be left alone. It’s also well known for helping when nerves bring on diarrhea. It’s the most common remedy for “Ailments from bad news.”
Think of Coffea when everything feels “turned up.” All one’s senses are more acute – the mind overactive. According to E.B. Nash, MD, “Coffea is especially adapted to mental shocks, such as sudden surprises, especially joyful surprises, excessive laughter and playing, disappointed love, noises, strong smells, etc. It is also adapted to variable moods; first crying, then laughing, then crying again.” Sleep is often difficult because the mind just won’t stop racing, and even slight noises can wake you. Coffea is often very helpful to take at that time: awake in bed at night, mind racing.
Ignatia is often helpful when emotional shock causes mixed, changeable reactions. You might cry one moment and feel numb the next. Sighing a lot, a tight chest, or the feeling of a lump in the throat are common signs. Nash describes it this way: “It has in it a marked element of sadness, and disposition to silent grieving. Anyone suffering … with sighing, much sobbing, etc., and especially if inclined to smother or hide that grief from others, is just the subject for this remedy. She desires to be alone with her grief. Sighs much and seems so sad and weak. The weakness is felt right in the pit of the stomach. She feels weak, faint... Another equally characteristic state of mind is a changeable mood.”
The stressed person needing Chamomilla is hard to miss. To quote Nash: “To "boil down" all the different ways in which the Chamomilla mind can be and is expressed: ‘The patient is cross, ugly, spiteful, snappish. (He or) she knows it, admits it, and so does everyone else. She will return mean, uncivil, spiteful answers to her best friends, and then confess her fault, to repeat it again and again, and stoutly affirms she cannot help it, she feels so.’ This state of mind is always present in the marked Chamomilla case, whether it be adult or child.”
Staphysagria is the remedy to consider when someone feels intense anger from hurt, humiliation, or feeling wronged—but keeps all the emotion inside. Also great for ailments from disappointment. To quote Nash again: this person has "great indignation about things done by others or himself, grieving about the consequences, continual concern about the future. (They) throw things away indignantly (particularly when angry), or push them away on the table.” When upset and anger lead to throwing things, this remedy is worth considering.
Phos ac is suited to people who feel emotionally flattened after a shock—quiet, drained, and withdrawn. Concentration becomes difficult, and appetite often disappears.
Most people know Arnica for bruises and injuries, but it’s also a wonderful remedy for emotional shock—especially when someone insists they’re fine but clearly aren’t. This protective “I don’t need help” stance is a classic Arnica symptom. The remedy, at times, helps soften that emotional armor so healing can begin.
As with any medical condition, consult your physician if you have concerns about the severity of your illness, as it may initially require a medical diagnosis and/or intervention and monitoring.
About Dr. Lisa Samet:
Dr. Lisa Samet N.D. provides Washington Homeopathic Products with a regular column on using homeopathy for the family. She's a naturopathic physician who specializes in homeopathic medicine. Dr. Samet graduated from the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine in 1998 and has been practicing in Montreal since then. She was born and raised in New York.
Dr. Samet has chosen to focus on homeopathy because, in her experience, it is the deepest healing modality available, as it does not just soothe or palliate symptoms but actually stimulates the body to begin healing itself. Dr. Samet sees patients in her Montreal office as well as long-distance using Zoom, Skype, or FaceTime. Learn more here: Dr. Lisa Samet. You can follow her on Facebook as well.