15 years ago a Czech homeopath by the name of Jiri Cehovsky unveiled a unique form of treatment that he called 'Autopathy'. With antecedents in a number of ancient healing arts as well as drawing heavily on the principles of homeopathy, autopathy - as the name implies- is a form of self-treatment that is applicable to a broad range of ailments both acute and chronic, physical and mental. Amongst many conditions that can be treated, it has been shown to be especially effective in the treatment of skin diseases like eczema and pathologies of uncertain cause such as autoimmune diseases.
Autopathy is a self-treatment in two senses. First, the substances that are used to make the autopathic remedies come from the patient, namely saliva, breath or 'prana' (more on that later). Second, the patient creates and administers the remedies his/herself, with the exception of children or severely disabled persons.
A great deal of research and experimentation led to the development of the techniques, protocols and the main device, called an 'autopathy bottle', by which the treatment is carried out. Along the way, Cehovsky has written two books and gained a large following, mostly in the Czech Republic. For the last decade or so, an annual conference is held in Prague where hundreds of practitioners gather together to share information, case histories and the latest advances in protocols.
Cehovsky presides over this burgeoning movement with missionary enthusiasm. Through the trilingual website autopathy.info as well as webinars and blogs, he is active disseminating as much of his knowledge and experience as possible without any attempt to monetize it. All the information can be accessed by a few clicks of one's mouse and is made available for free (excepts his books which can be downloaded for $9). He is adamant that the relative simplicity of the protocols and negligible expense of the autopathy bottle makes it a perfect technique for self-treatment by the layperson as well as a powerful tool for professional practitioners.
To understand how autopathy works, it is useful to view it as a derivative of homeopathy. The philosophical underpinning of the latter is contained in 3 basic principles: Law of Similiars, the Vital Force and the Law of Minimum Dose.
The Law of Similars, which was the original discovery that led to the creation of homeopathy, is based on the observation that if a healthy person suffers from certain symptoms after taking a particular substance, then a sick person who naturally has similar symptoms will be cured by that same substance. Otherwise known as “like cures like”, it defines the basic endeavor of all homeopaths - the selection of a medicine whose action is similar to the symptoms of the patient.
The Vital Force refers to an intelligence or dynamic principle separate from the physical tissues and organ systems of the body that animates and protects a living body. Homeopathic diagnosis and treatment are both based on understanding the characteristic nature of an individual's Vital Force on the one hand as well as invigorating or strengthening it on the other.
The Minimum Dose refers to the observation that the more the medicines are diluted, the gentler and more effective is their curative action. If properly chosen, the dilute forms of these substances act at a deeper level in the body precisely because they have a greater capacity than cruder substances to resonate with the Vital Force. The dilution process unique to homeopathy is known as 'potentization' because of the enhanced energetic properties of these dilute medicines.
The basic premise in Autopathy is that substances or energies derived from the patient's body are excellent similar medicines to treat any illness. Using these will replace the endeavor of finding a medicinal substance outside of the patient's organism whose curative action is similar to the characteristic symptoms of the patient. Since saliva, breath and prana come from the patient, they embody the characteristics of his or her Vital Force and are therefore inherently 'similar' to the patient. Once could say they are exact similars.
Originally, homeopathic remedies were prepared by process of serial dilutions: basically diluting 1 part of the crude substance in 100 parts water, tapping the bottle, taking 1 drop from that solution and diluting it in 100 drops of water in a different bottle, and continually repeating this process until the desired dilution - or potency - is achieved. Considering the fact that typically homeopaths use potencies where 30 or 200 or a 1000 dilutions are necessary, this is a very labor and materials intensive process that is daunting for both layperson and practitioner to carry out on their own. Likewise, it is an expensive process when carried out precisely by a homeopathic pharmacy. Over the years, other methods of dilution - or potentization - were devisedthat were more efficient and less expensive.
One of them, known as the 'fluxion method', is what is utilized in Autopathy. Fluxion means 'the act of flowing', and the method consists of feeding liquid continuously into the vessel used for potentization, and simultaneously removing it. In other words, water flows through a device with a chamber that holds the remedy material, creating turbulence as it passes by and then drains out. The potency levels are calculated from the amount of water that is fed thru the device.
Looking nothing like a bottle but more of a tall martini glass with an extra stem and a small chamber, the Autopathy 'bottle' is just such a device. Cehovsky ingeniously designed it to be extremely easy to use and quite affordable. Patients make their autopathic remedy by either spitting into a funnel at the top or breathing into a tube or holding the autopathy bottle over their head, and then running a specific amount of water thru the bottle.
What remains in the chamber after this process is the remedy. After much experimentation, Cehovsky discovered topical application of the remedy is the most effective treatment technique. More specifically, a few drops of the remedy are placed on the forehead between and slightly above the eyes. By stimulating this area, commonly known as the 6th Chakra or the 3rd eye, has a powerful energizing effect on the Vital Force of the entire organism.