Watching Kate Cry Makes Us Happy Its Very Homeopathic

Researchers say the reason why we like watching sad movies such as Titanic or Atonement is that they actually make us happier – but these same researchers don’t realise it is all because of the homeopathic effect.

It’s easy to think that homeopathy is about cute little bottles of potentised remedies – but it isn’t.

Homeopathy only exists because of a natural law that governs the relationship between similars, i.e., things that produce similar effects. Homeopaths prescribe remedies to either treat or prevent disease according to this law commonly known as the Law of Similars.

This law also explains why some of us feel happier after (not during) a heart-rending movie as an emotion or experience portrayed on the screen resonates with an unresolved emotion within us. The similarity between the two emotions has a cancelling out effect that eases our own internal unhappiness and as a result we feel better.

This Law of Similars effect also happens elsewhere in life but usually goes unnoticed. For example:

• Similar poles of magnets repel each other (while the opposites attract)
• Soap removes oil because of its fat content
• Tuning forks of the same key will resonate with the same sound even though only one was struck.
• Damp soil absorbs water more easily than dry soil
• Cancer causing radiation is used to treat cancer
• Stimulant medications such as Ritalin, Concerta and dexamphetamine (that would cause over-stimulation in a healthy person) are given to calm hyperactive children
• Psychotherapy approaches that encourage people to revisit their point of emotional pain ultimately bring acceptance and relief

All of the above phenomena work by the Law of Similars and the homeopathic effect it creates. Can you think of other instances?

Another good example is the highly poisonous plant, Belladonna, also known as Deadly Nightshade. Just one leaf will kill an adult while smaller amounts cause headaches, hot dry skin, red rashes, dilated pupils, confusion and hallucinations. If someone has a set of symptoms like these, a potentised dose of Belladonna will safely counteract them, helping them recover.

Potentised Belladonna is also a useful preventative. Because its symptoms are very similar to those of scarlet fever, it has been used historically to protect the healthy from infection at times of epidemics; through the Law of Similars, things that are similar not only treat but also prevent.

So, getting back to our researchers and the movies…

The reason why some of us feel happier after a movie like Titanic is because of this Law of Similars effect. If the movie mimics a grief, loss or emotion that we have also experienced, it creates a reciprocal healing effect.

But what about those of us who don’t feel happy after watching sad movies – those of us who are traumatised and upset by the events?

This may happen when we have not yet experienced of the depth of emotion and distress portrayed on the screen. For the most part, occasional upsets from such exposures are harmless and create resilience; we recover from them with an increased awareness of what others have had to experience.

Occasionally though, we don’t recover. If this has happened to you, the thing to remember is that painful memories are not helped by avoidance. To resolve them fully a like-treats-like approach is needed. Your local homoeopath should be able to help with a remedy to get you back in balance but an even simpler option may be a visit to the next tear-jerker at your local cinema. A quick dose of like-treats-like can work wonders.

Resources

Watching Kate Cry Makes Us Happy

Tragedy Viewers Count Their Blessings: Feeling Low on Fiction Leads to Feeling High on Life