Questions about your lifestyle, eating habits and preferences, temperament, personality, sleep patterns and medical history help the doctor to form a complete picture of you. This picture will be matched to the symptoms of your illness to prescribe a particular type and strength of homeopathic medicine. As a guide your first appointment could take anything up to 2/5 hr., with follow-up appointments typically lasting 1 hour. This does vary depending on the practitioner and the setting in which they work. To get the most out of a consultation, it is helpful to make some notes beforehand and to think through all the issues that are affecting your health.