Professional

I routinely recommended to my patients right on their first visit to eat and drink whatever they desire for. When they came back two or three weeks later, they often said that they feel much better now but a week ago they had a cold. When I asked about the symptoms they turn out to be mainly a profuse mucus discharge, sometimes also diarrhea, but rarely are there signs of a real infection. In fact, these patients just experienced their first healing crisis on their long path to better health. This concept of a healing crisis clearly shows the opposite perceptions that drug medicine and homeopathic medicine have of health and the healing process. In regular or allopathic medicine it is assumed that a patient who is free of disease symptoms is more or less healthy and the aim of drugs is to achieve this condition by removing any disagreeable symptoms. Frequently alternative or complementary medicine is used in the same way, instead of more or less toxic drugs just more benign remedies are being used. This is what most patients want and according to their beliefs they either use drugs or natural remedies for this purpose. However, homeopathic treatment, following in the footsteps of the old nature cure movement, aims [...]

Bufo is a remedy of the animal kingdom. It is prepared from the toad. Bufo has symptoms of Baryta carbonica and Hyoscyamus put together. Like Baryta carbonica it has a childish and naive behaviour, is foolish and underdeveloped mentally. Like Hyoscyamus, it has shamelessness, high sexuality, loquacity and malice. Like other remedies of the animal kingdom it has an animated nature, a fear of animals and a certain mischievousness. It resembles some of the remedies of the spider group, as it is sensitive to music, deceitful and destructive, and also has attractive behaviour. All these elements combine to give Bufo a unique character. When you consider the childishness, the lack of maturity and control, and the high sexuality, you have the idea that the adult control over his instincts is absent. Therefore whenever he has any urge, whether it be an urge to eat or a sexual impulse, he has to gratify it at once. He cannot postpone pleasure. If he has a sexual impulse, it has to be fulfilled, and so he goes off alone and masturbates. Hence we have the classic symptom: “Desires solitude for masturbation”. In my experience, one of the main things you can note about a Bufo person is the combination of good physical development and a childish mind. Added to these is the shamelessness [...]

Bryonia is a plant remedy. It belongs to the typhoid miasm, which lies between the acute and the psoric. In my experience, the main feeling of Bryonia is the feeling of a loss, which has to be made up very fast. One of the commonest ways of making up a loss is by business. Here you invest what you have, take risks and try to increase your wealth. The concentration is totally on business, so much so that the Bryonia person talks and dreams of business, and in delirium will mention what money has to be put where and what business transaction has to be completed. The Bryonia person is very industrious, busy and determined, and works at a feverish pace. He becomes dry, insensitive to the emotions and feelings of others. He talks little and doesn’t like to be disturbed. He reads things concerned with his business, converses with business people, and his attitude in the clinic will also be rather business-like. As a result, one could mistake Bryonia for Calcarea fluorica, but the theme of Calcarea fluorica is to preserve what one already has, and therefore Calcarea fluorica does not take any risks. Bryonia however does take risks. Again, the complaints of Bryonia are more acute and will impede movement, whereas Calcarea fluorica will develop a slow, chronic [...]

Belladonna is a plant remedy of the acute miasm. The main feeling of a Belladonna person is of a sudden threat from outside from which he has to escape in order to survive. The suddenness is one of the main characteristics of Belladonna. Everything comes in paroxysms with suddenness, and goes with equal suddenness. But while it lasts, there seems to be a very intense and life threatening situation; the person is beside himself and wants to escape. Also, there is a certain degree of violence in his sensations and actions. Belladonna can be quite cheerful. In fact, he can be dancing, laughing, singing and can have a generally light-hearted feeling and exuberance. But when the attack comes, he becomes crazy with fear and anxiety, with excitement, with throbbing of the carotids, palpitation of the heart and a feeling of imminent threat or danger. One of the Belladonna patients that I had disappeared from treatment suddenly and after months suddenly called me up from some part of the world and then disappeared for months again. For Belladonna Dr. M. L. Sehgal points to the rubric: “Unconsciousness interrupted by screaming”. His interpretation is that the Belladonna patient remains unconscious of his problems and they come up suddenly to his consciousness and make him very excited. The delusions, dreams and fears [...]

Baryta sulphurica is a mineral remedy. The main feeling of Baryta sulphurica is: “I am scorned/insulted by the person I am so totally dependent on (since I am handicapped)”. The compensated Baryta sulphurica person is self-dependent and makes a lot of effort to be respected. It is a combination of dependability and dignity. The patients are industrious, dependable and dignified people. A man with these qualities will reach a high position. The problem starts when Baryta sulphurica comes into a new environment with new people around him. There is a tremendous fear of being alone or going out alone. He cannot mix easily. He feels that people will laugh at him, and since he is easily offended or insulted he cannot form deep friendships. He feels that others avoid him, he feels neglected and weeps and broods about it. His memory is weak. There is also aversion to work, loss of will and weeping. The dreams are anxious and frightful. Physical symptoms – Cannot bear hunger. – Craving: salt, sour, pickles. Rubrics – Anxiety. – Cowardice. – Fear, conversation of. – Fear, people of, anthropophobia. – Timidity, bashful. – Will, loss of.

Barium is a mineral belonging to the group IIA of the Periodic Table. The main feeling of remedies from this group is one of dependence, and Baryta carbonica is the most dependent of them all. Baryta carbonica is totally dependent on others, almost like a cripple or an imbecile. “Delusion that he walks on his knees” and “Delusion that a beloved friend is sick and dying” show the crippled, dependent feeling of Baryta carbonica and his fear of losing this support. There is a feeling of total incapacity to take on responsibilities or do one’s own work. Baryta carbonica has anticipatory anxiety because of this feeling of incapacity. The patients are totally irresolute and depend completely on someone else to take decisions for them. This can work both ways. I have seen also that Baryta carbonica people can be very independent, even supportive of other people. They can be very responsible especially about family affairs: “Anxious about domestic affairs”, “Cares about domestic affairs”, “Anxiety about friends at home”, “Anxiety for others”. They can be extremely hard-working (industrious), very organized, conscientious, and they take pains to make sure of everything (carefulness). They consequently occupy quite responsible, dependable positions in their work and society. They are very methodical and reliable but lack imagination, art and creativity. Occasionally however, even such coped [...]

Baryta arsenicosa is a mineral remedy of the syphilitic miasm. The feeling of Baryta is that of complete dependence due to personal incapacity. The feeling of Arsenicum is of being isolated and hence insecure. The Arsenicum person sees the world as threatening and chaotic. He feels lonely yet feels threatened by people, so he cannot trust people though he needs them. The main feeling of Baryta arsenicosa is: “I cannot trust the person on whom I am totally dependent”. In the compensated state Baryta arsenicosa can be very conscientious, independent and responsible. The patient is fastidious, methodical, highly organized, efficient and industrious. He is very caring for others, very friendly and will not offend anyone. He is very careful about his own health and also the health of others. In an uncompensated state the Baryta arsenicosa person can be shy, bashful and nervous, extremely anxious about the smallest thing, especially with respect to health. He can get panicky, frightened and restless. He does not trust anyone including the physician and often changes doctors: irresolute, very dependent, yet mistrustful. Physical symptoms – Chilly patient. – Early senility: very deep seated, chronic, progressive disorders. Diabetes, ulcers, hypertension, etc., coming on at an early age. – Sudden acute manifestations may be found.

Aurum is a syphilitic remedy. It is one of the heavy metals of the 6th period. In Aurum the feeling is that the person must perform tasks which are impossible or much beyond his capacity. He demands of himself industry and responsibility, conscientiousness and duty of the highest degree, uncompromising principles or goals that are beyond the possible. He almost destroys himself in trying to achieve these goals, because if he does not achieve them, he gets the feeling of failure, guilt and despair of salvation. It is as if his very survival depended on his ability to take on these huge responsibilities. He is afraid of losing the confidence of others and of himself. He has a feeling that he may fall down from this high position. This can make him suicidal. When Aurum gets suicidal thoughts, he does not have to fight with himself as Natrum sulphuricum does. Aurum will make a decision and act. He asks himself: “Do I jump or not?”; if the answer is: “I jump”, he just jumps. Aurum people are highly moralistic, principled and orthodox. However, sometimes it can work the other way round, i.e. finding the task too high; Aurum becomes then irresponsible and immoral. Aurum therefore, has the polarity between high morality and extreme guilt and suicidal tendencies. He alternates [...]

The mineral Arsenic lies between Phosphorus and Bismuth in the Periodic Table. I found that in this group, which also includes Antimony, there is a feeling of insecurity, of loneliness, of being isolated, and of not belonging. Phosphorus tries to make up for this feeling by excessive friendliness and sympathy. In Arsenicum, it manifests as fear and insecurity. The Arsenicum patient sees the world as threatening, chaotic. He feels that he is old, weak and defenseless, and that there are thieves all around him, ready to take advantage of his weakness. He needs people and is dependent on them because of his weakness, yet feels that they cannot be trusted, that they are interested only in his money. However he cannot do without them, and hence is very careful that he should not offend them, lest they leave him and go away. He is mistrustful and suspicious, cautious and anxious in all matters: money, relationships, even health. The Arsenicum person has a hypochondriacal anxiety; he fears that he will lose his health unless he exercises regularly and will avoid many things which he feels are harmful. He will not eat out in restaurants, etc., and will impose many restrictions on himself in diet and other matters. His life is full of anxiety. He is extremely fearful that he will lose what [...]