In my lecture today, following the series of Autism in Children and Homeopathy, I will discuss the broad acting remedy Lycopodium and children who own that constitution.
Kindly bear in mind, that all the remedies I have chosen to talk about in my lectures, are ones that have a deep action on the human economy and in my experience, these have proven extremely effective constitutionally for physical, mental, emotional and mental problems of normal children and adults as well as children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD / ADD), Oppositional defiant disorder (ODD).
Plus, I have also kept in mind the people hailing from our Subcontinent area (Pakistan, India etc.) while selecting remedies to be discussed since there happen to be more than 3000 homeopathic remedies that have been proven for use, but when elaborating upon those remedies that I have found more useful for people of our cultural and social background shortens that list. Yet I do hope this will come as a beneficial resource to a great many people all around the world
Many people also inquire as to what Materia Medica or other resources I use to present these lectures? In answer to that I must admit that my information is a culmination of knowledge I have gained and learned from the masters of the past era and a great many homeopaths of our times, but what won’t be far from the truth is that these lectures would not even have been possible if it weren’t for the information that I have gathered through my own personal clinical experience as a homeopath over the span of past 15 years, after having helped hundreds of clients commence upon a road to health, healing and recovery.
So, it can be said that this happens to be my own personal Materia Medica that I am making accessible to all, hoping to reach people from all walks of life, may they be students of homeopathy, those practicing homeopathy, at home users of homeopathy or those looking for solutions to their problems but not finding any in the current available medical system, making this information especially valuable for those families whose children have been labeled as Autistic and hence incurable. Yet I have found over years of experience how this so-called incurable condition is nothing but a set of signs and symptoms exhibited by the human body to point us to an inner derangement which if taken care of early on can be brought into a state of balance, saving a child and his family from facing various setbacks.
Commencing our journey into understanding a Lycopodium constitution one witnesses an amalgamation of various temperaments all coming together in a unique personality, one that fluctuates with such unpredictability according to the situation he finds himself in, that you will find him capable of being the predator or the prey at the same time, a wolf that will devour the lamb with its cunning or the lamb who finds itself destitute in the face of adversity, the snake that will swallow the mouse in one go or he will be the mouse itself that scurries to find refuge as soon as it senses danger. A coward at heart who will compensate on all levels to hide his inner weakness. This attitude changes with such pugnacity that it is in fact quite telling of the hypocritical society that we all find ourselves to be a part of, that conditions us to adapt such extreme behaviors in order to survive.
But where and how does this personality develop?
For knowing the beginning of the disease will give us an insight into how it might mature and reach a culmination in an individual’s life, so studying children that have this constitution in their growing years will give us a clear picture of the adult that they will grow up to be and the problems they might face when some very basic troublesome tendencies are left to develop further.
As children, Lycopodiums are found to be very diplomatic and tactful, you will find them changing their whole attitude as suited to the situation in no time, for example I remember a case where the mother was complaining how her ill-mannered son would make life a living hell while she was by herself at home, but when his father would be around (whom he must have feared), he would instantly change his tone and mannerism and act like an angel, so it would become even hard for the mother to convince the father of the child’s misconduct during his absence. She further elaborated upon when she visited the boy’s school for parents’ conferences, she would fear that the teachers will have lists of complaints regarding her child, yet she would be amazed to find that he acts as a most well-mannered child at school.
So yes, as unbelievable as it might sound to some, this happens to be a very common instance where children will completely change themselves to adapt to the situation, making it a great hassle for many parents who must deal with such an unpredictable child denoting his quintessential lycopodium disposition.
Another initial striking personality trait found in this child is the fear of all things new, any new situation, let’s say a new school, could be very challenging for them. So if they were to ever change their school for some reason, or even the classroom for that matter, it will become very troublesome for them to get used to initially. They will just not want to experience anything new, like they will sense going to a new place even as toddlers and infants, so they will wail and cry in opposition to such change. They will not want to try new things to eat, little children will not like a change in their usual meal plan, we will find them wanting to eat the same food over and over or if older they will order the same food dish at a restaurant or they will eat that same dish at home which they are used to. Unlike many children who would like to try new things, lycopodiums will find it very difficult to break away from their habits. Yet being a lycopodium, this will just pose a problem to begin with but as soon as they adjust themselves to the new situation, we will find them easing up and slowly enjoying themselves releasing all their tension and opposition to the situation whatever it may be.
In homeopathic literature we find this tendency described as such where he will have an initial hesitancy, which as soon as is overcome, the individuals are found to go with the flow smoothly.
Then a commonly found trait is their aversion to certain people, the parents will often be perplexed about this situation where some cousin or relative or some distant relation’s presence will make them extremely uncomfortable. The children will not even have any reason behind this, but they just will show a great dislike for that person, this will even be evident when they grow up to be adults and they will complain the same way as they used to as children, that a certain someone just seems to make them uncomfortable, and they don’t like being around that person. In normal situations one would perhaps just avoid that person and get on with one’s life but in the case of children, if this person, they are so averse to, happens to be their class teacher, or a fellow schoolmate whom they must sit with or they someone they must interact with on a regular basis then this comes as a great distress for the child and his parents. Because this aversion will then develop into him wanting to miss school, will make excuses to not go to school, as if an allergy of sorts will manifest in response to this person so dislikeable to the lycopodium child.
Please do keep in mind that I am trying to point out to the reader all those important key notes that are distinctly found in a lycopodium child so once they are identified to be of that constitution, they can be helped to get over these mental and emotional blockages with the right treatment, saving them a great deal of distress later in their adult lives too.
Now let’s look at a very peculiar tendency in young lycopodium girls, who even in their infancy will tend to have an aversion to the male members of the family or those out of the family, so even a 6-month-old will start to wail and shriek if a male person were to hold her. While as soon as a female holds them, they will normalize instantly. This aversion develops into a great dis-ease as the girl child begins to get older when she will avoid being close to males and will hide from them. And if this is not taken care of at the right time in a child’s life, it can affect the child psychologically later as they grow affecting their ability to build relationships.
The child will always like to be friends with children who are younger than him, because the lycopodium likes to be in control, a position of power, where all act according to his wishes so during his playtime, he will surround himself with those children, usually younger ones, that he can easily control. He will also avoid newer acquaintances to avoid the chance of losing his controlling position which also placates his need to not try anything new and remain around those he knows he has a say over.
Their constitutional fear of trying new things which can translate into them having trouble initiating, is seen in their speech delay issues early on in their lives and as they grow older, they will lose their ability when beginning to speak, but this lasts just for the first few minutes, sometimes because of stage fright in front of an audience or sometimes just not feeling confident enough to speak. Even though they will know their subject well and will know what to say but they will lose the power to speak up as they begin to, and which they might slowly regain as they ease into the situation. These children are said to grow up as great orators and politicians who will have great oratory skills wanting to talk about a great many things where they might even have the chance to exaggerate a lot but with this tendency to lose their speech will occasionally come as a setback in their lives.
Generally speaking, they are slick talkers with a great ability to convince people with their tall tales. Children will be so quick at catching different styles and accents that parents will often mention how their child will copy this person or that, denoting their aforementioned tendency to change and adapt themselves with agility to suit different circumstances. They will be found copying someone’s way of writing if they are impressed by it or anything they find impressing in their peers showing their tendency towards adapting and owning that which in their minds is a means to achieve their goal. Later in life as adults this could very well be used to carry them into a successful position, but this could also result in a loss of self-identity, their low self-esteem prevalent in later years perhaps stemming partially from that. And to bolster the self-esteem, even as kids they will want to be praised to feel happy and content with themselves while they will suck up to those they perceive as being in position to help them when needed. They thrive on being admired and applauded, so they will do anything for the one who pleases their ego, yet they will also go the distance for ones they seem to admire.
Mutism is another key feature found in the child, they just will not speak, no matter how much you talk to them, they just won’t answer back to you and that unresponsive state can be interpreted by those around the child specially at the age of 3 to 4, as an abnormality like there is something mentally wrong with the child and could take the parents down an unnecessary path to treatments which could make matters worse for this child.
A very common issue found in older children will be the problems that arise for them during examinations, having to do with their tendency to forget names and dates specially, they will have prepared quite well for their tests yet at the time of execution they will go blank. Examinations will also bring on another issue when they are writing down their answers they will miss words, which can be due to an issue with the coordination of the mind and body, where the mind seems to be working much faster than the body so in their mind they will have taken care of all the answers well but they will have missed words during typing, and most importantly they will miss out those words which give meaning to their thoughts and what they want to express. Yet to make this situation worse they will have another disposition making matters even more complicated for them is to go over their own writing again to recheck their own work. This would help them confirm what is it that they have written and to correct any mistakes if need be, but these children will find it extremely difficult to do so hence making this a great disability for the school going adolescent who will prepare very well to be tested yet will have to face failure due to such seemingly careless mistakes, once more affecting the child’s growth and self-confidence when it is labelled as a disability.
Focusing on another mental or emotional issue they might encounter is their tendency to have recurring dreams that revolve around either accidents or such incidents where they aren’t able to arrive or reach some place on time arising within them a fear of failure of some form, which as we shall see will cascade into more issues like that of an unrefreshing sleep and anxieties arising from it.
So, a very striking time modality found in the lycopodium constitution is that of their troubles upon waking up in the mornings, when they will feel sullen, morose, despondent. Children will not want to rise from their beds, will not want to go to school, make a fuss about every little thing which might be seen as a common problem nowadays amongst many, but when taken up as a totality with all the other symptoms mentioned, to support this tendency then it points to a Lycopodium constitution. The next time in the day their problems will seem to increase is around 4-8pm, making those times most difficult for these children when one finds themselves being active and productive, these children will be found sulking away and engrossed in issues that trouble them. These times will not only disturb them emotionally but also physically, so a child who starts the day with such displeasure at school will find continuing throughout the day to be just as difficult while upon his return to home, he will once again be found suffering on some level or another around the 4-8 evening modality. This is not only a grave issue for the child himself but also becomes distressing for the parents, teachers and all those taking care of the child, and again if not given proper attention will progress into adulthood as a troubling trait as well.
On the physical level if we were to look at what is striking in these children is their tendency to have all sorts of allergies, especially those affecting the lungs. They will have kidney problems, gastric issues, constipation problems, they will have great distress around the umbilical area where gas will cause great pain and distension. They will fill up quickly due to this bloating issue, where they will have their favorite dish in front of them yet as soon as they take a few bites, it will be as if the food turns to wind. Night bedwetting is a tendency, a young child who will weep during urinating perhaps indicating a kidney issue that causes back pain in the child, all show this great remedy’s effect on every organ of the body. Liver issues fall under this remedy, so children who have this constitution are more than likely to develop such degenerative issue as they grow older involving their main organs.
Yet what needs to be kept in mind is that no physical issue arises out of nowhere, there will always be mental and emotional tendencies that have preceded and troubled the individual earlier in life that will later manifest as an expression to the inner derangement. So, all the previous issues must be taken into account as a totality in an individual to know how this will progress into a greater disease as the child grows.
Lycopodium is a great remedy with a wide sphere of action, if it is administered at the right time to children, it could save them a great deal of trouble before they develop mature pathologies that become harder to reverse and amend.
