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Editorial: the Rosaceae family and the thorny side of love
by Deborah Collins
With this
issue, we come to the end of the year 2012, a year, which according to ancient traditions,
could held a special significance as being the end of an era. Some regard it with dismay, as
though it heralds the end of the world, while others remind us that every ending is also a
beginning; the end of old certainties and habits can create space for growth, room to
breathe. To celebrate the occasion, we would like to offer you a beautiful bouquet of roses.
With their capacity for healing traumas of the heart, the Rosaceae can help us along the
way, shedding fear and bitterness, and opening our hearts to the fullness of life.
The rose family includes many unexpected members – not only the garden variety roses
belong to it, but many of our fruits as well: apples, pears, peaches, cherries, plums, and
raspberries, among others. According to Jan Scholten, the rose family relates to problems
concerning romantic love, in all its varieties. The physical seat of love, the heart, is the main
centre of their action on the body. From the epitome of lovelessness, as seen in Hydrocyanic
acid (a component of many of the rose remedies), to the insecurity concerning love
situations, as seen in remedies such as Malus (apple), to the peak of romantic love, as seen
in Rosa damascena, to the hard-heartedness of disappointed love, as seen in Crataegus, one
can see the full spectrum of the problematic side of love being played out. Thankfully, these
remedies heal not only the physical aspect, sometimes in a spectacular fashion, but also
relieve the underlying tensions that bring on these complaints. Sankaran points out the
sensation found in these remedies: largely due to the presence of hydrocyanic acid, there is
a feeling of suffocation, along with symptoms of cyanosis. Pinching sensations are also felt.
In practice, it is often helpful to utilise both approaches for finding these remedies, as the
patient’s story can give clues in this direction, which can be confirmed by the sensations.
An overview of the themes and the remedies in their various stages, as described by Jan
Scholten, is given, as well as the miasms, according to Rajan Sankaran.
Ulrich Welte presents short cases of Agrimonia eupatoria, for those who feel an acute lack of
love in their life, yet put on a cheerful face, and of Crataegus oxyacantha, for those who fight
till the bitter end.
Laurie Dack proposes the moving case of a young girl whose pregnancy and childhood reflect
the situation of not only her mother but also of her grandmother – holding their breath at the
thought that their lover could leave them when they became pregnant.
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Jan Scholten and Maarten van der Meer each present each a case of Sorbus domestica, a
little known remedy which is useful when one suffers from the feeling that the partner is not
open and trusting in the relationship.
A case of Anne Wirtz, earlier published in Interhomeopathy, is republished here, showing the
problems related to disappointment in romantic love.
Alex Leupen’s patient, too, shows the thorny side of love, with a case of Prunus spinosa.
Included in this issue is an introduction to a thesis on the spiritual side of homeopathy and
its application to practice: “Hahnemann’s Heavenly Rose”. Apparently, Hahnemann, with his
deep spiritual understanding, implicit in “Know Thyself”, gave special significance to the rose,
mentioning it three times in the Provings chapter of the Organon. The author of this thesis,
Sarah Schall, has researched recent provings of rose species (the garden flower), regarding
the material with an eye to its spiritual implications. She points out various ways in which
one could better understand the patient’s experiences, if one has a spiritual framework in
which to place them. By opening oneself to a broader scope, it is possible to understand and
treat our patients more fully.
Finally, the last but not least rose of the bouquet. Jeremy and Camilla Sherr have sent us a
follow-up on their progress in Tanzania, “Letter from Africa 2”. Words fail us to describe the
amazing work that these two wonderful people, and those around them, are doing, and not
least of all is the empowerment of African people trained to the wonders of homeopathy, so
they can pass their knowledge on to their own people. In their own words: “It was beautiful
to hear them teach homeopathy in Swahili. They did not need us!”
We hope you will enjoy this excitingly fragrant issue and wish you all the best for the passing
of this year to the next.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Flower bouquet; Ken Funakoshi
Introduction to the Rosaceae family
by Jan Scholten, Deborah Collins
The Rosaceae, or rose family,
belongs to the much larger order of Rosales. As well as the familiar garden roses,
the family also contains many fruits and berries, such as apple, crab apple, pear,
strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, and many stone fruits such as peach, cherry and
apricot. Like the garden roses, these are often (though not always) thorny plants,
protecting themselves and their fruits by flesh-tearing thorns along the branches.
Many of these plants also contain the precursors to hydrocyanic acid, one of the
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most lethal poisons known to man – only on eating the fruit is it turned into
hydrocyanic acid in the stomach. So, here we already see several of the themes of
this large family: the sweetness of the fruit, together with the thorniness of its
protection, and a stifling quality, breathlessness and suffocation, brought on by the
cyanides within the plants.
Homeopathy makes use of several of these plants, although until recently, many of
them have not been well-known as remedies. By understanding the themes of this
family, and the sensations that accompany it, it has become much easier to
recognize and prescribe them. The well-known remedy Crataegus oxyacantha or
hawthorn, for example, has long been used to deal with heart problems, and its
thorny character is obvious. Until recently, however, we have not seen it in its
larger context, which pertains to all the Rosaceae: heart complaints due to
problems in (romantic) love relationships.
Jan Scholten has described the overall theme of the Rosaceae as “the pain of a
broken heart”; the heart and circulation are generally where the problems manifest
most clearly. Each of the various members of this family deals differently with
issues of romantic love and its possible pitfalls.
The rose is a symbol of romantic love, with its sweet smell and beautiful blossoms.
It is often gifted to one’s lover, and is often used in bridal bouquets. The apple, too,
is a symbol of love and sexuality. Problems relating to love can be reflected in the
sexual sphere as well, as seen in the rubrics: coition aggravates, weeping, sadness
and irritability.
People needing a remedy from the rose family can have a tendency to idealize love
– they romantically dream of “the prince on the white horse” or “the unattainable
princess”. Once they are in a relationship, they have the tendency to give all that
they have. They can be very sweet, as sweet as a peach or a cherry. They are often
very cheerful in order to bring happiness, but they tend to give more than they
receive. They live for their love so much that there is no space for them, no room
to breathe. The air is there, but they cannot breathe it in because they give
themselves away completely. They demand that love be perfect and exclusive,
there is no room for affairs. They might have fallen in love with someone who is
unattainable or who does not love them in the same way, and they get the idea
that they are unlovable. In the end, they can feel empty, having given themselves
away in vain. If their love is unfulfilled, or even worse, if it is deceived, they can
become ill, both physically and emotionally. Then, they can become irritable,
making nasty remarks, or expressing their irritation constantly, showing their
thorny side.
Although this “love” aspect is generally associated with romantic love, these
remedies can also be of use for those who put all their passion into their work, or
another field, and end up feeling disappointed if it is not returned.
As Ulrich Welte notes in his article, the theme of unrequited love is also known for
remedies such as the Natriums. But in Rosaceae cases, the person is generally
sweet and open, unlike the closed-off mineral aspect of Natrium. Sulphur remedies
also deal with issues pertaining to “partner”, but those needing a Sulphur remedy
are generally less idealistic, using clothing and make-up as a means of seduction.
They tend to be full-blooded and warm, with red lips, and no specific issues with
heart and suffocation, whereas the Rosaceae tend to be cyanotic and have blue
lips.
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For a more detailed differential diagnosis, please refer to Welte’s article in this
issue.
General:
Desires: sweets, strawberry, peach, prune, apple, pear, apricot, blackberry,
raspberry
Aversions: as above
Food: < stone fruits
It is sometimes possible to recognize a Rosaceae remedy by their pronounced
desires, aversion, aversions or allergies to a particular fruit.
Menses: painful, irregular.
Physical:
Vertigo, faintness
Neurological: convulsions, epilepsy, tics, twitching, trismus, opisthotonus, coma
Headache
Mouth: burning
Lung: respiration obstructed, asthma, dyspnea
Heart: arrhythmia, infarction, failure, decompensation, dilatation, hypertension,
hypotension, angina pectoris
Pulse: fast, slow, hard, soft, strong, weak, irregular
Arteries: obstruction, arteriosclerosis
Stomach: nausea
Genitals: vaginitis, fluor albus
Skin: blue discoloration of lips, nails, face, arms
In Scholten’s system, the remedies can be placed in stages, according to the
periodic table of elements. Here only the general themes are given.
Stage 1: Hydrocyanic
acid
The acute of the rose family. The most lethal poison known to man, this gas has
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been used in the ultimate form of lovelessness: extermination, as in Zyklon-B of
the holocaust gas chambers.
Stage 1.1: Quillaja (Chile soap bark tree)
Naïve, impulsive in relationships
Stage 2: Geum urbanum (avens)They have the idea that they have to adapt
(stage 2) to their partner, that they are not allowed to have something for
themselves, sometimes nothing at all. They think that they have to give everything
in a relationship. They can adapt easily and so they can easily fulfill their role, but
they can also feel that it is not good to adapt so much. They feel that they should
also have space for themselves, but this can lead to guilt: “If you do that, your love
is not real.” This duality can give the feeling that they do not have the space to live
or the air to breathe, and it can lead to asthma.
Physical: see Clarke for a full description
Asthma; bladder disorders; pains in penis; shooting pains in abdomen
Stage 3: Potentilla tormentilla (Tormentil)
They are in a relationship that is in its starting phase (stage 3). They have the
feeling that it is not established yet, and that they cannot count on their partner.
This can lead to sadness, irritation, fighting or indifference. They can be very
irritable, trying to force their partner to make a choice for them but, as a reaction,
(s)he becomes more and more reluctant to make that choice, seeing the
relationship as a trap that cannot be escaped. The result can be that the
relationship is always in turmoil.
It can also be that they themselves cannot make a choice, and that their doubts
concerning their partner makes them avoid marriage. They could also fall in love
with someone who is not really available, a married person, a priest or a
homosexual. This can also lead to triangle relationships.
Physical:
Nose: sinusitis
Mouth: inflamed, bleeding gums, gingivitis provoked by mercury
Pharynx: inflamed
Stomach: ulcer, vomiting, blood
Liver: icterus, diabetes
Rectum: prolapse, diarrhea, bloody, enteritis, dysentery
Menses: menorrhagia
Limbs: gout
Skin: wounds, weeping eczemas, cracked hands and lips, contusions
Stage 4: Sorbus domestica (Rowan tree, mountain ash tree)
This person cannot stand his partner being closed; behind this is the fear of
betrayal. He has his doubts about the marriage and whether the partner really
loves him. He asks himself if he has made the right choice and if there is real love,
and even whether he should be married at all. It can be that the partner is silent
and does not speak about important issues. “Love should be open, love can accept
everything from the other.”
Physical: Heart problems, pain, palpitations, fast pulse, lying left side <
Stage 5: Malus communis (Apple)
The relationship has started but they ask themselves if they should go on with it.
There are doubts about the relationship: is it a good choice? Does the partner really
love them? Are they strong enough to go on? Do they really love the other? Their
ideals of relationship are so high that they doubt if they can live up to the huge
task.
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It can be from a situation where they have been seduced into a relationship that
they did not really want. They wonder if there might be a better partner for them,
or if they might be a better partner for another spouse.
Stage 5.1: Malus pumila (Crab apple)
Delusion: dirty, everything, food, himself
Delusion: abused, molested, victim, being soiled or abased
A feeling of dirtiness is common in those who have suffered sexual abuse or
inappropriateness
Stage 6: Sanguisorba (Great
burnet)
Here, the feeling is that the relationship is not working well; the partner has chosen
for them but doesn’t really go for it. This makes them angry so they try to force
their partner to really make the commitment. The partner has to prove that he
really loves them. On the other side they have to prove that they really love their
partner, but that feels just as difficult. So they have the tendency to choose
someone who is not really available, a married person, someone from abroad.
Sensitive, irritable patients
Physical:
Head: congestion
Lungs: bleeding
Intestins: dysentery
Genitals: menses long, profuse, climacterium, chronic metritis
Legs: congested, varicoses veins, ulcers
Stage 7: Alchemilla vulgaris (Lady’s cloak)
They have a very loving and helping quality. Mistakes are often covered with the
cloak of love. They want to spread love in the world, bring harmony in the people
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around them. They can be very perfectionistic in their work and actions. This often
results in much criticism toward themselves. They have the feeling that they should
do better. They have a marriage in which they do the most, but they like that. Even
when the partner is not friendly or is even violent, they keep on helping and loving.
Physical: see Boericke
Eyes: inflamed
Mouth: inflamed
Respiratory system: cough
Digestion: gastritis, enteritis
Kidneys: urine scanty, edema
Genitals: menses copious, leucorrhea, menarche late, menopause problems
Skin: wet eczema, cuts, bruises, wounds suppurating
Dream: Working too much, in a caring institution, refusing the reward for it, giving
gifts, being criticized for the work.
Delusion: people are more alike than different
Delusion: distance from the world
Stage 7.1: Agrimonia eupatoria (Agrimony)
They have a partner who is not well, either emotionally or physically disturbed, or
both. He is not giving much and he laments about his problems. It feels like a
heavy burden to carry. In the beginning they do it with love, but after some time
the burden becomes too much for them. Out of a feeling of responsibility they
cannot leave the partner, and they continue with sorrow in their heart.
There is a tendency to avoid the problems instead of facing them, to glide over
difficulties, with attempts to stay cheerful, find diversion, or reach for stimulants
like alcohol or drugs. There is a forced cheerfulness externally; they hide their
suffering, even though suffering internal torment.
Physical:
Weakness
Kidneys: pain, deep, colicky pointing in the lumbar region, extending down the
ureters; urine muddy, foul smelling
Genitals: pain in uterus
Stage 8: Prunus spinosa (Blackthorn, sloe, bullace)
They have a relationship that is hard. They have the feeling that they have to work
hard to keep it going, that they have to give themselves completely. This gives
them the feeling that they are constantly busy for their spouse. It is never enough,
the husband is never satisfied. He always says that their love isn’t real, otherwise
they would have done more.It can also be that they demand complete love from
their spouse. The proof of their love is that they do everything for them, that their
life is completely for love and the marriage. This leads to much grief, sadness,
irritation and sourness.
Physical: see Boericke, Clarke, Phatak
Ailments from sexual abuse
Generals: night sweats
Sensation: shooting, pressing outwards, lightning, wandering
Time: night
Aversion: food; < warm food
Stage 9: Cydonia vulgaris (Quince)
They have the delusion that their relationship is almost fulfilling, almost complete,
but it still requires some minor adaptations, corrections or approval.
Physical: see Culpepper
Ailments started after deadly poisons, white hellebore
Diarrhea, dysentery
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Stage 10:
- Rosa canina (Dog rose)
They feel love as ideal and noble. There’s no cover. In Western culture, there is the
ideal that love should be all giving, the ideal of romantic love for the partner.
Writing poems to loved ones.
- Rosa damascena (Damas rose)
A very old symbol of love, the theme of which is present in all members of the
Rosaceae. Love is idealised in its most romantic form, as in the time of the
troubadours, the medieval ideal of love, a love that will never come into form
because it is too ideal and too idealised. Dwelling in romantic thoughts and feelings.
Stage 11: Amygdala amara (Bitter almond)
See Boericke
Excessively brilliant eyes, sardonic laughter, joyful countenance, sparkling eyes
Stage 12: Crataegus (Common hawthorn)
There is an overreaction in love matters. They want to do it too well and tend to
give too much but they have the feeling that people or circumstances are acting
against them. This can lead to trying to control the circumstances or the partner. It
can lead to over-control or even tyranny. They become very bossy and irritable
from the least thing that they see as resistance.
They can also be controlled too much by their partner, if they have a partner who is
a tyrant. “The war of the roses” – fighting and not giving an inch.
Physical: See Boericke, Clarke, Grimmer, Phatak, Anschutz
Weak, exhausted; irritable, cross, hurried
Melancholy, despair, feels weak and fragile
Mental dullness; confused
Calmness; nervous
General: weather: > fresh air, < warm room. < rest, quiet
Sleep: insomnia of aortic patients
Stage 13: Rubus fruticosus (Bramble)
The relationship is unfulfilling. They feel that they do not receive much love,
although they themselves give too much. Their partner is often demanding,
irritable, self-centered or egotistical. This leads to the feeling that they don’t want
to continue with the relationship. But on the other hand they stay on because of
feeling responsible for the other, or because they hope that it will improve. They
feel that they cannot leave, it’s too painful. It reminds one of the thorns of the
blackberry that point inwards; one can go quite easily into the brambles but cannot
come out without getting scratched everywhere.
They can also be in a relationship with someone who is always thinking of leaving.
It feels as if only half of the love is left.
Circumstances can also give them the feeling of being locked in a marriage. They
can feel imprisoned by the care for the partner and children. They can no longer do
what they want.
Physical: heart problems, palpitations
Prostate complaints
Stage 14: Spiraea ulmaria (Meadowsweet, Queen of the meadows, Hardhack)
See Boericke, Clarke, Hansen
A relationship where the relationship is a formal one, it has no real content
anymore.
Morbid conscientiousness
Stage 15?
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Stage
16: Fragaria (Wood-strawberry)
They know that the relationship is in fact over, but they keep waiting for their lover
to come the back one day, recognizing that the relationship had been true love.
They can keep on waiting for years, even when their friends and relatives, and they
themselves see their “delusion” as unreal. They continue to fantasize and speculate
on how and when their ex-lover will come back. Since they are still full of their old
love, they cannot open for a new love, so they remain alone and end up as old
spinsters.
Generals:
Sweat: profuse, viscid sweat
Physical:
Faintness. Suffocation, stroke, convulsions, anascara
Lungs: dyspnea, sarcoidosis and especially swollen tongue. Strawberry tongue
Skin: urticaria, chilblains
DD: rosaceae, Arsenicum, Apis
Stage 17: Laurocerasus (Common laurel, Cherry laurel)
See Boericke, Clarke
They have the delusion that no one loves them and that no one can love them.
They think that they have lost all the love there is and are not lovable at all, so
they don’t even try to find love. This can be the consequence of sexual abuse,
fighting parents, fright and shock. It is understandable that someone born with
such an attitude does not want to live, like the blue baby after birth. They retire
from life, which can be physically expressed in fainting, heart disease, strokes and
coma.
Delusions: sees old men with distorted faces and long beards
Dreams: hideous, misfortune, dead bodies, dead people
Fear and anxiety about imaginary evils
Memory loss provoked by fright, pain, etc.
Dullness of special senses
Ailments from loss of love, every excitement, fright
Rajan Sankaran places the Rosaceae somewhat differently, making use of the
miasms:
- Acute miasm: Hydrocyanic acid and Pyrus americanus
- Typhoid miasm: Amygdalus communis
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- Malarial miasm: Prunus spinosa, Rosa damascena
- Tubercular miasm: Prunus cerasifera
- Ringworm miasm: Amygdalus persica
- Leprous miasm: Laurocerasus
- Syphilitic miasm: Crataegus
Photos: Wikimedia Commons
Rosa rugosa; Antoine Letarte
Geum urbanum; Randy A. Nonenmacher
Sanguisorba minor; Hans Hillewaert
Strawberry; Jeff Kubina
Categories: General
Keywords: roses, cyanide, cyanosis, heart problems, romantic love, disappointed
love
Remedies:
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Roses: sweet scents, thorns, and cyanide
by Ulrich Welte
Romantic love so sweet, can be painful and stifling if
unfulfilled
A German marzipan producer has come up with the slogan "Marzipan aus Liebe" (Marzipan with Love), and it goes
well with the idea of Roses and Rosaceae, the Rose Family.
The typical, slightly bitter taste of marzipan comes from minimal, non-toxic traces of cyanogen glycosides. These are
precursors to hydrocyanic acid, which is formed in the stomach only after their ingestion. Marzipan is made of sweet
almonds (Prunus dulcis) and sugar. Higher contents of cyanogens are found in poisonous bitter almonds (Prunus
amygdalus amara), and Prunus laurocerasus. The same bitter taste is found in kernels of apricot, peach, cherry,
plums, etc. So, the hydrocyanic-acid themes are more or less a property of all the rose family, Rosaceae, although not
all contain cyanogen glycosides.
The Rosaceae family is a bitter-sweet cocktail of three ingredients in varying proportions:
1. Romantic, idealistic, and sweet love; the courtly love of olden times
2. The demanding and stifling themes of Hydrocyanic acid
3. A prick of thorns
The suffocation of the rose family, so well-known by its cyanotic member Laurocerasus, comes from suffocation by
love, an idealistic tendency which demands that love must be romantic and forever: eternal love. If this ultimate love
is compromized, they take it too much to heart, and the well-known prick of thorns can cut deep into the flesh.
Clinical picture: Heart problems with cyanosis. A stifling, suffocating quality with asphyxia and blue lips. Blue
babies. Cardiac or pulmonal cyanosis. Stenocardia, oppression of chest, narrow feeling. Acne rosacea. If any of these
is caused or aggravated by romantic problems in idealized love and is accompanied by heart symptoms, it is a good
indication of rosaceae.
Psychodynamics: The cyanide theme of the Rosaceae comes into play when the demand for eternal love becomes a
threat to the partner, or if it is not fulfilled. The roses demand exclusive love; they exclude affairs. "If you love me it
must be the one and only love for life." This all-or-nothing aspect in relationships is Natrium-like, but sweeter and
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unlike the mineral, closed-up, cool quality of the Natriums. The love aspects of the Roses are sweet, scented, special,
and summum-bonum (a Latin expression meaning "the highest good", which is used in medieval philosophy, the time
of courtly love, the Minne love, sung and praised by minstrels, to describe the singular and ultimate end which human
beings ought to pursue).
Perhaps the non-thorned Rosaceae like Agrimonia display less of the
hard-hurting propensities. Also, the ones without cyanide have less stifling qualities and present a predominance of
the lovesick problems, as the cases given below suggest. It is certainly not by chance that the apple, also a member of
the rosaceae, is an ancient symbol of love and sexuality. In apples (malus spp), the sweetness predominates. It has no
thorns and only slightly bitter kernels.
Cyanide themes. The stifling quality of the cyanides should be understood to see them as part of the rose family:
Cyanide = Cyanosis; a vehement and suffocating presence.
Chemical formula of Hydrocyanic-acid, is H-C-N: Hydrogen, Carbo, Nitrogen.
Hydrogen: the acid principle, sudden onset, vehement, issues of life and death, to be or not to be.
Carbon: physical structure, rigid or labile physical existence, imminent death and fear of death.
Nitrogen: suffocative expansion, takes too much space, assertive, vascular activity.
Deduction of Cyanide themes by theory of elements and confirmed by cases: Cyanosis (CN) with a vehement (H) and
suffocating (N) presence (H). Manic activity (H), takes his surroundings by storm (H), stifles (CN) any opposition by
talking others down (H). Takes too much space (N) with suffocation (CN); see Interhomeopathy, May 2008
DD Roses and Cyanides: Laurocerasus has the strongest cyanide aspect, but roses in general have a romantic
undertone, unlike hydr-ac.
DD Roses and Sulfuricums: Both have problems with love and relationships, but sulfur is less idealistic and
somehow shabbier, with skin problems which smell or look unclean. Sulfur has an issue with seduction by make-up,
clothes etc. The rose family is cyanotic, with blue lips, while Sulfur has red lips, is plethoric and has no specific
issues with heart and suffocation.
DD Roses and Natriums: The all-or-nothing aspect in relationships of the Roses is like the love of the Natriums, but
it is sweeter, fuller, and unlike the mineral, closed-up, onesided view of the Natriums. Plants are more ambiguous,
more organic, more flowing, less predictable. They have a life of their own and can feel sensitively, though standing
fixed, apart from the structural, almost boring concrete-and steel quality of minerals.
The following cases illustrate these themes.
Agrimonia eupatoria: cheerful but cannot find a partner; feels as if only half alive, missing the other half.
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An elderly spinster who feels only half alive because she never found a soul mate
She comes across as a decent, well-dressed teacher of about 70, with silvery hair and polished manners; she wears a
tasteful dress dotted with small red flowers and a pale-green shirt underneath. She suffers from depression,
claustrophobia and fear of dementia. Her sight is becoming weak with macula degeneration. She appears cheerful and
open, but inside she seems to be complicated and very sensitive. One soon has the feeling that one has to be very
careful because she takes things to heart very easily; the slightest wrong word may cause trouble and perhaps
disappoint her. When asked what her main problem is, she tells very frankly and with a smile that she “never found
her soul mate” and is still unmarried. She feels so alone. “It is as if I am just half alive, as if I am in a huge cotton ball
as large as a market place.” Instead of asking about her symptom of agoraphobia, I ask what it is to be fully alive.
“Well, of course, to have a partner, a husband!” She also mentions her unfulfilled idea of leading an institution from
behind the scenes, like being the “good soul of a health resort”.
Her colour preference is 24D, a tender olive. The rubric in the colour repertory suggests Agrimonia, and it is
confirmed by the family themes of rosaceae, partner problems, and the tender love she cherishes but which was never
fulfilled. Her flowery dress confirms a plant. This is enough for me to try it.
The day after Agrimonia 200, she feels as if reborn. Even her sight has improved. One month later she comes for the
follow-up and says she is doing fine but immediately she starts to complain about other things. It feels like a kind of
nagging, as if she glosses over the good effect of the remedy and needs a new complaint. Now she thinks she has a fat
belly (which is not obvious). I am not in good shape either, and instead of using this as a delusional symptom, I feel a
little irritated but don’t show it. But I notice that she senses this and becomes irritated too. Then the clinic helper
comes in with a wrong prescription formula for her, with the name of another person printed on top. She immediately
notices it, alert teacher that she is. This is enough, two wrongs, and from this moment the hidden thorns sharpen and
she shuts down. She cancels the next appointment and never returns.
I mention this small and certainly uncertain case only because it pointed out a possible Agrimonia theme “cheerful
but cannot find a partner; desires a husband but does not find one; feels as if only half alive, missing the other half”.
Later, this was confirmed in another case:
Missing a soul-mate, forcefully cheerful
The patient is woman of about 40, very cheerful and quite pleasant to talk to. She’s a sweet-natured psychologist who
did well on Lanthanum sulfuricum regarding her lack of self-confidence, but her main problem is that she never
found a partner, which is strange because she is good-looking and seems pleasant to be with. But who knows about
the odds of fate? She said that since she takes Agrimonia eupatoria LM6, she doesn’t suffer from the longing for a
partner and the pain of living without one, and she feels better in general as long as she takes it. So, this theme is
confirmed, even when the remedy is not matching the full case.
DD Agrimonia and Apis: Edward Bach describes the flower remedy Agrimonia as “too cheerful”, entertaining like a
good buddy, restless, but with a glossing-over quality, playing down the problem, which is seen in these cases too.
Glossing over the problem by an appearance of cheerfulness. Cheerful after the loss of a partner is quite like Apis, the
cheerful widow, but the Apis patient is someone who has lost a partner and keeps cheerful and busy to stay alive,
whereas Agrimonia never found a partner in the first place, and covers the problem by a rather forced cheerfulness.
Apis is more busy-buzzy.
Crataegus oxyacantha: The War of the Roses ("Rosenkrieg") with cyanosis. Divorce fights with bitter hatred
and heart troubles - stage 12
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Silent rage with asthma
This man has been a patient in our clinic for 30 years, and it took almost as long to find "his remedy" – in fact there
were two. When he first came he was 35 years old, slender, with a dusky face, deep eyes with an alarmingly sharp
look; his eyes can flare up with coal-like fire when he feels cornered. He is always short with people, as he is short of
breath. He can easily become difficult to deal with if crossed (stage 12), but he is faithful and true (rose). He suffers
from asthma with pain in his heart region (rose), and then his lips turn dark blue (cyan); sometimes his whole face is
bluish grey. He hardly talks: only a few words, in short sentences. He appears hard, but if he feels understood and in
harmony with someone, he can open up and show an unexpected sweet side, though still barely talking. Underneath
his hard side he is very sensitive and feels it acutely if someone is untrue to his word. His wife is very different: she is
outgoing, pretty, less straight-laced, and not nearly as serious as her husband, and so they often get into quarrels, and
then no-one yields an inch (stage 12). She had formerly wanted him desperately as a husband, but became
disappointed after marriage. She says that he can develop bitter hatred very easily after slight insults. Then he closes
up completely and punishes her with endless silence, his eyes becoming like daggers (thorns). With this dangerous
look, she sometimes is afraid that he might kill her by stabbing (thorns), although he never said so. He demands
(cyan) that she be faithful (rose) and open up to him and obey him. He never has eyes for other women, only her
(rose). Ten years later he moves to the basement of his house, living alone and cutting himself off completely from
her: he does not say a single word to her for months although living under the same roof.
He has had many different remedies, the best of which were Sulfur and Kali bichromicum, but his asthma was never
cured and he needed sprays constantly. Thus 20 years passed. His wife had left him in bitter hatred and gone her own
way, never to return. She couldn’t stand his suffocating presence (cyan) anymore. He had bunkered up himself
completely, only to leave the house for his daily work in a hardware store. In this dire situation, he got Crataegus
1000 because we learnt the theme of the war of roses and stage 12 for this remedy from Jan Scholten‘s Spring
Seminar in Utrecht, May 2004, a yearly event that a true homeopath should not miss. Then things fell into place: his
cyanosis and allergy to pears (also a member of the rosaceae) both pointed to the rose family. His tongue becomes
numb when he eats pears. He shuns all stone fruit (rose) except cherries.
Crataegus 1M was a wonderful remedy for him, but it went unnoticed for quite a long time due to his lack of
communication. He only returned after 7 months because of an itching eczema in the heart region, a new symptom
which surfaced instead of his asthma and cyanosis, which had disappeared. He had stopped his medications shortly
after this single dose. The remedy was not repeated until 3 years later, when he had a relapse of asthma and cyanosis.
Two years previously we saw that his sister did also extremely well on Crataegus, and when he came with his relapse,
it was clear that he just needed a repetition, the only one in 3 years. During the next year he received the remedy 3
times, and then he found another partner. He had become much more open, with no more cyanosis or asthma, though
he is still not talkative.
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Of late he has inflamed gouty joints in his feet and wrists, with edema: very swollen like a balloon. These problems
come in increasingly short intervals since some months. As is usual with him, he comes to the clinic briefly and
makes no fuss. We analyse his modalities according to Boenninghausen/Frei, and Cannabis sativa turns up as the
first remedy. This is a member of the Rosales according to the new APG system, and it should be seen in this context.
Then he casually adds that he has a feeling as if water is dripping down his temple (he had an accident there some
months ago). Wow, Mac Repertory and Reference Works mention "as if water dripping on head" also
suggesting Cann-s. He receives Cann-s C30, 4 times daily, which helps quickly: the same day the swelling subsides.
How do you feel in general? – "Well, quite OK, hmm". This means a lot for him, in fact the best commentary he is
capable of. The next day: – "Hmm, 90% done. Good". Half a year has passed, with nothing significant to notice.
Silent rage with thyrotoxic crisis.
The following woman is the sister of the above patient. She was a similar type: also a faithful patient since the
beginning of our clinic, also curt, short and true, very easily irritated and then silent, refusing to talk. She could also
develop intense hatred, especially towards her husband, who drank too much, treated her very badly and died young,
but also towards her son, even for small reasons. Despite the bad treatment by her husband, she had been always
faithful to him, but their marriage was a disaster. When he died, she never remarried, remaining single out of
conviction. I once was called to her house in an emergency because of severe pain in her heart. She was drunk. It was
the first time I was in her house and I expected a horrible place. But it was quite the opposite, which was a great
surprise. Everything so neat, simple and tidy. The air smelled good except for a slight smell of alcohol, and there was
a very sweet, fine harmonious atmosphere, in contrast to her story. She collected old traditional dolls, which she
dressed neatly, and one was sitting on her table watching her. There was a very sweet side hidden beneath her harsh
exterior, which very few people came to know. A good soul covered with thorns, battered by trouble, although quite
of her own making. Good previous remedies had been Carboneum oxygenisatum, Nitrogenium oxidatum,
Anacardium and Thyreoidinum. In her case, the idea for Crataegus came up when she mentioned that she cannot
stand the smell of roses. She was suffering from cyanotic congestive heart failure and hyperthreoidism and was a very
thorny type, so the remedy was appealing. In phytotherapy, quickthorn (crataegus oxyacantha) is a very good herb for
congestive heart failure. Only later we saw that much of her story, including the battle with her husband, was also in
line with this remedy.
After Crataegus 1000 things improved much. A few days later, her dyspnoea and cyanosis improved, and she
regained some cheerfulness. Her former loathing of life and her threats to commit suicide vanished. Her depressive
appearance changed, and there was a sort of peacefulness never seen in her before. This all changed in the course of
one week. She also said that her memory improved. After another dose, an old ulcerous skin disease healed. She
changed her appearance and had a new hairdo. She could walk upstairs freely, whereas she formerly had to stop every
few steps, puffing; after the remedy she walked up to her flat with her shopping bags almost cheerfully. She lost 22
kilos in 3-4 months and returned to the ideal weight she had when she had as a young woman. She
received Crataegus 1000 every now and then, some 4-5 repetitions in the course of a year. Whenever some breathing
difficulty arose, the remedy helped quickly.
Then, she had another bitter fight with her son. Neither yielded an inch. Her lips had turned blue again, she had
severe dyspnoea and had to be hospitalized. Her son refused to see her even in the hospital. This made her so furious
that she went into a silent rage and soon had a thyrotoxis crisis with hyperthermia. She died in the hospital under
intensive care in the course of a few days. Her son refused to go to her funeral. My God, how can people be so hard,
mistreating each other and suffering for nothing!
Photos: Wikimedia Commons
My sweet rose; Waterhouse JM
Roses prickles; JJ Harrison
Crateagus flowers and thorns; Ulrich Welte
Categories: Cases
Keywords: thorns, closed heart, war of the roses, bitter marital fights, taciturn, faithfulness, cyanosis, sweetness,
overly cheerful, missing a partner
Remedies: Agrimonia eupatoria, Crataegus oxyacantha
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I am too shocked to breathe: a case of Laurocerasus
by Laurie Dack
This is the case of an eight year old girl, one of twins. She is completely different from her
brother, who is robust, big and strong; G. is small, delicate and frail. She comes for asthma
and perhaps allergies. She is continually sighing and gasping for air. Her mother, when
describing her daughter, gives a big sigh, too. She tells about her daughter’s first episode of
breathlessness, which happened when the girl’s father put her on the grass when she was
small. She fell over – it was a small incident but she went limp, couldn’t be roused and her
breathing was shallow. She was gasping for air and was icy cold. It looked as though she
had been stung by a bee, but there was no anaphylaxis. The doctors suggested a possible
cardiac insufficiency, noting a small heart murmur. The parents were always “holding their
breath” around her, fearing she could die. Heart medication was prescribed.
On observing the girl one saw a tiny, almost translucent child who hardly moved; it was
almost as though one could put hands right through her. She was hospitalised on three
different occasions for minor events, each time with shallow breathing and lifelessness. Her
mother noted that it happened suddenly and unexpectedly each time: “I turn my head and
she is gone – she goes for up to 15 minutes.” She was quickly revived, though. She plays,
and then is suddenly unable to catch her breath, as though suffocating. She collapses and
wilts to the floor as though fainting suddenly. She does not react to anything, does not fuss
and does not burst into tears, although she is delicate. She does not scream like her much
bigger brother.
“How was the pregnancy?”
G.’s mother heaved a big sigh. “I became pregnant out of the blue. We had only been
together for three weeks. I almost died when I realised I was pregnant – it was a real shock.
I wanted to run away. I didn’t know whether to tell the father or not, we hardly knew each
other. I could hardly breathe. It pierced all the plans I had made for my life. We were in a
bubble of being in love. I wanted to race out of my life as soon as possible. I fled to Costa
Rica, but of course you can’t escape. I had so many plans, high ideals. It would have been a
huge shock for my mother. I thought of all the things I would be giving up. I was so anxious
about telling her, it took my breath away. It was like being pinched or pricked. I hoped I
might miscarry and I went into a deep depression. I wanted to isolate myself, like I usually
do when I’m depressed. I felt so stupid – how could I have done this? How can I achieve my
ideals? The sharp pains took my breath away. I became sleepless, and had disturbed sleep
and many dreams: dreams of being high up on a weak scaffolding where everything could
collapse. Dreams of losing my boyfriend if I told him I was pregnant. The next shock:
discovering I was to have twins!!! I collapsed and needed oxygen. It was as if everything
was pressing in on me, inward, heavy. Now I had to tell people, but how could I tell my
mother?
“Why was it so hard to tell your mother?”
“She had become unexpectedly pregnant with me, I changed the course of her life. I’ve
never known my father. But she overcame her initial shock and was helpful and supportive
of me. My partner was shocked, but he has reluctantly decided to stay with me and the kids.
Our daughter and her illness keep us all together.
My mother died just before the twins were born; it was an inconceivable grief for me. She
was young and in good health, there was no warning. I was so upset, I couldn’t breathe. She
was the only person in my life. A terrible sadness pierces everything, even through the lovely
moments with the children. When she was cremated I couldn’t breathe. It was a though the
walls were coming in. I still see her sliding into the flames. I feel the weight pushing down,
like I had pushed the button myself and she was spit into the fire. I used to be very afraid of
being pushed under water – “you can’t breathe, it’s a heavy weight.”
“How was the birth?”
“I was devastated, sad at the loss of my mother, barely alive. I was certainly not in a state
to give birth to twins. My son came out healthy and I was relieved that it was over. But I had
to do it all over again! G. did not come out for a long time; it was like painful needles
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piercing upwards. Thoughts of my mother kept filling me, seeing her shooting into the fire. I
didn’t have the strength to push G. out. Labour stopped and I blacked out. She was born tiny
and blue, she needed resuscitation. We all held our breath.”
Analysis: There is a clear line between the grandmother, the mother and the child: both G.
and her mother tended to hold their breaths and collapse, and both the mother and
grandmother had become pregnant out of wedlock, with the possibility (or fact) of thereby
losing one’s partner. Both of these situations point to Laurocerasus, of the rose family.
Rubrics: collapse, cyanosis in infants, faintness, lack of reaction, gasping – lying ameliorates
, respiration sighing, respiration difficult in heart complaints. Pregnancy: ailments form death
of a parent. Forsaken. Sadness, respiration impeded. Dreams of fire, delusion sees fire.
Dreams of scaffolding. Pains: stitching, shooting, pinching. Delusion suffocating. Birth:
cyanosis in infants. Blue babies. Faintness with pain.
Prescription: Laurocerasus 1M
The sensation of the rose family is: pinching, pressing, compressed. The passive reaction to
the situation is: collapse. Laurocerasus belongs to the leprosy miasm of rose family. Phatak
writes: “long lasting faints. Affects from fright. Asphyxia neonatorum”.
A case is sometimes like a microcosm of a much bigger picture. This girl’s favourite toy was
Russian dolls – one doll within another, like her and her mother and grandmother.
Follow-up
After two months: no more emergencies.
In the course of the next four years, G. has made significant progress. There have been no
more episodes of loss of consciousness, and no need for hospitalisation. She has begun to
play well and to eat more, putting on weight and engaging with the world (in her mother’s
words). Her mother describes her as “coming into herself, incarnating”. She has had no
signs of asthma, although she has twice had bronchitis bordering on pneumonia in the
fall/winter – at these times she has responded very well to Laurocerasus 1M. These days
she is a happy, healthy little girl. At school, she can “hold her own”, as her mother says, able
to deal with the bumps and bruises of day to day life. In the course of four years, she has
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received four doses ofLaurocerasus 1M.
Her mother has also come for treatment, and has also been given Laurocerasus, with good
results.
Presented at the WISH congress in Germany October 2012.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Laurocerasus; Karduelis
Categories: Cases
Keywords: cyanosis, fainting spells, loss of breath, loss of partner, weakness
Remedies: Laurocerasus
Closed about love affairs: a case of Sorbus domestica
by Jan Scholten
A 52 year old man consults me with complaints of palpitations. His heart beats irregularly
and sometimes very fast, up to 180 beats per minute. The complaints are worse in the
evening from 7 – 8, when he rests, and at night around 3 - 4 am, when he wakes up with
palpitations. It is also worse from lying on his left side. These complaints started about 15
years ago and are gradually becoming more problematic. His cardiologist prescribes him
Tambacor, Sotacor, Ritmoferine, and Digoxine. The conduction is going too fast, he says. He
proposes an operation to cut the heart into strips and then sew them together again!!
His blood sugar level is slightly elevated. He has had an appendectomy 23 years ago and an
accident 15 years ago; he fractured his right calcaneus after a fall from 6 meters. Since this
accident, he has stiff toes and pains in his feet, worse from standing and walking, better
from raising his foot. When asked about his inner agitation, he tells me about his business.
He started as a mechanical engineer: he invented a special machine, which he patented.
With that he started a business, which gradually grew and he now has 50 employees. He is
very successful in business, but he feels more like a technician than a manager. One of his
managers is cheating him, charging his company with false bills. He cannot understand that
and it causes him a lot of grief.
A closed wife
When I ask more deeply about how this affects him, he talks about his other problem, which
affects him even more. His wife is not open with him; she does not tell him about her past
and about what has really happened. She has been married before and has two children
from that marriage. She told him that she divorced her husband because he was an alcoholic
and he beat her. She is from Finland, and when they visit her country and her family, they
tell him all kinds of other stories about her, for instance, she had had many men and that
she does not even know who the fathers of her first two children are, or that she has been
forced sexually. There are also stories of incest. When he asks her about these stories,
however, she says that it is not his concern; she stops talking about it, starts weeping, and
goes to bed. It is not that he could not handle it if such had been the case, what he cannot
handle is the fact that she does not want to talk about it. He says: “If she would talk about
it, it would be all over and done with. As husband and wife, one should open one’s heart for
each other, otherwise one is not complementing the other.” He has the feeling that the
relationship misses trust due to the misleading stories of his wife. He feels cheated, as
though he is being made a fool of. Deep in his heart, this brings him pain and grief. In other
aspects, their marriage is good; his wife cares well for their four children and sexually they
are compatible.
In his youth he was hassled by his peers with words like “dirty German” because his mother
was German, although she came from the Baltics and had suffered in the Russian
concentration camps. From these experiences, he had developed an attitude of proving
himself: “I’ll show them what I am able to do.” This attitude led him to starting his own
business. His expression is serious and worried. He has a bit of a sloppy appearance and he
keeps his coat on during the consultation.
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Generals:
Weather: he does not like hot weather.
Time: < 7-8 pm, < 3-4 am.
Desires: sweet, chocolate, vegetables, raw food.
Aversion and aggravation from shrimps (2), oysters (2), lobsters (2), which make him
vomit.
Sleep and dreams: he dreams of technical problems, and he finds solutions for them in his
sleep. He wakes around 3 am with worries about his
wife.
Analysis:
The main physical complaint is the palpitations. The main psychological complaint is that his
wife is closed: these two go together. The heart is the symbol of love. He expresses himself
by saying: “Deep in my heart this brings me pain and grief.” In the mineral kingdom, this
leads to the sulphuricums, which fit his appearance and the fact that he is an inventor. There
is, however, no sulphuricum with this specific love problem. I first thought about Natrium
sulphuricum because of his wife being so closed, but with Natrium sulphuricum one would
expect him to give up and withdraw. Repertorisation did not lead to a clear remedy, and I
could not find the type of problem he had with his wife anywhere in the homeopathic
literature. So, I applied the rule: “In an unknown case, prescribe and unknown remedy.” I
knew that the Rosaceae, the family of roses, have a lot to do with love problems; the rose is
a big symbol for love in our Western culture. Many Rosaceae have heart problems, as seen in
the homeopathic remedies Crataegus, Laurocerasus, Prunus spinosa, and others. But which
one should I give? Sometimes, differentiation is possible with food desires and aversions
from some of the fruits of the rose family: peach, prune, apple, pear, strawberry or
blackberry, but he did not have any special relationship to any of these. I first chose Spirea
ulmaria, which did not do a thing, then Sorbus domestica MK, one dose.
Reaction:
One month after Sorbus domestica, he feels better: his palpitations are less frequent and
less violent. He feels less stressed and is better able to tolerate the pressure of his work
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without feeling hurried.
Three months later, after three repetitions of the remedy, he feels much better. The
palpitations have diminished for more than 50%, and his relationship with his wife is better.
His wife is still as closed as before, but he is able to let it be instead of worrying about it.
Sometimes, his worries return in his dreams. He had palpitations after dreaming that his wife
betrayed him with another man. In general, he is less preoccupied with her past and so he is
less agitated. He sleeps much better and does not wake at 3 am as often. He has no need for
a heart operation.
Sorbus
domestica:
This remedy is unknown in our Materia Medica, as is the case with many plants from the rose
family, the Rosaceae. The English name is rowan tree, or mountain ash. It is a tree or shrub
that produces a lot of orange berries in autumn. Sorbus has the same love problems as the
other Rosaceae, as well as problems with heart and blood vessels. The special symptom is
that he cannot bear his wife being closed, with an underlying fear of betrayal.
I once presented this case at a seminar, which was attended by a homeopath whose
husband was from Finland. She said that people from Finland have the tendency to say
nothing about their previous love affairs. In general, they are quite closed, but concerning
love affairs this is even more pronounced. Sorbus domesticus is a very common tree in
Finland: they make syrup from the berries, taking care to separate the poisonous seeds from
the berries. This syrup is often eaten with meat. In Finland, Sorbus also has a connection
with love. Near the coast is an island full of rowan trees, called Rowan Tree Island. Couples
come to this island for their love affairs. The theme of taciturnity and love affairs is culturally
connected with this tree in Finland.
From only one case it is difficult to say what the real keynotes of Sorbus are but in a good
case like this, many modalities and symptoms are keynotes for the remedy: a remedy can
only cure what it can produce in a proving. My ideas about the symptoms are as follows:
palpitations, fast pulse, <lying left side. Weather: < hot weather. Time: <3 am (2), < 7 pm.
This case has first been published in “Wad Stories”
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Sorbus domestica; archenzo
Categories: Cases
Keywords: closed in love affairs, palpitations, fear of betrayal
Remedies: Sorbus domestica
I am confused about my love-life: a case of Sorbus domestica
by Maarten van der Meer
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A 42 year old woman comes to the
practice for help with her bowel problems, which are more or less under control due to
naturopathic treatment. She has a spastic colon, constipation, painful burning in her belly,
and distension. She has had a candida infection every since she married, 22 years ago. She
takes medication and follows a very strict diet, but still the complaints remain, especially if
she eats sugar. Apart from that, she has had hay fever since she was twelve,
hypoglycaemia since her puberty, and painful joints for the last twenty years or so. She calls
herself a very sensitive person, and she is sensitive to medication as well.
Ten years ago, she fell in love with a woman at her work, which thoroughly confused her:
she felt like she was losing herself. She collapsed and became depressive. “I have always
had to fight depression.” She said that she has always carried a certain fear in her heart,
which improved after the remedy. Her father had a heart attack when she was eight years
old, and since that time, as she had witness his fear, she was afraid. As a child, she was
obsessed with the idea that she could stop her own heart, and it cost her a lot of energy to
not think about it. Her father suffered from a critical health situation: oesophagus varices
and diabetes. She felt very close to him, as he was almost always at home.
These days, she works as a carer and does volunteer work. She needs a lot of sleep. She
dreams about ghosts; in one dream, her third child is bewitched. She herself is the third
child of the family. Interestingly, an observation from Didier Grandgeorge seems to often be
confirmed: third children are especially sensitive to their father’s genetic inheritance.
Analysis
The crisis came around a situation of confusion in her love-life. She began to investigate
herself: ‘looking around’ and ‘doubt’ belong to the stages 3-4-5. At first, she had no idea
what to do with her feelings (stage 4), and she kept everything hidden from her husband
and from her colleague. This theme of hiding things from one’s partner is known for Sorbus
domesticus. Her relationship with her father touches her heart: the love between child and
parent can also fit in the theme of the Rosaceae. It is possible that she has needed this
remedy since her youth. The situation was possibly triggered by the health problems of her
beloved father and the doubts and uncertainties (stage 4) concerning him, at a time when
the child is irrevocably bound to the parents. The presence of heart problems in the family,
the obsession with “heart”, allergies, and digestive problems concerning the small intestine
are all characteristics of the Rosaceae.
Prescription: Sorbus domestica MK, one dose
After the remedy, all her old complaints briefly resurfaced: belly-aches, allergies, and
tiredness. A week later, she could already eat what she pleased, which was new to her. She
was able to let go of her large assortment of naturopathic medications. The last remaining
complaint was a slight pain in the joint of her thumb. Six months later, she was completely
free of complaints, though she remained somewhat reserved. One year later, she continues
to be free of complaints.
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Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Fruits et feuilles de cormier
Categories: Cases
Keywords: confusion about love affairs, allergies, abdominal pains
Remedies: Sorbus domestica
A romantic dreamer: a case of Rosa damascena
by Anne Wirtz
In 2001, a male patient, born in 1972, came to me because of his allergies, which prevented
him from living freely. His respiratory organs in particular were the focus of his health
problems. At home, the cat and dust aggravated his symptoms, as well as beer: his nose
would block after drinking it.
As a child, he had pneumonia twice, and from his 3rd to 7th year ,he was given a lot of
antibiotics. From his 8th year, he was put on a diet and given some homeopathic complex
remedies. He started doing sports and after that he had some good years.
He started smoking at 19 and from then on he again started coughing and had bronchitis
with several courses of antibiotics. The catarrh became chronic. At 23, he stopped smoking
and since then everything became worse; his complaints continued non-stop! "My nose is
always blocked, it drains my energy." Sleep was alright lately, but falling asleep was difficult
and he was seldom fit in the morning. He is a slow starter.
He was doing hospital practice as a student nurse. He had previously finished his
environmental studies, but kept looking for something more interesting because the practice
disappointed him, so he chose nursing. His father happened to be psychiatric nurse and he
found in the end that he had the same interest.
He said about himself: “I am an idealist, a dreamer. I like the green environmental idea, but
it still needs to be structured." He played guitar in a band with friends, wrote songs and they
'perform a bit'. "I try to plan my life. I am not attracted to the city, it’s too busy. Too many
sounds disturb me, the hustle and bustle, the traffic, the sirens, etc. To be outside of town is
a relief."
He lived alone and that was fine for him. He had some brief relationships with women and
was deeply in love a few times, but suffered disappointments. "Since then, I became more
careful." At the time of his first real love, he was 21 and she was only 16. They went ahead
slowly and carefully, but then, she was assaulted and had some family problems. She broke
the relationship off. "I wanted to be there for her and I did my best, but a few months later,
she went off with one of my close friends."
"I am not open when hurt, not even to myself. I do not want to feel it, I just suppress it. It is
part of our family culture that a man keeps his feelings to himself!
“I am an only child. My mother shows her emotions. I have loving parents and they are there
for me. My dad is quite closed; he doesn't express his opinions and easily feels threatened. It
is as if he feels a kind of competition with me. He does love me, I know, but our contact is
difficult although he wants it, too. With Mum, the communication is easier. Both find each
other quite timid and they support one another unconditionally, which is very nice. Mum
would like him to open up more, but he doesn't. They never go out. I recognize in myself the
same characteristic: timidity. My mother suffered some brain damage as a child. She was
dyslexic and a slow thinker; they called her stupid. She had a difficult childhood, including
emigration. She was always totally there for me, and I felt supported.
"As a child, in my own neighbourhood, I could be a leader or play alone. At school, I was
timid, a very good student, but outside the group. They bullied me, it hurt a lot. Dad advised
me to ignore it, but it got to me and I became even more timid. In high school, I started to
play the guitar, which people liked. I like going to the pub, if it’s not too crowded. At the age
of about 18, I used to follow my friends readily. In my university years, I started to blossom
and became more courageous. I had romantic experiences and wrote songs about 'broken
love', about nature and my own longings about romantic love. If my love didn't work out, I
became cynical and I don't like that."
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Physical
Sinus problems: “Flying in an airplane causes painful pressure in the ears, especially when
my nose is blocked. My sense of smell is totally gone since last year, which annoys me a lot.
Histamine-cortisol spray briefly relieved it."
Digestion: Stool was a little soft before exams. He desires rice, has been vegetarian for six
months because of the better suitability for his own health and the environment. He is thirsty
with a dry mouth in the evening and night and needs to drink water. Doing sports suits him
well, running alleviates the nasal obstruction.
Climate: He prefers warm, not too humid nor too hot. Perspires more than others from heat
or exercise.
Dreams: About work, friends, musical heroes, music. “Life is more concrete nowadays
because of my work in the hospital. I miss the release of the dreamy creativity. I like to work
in my parents’ garden and see the free growth and blossoming of nature." He liked quality in
connection with people and communication on the emotional level. He liked to travel and
have a little adventure.
Analysis
The overall idea in this case is the romantic quality and sensitiveness; his openness, giving
me the feeling of a sweet child who trusted me totally to solve his problem. The love theme
as an essence (esp. partner-love) is known from the flower Rosaceae family, as Jan Scholten
has found. The romantic love theme colours this case. Jan says that this belongs to Rosa
damascena: the special theme of romantic, ideal, courtly love.
I looked in the Materia Medica (Murphy), and found the remedy listed under the allergic
symptoms, especially in the sinus and ear area. So, I gave him Rosa damascena MK in a
solution (bottle) to be taken when he felt the need. I try to help my patients to develop a
feeling for the rhythm of taking the remedy.
Follow-up
Four weeks later: the nose opened up a bit, his voice has become better. He had some fever
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in the second week. The aggravation from cat hair diminished by 50%. Beer, which used to
worsen his condition, did not affect him as much as before. His work gives him stress: "I
don't like to ask for help too quickly, it is a big responsibility. One must not make mistakes
and I am inexperienced." His interest was to work with the mentally disabled. He felt quite
tired. It was difficult to make the right choice and after he had made one. he began to
hesitate.
Advice: continue remedy
Ten weeks later: "I have positive news! My back pains are totally gone (I didn't know he had
them!), and my energy is remarkably better. My smell gets better all the time, slowly but
surely, though not yet 100%." The nose is still blocked from time to time. The reaction to
beer is still there, but only briefly. "I feel more peaceful, stress doesn't touch me so much
anymore, I get over it; I am growing up." What did he think about a relationship? "Not yet, it
used to be a question of life and death, but not anymore. I feel much more self-confident!"
He had some red itchy eruption at the margin of his pubic hair, but it does not really bother
him. He drinks lots of water in the evening.
Advice: continue remedy
Eighteen weeks later: he felt fine. The nose was not totally free yet but his sense of smell
was still improving; no allergic reactions to the cat. He felt strong and flexible. The eruption
was still there, but was no problem. In his training, he was not studying psychiatry and
enjoying it. “That is why I started these studies." He was enjoying being creative, playing
music and writing songs. "I want to know why I do things.”
Advice: continue remedy
Six and a half months later: "My smell has totally returned, and with the many different
odours, a whole spectrum of memories have come up." He could easily breathe through his
nose and his sinuses felt free. There was more intensity to his music and he felt more
energetic to do the things he likes. "I realized that I use to have romantic fantasies, with
myself as a big hero lauded by the people or as a victim earning their sympathy, but not
receiving it. Then, I fell into a melancholic mood. I see now that it is unreal, not from this
earth. Since last year, I have been keeping notes of all kinds of feelings which came up
frequently. I recognize the tendency to romanticism, but I don't value it so much anymore. I
feel more empowered this past half year. There is so much more peace in my head. I feel
that my life is rich and I feel connected and more aware of my feelings. My attitude is
positive."
Physicals: No problems.
Advice: continue as before.
Seven and a half months later:
His nose was giving some problems again. He felt a bit restless and had less energy. His
smell had diminished again.
Prescription: Rosa damascena 10 MK, in solution
Nine months later: he felt very well. He discovered that taking too much of the remedy
doesn't feel good, so he takes it in moderation. He was in love and had an affair, but she
broke it off after some weeks. It was disappointing, but not a matter of life and death like it
would have been in the past.
His sense of smell is perfect, "better than other people’s!" When I asked him if I could use
his case for publication as an example of Rosa damascene, he was excited.
I recently met him in the street and he is still feeling very well.
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Some say love it is a river
that drowns the tender reed.
Some say love it is a razor that leaves a soul to bleed.
Some say love it is a hunger and an ever-aching need.
I say love it is a flower and you its only seed.
It's the heart afraid of breaking that never learns to dance.
It's the dream afraid of waking that never takes the chance.
It's the one who can't be taken who cannot seem to give.
It's the soul afraid of dying that never learns to live.
When the night has been too lonely and the road has been too long,
And you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong,
Then remember in the winter far beneath the bitter snow,
Lies the seed that with the sun's love in the spring becomes the ROSE.
Photos: Wikimedia Commons
Courtly love; God Speed!; Edmund Leighton
Rosa damascena; Rosa “York and Lancaster”; A.Barra
Categories: Cases
Keywords: romantic love, disappointments in love, idealist, dreamer, allergies
Remedies: Rosa damascena
Love is like a thorn in my eye: a case of Prunus spinosa
by Alex Leupen
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As we all know, homeopathy evokes a lot of resistance. The sceptics say that it cannot work
because there is “nothing in it”. Sometimes, I meet someone from a traditional Christian
background who will not accept high potencies, thinking that occult powers are involved.
Homeopathy sometimes finds itself thrown in a murky quagmire of black magic, voodoo
practice, and satanic ritual. But I must admit that sometimes, it seems that homeopathy
indeed works magic. I am often amazed by the quick and deep effects of some prescriptions.
Some years ago, a 25 year old woman consulted me for a strange but very bothersome
complaint: for the last two years, her left eye had been streaming all day long. She became
quite emotional while telling me about it.
It had started suddenly, like a flood. She had been to various eye specialists, but without
any relief. As such, it was not a life-threatening illness, but it was a great hindrance to her,
and she was becoming desperate. Her eye dripped continually; during the consultation, her
left cheek was wet with tears. “Where there are tears, there is grief,” said my common sense
and, indeed, when I asked her what had happened these past years, she spoke of a broken
heart. She had discovered that her partner, with whom she lived for several years, had a
secret relationship with another woman for some time. This had happened in the past as
well. She was very hurt, angry, and sad. She threw him out straight away. Strangely
enough, though, her eye had begun to water a few months before she discovered this
betrayal. It was as though her body knew what her mind did not know, as though she picked
up something from the morphogenetic field around her.
The plants from the rose family contain many remedies for healing a broken heart. Due to
the eye complaint, she received Prunus spinosa, a thorny plant. One could say that the
situation was like a thorn in her eye. The day she took the remedy, the tears stopped. Well, I
call that magic!
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Prunus spinosa; Kurt Stüber
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Categories: Cases
Keywords: thorns, lacrimation, broken heart
Remedies: Prunus spinosa
Hahnemann's heavenly rose
by Sarah Schall
This article serves as an introduction to a larger article of the same title, which was initially
written as a thesis for the British Institute of Homeopathy, and upon request was expanded
into its present version[1].
The theme of the Rose was chosen to illustrate the value, validity, and necessity of including
a spiritual understanding in the overall practice of Homeopathy.
Whilst it may be true that good results can often be obtained
using various methods of Homeopathic prescribing such as keynote, epidemic, simple
repertorizing, etc., this article addresses the fact that it would nonetheless be useful to
develop a spiritual perspective within the scope of one’s practice.
At present, our repertories regard most spiritual experiences of provers and patients under
conventional psychological terminology. Examples are analysed, such as ‘delusion’ if a
patient or prover experiences being “in the presence of God”, or as “arrogance” if a person
perceives oneself as being “above others, all others appear diminutive,” as Hering once
described a type of experience he had.
The first chapter of the full article reviews the history of Homeopathy. Hahnemann’s own
spiritual affirmations are explored, such as his claim that Homeopathy is a gift to humanity
from our Heavenly Benefactor, his descriptions of disease as “a spiritual dynamic
mistunement”, his advice about how to conduct provings from both an inner and an outer
perspective, etc.
Examples are given depicting how spirituality was inclusive with a scientific and philosophical
understanding, during and before the times of Hahnemann, as well as for many prominent
homeopaths since the times of Hahnemann.
Many examples are given both historically and in modern times, blending eastern and
western spiritual wisdom, enlightened poetry from spiritually advanced or perfected masters,
and prominent homeopaths over the past two centuries, as to the validity of a spiritual
understanding being applied to the overall practice of Homeopathy.
The second chapter analyzes the data from numerous modern provings of Rosa species,
using a spiritual understanding, thereby demonstrating the insufficiency of a conventional
psychological point of view when interpreting proving data. This would naturally affect the
application of this same proving data in clinical practice.
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Further, a conventional psychological interpretation as given in the published proving data is
presented in tandem with a deeper spiritual understanding, analyzing the modern Rosa
proving data, using three major aspects of personality: ego, heart, intellect. This analysis
continues in an exploration of the effects of spiritual life upon the provers of Rosa spp, using
both psychological and spiritual terminology.
In this analysis, the psychological interpretation is generally found to be valid, yet often
limiting and sometimes not accurately reflecting the provers’ actual experiences. For
example, synchronicity, preening, and transformation are three topics analyzed as perhaps
being less adequately understood from a psychological perspective, while being more readily
interpreted from a spiritual perspective.
Both the Abstract/Introduction and the Conclusion serve to summarize the intent of this
paper. Two supplements are added to further enhance a deeper understanding, along with a
more than ten page bibliography for further reading.
[1] To read the full version of the article, click on this
link: http://www.scribd.com/doc/108948863
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Bildnis von Therese von Lisieux; Moros
Categories: Theory
Keywords: provings, Hahnemann, spirituality, Know thyself
Remedies:
Panorama: Letter from Africa 2
by Jeremy and Camilla Sherr
Dear Friends
It has been a year since we last wrote. We are just about to complete our fourth year here, which is three years longer
than we thought we would stay!
2012 has been a good year in terms of achievements, and we managed to notch more successes and to move forward
in achieving our goals. These goals are:
- Treating as many HIV/AIDS patients as possible using classical homoeopathy
- Finding a genus epidemicus for AIDS in Africa
- Educating Africans in homoeopathy and helping to spread homoeopathy throughout Africa
- Creating a self sustainable project
- Showing the world the miracles that homoeopathy can achieve
In the first few years, we were occupied with opening clinics and seeing patients, and we have seen a lot of people!
There are now 15 clinics running, over 2500 patients seen, and more people asking, even demanding, for us to open
new clinics. We have just been approached by a large charity that is building a shelter for victims of domestic
violence, as well as by a group of churches. The word about homeopathy is spreading. Our main restriction is human
power – we need more medium and long term homeopaths. Fortunately, we have had volunteers like Vivien,
Frances, Marina, Noam, and now Michelle, who have helped us expand and maintain the clinics.
The successes have been tremendous. We are getting excellent results with AIDS patients using classical
homoeopathy. We see impressive results with symptom improvement, CD4, weight, energy gain, and reducing side
effects of ARV treatment. We have narrowed down a group of remedies suitable for AIDS in Africa, and have
published several articles and lectured on these, so that what we have learnt can be used by others. We also treat
many non-HIV patients. This month Camilla saw a blind Maasai woman who recovered her sight, a little boy in
hospital with third degree burns living in a bed-cage, who was discharged soon after the remedy, and a woman with
an inoperable abdominal tumour pronounced clear. Really amazing! If you want to see an example of the kind of case
we see many times a day, have a look here. I think you will like it[1].
29
Alongside the clinics, we have continued to sponsor schools in Maasai land, distribute food to the hungry (there were
bad crop failures this year), give out second hand eyeglasses to patients, and microloans to AIDS widows to open
small businesses.
This year, we have moved on to the second part of our mission: spreading homeopathy through Africa. And this is
happening! The first great success was the Pan African Congress that we organised and sponsored together with
Marie Maigre from the 4Kenia School of Homeopathy. Homeopaths from 16 countries: Swaziland and Ghana,
Tanzania, Botswana, South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Malawi, Germany, Israel, Holland, England, and the USA
attended. Some drove 3000 miles to get there!
30
At the conference, we heard new students, old masters, midwives, hospital staff, and local dignitaries telling of their
experience of homeopathy in Africa. Some of the 'projects' work alone, others in small groups, all struggling, all
believing in the mission, all making slow painful progress, all getting there. One group of illiterate midwives working
in the bush told us (in Swahili), how they learnt to use picture cards with the remedies on them, and to sing a song for
each remedy (they were taught by Germany's Homeopathy Without Borders). On our part, we shared the findings of
remedies that suit the African AIDS epidemic.
31
The atmosphere was wonderful and we all learnt a lot. The Kenyan and Swazi students demonstrated their
considerable talent in African dance, and the food was top quality. We finished holding hands in a big circle on the
shores of the Indian ocean. It was very touching, and we were very proud of organising this marvellous event! Take a
moment to look at images from the conference[2].
We are now sponsoring three full time Tanzanian homeopathic students. The first, Irene, is in her final year doing
internship in several hospitals. She has achieved 98% in the UK Faculty of Homeopathy exam! Simon is about to
enter his second year, and Ruth is to beginning her first year of studies.
But best of all is the hospital. They have seen so many miracles that they demanded to have a course, and we have
just delivered it. We sponsored two local graduates from our allies in 4Kenya School to teach a two week course to
21 doctors, nurses, and medical staff. We donated remedies and books. The aim was not to have any mzungu (pale
face) teachers, and it succeeded big time. It was beautiful to hear them teach homeopathy in Swahili. They did not
need us! And so, our local hospital has become the first to integrate homeopathy into its practice. They are very
excited and love it! I know you will feel happy watching this[3]
Consequently, we have just had requests from a hospital in neighboring Malawi and from a church hospital for more
teaching.
We know that alongside media, research is essential to show the world what can be done. We are working towards
this in several ways, and hopefully the coming year will bring us some progress.
Of course, there have been challenges, but on the whole, progress is good. Our biggest restrictions are money, lack of
homeopathic wo-man power and local bureaucracy. Every one of our achievements - the congress, sponsoring
students, teaching hospitals, running clinics, food, and school projects, research, and translators - cost thousands of
dollars. Your support is very much appreciated! www.homeopathyforhealthinafrica.org/donate
From Africa
Jeremy and Camilla
P.S. This is our second letter from Africa. If you want to know more about our project and daily life realities of
practicing homoeopathy in Africa, you can read the first one here[4]
[1] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5aA0ZFJV2o&feature=youtu.be
[2] http://www.nationalcenterforhomeopathy.org/files/Congress%20reflections%20FINAL.pdf
[3] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjnzhImZTHM&feature=youtu.be
[4] http://www.interhomeopathy.org/letter-from-africa
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Categories: Columns
Keywords: Homeopathy for Health in Africa
Remedies:
Tell-a-Friend
Comments:
ana
Posts: 7
Re:
Reply #7 on : Tue December 04, 2012, 10:57:45
I was waiting for this letter, I have no words, to say, I'm touched and happy to know about
your succes, beacuse you give me hope about a better world, I love homeopathy and Love
you both with your work for all that people who apreciates your work there. Its a hard work
but unforgetable experience because all those persons are receiving the best medicine the
never imagine to know!! Congratulations, I hope to be there some day!! Now Im sending my
heart...
elizabeth matata
Posts: 7
good work!
Reply #6 on : Tue December 04, 2012, 08:02:54
Its such a big inspiration especially to young homeopaths in Africa! It reminds me of a case
of an HIV positive boy Jeremy and i took (at kwale homeopathic clinic) and he is doing very
well with homeopathy.
May you live long to inspire many people in homeopathy.
A job well done!
Linet Kabibi
Posts: 7
Wonderful work!!!
Reply #5 on : Tue December 04, 2012, 07:49:06
I'm so amazed and impressed to see how you are doing with homeopathy!! You are very
much dedicated to your work and good results are always seen. Homeopathy really deserves
Africa and it WORKS!! What more should I say..BRAVO! HONGERA! HONGERA! HONGERA! Be
blessed ever!
Thank you all!
Clare Walters
Posts: 7
inspiring!
Reply #4 on : Mon December 03, 2012, 19:55:48
The work you are doing is so inspiring. Bless you and your team.
Clare
Muraleedharan KC
Posts: 7
Wonderful effort
Reply #3 on : Mon December 03, 2012, 15:35:13
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I have gone through some of the articles and videos.Every homoeopaths are destined to
work in "resource limited settings".The meaning of the same may vary according to
countries.We constrain to work without "investigations" due to non cooperation of allopathy
people.But we are able to show the effects through the feelings of the patients,statisticians
says it accidental cure,but a homeopath knows his ability.In our very limited experiences
show Natrum mur is one of the important remedy in HIV infection. Lyco,Silicea are few very
useful medicine especially in asymptomatic cases. Arsenicum album is a wonderful drug in
AIDS especially in LM potencies. I hope sharing the experience will enrich the HIV research in
homeopathy.
All the best,for your wonderful effort.
Mary Glaisyer
Posts: 7
Thank you!
Reply #2 on : Sun December 02, 2012, 05:00:46
Thank you very much Jeremy and Camilla for all you do.
I am passing this letter on to people who could express their gratitude to Hahnemann in a
useful way.
Marty Begin
Posts: 7
Wow
Reply #1 on : Sat December 01, 2012, 20:38:51
I am so impressed with your dedication to make such a difference in a place that needs to
have such a difference made.
Its brilliant to hear your report from there and realizing the successes you have. As well as
helping bring homeopathy the recognition it deserves to have.
Much gratitude to you Jeremy and Camilla.
I'm sure its coming to you from many sources.
And Harry Vanderzee as well is making a similar difference.
Thankyou