Depression : An Introduction
NATIONAL JOURNAL OF HOMOEOPATHY 1997 Jan / Feb VOL VI NO 1.
Dr Sosi Roy
' Ars-alb / Ars-alb / Con / Nux-v / Pic-ac / Puls / Kali-mur / Thuja / Aurum-met
Depression is a sequel of 'Melancholia' says Mandslay. It is a painful feeling of profound depression and misery, a great mental suffering. The patient's feeling of external objects are parented, so that he complains of being strangely and unnaturally changed. Impressions which should rightly be aggreable or only indifferent feel as painful. Friends and relatives are regarded with sorrow or aversion and their attention with suspicion. He feels himself entirely isolated, and can take no interest in their affairs, and either shuns society and seeks solitude, lying in bed, unwilling to exert himself, or he utters his agony in sounds ranging from a moan to a dull ache to a shrill cry of anguish or by gestures of misery or even in some convulsive act of desperate violence.
This desperate violence may bring an impulse to put an end to his life either by hanging, jumping from a height, or drowning or by shooting down.
The nature of depression is different and people are differently affected according affected according to their mental and physical character. So for the purpose of selection of similimum for the patient individualization of remedies is the prime necessity. Every person possesses some particular signs and symptoms in his mind and physique by which he becomes different from another. The drug which can create and cure these similar signs and symptoms would be characteristic remedy for the person and thereby, the remedy would be the individual remedy of the person in question, and thus, the remedy becomes individualized in most cases, the particular individualized remedy would cure all the mental and physical diseases of individual.
As for example, a lady who possesses all the mental and physical character of Arsenis - album would be depressed only when she is defamed or abused for no fault on her part. For she cannot tolerate uncleanliness in her surrounding and as such, she cannot withstand any injustice done to her. But a difficulty arises when a lady possesses two types of characters resembling two remedies. In such cases, predominating character of symbol indicating the characteristic remedy is to be prescribed after keen observation.
Case 1.
A school teacher of about 35yrs of age, suffering from depression for 5 years, came to me after allopathic treatment failed to cure her. The history of her affetation showed she easily fell in love with different persons who disappointed her. Her first love was her a young person in her youth, who deceived her after she conceived. She got it aborted; and soon after she married another person. Her former lover met her husband and impressed him that his wife had illicit connection with him. On that report her husband drove her away. Thereafter, the unfortunate lady joined a school as a headmaster and within a short time she bestowed her love on the headmaster of the school. The headmaster died and she became depressed. On her inability to control her affection and falling in love, she appeared to be Natrum mur but when she was taken to the psycho-analytical room alone, she tried to escape as she would not try stay alone with me. I became perplexed and was ready to prescribe Natrum mur for her. But astonishingly she vehemently objected when her brother, who accompanied her was giving my fees. This very love for money (a characteristic symptom of Arsenic- alb) changed my decision and I gave her the dose of arsenic alb 1M. She began to improve and after some doses of ascending power of Ars alb, she was fully cured.
Persons who are extremely egoistic, are of Ars. alb or Sulphur character. They suffer from even simple altercation from wife, sons, daughter, friends and boss and get depressed for a long time, until they are consoled.
Case 2.
I Treated a case of retired police officer, who was, as per police laws, saluted by his subordinates. He lost this honour after his retirement and formed an idea in his mind that none of his family obeyed him. He became deeply depressed and stopped communication with his sons. He sat all the time profoundly depressed keeping a knotted rope before him showing he would hang himself until his wife/sons came to express their reverence to him. On call I went to see him and could not ascertain any cause from him. I could find the remedy only when he vehemently opposed to paying my consultation fee, a symptom of Ars- alb. He was cured by Ars -alb in ascending potencies. Of course, I had to advise his family members to show him due obedience.
(Page.no14) Arsenic patients have great tendency to give way to sorrow and to look upon the dark side of everything.
SOMATO PSYCHIC DISEASE: patients suffering from heart trouble become melancholic with external anguish especially in evenings, with a disposition to weep and great fear of the future. They remain gloomy and peevish, indisposed to speak; inclined to lassitude; they feel as if their heart has stood still. Digitalis cures them.
