Somnabulism: An Interesting Case Study
NATIONAL JOURNAL OF HOMOEOPATHY 1997 May / Jun VOL 5 NO 3.
Dr Nayan Ganguly
'Nat-mur
Baby Vasundhara, an 8 yr old girl was brought to me by her uncle for the complaint of sleep walking at night and inattentiveness in work and school throughout the day. Taking the case history it was found that her father expired a few months ago. She was very much attached to him. Another day the girl was found in the father's room where she was looking down from the window at night and was caught when about to throw herself from the window. Every time the girl was ignoring this incident. The girl sometimes narrated fear during sleep and walking and she became angry and irritable if any one attempted to console her. Considering this important symptom Nat-mur 1 M two doses were given on two consecutive days and she responded wonderfully as her sleep walking incidents gradually disappeared and now she is all right.
Somnambulism or sleep waking includes ambulation or other intricate behaviors while still asleep, with amnesia of the event. It may mean acting out a dream or fantasy.
There is varying degree of sleep walking and is associated with the symptoms of dissociation. It is an important medical as well as a social problem. The episode usually occurs between 30-200 minutes after onset of sleep, in stage 3 or stage 4 of sleep and lasts from a few minutes to 30 minutes.
Somnambulism is a common nocturnal disturbance of the young children and its prevalence is estimated to be from 1-60%. At least 15% of all children have had to least one episode of sleep-walking. The condition is more common between 5-12 years, and more in makes than in females. Theft, murder, arson, or other immoral activities are rarely found in different statistics.
In the West, sleep walking is believed to be caused by the influence of full moon shining on the sleeping child. In our country it is said that the departed soul of a recently expired person in the family or a friend plays an important part as far as these activities are concerned. Some often regard it as a "Call of the liberated soul." Sleep walker is said to obey these "Calls"
It is observed that in Somnambulism the individual sits up and carries out preservative motor movements, such as picking at the blanket and then performs semi-purposeful motor acts like walking, dressing, opening doors, eating and going to bathroom. Sometimes the child may appear confused, detached and unresponsive. Although consciousness is clouded, the eyes are mostly open and obstacles are usually avoided. Hearing is not impaired but efforts to communicate with the sleep walker usually elicit mumbled and slurred speech and monosyllabic answers. Child may, however, wander about the house and even away from home although inappropriately clad. In adolescents and adults, fatal accidents, violent behavior and even homicide have occurred during Somnambulism episodes. Typically the sleep walker does not awaken from his sleep walking. If he is awakened, he cannot explain what has happened. The child usually recalls nothing of these events the following morning.
Homoeopathic View
Homoepathy as a system of treatment is nearest to the spiritual system of treatment. The Homoeopathic medicine acts on the vital force and therefore characteristic individual mental symptoms are given priority for every treatment of disease. The remedy affects the intellect.
During the study of somnambulism cases, it was found that main causes are suppressed grief, sorrow and eagerness to do something. Hence it is evident that those who are playing these roles in the subconscious mind, in sleep they try to do, what the person actually wanted to do, but in the morning patient ignores it all.
Hahnemann discussed that "almost all mental and emotional diseases are nothing more than Corporeal diseases in which symptom of derangement of mind and disposition are peculiar to each of them." He considered the mind as a separate entity. The finermost or the highest degree of quality controls the innermost of man i.e. the mind.
Other medicines are: Aconite-nap, Nat-mur, Opium, Phosphorus, Dictamnus, Anacardium, Silicea, Stramonium, Sulphur, Artemsia-vulgaris, Ignatia.
Regarding treatment our first duty is to take detailed history; search for the miasms, find appropriate remedy and issue necessary instructions to tackle somnambulism cases.
