The Restless Child
NATIONAL JOURNAL OF HOMOEOPATHY 1997 May / Jun VOL 5 NO 3.
Dr Prashant Shah
'Jalap / Opium / Pall
Case 1
Baby KC, age 4 yrs, was brought to me with the complaint of restlessness at night, which started soon after her birth. On inquiry she also had some intestinal problem. Many a times she had high fever with diarrhoea and severe colicky pain. She had aversion to food and if fed forcibly, she immediately vomits and becomes more restless.
According to her mother she is restless at night. "When I go to sleep she harasses me by doing awkward things. She puts finger in my nose and tries to wake me up. It starts from 1'o clock at night till 4'o clock in morning. She hardly sleeps in between. She is more mischievous at night. When she was born she used to sleep throughout the day and cry throughout the night. Very obstinate by nature and she wants new things everyday.
Rubrics
1. Restlessness
2. Child good throughout the day, cries at night [irritability]
3. Restless at night
4. Shrieking, screaming, shouting at night.
Jalapa 200 1 dose was given on 25/6/95. Good improvement after 1 dose. She needed another dose on 19/7/95. She is fine from then to date. Not only her restlessness improved, but her colicky pain and complaints of nose block also improved.
This medicine is needed in many cases as a 1st prescription especially in infants fro night colic.
Case 2
Mr BB a farmer, 80 yrs of age, was brought to me for Carcinoma of hypopharynx diagnosed clinically. He was on glucose drip with MVI for last 6 days. Tracheostomy was about to be performed on him. He was brought to me a day before the surgery. He had severe pain and skin eruptions all over the body which had started after Rx he had taken from one of the Homoeopaths for his Leucoderma problem.
Carcinoma of hypopharynx was clinically diagnosed by an ENT surgeon at Rajkot. As it was impossible to get any history from patient, I relied on the information furnished by a relative. According to him, it had started suddenly. The patient said "Give me some routine medicine. I do not have any major problem. Simply I have little problem in my throat. Give me medicine today only because I want to go back to my place immediately". He said "Doctors say it is cancer, but I don't believe it."
His relative told me about his nature; he is a very cool person, he never complains about anything and is always busy with himself. The day he came to Rajkot, he wanted to go back to his home town Morvi.
Analysis
I have observed that the patient was totally away from reality. Even though his problem was diagnosed as cancer it had no effect on him. He was narrating his complaints as if he had a sore throat. I was looking for a medicine which produces a state of anesthesia in a patient.
Rubrics
Anesthesia SR II
Says well, when sick
Painless of parts which are usually painful
Desire to go home
I prescribed Opium 1M 91d on 5/7/95. To my surprise the patient started eating that very evening. I sent him back to the cancer hospital on 10.1.1996. Report suggests there is no evidence of cancer anymore.
Patient lived peacefully without any complaint till 23.3.96. He died suddenly on that day. After giving Opium his skin eruptions got worse. In that he improved gradually. In between I repeated Opium 1M on 9.9.95 for constipation and on 10.1.95 for skin eruption.
