Cases from our Rich Heritage
NATIONAL JOURNAL OF HOMOEOPATHY 1998 Nov / Dec VOL VII NO 6.
Compiled by
T K Kasiviswanathan
'Stram / Stram / Jalap / Syph / Colch / Ign / Lach / Grin / Anac / Hyos / Eup-p / Dol
I have selected a few cases from our Homoeopathic literature, wherein the remedy was selected on the basis of the presence of keynote (s) symptoms. The first two cases are the illustrations given by Dr HN Guernsey himself in his article.
Case 1:
Called in for consultation in a case of dysmenorrhoea, where a great variety of symptoms presented themselves, Dr H N Guernsey was much struck with the devout, beseeching, earnest and ceaseless talking of the patient and at once suggested to the attending physician Stramonium as the remedy. Upon comparing all the symptoms of the patient with those of the above remedy, the other doctor stated that all her symptoms were not under that remedy but agreed to prescribe Stramonium, as he could not think of any other remedy, adding that if it cured her "he would cease to believe in the doctrine of totality". Dr Guernsey replied that Stram was undoubtedly the remedy and if it were properly proven and on every variety of temperament and condition, all the patient's symptoms would be found in the record of its pathogenesis. Stram 200 was accordingly given and it quieted her at once and all her other symptoms speedily vanished, inversely as they appeared. Her peculiar talking was the last symptom to manifest itself and the first to disappear and was a keynote to Stramonium.
-Dr H N Guernsey.
Dr Guernsey writes in his book Keynotes to the Materia Medica - "The principal range of this remedy is found in the mental affections. In young people who are sometimes hysterical and show the following condition: praying and singing devoutly, beseeching, entreating etc. Young women with suppressed menses will be affected in this manner'. "Ceaseless talking, mostly devout; very earnestly beseeching - Dysmenorrhoea" -Hering's Guiding Symptoms
Case 2:
A previously robust and healthy lad of 16 years, suffered from typhoid fever, which resisted all the other Homoeopathic remedies and the attending physician and consulting physician were desperate. But the boy was restored to his former robust health by a remedy decided solely by its keynote. When the doctor went to the bedside of the patient, he noticed a peculiar convulsive movement of the head, such as he had not noticed before in that or any other case. The head jerked itself clear of the pillow and then fell immediately back; this happened repeatedly. The doctor recollected that it was a keynote of Stram as indicated by Dr Guernsey and after comparing the symptoms of the case with those of the remedy, he was struck by the wonderful correspondence. Initially he gave the remedy in repeated doses in 3rd dilution without effect but when a single dose of the same in 200 potency was given, there was remarkable amelioration and the boy became quiet and slept well. His convalescence was rapid.
-Dr H N Guernsey
In his book on the Keynotes Dr Guernsey writes "In unconscious delirium, the patient will every now and then jerk the head up from the pillow, then let it fall again - this being kept up without intermission for a long time."
Case 3:
Dr Nash once had a case of entero-colitis in a child that for more than eight weeks baffled his best efforts to cure and the case went from bad to worse until the child was reduced almost to a skeleton. Instead of screaming all night, the child screamed day and night, all the time, so the mother said. With screaming, there were constant contortions of the body bending forward and backward and sidewise alternately. After trying various remedies without success, Dr Nash gave Jalapa 12, the child went to sleep, and from that nap, which was long, recovery was rapid and perfect. Dr Nash tried it in desperation because he knew that this remedy caused colic and diarrhoea but in the process he proved its keynote "Child good all day; screaming, restless and very troublesome at night' and the mental symptoms are violent restlessness, anxiety and crying.
Case 4:
All symptoms aggravated at night are important keynotes and modality of Syphilinum. A 78-year-old lady suffered from attacks of spasmodic asthma for 25 years. These attacks would come only at night after lying down or during thunderstorm and produced intense insomnia. Ars, Ambr, Bell, Ipecac, Nux, Phos, Sulph, Opium and other well indicated remedies failed but Syphilinum CM cured the case. (Dr H C Allen) Dr Nash also quotes a case, which he cured on this modality. He had a patient with caries of spine for which he was prescribing without success for one year and after reading a cure of a similar case with this remedy he noted that the patient had severe pains in the diseased part in the night. Three doses of Syphilinum CM cured that case in the remarkably short time of 40 days.
Case 5 :
Dr Nash had a patient, 75 yrs old, who was suddenly seized with sickness at the stomach and vomited blood in large quantities; then bloody stools followed, which were at first profuse, then became small and of bloody mucus. There was great tenesmus and pain in the bowels. Aconite, Mercurius, Nux-vom, Ipecac, Hamamelis and Sulphur selected well on the basis of presenting symptoms, did not provide relief. At the end of twelve days his patient was rapidly sinking and looked as though she would die. She had become very weak and even could not lift her head from the pillow. By actual count, the number of stools passed on clothes and in the bed was 65 in 24 hours; the pain, frequency of stools and all symptoms were aggravated from sundown to sunrise. Now during all this sickness the patient had been so nauseated and would feel so faint at the smell of the cooking food, that the family had been obliged to keep the doors closed between her bedroom and the kitchen, which was two large rooms away. Dr Nash writes: "I was not so well acquainted with Materia Medica then as now and while I did not overlook the symptom, did not know any remedy that had it. But I had my Lippe's TextBook of Materia Medica in my carriage and I sat down at the bedside determined to find the peculiar and persistent symptom. I looked at the stomach symptoms of every remedy starting with Aconite, until the first time I remembered ever having noticed it, there it stood in plain English under Colchicum. He had only Dr Dunham's 200 potency with him and he dissolved some pills of the same in water and directed that a spoonful of the same to be given after every passage of stool. But the doctor was not convinced it was the remedy and felt guilty and had half a mind to go back to give some other remedy. Next morning he visited the patient with apprehension, but to his surprise the lady wished him with a smile and on inquiry he was surprised to note that the pain and all, disappeared with two doses only. She recovered fully thereafter.
-Dr Nash
