Menacing, Mischievous & Fearless Agaricus-muscarius
NATIONAL JOURNAL OF HOMOEOPATHY 2002 Jan / Feb VOL 4 NO 1.
Compiled by
T K Kasiviswanathan
'Agar
Introduction:
Agaricus-muscarius or Toad stool or Amanita (a
term used by Hering) is a poisonous mushroom and its symptoms develop slowly
over 12-14 hours. The cerebral excitement caused by the remedy are in four
phases:
- Slight stimulation, shown by increased cheerfulness, courage, loquacity, exalted frenzy.
- More decided intoxication- great mental excitement, incoherent talking and immoderate gaiety alternating with melancholy. Perception of relative size of objects is lost, takes long steps and jumps over small objects as if they are trunks of trees a small hole appears as a frightful chasm, a spoonful of water, an immense lake. Physical strength is increased, can lift heavy loads; with it there is much twitching.
- This stage produces a condition of furious rage and delirium, screaming, raving and ranting injuring self.
- 4th stage with mental depression, languor, indifference, confusion disinclination to work; there is general nervous excitement as is found in delirium tremens and in fevers. Hence, it is an important remedy for delirium tremens and in typhoid fever.(Boericke and Guernsey)
A most striking symptom: twitchings and tremblings of limbs; often very extensive, therefore useful for chorea.
A peculiar sensation: cold sensation as if cold needles; icy coldness after itching and scratching of scalp; pain as if sharp ice touched the head; sensation of icy coldness in the part or back as if cold wind was blowing on it. Urine feels cold on passing. The male genital organs are cold and shrunken.
Some illustrative cases:
CASE 1:
A 3½ years, old son of a cousin of Dr Parinaz Humranwala.
A lively child without shyness; greeted the doctor as if he had known her for a
long time. He prattled constantly but did not reply to the questions asked, in
spite of his mother’s intervention (Loquacity, answers no questions).
He was always on the run, crashing into the furniture, stumbling against the
chair etc. He would get hurt but not learn from these experience.(Fearless,
menacing, mischievous, causing him to assail and injure himself, great
exertion of power-Hering) (Runs about, dangerous places, in most).
His favorite pasttime is to do somersault from one end of the room to the other.
(Mischievous, tumbled out in the most grotesque manner-Allen).
After visiting a circus and seeing a clown walking on a tight
rope he attempted the same feat in his flat (courageous). He was clumsy
and would allow a thing to fall from his hands (awkwardness, drops things).
He loves music and learnt his nursery rhymes and can sing
loudly with the singer, but was not interested in learning the alphabet or
lessons (Singing; concentration difficult, studying while). His
restlessness nature never improved in spite of punishment at home. When in
frenzy he seemed to possess extra-ordinary strength; once in his mischievous
frenzy he knocked down a 20-inch colour TV from the stand (Rage, strength
increased). When he was to be operated for a congenital problem he did not
fear the presence of doctors, nurses and hospital atmosphere. When he was asked
to take a medicine after the operation, he made his mother and nurse close their
eyes and then spilled it on the nurse’s uniform. (This is also a
characteristic of this remedy-Delirium, know his relatives does not; throws
wine and medicine on the nurse). When the nurse and his parents tried to pin
him down, he displayed extra strength, escaped their clutches and ran away and
dashed against a trolley, injuring himself (Delirium, bed, escapes, jumps up
suddenly from bed. Delirium, exaltation of strength, with).
Analysis:
This is a classic illustration of an Agaricus child;
it is restless, externally and internally, which makes the child mischievous and
menacing and run about without realizing the danger of injury. The reportorial
rubrics given against the symptoms lead to Agaricus as the similimum and
also fully confirm the symptoms of mental excitement produced by this drug
mentioned at stages 2 and 3. He was initially given a dose in 200 potency; three
months later he suffered from respiratory tract infection for which another dose
was given; 3 months later the same problem occurred and he was given a dose in
1M potency after which he improved in all areas, including his nature, allergy
and general health.
-Dr Parinaz Humranwala-Homoeo Links 3/98
(See also another case of a mischievous boy published in NJH
issue dated Jan-Feb 1998).
Polarity
Agaricus has both the fearful, submissive and dependent
side and also the bold, warrior and adventurer side. Dr Bill Mann presented such
a case, where both these sides of Agaricus personality could be clearly
seen in the same patient - one with fears and weaknesses and the other with
reckless courage on different occasions.
CASE 2:
A 30-year-old male with unconfirmed multiple sclerosis. For
2-3 years, he had twitching of muscle groups of the upper arms, thighs and face,
especially in the morning (a keynote of Agar) followed by stiffness and
fatigue; also had swelling on the lymph nodes mostly below the jaw. He described
himself as a sex addict, but experiences enormous guilt and remorse about this
addiction. His relations with women were unsuccessful and he considered women as
sexual objects to be devoured sexually. His twitching commenced after a woman
who he felt passionately about, rejected him. After that, he became very angry
wanted to kill the other man in her life. Never well since then. He had a
pathological fear of cancer; his fears and sex addiction were worse in fall and
in winter months when he was not working.
The other side of his personality came into full bloom in the
other seasons. He would lead wilderness excursions in the most extreme
environments and terrains in Alaska and Canada. The activity was dangerous and
each excursion was more challenging and dangerous than the other; he wanted to
be known as a fearless adventurer. He was exhilarated by the challenges such
trips provided. His occupation ameliorated his pathological condition. His
dreams involved flying and floating with exhilaration and joy and pursued by an
ominous being, whose face can only be seen and by whom he felt suffocated, while
he was battling it.
The rubrics are: Ailments from fright /fear; Anxiety
about health; clinging; desire for company when alone; fear of cancer; fear of
impending disease; fear of evil; fear of ghosts; fear of suffocation; twitching
of muscles; increased sexual desire.
On the other side: Audacity; courageous; talks of his
exploits (both sexual and adventures); delirium with exaltation of strength;
delirium with rage and raving; delusion that he is a great person; vindictive;
destructive; ecstatic; egotism with reciting exploits; exhilaration;
fearlessness; grotesque, foolish behaviour; hatred of persons who have offended;
frenzy causing injury to self; desire to kill; loquacity; malicious; revengeful
plans; making bold plans; runs in dangerous places; satyriasis.
Agaricus reduced his obsession with health, his fears and
sexual addiction became more manageable and his general vitality improved.
-Dr Bill Mann -Edited from a Report in Homoeopathy Today,
April 1999; Vol 19-4
CASE 3:
A boy, aged 7 years, presented with visual difficulties;
hypermetropia, squint and very tired eyes at the end of the day; accompanied by
headaches and difficulty in concentration. His mother reported that besides the
above he had learning difficulties; made many mistakes in reading and writing
and was a slow learner, which upset him. On the other hand, his
imagination was very advanced for his age and he could talk excitedly on
subjects in which he was interested. More recently he showed rapid mood swings-
from being very moody to being the life of the party; tending to become
obstinate over certain matters and did not participate in activities in which he
could not do well. He would become very angry when his sister teased him.
Any bout of illness was preceded by marked swelling of his abdominal lymph glands, which would subside after an acute infection developed.
One other important symptom was his allergy to artificial colourings; by eating such foods his mouth swells, begins to salivate, loses control of the bladder and his clumsiness and lack of co-ordination increase. During an extreme attack he feels as if on LSD; he then races around the room, knocks against the walls, bruising himself badly, yet feels no pain. He behaves uncontrollably but does not remember his behaviour later. He was, therefore very obstinate about eating certain foods and did not like mushrooms.
When the doctor talked to the child, he started talking without prompting and was very loquacious jumping from one subject to another as if the doctor was not present at all.
Case Analysis:
"He was precocious in a way that he was more at ease in the adult world, where he felt comfortable with his advanced verbal skills, chattering about his interests including the knowledge of electronics. But in the company of other children, he felt out of place and lacked confidence. Lacking sufficient concentration for learning and being awkward at physical activities made him shy and uncomfortable with other children. As a result, he was overly sensitive to being teased and had retreated further into his imaginary world. The thing that stood out as peculiar to me was his marked state produced as a reaction to food colourings; under this the wild, carefree and unrestrained side of his state was released." (Dr Jacqueline Dimitriadis) This doctor referred to the following original symptoms from Hahnemann, Hering and Allen for the remedy.
Fearless, menacing, mischievous frenzy; causing him to assail and injure himself, great exertion of power.(Hering)
Silly merriness; Great loquacity, merry, incoherent talk, followed by malaise (Hering)
He talks incoherently; passes very rapidly from one subject to another, and soon enters a state of cheerful delirium with great loquacity (TF Allen)
Indifferent, self- absorbed mood with aversion to all occupation; (Hahnemann)
Disgust for all work which occupies the mind;
Forgetful; he finds it difficult to recall what he has heard before or thought (Hahnemann)
Takes offence easily. Morose, self-willed, stubborn, slow in learning to talk and walk; on trying to walk stumbled singularly often (Hering).
The patient retains no recollection of his serious sickness; next day the patient did not remember having been indisposed (T F Allen).
Agaricus emerges as the remedy; it also produces all sorts of eye and visual problems; it is also significant to note that the patient had an absolute loathing for mushrooms.
(Dr Grauvogl says that mushrooms are the articles of diet forbidden for persons of hydrogenoid constitution)
He was given Agaricus 0/1 potency, once a day. After initial aggravation of his eye symptoms and irritability, the boy’s performance improved in school. There was steady progress and after 4 weeks he was given 0/2 once a day. With that his eye twitching and visual difficulties showed improvement; his reaction to food colourings also reduced. His excitable state also was considerably less; his appetite improved etc
-Dr Jacquiline Demitriadis, Australian Journal of Homoeopathy, April 1993
CASE 4:
A 4½ year old girl used to get recurrent attacks of fever
with swelling and rigidity of her neck with tilting of the head to the right
due to swelling on the right-torticollis with acute tonsillitis. Her neck
rigidity was associated with severe stomachache and throat infection with fetid
odour from the mouth.
In the clinic, the child was observed to be dancing and was
told that she was fond of music and dancing; she was talkative, good at
imitation, playful with great imagination and was found to be talking with an
imaginary person, even if her neck was tender and painful, she remained cheerful
and she was not affected much unless the fever was high. She was bold and
courageous; not scared of injections and if she falls down she immediately gets
up and starts running without crying or complaining. Once in a party on the
terrace she was without fear walking on the parapet. She liked to play boys’
games and even bullied them. She was very restless, could not pay attention in
school and was mischievous; she made funny noises but it was part of her
involuntary behaviour. She did not answer the doctor’s questions and looked
confused and her answers were unrelated to the questions. In school her teacher
said that her speech was not clear. She would threaten to vomit if forced to eat
or when her wish was not fulfilled. She would break things and become aggressive
and at that time almost three people are required to calm her down.
Dr Sunil Anand selected the following rubrics: Runs
about in most dangerous places; Answer, aversion to; sings, talks but will not
answer questions; loquacity during which answers no questions; mistakes in
speaking; Delirium, romping with children; chaotic; concentration difficult;
confusion of mind; Courageous; delusion, sees people, converses with absent
people; destructiveness; agg from mental exertion; work, mental, aversion to;
foolish behaviour; weakness of memory; speech incoherent.
Agaricus comes out prominently and she was given 1M one
dose; the frequency and intensity of the attacks became less and her torticollis
disappeared; her performance in school improved. She needed repetition of Agaricus
1M on 6 more occasions when her fever was high; after a final dose of 10M she
became well and needed no further repetition.
-Dr Sunil Anand, Homoeopathic Links 2/92
CASE 5. Cure of a beginning MS
A 46-year-old woman consulted for complaints of back pain,
stomach and abdominal pains; vertigo and nausea, palpitations; dim vision, loss
of memory, fibroma of uterus, cysts in left ovary and left kidney.
Based on a history of abuse by her husband and other factors
she was given Sepia, which held for a long time. After 11 months her
condition deteriorated and Sepia and other remedies did not relieve her.
Since the beginning she was complaining of vertigo and dim vision; she now
talked of cold feeling in the left hand and leg; with her left hand she mis-
reaches for objects. The vision is dim and sees lines. She is unsteady while
standing; and has the impression of stepping into holes when walking (confusion
of mind while walking) She could not find words to express her feelings.
Based on the symptoms/rubrics -coldness of hand left;
coldness, lower limbs left; awkwardness lower limbs; vertigo turning on;
loquacious; fear of cancer; sighing she was given Agaricus 200 K. Shortly
thereafter she felt better and there was a relapse after 5 days when she was
advised to take Agaricus 30 for 5 days. Her numbness and cold feeling had
disappeared; no vertigo and her vision became better; no sensation of stepping
into a hole; she took Agaricus 30 whenever there was relapse and her
headache and stomach pains were gone After 2 years of follow-up she was given
one dose in 1M whereafter she was quite well.
Agaricus has coldness of hand and sensation as if touched
with ice or ice cold needles; weakness and confusion of vision as if mist before
the eyes
The Agaricus patient has fears of impending disease of
cancer, of having a fit or losing his reason etc.
John De Geest, Belgium, Homoeo Links 3/98
Dr Jonathan Hardy, England presented in the Homoeopathic
Links issue no3/98 three cases of Agaricus in which the patients were inquisitive
particularly about death, near death experiences and re-incarnation. In one
case the patient was interested in watching horror films. "The book or film
must be really gory to be enjoyable." The common mentals in these cases
were: Cheerful in the evening; cheerfulness alternating with sadness; childish
behaviour; excitement in the evening; inquisitiveness; mood alternating;
restlessness, in the evening. One patient expressed fear of mould (fungi) and
roots and hairy plants.
Agaricus is useful in
1) hard working people, who have exhausted their nervous
system due to long hours of study over a long period of time;
2) People who have become alcoholics;
3) persons who have been involved in sexual abuses;
4) people who suffer from bipolar disorder after great anger or after having been
reprimanded in their working area or after being frightened and
5) people who suffer from vermis analosis of the cerebellum
after a vascular problem has occurred after having been treated for
hyperthyrodism with radio-active loading etc as also people who suffer from
Alzheimer’s disease.
Agaricus is one of the remedies for mania: See rubrics:
Audacity; Battles, talks of war; cheerful and foolish;
dancing grotesque; Delusion, is a great person; Delusion he is an officer;
Delusion converses with absent people; Delusion things grow smaller; Delusion,
under superhuman control; insanity with superhuman strength; mania with rage;
recognizes, does not his relatives. Here is an illustrative case.
