DIADEM SPIDER – PAPAL CROSS SPIDER – GARDEN SPIDER. (Aranea, spider.).
Introduction
The garden or state spider, with one long line and three cross lines in yellow on its back.
Hering says that Aranea was “used as a remedy by Wm. Gross as early as 1833, but not proved until later by Grauvogl, 1886”
Hering reverses the names of this remedy, so look for it under the letter D if you with to get his arrangement of the symptoms, pathogenetic and clinical.
Symptoms
The most characteristic features of this remedy are, the tendency to a periodic recurrence of the symptoms at exactly the same hour, the general tendency to coldness and the decided aggravation of the symptoms during cold-damp (9) or rainy weather (9).
It is a remedy that is especially adapted to those who cannot live in damp places or on the water, or for those whose troubles have arisen from so living.
A purely nervous symptoms has been reported as cured by Aranea, where a woman has a nightly sensation as if her hands and arms were enormously enlarged (72), so that she must strike a light before she can be convinced that it is not so.
The headache of Aranea is periodical and worse during damp or stormy weather (98). Any part of the head, forehead, vertex or occiput may be affected and relief from the pain may be had by smoking, provided, of course, that the patients has already acquired the habit.
Dr. von Grauvogl speaks of a restoration of health by means of this remedy, of a young woman who, for six years had severe headaches that were aggravated by talking or hearing others speak, and which were accompanied by vomiting.
The “headaches were always much more violent in damp weather than in dry, and, in fact, her general condition was aggravated at such times and especially all use of baths increased her sufferings” the headache, “even aside from considering the influence of the weather, was most violent in the afternoon or evening she constantly suffered from chilliness, hence the whole winter through was obliged to keep her room very warm, and even in summer had cold hands and feet” (Text-Book of Hom.).
The toothache of Aranea is also worse in damp weather (188) and “better by smoking” (Hering); it is periodic and is often found to be worse at night as soon as the patient gets into bed.
The cough of Aranea is caused by tickling in the throat and is worse at night on lying down (41).
In asthma (19) the patient is unable to lie down day or night (24), with “relief from smoking” (Lilienthal).
Many of our symptoms are purely clinical, the original choice of the remedy having been dependent upon one or more of the three characteristics of the remedy.
In the intermittent fever calling for Aranea all three characteristics are prominent.
The case is particularly a chronic one, or originated on getting wet or from living in a damp place, and the paroxysm is always worse during a rain or during cold and unsettled weather.
The attacks recur with great regularity as to the time of day and are quotidian or certain. Each attack consists mostly of coldness (121), cannot get warm, and the coldness lasts for a long time, perhaps for 24 hours; there is little or no fever following, and no sweat.
I use Aranea 3rd.
