Another phase of depression may be that in which the patient dwells on religious matters and despairs of salvation. This occurs even in earnest Christian people after much mental strain (in whom it is probably temporary), or in elderly people with lessening mental powers or where degenerative changes are going on after cerebral thrombosis or slight haemorrhage. In the prematurely old progressive loss of memory may end in dementia; a favorable environment with anacardium as a remedy may do much to retard the downward trend.
Kent, in his valuable Materia Medica, describes the cases of patients with double personality, or being controlled by conflicting wills, or those with illusions progressing to hallucinations and delusions and suspicions. Moral cowardice and loss of moral feeling, sullenness and sulkiness and mental states due to or aggravated by excitement, fright or mortification, he regards as calling for anacardium.
The drug certainly deserves more extensive employment in mental cases and neuroses.
Digestive disturbances with the modalities mentioned especially relief from eating and pain or gastric distress when the stomach is empty-are met by this remedy. Cases of hyperchlorhydria and duodenal ulcer or irritation may require it. The features recorded on p. 139 concerning the abdominal symptoms should be re-read. Some of these may act as a contributing physical basis for mental conditions, and if present would form a strong confirmatory indication for anacardium.
Head-Headache, too, may be associated with either the mental or digestive symptoms. Heat of the head and unilateral pain, especially right-sided, occurring chiefly in the mornings and worse during motion and bending the head back are characteristic; also pain in the right temple and over the eye, relieved by strong pressure. Giddiness on stooping or when walking is also complained of.
The skin lesions resemble erysipelas-redness, burning, swelling and itching are strikingly produced. Later, a condition somewhat like impetigo arises. Various concomitants of such a condition-sleeplessness, various neuralgic pains, indigestion, disturbance of the bowels-may be reproduced in the drug. Its use has been extended even to leprosy, with apparently some useful palliative results. It is an antidote to rhus poisoning.
Sleep.-Some specific disturbances of sleep, quite independent of skin irritation, have been recorded; reference is made to these on p. 139. The dream picture is striking.
Fever.-Chilliness and feverishness seem to be mainly associated with skin lesions.
Genito-urinary conditions include frequent or constant desire to micturate symptoms of the drug accord well with those due to over-stimulation of the generative organs, natural or artificial; nocturnal emissions occur, and escape of prostatic fluid on straining at stool.
Other symptoms which may call for the drug are: coryza, ocular symptoms such as photophobia or a halo round the light; toothache.
LEADING INDICATIONS.
(1) The mental symptoms, including sudden loss of memory, especially for recent events.
(2) Dermatitis, resembling that produced by rhus and primula obconica.
(3) Duodenal “dyspepsia” with conspicuous relief from food.
(4) Headaches, especially with a similar modality, and worse from movement.
(5) a symptom noticed in many parts of the body is that of a constricting band, or a pressure inwards as by a blunt instrument or “plug.”
(6) Pains in limbs when sitting, worse on rising and slightest movement or setting the foot on the ground.
(7) Restlessness in legs when sitting, relieved by walking.
(8) sensitiveness to cold and draughts.
AGGRAVATION :
Morning (mental, head and urinary symptoms), bending head backwards (headache), walking (headache and limbs).
AMELIORATION :
Eating (stomach, cough and head symptoms), warmth, walking (restlessness).
Edwin Awdas Neatby founded the Missionary School of Homeopathy and the London Homeopathic Hospital in 1903, and run by the British Homeopathic Association. He died in East Grinstead, Sussex, on the 1st December 1933. Edwin Awdas Neatby wrote The place of operation in the treatment of uterine fibroids, Modern developments in medicine, Pleural effusions in children, Manual of Homoeo Therapeutics,
Comments are closed.