General Action
This substance formerly had considerable reputation as a remedy for various “nervous” complaints, but of late it has been used very little. The provings seem to show that its old reputation was well founded.
Generalities
Tearing pains, especially in the joints, mostly one-sided. Cramps and twitchings of muscles. Feeling of numbness all over in the morning. Useful for old persons, or for sickly-looking people. The symptoms arise during sleep and are (>) by rising. Relief on slowly moving in the open air and on lying on the painful part.
Mind
Difficult to think or understand. Vivid fancies which cannot be got rid of. Melancholia. Especially nervous in the presence of strangers.
Head
Rush of blood to the head. Vertigo in the open air, with weakness. Tearing pains. Dread of becoming crazy from headache (“every other day,” Boenninghausen). The hair falls out and the scalp is sensitive on touching the hair.
Eyes
Pains as if the eyes had been too tightly closed.
Ears
Roaring and whistling; one-sided deafness.
Nose
Epistaxis, mornings in bed, or during the menses.
Face
Jaundiced hue. Flushes of heat. Spasmodic tremblings and twitchings of the muscles of the face and lips.
Teeth
Tearing toothache (probably neuralgic), shifting about, aggravated by warmth, ameliorated by cold (compare coffea). Bleeding of the gums.
Mouth
Great dryness and insensibility, especially in the morning on waking. Fetor from the mouth (Painful swellings under the tongue. Ranula, B.).
Throat
Secretion and hawking of gray mucus, with a sensation of scraping, and also at times retching and vomiting. Sore throat after a draft, with shooting into the right ear. Tickling causes a cough.
Stomach
Convulsive eructations, sometimes sour, usually tasteless and gaseous. (Aggravated from milk.) Violent hiccough from emotional causes.
Abdomen
Internal coldness, especially one-sided. Flatulent distention after every meal. Pain in the hepatic region, ameliorated by lying on it.
Anus and Stool
Itching and crawling in the anus and rectum. Ineffectual urging to stool, aggravated by presence of people. Constipation. Blood with a stool, that may not be hard.
Urinary Organs
Frequent micturition at night, urine copious. Urine turbid, sediment brown, odor sour.
Sexual Organs
Excessive itching and even burning of external parts, particularly of women. Erections with numbness. Heat and soreness of vagina; labia swollen. Menses too early and profuse, with labor-like pains. Disposition to haemorrhage between the periods from slight causes, mental or physical. During pregnancy numerous nervous reflexes; hiccough, bloated abdomen, pruritus vulvae, cough, etc.
Respiratory
Spasmodic, dry cough, accompanied by violent eructations or hiccough. Cough at night from tickling in the throat. Hoarseness, caused by an accumulation of gray mucus in the larynx. Respiratory oppression in chest and back. Asthma, in nervous women or old men, wheezing, palpitation and precordial oppression.
Extremities
The arms feel heavy, as if paralyzed, they “fall asleep” easily, especially when lying on them; articles drop from the hands. The legs also get numb and heavy. Pains through the arms like hot irons. (The tips of the fingers shrivel.) Cramps in the calves. Burning in the soles.
Skin
Skin (and mucous membranes) inclined to be dry. Itching and burning, without evident cause (nervous).
Sleep
Restless, disturbed by dreams, by twitchings; nervous chills.
Chill and Fever
Frequent chilliness. Febrile flushes or simple flushes of heat, without rise of temperature. Sweat of one side (the one affected). Sweat on abdomen, on thighs. Sweat after midnight.
Born in 1837in Westminster, Vermont. . He was an orthodox doctor who converted to homeopathy
Dr. Allen compiled the Encyclopedia of Pure Materia Medica over the course of 10 years.
In 1881 Allen published A Critical Revision of the Encyclopedia of Pure Materia Medica.