Skimmed Milk (cow’s). Dilution.
Clinical
Anemia. Appendicitis. Asthma. Bright’s disease. Constipation. Diabetes. Dropsy. Fainting spells. Headache. Heart, affections of. Lactation, defective. Leucorrhoea. Menses, suppressed. Obesity. Sciatica.
Characteristics
“The idea of potentizing *skimmed milk originated with Swan upon reading Donkin’s ‘Skim Milk Treatment for Diabetes and Bright’s disease.” The first proving was make by a lady in New York, in whose case the headache and nausea with constipation were strongly marked. A subsequent, more extensive proving was made under Swan by Dr. Laura Morgan.” I quote from Hering, who adds, that with but few exceptions the symptoms of the Schema have received clinical verification. The symptoms set up by milk in some sensitive persons, especially the violent headache and the constipation, are a matter of common knowledge, and it is in these affections that the remedy has especially distinguished itself. As milk contains within it an epitome of all the tissues and salts of the animal which secretes it, it is natural to expect of it a wide range of action in the attenuations. As *Natrum-mur. is a prominent ingredient, it is not surprising that symptoms of this are found in the pathogenesis, e.g., “thirst for large quantities, often,” “nausea and vomiting,” “depression with crying and palpitation.” The characteristic headaches of *Lac def. are: Periodic sick-headaches in anemic women, nausea, vomiting, and obstinate constipation. The symptoms which specially indicate it in diabetes are: Intense thirst, wasting. The menses are irregular, sometimes very dark, scanty, sometimes colourless water. *(Lac def. cured this case: Menses suppressed suddenly from putting hands into cold water. Great pain in uterine region. Intense headache. Pains fly all over. Flushed face. Patient slept after first dose, next morning slight flow appeared. Second dose brought back flow profusely, and patient felt well and the flow continued.) Nutrition is perverted. There is loss of weight, or else obesity. Dropsy. Fatty degeneration. Some peculiar sensations are: As though a knife was cutting up and down through the heart. As if head would burst. As if eyes full of little stones. As if top of head was lifted off. As if a ball of pain in center of forehead. As if flesh was off bones and edges were separated and sticking out. As if objects were tossed up from below in all directions. As if a large ball rose from lower end of sternum to upper end or esophagus. As if a stone in abdomen. As if sheets were damp. As if a cold air blowing on her. It may be well to recall in this last connection that milk is one of the articles forbidden to hydrogenoid or chilly patients. Burnett maintains that excess of milk in the dietary of children after they have cut their first teeth renders them susceptible to colds. There is periodicity in the symptoms: every eight days. Headache ceases at sunset. Most symptoms occur in the morning. Fever and prostration come on in afternoon. Putting hands into cold water causes suppression of menses. External heat does not better chilliness, worse pain in eyeball. Sensation as if cold water were blowing on her, even while covered up warm. No position better. Lying down worse vertigo, headache, urinary pain. Vertigo compels to sit up. Extending arms above head causes fainting spells. Motion worse all symptoms. Worse walking, worse sitting down, though ever so gently. Abdomen is sensitive to touch. Pressure round waist causes fainting spells. Pressure better pain in eyeball (pressures eyes into pillow), bandaging head lightly better pain. After injury subject to distress in head.
Relations
*Compare: Lac caninum, Lac coag., Lact-ac., Sacch. lac., Vaccine. (a cow nosode), Natrum mur. (diabetes, headache, constipation, heart), Coccul. (menstrual sick-headaches), Cact. (heart, but Lac d. has not the “grasp” of Cact.), Nux moschata (head heavy, tends to fall to left. Lac defloratum to right).
Causation
Injuries.
Mind
Loss of memory, listlessness, disinclination for bodily or mental exertion. Depression, does not care to live, questions as to quietest and most certain way of hastening one’s death. During conversation, headache and depression of spirits better. Depression with crying and palpitation (fainting spells). Imagines that all her friends will die and that she must go to a convent (fainting spells). Does not want to talk to any one. Can remember what has been read only by a strong effort of will. Vacillation of mind. Great despondency on account of the disease, is sure he is going to die in twenty-four hours, without fear of death.
Head
Vertigo: on moving head from pillow: worse lying down and especially turning while lying, obliging to sit up. Intense vertigo when opening eyes while lying, worse when rising up, objects appeared to move swiftly from left to right, at other times moving as if tossed up from below in every direction. Head feels heavy with marked tendency to fall to right Faintness and nausea when stepping upon floor in morning. Pain first in forehead, then extending to occiput, very intense, distracting and unbearable, great photophobia, even to light of candle, deathly sickness all over, with nausea and vomiting, worse by movement or sitting up, very chilly, and external heat does not better, frequent and profuse urination of very pale urine. After injury subject to distress in head, severe pain in forehead just above eyes, breath offensive, appetite poor, nausea, at times sleeps for hours during attack, great distress across back, urine dark and thick. Nausea and sometimes vomiting, which better, pain in forehead as if head would burst, with blindness, pain is better by bandaging head tightly, worse by light and noise, constipation, stools large, hands and feet cold (hemicrania). Headache: worse during menses, worse by speaking, alternating with tonsillitis. Throbbing frontal headache (over eyes), nausea, vomiting and obstinate constipation, especially in anemic women. Headache: with pains in eye, as if full of little stones, worse closing eyes, profuse urination. Dim vision, as of cloud before eyes, profuse urination, full feeling in head, slight nausea at pit of stomach, face pale, feet cold, coldness in back. Intense pain at point of exit of supraorbital nerve, diffused thence over forehead, attack commences with chill, quickened pulse, flushed face and discharges of wind from stomach. Severe headache, with a sensation as if top of head was lifted off, raised about five inches and brains were coming out, head feels hot, motion worse pain, face felt as if flesh was of bones and their edges were separated and sticking out. Pain first in forehead, extending through occiput, making her nearly frantic. In morning nausea and sensation of a round ball full of pain in center of forehead. Head feels large as if growing externally. Head heavy, falling to right side. General sore pain of head produced by coughing.
Eyes
Dim vision, can only see lights, not objects, preceding headache. Great photophobia, even candle light unbearable. Great pain in eyes on first going into light, soon passed off, on closing eyes on account of light, pain was felt in eyeballs as if from pressure of lids. On closing eyelids painful pressure as if lids were short laterally, causing sensation of band pressing upon balls. Upper eyelids feel very heavy, sleepy all day. Pain in head, most marked over left eye and in temple, extending into eyes, and causing profuse lachrymation.
Nose
Painful pressure or tightness at root of nose (catarrh).
Face
Deathly paleness of face. Sallow complexion with eczematous eruption. Flushes of heat in left side of face. Face, neck, arms and body generally flush colour of a red rose, with swelling, but no itching or burning. Sensation as if all flesh was off bones of face and edges were separated and sticking out. Pimples on face and forehead (irregular menses).
Teeth
Grinding of teeth when asleep, with pain in stomach and head with vomiting.
Mouth
Mouth very dry. Breath very offensive. Mouth clammy and frothy, especially during conversation.
Throat
Globus hystericus, sensation of a large ball rising from a point about lower end of sternum to upper end of oesophagus, causing distressing sense of suffocation. Sore throat worse when swallowing, slight, hacking cough.
Appetite
Entire loss of appetite. Great thirst for large quantities and often, intense thirst. Could not drink milk without its causing sick-headache.
Stomach
Sour eructation. Nausea: in morning, from a recumbent position at any time during day or evening, or on moving or rising in morning, deathly, cannot vomit, with groans and cries and great distress, great restlessness with sensation of coldness, although skin was hot, pulse was normal. Nausea and vomiting and a sensation of deathly sickness, worse from movement or rising up in bed. Vomiting first of undigested food, intensely acid, then of bitter water, and lastly of a brownish clot, which in water separated and looked like coffee grounds, no smell, bitter taste. Incessant vomiting, which had no relation to her meals. Violent pain in pit stomach, seldom lower brought on by fatigue. Much wind, and acid stomach no tenderness. Dyspepsia. Bloating in epigastric region, with attacks of asthma, he could scarcely breathe, hard pressive pain at about fourth cervical vertebra. Cramps in epigastric region.
