INHERITANCE – HABITS
Inheritance plays a very important part in the make-up of our patients. Therefore, it is very essential when taking the case that we should go very thoroughly into the family history. Should the patient say that his parents died of heart disease, find out from the accompanying symptoms the condition of the heart by asking whether the patient died suddenly or had been ill for years. Find out whether the patient had dropsy, swelling of the feet and legs; find out whether there was difficulty in breathing caused by exertion; find out whether there was inability to sleep lying down, etc. I am going to use a few illustrations to show the effects of heredity.
Case I. I have known four generations of women, everyone of whom suffered from dysmenorrhoea-a girl of sixteen, her mother of thirty-six, her grandmother of fifty-four, her great-grandmother of seventy-two and her great-great-grandmother of ninety-two. The grand mother, mother and daughter were all materially improved by Viburnum op., the daughter most, the grandmother least. I believe the use of Viburnum on the daughter will so act that her children, should she have daughter, may be wholly free from dysmenorrhoea.
Case II. I have known four generation of women of the same family, every one of whom suffered from a “menstrual sick headache.” There generations of these were helped by Sanguinaria. The degree of relief being in the same order as the case above, I have come to look upon Viburnum and Sanguinaria as constitution remedies.
