The homoeopaths are not always interested in the diseases of mind, though they follow Master Samuel Hahnemann who, we should not forget, largely and specially studied the cases of follies. His numerous disciples also, applied, to maniacs the principles of similitude and the law of infinitesimal doses. Particularly in the United States of America some health houses and some asylums have been reserved for the homoeopathic treatment of these states. Some valuable books have been written at the end of the last century, particularly of Butler (Mental diseases) and of Hart and Royal.
In France we are greatly indebted to an author who specially studied the mental syndromes and their homoeopathic treatment. He is Father Gallavardin whose works are to be read with interest.
Unfortunately in every country the homoeopathic clinic is at variance with the therapeutics, excepting in France; since some years we are trying to unite in our instructions these two branches of medicine. In a general way, either the doctors are specialists and clinicians, in this case they neglect homoeopathy of which they have only a superficial knowledge or it is the therapeutists, faithful to Hahnemannians, who neglect the science of pathology and the diagnostic precision.
It is time to build branch of medicine a durable homoeopathic work without sectarism. We will come to it when we will have among us sufficient elements of quality, and specialists knowing the depth of their technique, who are capable enough to understand and to teach the Materia Medica.
Fortunately the repertories and the pathogenesis contain sufficiently, symptoms of psychic order for which it is possible to apply homoeopathy in many cases; small mental syndromes associated or not to a vago-sympathetic disequilibrium, psycho- neurosis, and even psychopathies.
A SO FAR AS SMALL MENTAL SYNDROMES ASSOCIATED OR NOT TO A VAGO-SYMPATHETIC DISEQUILIBRIUM ARE CONCERNED they are easily ameliorated by a well conducted homoeopathic treatment, on condition it is well individualised from the clinical point of view. I will say nothing about the services that I owe to the excellent works of M. Laignel Lavestine that has given me a very clear view of these states as well as on psychoneurosis. How sure and easy it is to treat well the patient, not only after having sought for the similimum, but rather after having understood and classified his conditions in pathological order.
In practice the REMEDY OF CONSTITUTION OR OF MORBID TREATMENT IS THAT WHICH HABITUALLY COVERS THE MENTAL SYMPTOMS, the satellite, the functional remedies or the remedies of drainage will have for their actions to fix by their local elective action the effects of the constitutional medicines or better canalise these effects, according to the fortunate experience of Dr. A. Nebel or rather to DEGRADE THE INTERNAL MORBID ENERGY, to drain on the energetic as well as on the material sphere.
One can observe unceasingly these numerous patients in series in our times of tormented and restless activity. Anxious-The Aconite type which has an indescribable fear, fear death during the least disease.
Agitated.- Type of Argentum nitricum who is in an unceasing, haste who is always afraid of being late, time passes very slowly for him.
Spasmodics._Type of Cimicifuga, who has cramps of all sorts, and spasms (specially of long muscles), who has a sensation of having mists around his head that confuses his ideas, as if micelants or small animals walking over his body, or the type of Moschus, whose spasms are extreme and violent.
Nervous: Gelsemium. Students in course of their examinations, singers, actors, lectures, etc….
Irritable.- Nux vomica, Ignatia, Lycopodium etc…
Choleric.-This type is suitable to Colocynth or Chamomilla or Stramonium.
Capricious.- Chamomilla.
Wicked and Haranguous- Cina with worm symptoms, Stramonium a seeker of doing wrongs.
Sexual excess-Type of Lachesis and Hyoscyamus.
Sulky-Sepia. I remember how Sepia has cured a husband who periodically pouted at his wife and children remaining during three weeks in a scowling mood and mute. A dose of Sepia that the patient took without his knowledge in a pot of milk, stopped the access in two or three days.
For all these mental syndromes the materia medica is rich with gems that have shown their utility. The difficulties lie in the doses to chose and their repetition (thus Aconite in low potencies does not act in chronic cases but 30th centesimal of Korsakow and Higher). In most of the chronic cases it is necessary to give high potencies. On the contrary, it is necessary to give lower potencies repeatedly in the acute cases.
Bernoville was a major lecturer in homeopathy, and he was active in Liga Medicorum Homeopathica Internationalis, and a founder of the le Syndicat national des médecins homœopathes français in 1932, and a member of the French Society of Homeopathy, and the Society of Homeopathy in the Rhone.
Fortier-Bernoville wrote several books, including Une etude sur Phosphorus (1930), L'Homoeopathie en Medecine Infantile (1931), his best known Comment guerir par l'Homoeopathie (1929, 1937), and an interesting work on iridology, Introduction a l'etude de l'Iridologie (1932).
With Louis-Alcime Rousseau, he wrote several booklets, including Diseases of Respiratory and Digestive Systems of Children, Diabetes Mellitus, Chronic Rheumatism, treatment of hay fever (1929), The importance of chemistry and toxicology in the indications of Phosphorus (1931), and Homeopathic Medicine for Children (1931). He also wrote several short pamphlets, including What We Must Not Do in Homoeopathy, which discusses the logistics of drainage and how to avoid aggravations.
He was an opponent of Kentian homeopathy and a proponent of drainage and artificial phylectenular autotherapy as well.