Cases


The possibility of Homoeopathy in the treatment of mental diseases with some persons cases of Melancholy, Insanity, Delirium etc….


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.

Another difficulty to solve, on which we have never drawn attention, and that personally we have often REMARKED, IS THAT WE MUST TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE SENSE OF ACTION OF THE REMEDY. There are some centrifugal remedies and other centripetal, and most of them act in these two senses according to the selected potencies. Thus in an anxious and august patient Ignatia is centrifugal and ameliorates the psychical condition but aggravates sometimes the mental conditions in high dilutions, while Aconite and Causticum are centripetal and calm the mind. Cimicifuga is the most important of the remedies of spasms. It diminishes in all dilutions, which Ignatia or Lachesis often aggravate.

Another rule that I have formulated in my practice is this: FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF THE MIND AND IN THE ORDER OF NERVOUS AND SYMPATHETIC TROUBLES IT IS GOOD TO PRESCRIBE AT FIRST one or more “Simili”, before the “Simillimum” that may aggravates greatly and without durable benefit. This is one of the corollaries of the laws of drainage as formulated by A. Nebel.

B. PSYCHONEUROSIS: The homoeopathic treatment is easy to fix seems to give often very good results. I will repeat once more that on this ground one will find easily the relations between the Materia Medica and the clinic using the excellent book of M. Laignel Lavestine and his schema of method. It is out of this schema is derived what I apply on different spheres for the classifications of symptoms into seven divisions; Mental, nervous, sympathetic, humoral, endocrinal, visceral spheres and in the last, the sphere of outlets and of microscopic mechanical effects.

1. Hysteria: A good psychotherapy, the PERSUASION is the best treatment of hysteria or of pithiatism, for which one does no more apply the dangerous hypnotic method. One will take into account the habitual factor of MYTHOMANIA brought into light by Dr. Dupre’. But the homoeopathic remedies are capable of acting in association with psychotherapy in order to modify the ground and calm down the exacerbation of the vago-sympathetic system.

Ignatia, Moschus, Platina, Asafoetida are classic. One should add to them Cimicifuga, Aconite, Hyoscyamus, according to the case and for sexual excitement Murex, Origanum, Staphysagria. One should not forget the medicines that act on the ovary: Palladium, Apis (right), Platina, Ovi gallinae pellicula, Vespa crabro.

2. Neurasthenia: It requires a treatment of psychic and physical order habitually mixed together. It is much more than we think physically; it seems to us that the “tuberculinism” and neurotropic toxins or Coli-bacilli are frequently the basis of these neurasthenic conditions. In these cases the constant digestive troubles will be ameliorated by Thuja and Nux vomica.

On the other hand, psychotherapy, climatology and mental hygiene are necessary, but by the help of Homoeopathy we may get ameliorations or cures more rapid with some remedies such Natrum Muriaticum. Gelsemium. Sepia, Aurum met and above all Calcarea carbonica which possesses in its pathogenesis some symptoms such as indecision, indolence, symptoms that one may find in acute neurasthenia.

3. Psychaesthenia: The cases of “psychaesthenia: are the most deceiving and the most obstinate of all psychoneurosis. It is the question of a person apparently healthy and well doing who pretends that he can do no work. He thinks and is in fact, incapable of all occupations. His entourage is divided into two opinions; the one which is the greatest in number, makes him believe that he is idle, and advises him not to hear and not to move; others who have for him a tender affection, the mother and the wife, pity him, and persuade him to lead an idle life, of parasital order compatible with some sure material resources.

It should be admitted on seeing a case of psychasthenia that a whole career-the whole life depends on the cure or on the failure of the treatment. But the classical treatment is almost futile and it is the most simple mental hygiene, or all sorts of psychotherapy that, can cure him. Personally, I have had the good luck to obtain some ameliorations and even cures with Serum Anticolibacillary of Vincent in homoeopathic doses, in the 30th to 1000th dilutions of Korsakow.

The ground remedies are: Thuja, Natrum Muriaticum and Silicea; very often Silicea has seemed to me to be the remedy of patient whose psychaesthenic stage begins after a long and profound overwork at the end of secondary and in the beginning of the higher studies as it is very often seen. I am convinced that in these cases, after overwork and bad physical and mental hygiene the tuberculinism exists making room for the colibacillosis, of which the evolution is torpid. It is, therefore, necessary to act deeply to make the patient desensitise to Tuberculine and Collibacilline with Serum of Mermoreck, Spengler, T.K., Denys, Vaudremere and Anticolibacillary serum. It is again necessary to remineralise the patient with the three Calcareas, Silicea and some extracts of cereals diluted or in gross form.

Mauritius Fortier-Bernoville
Mauritius (Maurice) Fortier Bernoville 1896 – 1939 MD was a French orthodox physician who converted to homeopathy to become the Chief editor of L’Homeopathie Moderne (founded in 1932; ceased publication in 1940), one of the founders of the Laboratoire Homeopathiques Modernes, and the founder of the Institut National Homeopathique Francais.

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.