MENTAL HEALTH
In recent years there has been a considerable deterioration in the mental health of our people. Mental imbalance and insanity, partial or complete, present a difficult problem to our health organisations. It is well known to every careful observer that cases of insanity are steadily increasing in our country. Many insane persons, young and old, are seen wandering about the streets of our cities and towns and also in villages. The very sight of these unfortunate human beings causes a great distress in our minds. These wandering lunatics have forgotten their normal life and have entered into a world of their fancy.
Father, mother, sweet wife and dear children fail to excite the emotion of love in their minds. They walk about laughing, weeping, talking, complaining of imaginary wrongs done to them. If the disease is allowed time and opportunity spread, a great number of human beings may one day become wandering lunatics. The complete eradication of this frightful disease is possible if we can discover the real causes or the very source of this harmful malady. In this article we will try to trace the general causes of insanity and mental derangements as far as possible.
Influence of poverty: Poverty appears to be the chief cause of insanity and of various forms of mental ills of human life. The child born in a poor family does not receive suitable nourishment and nutritious diet for the proper development of health, both physical and mental. Child requires sufficient quantity of pure milk in the very first period of infancy. But unfortunately he does not get it. Even his mothers milk is insufficient and in many cases quite unsuitable for taking.
As the child grows in years he requires substantial diet for the development of his brain and physical health. But poor parents can not obtain such foods for the child. So for lack of good food and nourishment his mental and physical health suffers to a considerable degree. Moreover persons afflicted with poverty cannot live a peaceful life. Constant worries and anxieties dwell in his mind and allow him no rest or happiness. Thus unpleasant circumstances often become the cause of insanity.
Influence of syphilis and gonorrhoea: Persons who inherit syphilis or gonorrhoea or acquire them may suffer from insanity or from some forms of mental derangements. Syphilis and gonorrhoea are fruitful sources of insanity.
Influence of emotions: Sudden financial ruin has often caused grave forms of mental derangements. Disappointed love or great grief or suppressed grief should be considered responsible for many cases of insanity. Certain persons cannot bear insults and become insane when they get insulted. Disappointment in anything for which the person had the greatest craving becomes a powerful cause of insanity.
Suppressed eruptions: Suppression of eruption is another important source of insanity.
Ill-treated acute diseases: Some acute diseases such as typhoid (with brain symptoms), meningitis, etc. have often developed insanity when they were not properly treated.
Injury: Injury to brain is another cause of mental diseases.
Use of poisonous drugs.
Free use of poisonous drugs causes insanity. This should be considered more important source of insanity among the people especially in the modern world.
Heredity: It plays an important part in the production of insanity. It is well known fact and it requires no explanation.
Intestinal worms: Intestinal worms may be stated to be a prominent cause of insanity or some forms of mental derangements. Homoeopaths know well that typhoid fevers with irritation of brain have been caused by worms.
Other exciting causes of insanity.
(i) Catarrhal affections of the stomach.
(ii) Uterine troubles, mal-positions of uterus etc.
(ii) Climaxis
(iv) Neurasthenia
(v) Consequence of masturbation
(vi) Suppression or non-appearance of habitual discharges.
(vii) Drinking habit and use of narcotic substance.
(viii) Extreme heat and prolonged loss of sleep.
(ix) Excessive loss of vital fluid.
(x) Failures to obtain expected results, failures in examinations or in business matters.
(xi) Sudden shock.
Both the forms of insanity, inherited or acquired, may be excited by any of the above mentioned causes.
Homoeopathic treatment of the pregnant mother may often prevent the inherited form of insanity. Children who inherit the tendency to mental derangements may hope for a permanent cure if they are properly treated with Homoeopathic drugs for all the ills of infant life. Besides this, we recommend Homoeopathic medicines to be employed against the disease for the complete eradication of the ailment.
Homoeopathic Materia Medica is very rich in mental symptoms and for mental troubles our potentised drugs are really very formidable in action.
“A few such remedies (Verat. Alb.) would empty our insane asylums, especially of recent cases. Insanity is curable if there are no incurable results of disease”. Kent. GLEANINGS
1. Swelling of nose and upper lip in children : Calc-c
2. Snoring in children: Mez.
3. Coppery redness of nose: Can. Sat.
4. Coryza caused by cold winds: Aco. Rhus t.
5. Dry coryza, complete stoppage of nostrils: Nux-v. Sil.
6. Odors in nose like burnt hair: Sulph.
7. Very offensive smell from nose as of gunpowder: Calc-c.
8. Smell at night as of burnt hair mixed with vapor of sulphur: Graph.
9. Illusory smell, as of burning tinder in morning when rising : Anac.
10. Imaginary foul smells: Phos.
11. Itching of right side of nose: Fluor-ac.
12. Loss of smell with epilepsy: Plumb.
13. Loss of smell with catarrh: Puls.
14. Loud breathing through nose in tuberculosis: Calc-c.
15. Nose-bleed when washing face in morning: Am-c. Arn.
16. Fetid odor before nose: Plumb.
17. Odor as of blood in nose: Nux v, Psor, Sil.
18. Odor in nose as of tobacco: Puls.
19. Odor in nose as of manure: Calc-c., Mag-c, Anac.
20. Putrid odor in nose: Aur. Bell.
21. Odor (in nose) of smoke: Sulph.
22. Smell before nose like Sulphur: Nux-vom.
Calcutta