His father is an allopathic physician of some repute and he tried his best to check the diarrhoea from the very beginning, without any appreciable lasting effect. So the boy was sent here for a change, under his maternal grandfathers care. During my professional career I have come across many cases suffering from eczema, etc., as the after-effects of vaccination, which is a veritable scourge of so-called civilized society and the more so as it is inflicted under a compulsory law, which is opposed to the natural birthright of freedom of all human beings. Although the excuse is offered that vaccination combats an evil, whereas in truth the real evil is the vaccination itself and the evils which it is capable of leaving in its wake.
I generally follow the principle of discontinuing or not repeating the medicine, as soon at it appears that reaction has commenced in the system. It is best not to interfere with the re- active stage. Although in some cases it is difficult to ascertain the duration of it, yet it is better to err on the right side and to be sure of the cessation of reaction. After the dose seems no longer to act, I either repeat it, or change the medicine according to the circumstances which are present.
A Peculiar Case.
In January, 1918, a gentleman, whose son had been cured by me of a scrofulous growth of the submaxillary and cervical glands, requested me to take up the case of a poor girl who was related to him and to treat her gratis. As the case was a peculiar and interesting one, I agreed to his proposal in order to observe what homoeopathic treatment could do for her. Although her age was nearly fourteen years, she did not have the sort of development peculiar to her age and common in this part of the country owing to the tropical climate. She grew tall, but that was all and nothing else. Her whole spine was very sensitive or even hypersensitive to touch. If any one of her playmates would touch this part with the finger or even in the event that she would touch herself by mistake, she would be seized with a kind of fit, the effects of which lasted for two or three days.
She had spasmodic fits or convulsions at first and was compelled to be in bed, being totally incapable of getting up and moving about as usual during the course of the attack. She could not even take her food and suffered from nausea and colic near the umbilical region. She could only swallow a small quantity of milk or water, though with difficulty. She complained of a burning sensation in her spine. The bowels did not move regularly, and she suffered from constipation. Appetite normal, could answer questions intelligently, although a little shy and modest. On suffering for two or three days from the effects of this spasmodic fit, she again rallied and would be able to attend to her business as usual.
She had creeping sensations all along the spine. As for the name of the diseased condition, it may be called spinal neurasthenia. At first I gave her a dose of agar musc. 200. After a few days she was taken with an attack owing to touch, though less in intensity, and after the fit was over she felt a sensation of a general bruised feeling, as if sore and shooting pains like electric shocks, here and there. A dose of actea racemosa, 200 was now given. On taking this dose, her pains subsided. After a few days she was again attacked with a fit, from the touch of a playmate, and accompanying this fit she had “fidgety feet,” burning along the whole of spinal column, stiffness and tension of neck, stool hard, dry, expelled with much pressure, etc.
Taking into consideration these symptoms, a dose of zinc-met. 200 was given. Some of the symptoms disappeared, but the burning sensation continued, together with some glands of the neck, which were indurated and painful. On the basis of these symptoms, a dose of carbo. animalis 200 was given. After the lapse of a few days, some symptoms appeared which indicated ignatia, which was given in the thirtieth potency, and coloc. 30 for cutting colic-like pain around the navel in the abdomen, > hard pressure and on bending double. On taking these medicines she got relief from the pain, etc. Again, after a convulsive attack, she was taken with violent colic pain in abdomen, as though it were drawn in by a string to the spine; > hard pressure, obstinate constipation, etc.; a few doses of plumbum 30 and 200 were given with marked effect.
After a few days and according to symptoms a few doses of calc. phos. 200 were given. The duration of the fit became shorter gradually and the intensity was much diminished, so much so that she became less susceptible to touch and was able to bear the effect of touch with impunity. Owing to hard pressure on the spine during play, instead of getting any kind of spasmodic fit in her extremities or spinal column, she now was taken with a kind of colic-like pain in her abdomen, together with burning pain, thirst for small quantities of water, restlessness, etc. A few doses of arsenicum 30 and 200 ameliorated her condition to a marked degree.
Her general condition now became much improved and the bowels moved regularly. After a lapse of a few months she had a slight convulsive fit from touch, and a dose of zincum 200 was given with effect. She felt better in every respect, but burning in the spine again appeared; a dose of tarentula 30 was now given in March, 1919. After taking this dose she did not come to me any more, having been under my treatment for fifteen months. During this time her susceptibility to touch o the spinal cord much diminished and she no longer was taken with any spasmodic or convulsive fits from this cause. The abdominal colic pain from touch was also gone and by and by the burning along the spine also came more seldom.
Croupous Diphtheria.
In 1919, in the dead of night during the middle of September, I was called to attend a little boy, aged nearly a year and a half, a grandson of a wealthy citizen here. I found him to be in a critical condition. He was gasping for breath, crying hoarsely and coughing. Temperature 103 or a little more. I learned from his aunt that the baby suddenly awoke with choking for breath and coughing. The saliva was stringy, and there was a membranous deposit. I gave him a few doses of kali, bich. 30, to be taken every half-hour until relief. After taking a few doses, he felt a little easier in his difficult breathing. In the morning, I found him to be in better condition. The ropy or stringy saliva, with membranous exudation or white fibrinous deposit, had much cleared off, but instead of these symptoms it was not discovered that the larynx and tonsils were inflamed and very sensitive to touch.
A few doses of hepar sulph. 30 were now given at definite intervals. On the following morning I observed that he was yawning frequently, with drowsiness; he started from sleep with cough, but with relief on drinking; there was rattling in the larynx when coughing. Tonsils still in an inflamed condition; swelling of the mucous membranes of fauces; swelling of the left submaxillary gland, etc. Bromium 30 was given at long intervals; the following morning he was much better; the inflammation had subsided, the breathing was much easier, but with a desire to uncover; would throw off the clothing, an abnormal appetite, etc.
Iodin 30, and afterwards a dose of sulphur 30 in the morning, much improved matters, except the cough, which was < at 4 A.M. and the peevish mood persisted, acid nit. 30 and 6x, a few doses was given. Cough now became < after sleep, worse on waking at night (general condition); left tonsil in an inflamed state, etc. Lachesis 30, one dose, was given, and he grew much better, the symptoms disappearing one by one. Loose green stools with much spluttering during passage of stool; cough rather dry; desires to drink mothers milk all the time; calc. phos. 12x Trit., a few doses, much improved him and he gained in weight.
Symptoms now were; Cough; green stool; throwing off the clothing; catarrh with thick, lumpy, whitish-yellow secretions; choking; tongue yellow, especially at the base; yellow discharge from ear, etc. Calc. sulph. 30, a few doses at long intervals, finished the cure. Although sulph. and calc. carb have < after washing or bathing or aversion to bathing, I have marked and clinically verified n some cases that patients requiring calc. sulph. feel rather better after bathing and want to bathe, owing to a sensation of internal heat.
Syphilitic Iritis.
Mr. S, a clerk in a local bank, age below forty, a few years ago contracted syphilis and had taken some mercurial preparation which had been applied both internally and externally. After a few months he developed a copper-coloured eruption on the face, hands, etc. with slow fever in the afternoon; temperature not above 100. No thirst, etc. At first acid nit. 6x, then the thirtieth, was given in the morning and evening for a few days. Eruption and fever disappeared; had to strain his eyes for hard clerical work and got Iritis, burning splinter-like pain. Acid nit. 30 and 200, a few doses, promptly relieved the pain.
