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I visited C.M., a 44-year-old man, at his home; because of his poor condition he could not come to me. This was in September 2007. He had been diagnosed with Menière's disease and suffered attacks of extreme rotary vertigo that left him very weak. Each time he collapsed with violent vomiting and diarrhoea, which lasted about an hour and a half. Initially he had four attacks a week. Now the attacks are less frequent, about once a week. He takes Gravol (a travel-sickness remedy) when he feels a particular sensation in his stomach — his 'warning sign'. For two years he has had tinnitus with ringing and a sound like the noise of surf in his ears, with about 25% hearing loss in the right ear. His Eustachian tube had already collapsed on a flight five years earlier.
My first impression of him was that I wondered whether he had drunk a lot of coffee — he seemed very agitated, spoke quickly, and apparently his mind was working very fast and producing lots of ideas. He immediately told me that he was the boss of several companies and that he plays football very well, but that he had to restrict all his activities and his social life because of his illness.
C.M.: "It paralyses me completely. It affects my lifestyle, I have to stay at home, I can't go anywhere and can't do what I want. It's because of the unpredictability. It even happened in the theatre, it can happen anywhere." |
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I occupy myself with many things. On a normal day I read a lot; I read the whole magazine The Economist from cover to cover, I devour the information. I'm a perpetual entrepreneur. I like to initiate projects, less to keep them running afterwards. How things then work — I don't care, I find that boring ... banal. If I can't learn or do something interesting, I'm dissatisfied."
I worked as an auditor, which I found incredibly boring, I want to sharpen my mind. Business is far too theoretical and abstract for me. Football is both for the body and for the brain, it's like playing chess at 1,000 miles per hour; you feel intellectually stimulated. I read books on the theory of football and link football to globalisation. It's spontaneous, like jazz. I'm interested in health, prosperity and self-determination ... making myself happy, things that bring me joy. Social status matters little to me. I'm an easy-going boss, I let people work at home. I don't like authoritarian posturing."
C.M. describes his family life as happy and has a good relationship with his family and with his wife, who is also independent and high-achieving. They have no children.
He has a strong craving for sugar and chocolate, but tries to follow a healthy diet with little salt and lots of vegetables and fruit. He likes smoothies. He feels heat and is often restless at night. He likes coffee, but can only drink one cup a day.
He feels better when he keeps very still, because even moving his head leads to a feeling of imbalance and dizziness.
He has little anxiety or worry; he describes himself as "fearless", but he does not want to fail or disappoint others.
He had received some acupuncture treatments, which somewhat reduced the frequency of the attacks, but he discontinued the treatment. He also rejected the recommendation to practise meditation or yoga; he said: "That's stinking boring!"
Rubrics (MacRepertory)
Mind and disposition, agitation, as after coffee
Mind and disposition, ideas, manifold
Mind and disposition, theorising
Vertigo, rotary vertigo, as if turning in a circle
Vertigo, with vomiting
Vertigo, Menière's disease
Vertigo with tendency to fall
Hearing, of noises, with vertigo
General, eating and drinking, craving for sugar and sweets,
The remedies I compared were: Chinin sulfuricum, Sulphur, China, Crotalus horridus, Phosphorus, Theridion and Cocculus.
I looked up China officinalis, which covers many of his symptoms. C.M. seems to fit Sankaran's description of the malaria miasm and the sensation of China well: "His mind is full of many plans, but he feels trapped in a situation in which he cannot carry any of them out, and moreover he sometimes suffers from attacks." (Insights into the Plant Kingdom, Vol. II, p. 477).
Yet he also shows characteristics more fitting Sulphur, e.g. his enjoyment of abstract theories, and how he links topics such as football and globalisation; added to this are a certain boastfulness, his aversion to authority and his self-focus. |
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the words: "Playing chess at a thousand miles per hour"; that captures exactly the qualities of Chininum sulfuricum!
Prescription: Chininum sulfuricum C 200, a single dose.
Follow-ups
One month later he reported he felt somewhat better. No severe attacks had occurred, and since taking the remedy he had not needed Gravol. He had done a stress test and was somewhat concerned about the health of his heart. Occasionally he had pains in his left shoulder. Sometimes he experienced slight balance disturbances, which were particularly noticeable when walking in the dark.
Two months later he came to my practice for a follow-up. A flight to Italy, where he had visited his family, had been completed without any problems. He plays football again and goes out. He says he feels much better; only occasionally does he still have "balance disturbances". His sleep has improved. The unpleasant sensation in his stomach has gone — the feeling that had been a warning signal for him. If he had not then taken Gravol, it would soon have led to vomiting. Now he has neither stomach symptoms nor needs Gravol. He is now working out which project causes him the most stress. He is very pleased with his progress.
One year later we had a short telephone conversation. He said he was well and had had no recurrence of the symptoms.
In 2011 I called him to ask permission to publish this article. He said: "Of course! I am still doing excellently!"
He never needed a repeat dose of his remedy. |
