I consider a chlamydial infection to be an acute illness, although it often produces no symptoms at first and can persist subclinically and symptomlessly for years. It can take years for chronic problems to develop.
I began to consider the remedy when I visited my sister in the last weeks of her life. Her diagnosis was Chlamydia trachomatis in the lungs. I was surprised by this and realised that an interstitial organism, although most often sexually transmitted, can realistically end up anywhere in the body. We should also recognise that an STI can become established in any tissue that is near the infected area, which would include pretty much any body opening – and any body site to which that opening leads. Combined with the notion that in a sexual relationship it is as if everyone has sex with everyone their partner has ever had sex with (especially when we know that treatment with antibiotics does NOT work), it is almost a wonder that we ever free ourselves from such diseases. This view supports Hahnemann's understanding of gonorrhoeal and syphilitic afflictions.
Here are the symptoms I have observed:
- Feeling of disappearing. Patients may even say they feel as if they do not exist or are disappearing. In a long-standing chronic case where my patient was in a very anxious state (almost a panic), the feeling of being eaten alive or consumed occurred, which dissolved with the remedy.
- Tick sensations. Patients may even report feeling like a tick, or that they fear ticks and Lyme disease (this, in my experience, they share with Staphisagria). There can also be expressions about sucking blood or bleeding.
- Sensation of a membrane. This may be expressed as a feeling that they are on the outside looking in, or that they are separated by something, as if trying to look through something or to penetrate some kind of shell or membrane.
- Not knowing what or how to say it. At a loss for words. Patients may say to you: "I don't know how to express it. I can't describe it."
- Lower back pain, which in women may be accompanied by pelvic symptoms, and in men by a feeling of 'pulling' on the spermatic cord or testicle. I would not hesitate to give this remedy for pelvic inflammations or cancers of the reproductive organs.
- Swelling of the meninges, especially at the base at the back of the neck or near the fontanelle, particularly in times of increased stress. Headaches at the base of the skull.
Vague or indistinct symptomatology. The remedy is known for communication problems, and I believe this manifests as unclear symptoms in chronic illnesses. In three cases (including my own) well-chosen remedies initially failed but worked well after this nosode was given.
When I observe combinations of these symptoms, I give the remedy. If I consider the disease state acute, I sometimes give a constitutional remedy immediately after the nosode, depending on the reactions I observe in the patient.
I use the patient's energy level and anxiety as a guide for choosing the potency. I have prescribed the nosode in C 30 and in C 200, and in 1M I have used it in four cases with extremely acute anxiety states and hypervigilance with a strong feeling of disappearing. In one case I suspected the need already on the phone, so I took it with me to the home visit. I then gave it, and within one to two minutes the patient responded with a deep breath and reached a state of calm she had not experienced for years.
Case studies
Case 1: A 47-year-old man with a history of gonorrhoea (1986), great anxiety about conspiracy theories and suicidal thoughts ("the government wants to suck people dry as much as it can!") complains of unbearable lower back pain and pain in the pelvic area. He can neither move his back nor his neck, has difficulty bending, and also has the sensation of a pull on the spermatic cord when he tries to turn or bend. Fits of rage with confused ideas. He is losing strength. He cannot tolerate heat. He likes to fight and says he is very competitive. He cries when reporting his symptoms and says that his thoughts constantly circle in his head. The severe intensity of his symptoms indicated 1M.
He is given Medorrhinum 1M, which reduces the "ruminating thoughts" in his head, but it produces no change in the physical pain and stiffness. No one listens to him. The patient has difficulty sitting still; he must get up repeatedly and tries to stretch. (I have truly never seen anyone with such severe pain!). I give him Chlamydia 1M. Two weeks later the patient calls and says: "You saved my life! I was about to disappear from this life." After four weeks the patient is much calmer and has less pain. He can sit for longer periods without feeling driven off the chair.
Case 2: 42-year-old woman, with a history of gonorrhoea (1996), childhood sexual abuse with forced intercourse. During the history-taking she remains outwardly calm. Complaints attributed to Lyme disease, treated allopathically for "chronic Lyme disease" (with negative labs). Short-term improvement of symptoms on the conventional medications, but she had to continue taking ever stronger drugs to achieve symptom relief. She begins to experience side effects from the medications. No energy. Slight swelling in the neck. Weakness in the extremities, joint pains, long-term menstrual problems / repeated pelvic inflammatory episodes which eventually led to a hysterectomy. Chlamydia C 200, followed by Medorrhinum C 200 (reason: based on experience with previous cases, when there is an obvious need for the Chlamydia nosode I now give it first to "avoid communication problems with other remedies").
Three weeks later the patient reports that she has left her spouse. She is reorganising her life and has begun a new relationship. |
Case 4: 73-year-old woman, long-standing chronic complaints in her history, pelvic inflammations, lack of energy, dull headaches. Her husband has been cheating on her for 30 years. She is afraid she has Lyme disease. Does not know what she still can say. These people cannot communicate well. (I observed that she had a lot of anger pent up inside, but was unable to express it. Intense body language). I began treatment with Chlamydia trachomatis C 200. After four weeks the patient is much less anxious and finds that she has not been sufficiently engaged in her own life, as if she had been isolated or had disappeared without knowing it. The patient can now communicate better. She reports warmth in the chest after taking the remedy and can now breathe more easily. Communication with her husband is now less problematic for her.
Case 5: 51-year-old woman with communication difficulties; she does not know what to say or how to describe what she feels. Overweight, pelvic inflammations, swelling at the back of the head and neck, joint stiffness, problems due to a knee injury. Easily tired and short of breath. She receives Chlamydia C 200 to open the case. The patient reports that she took the remedy before driving to work. In the car she noticed warmth in the chest and a feeling as if she could breathe more easily. She had been worried about an upcoming meeting at work and wondered what to say and how to express herself, but suddenly felt that it would not be a problem, and she was already considerably less anxious when she arrived at her workplace.
Case 6: 38-year-old woman, very anxious and in extreme pain. She says she is sure she has Lyme disease. In childhood she suffered rape and other abuse. She cannot speak without touching the other person or getting very close. She blushes when she speaks about her history. "I am disappearing." During the consultation I give Chlamydia 1M. Within less than a minute the patient becomes visibly calmer, less agitated, less clingy and says: "Wow! Oh, that's lovely. I feel so calm now and no longer consumed by fear!"
Each of these cases was further treated with other remedies. The nosode is very effective when the patient shows an inability to communicate and has the feeling of disappearing or being eaten, combined with the physical symptoms of a chlamydial infection. I have never used more than one dose successfully – it seems to act very quickly and acutely, often resulting in immediate relief of symptoms and clearing the way for the patient's underlying condition to emerge with more clarity. |
