By Joette Calabrese, HMC, CCH, RSHom (Na)
One of the most important homeopathic remedies for an annoying cough is Ipecacuanha 30, also briefly ‘Ipecac 30’.
In the current cold season the cough is at the forefront, and almost daily clients and students contact me who are plagued by a very persistent cough and an urge to gag. The frustrating thing about this cough is that it does not show consistently the same symptoms, but appears very variably over the course of the day.
Early in the morning the cough is still productive, because mucus has accumulated during the night and is expectorated after waking. By the evening the cough becomes dry and harsh. The question whether the cough is dry or mucous and productive thus seems justified. Do you already call it a choking cough if the coughing fits only occur in the morning but not in the afternoon? For beginners, homeopathy can sometimes be confusing, but with a little practice it is easy to find out which symptoms to watch for and which remedy fits.
I will try to simplify matters.
The most important remedy for treating an annoying, choking cough with a gagging urge is Ipecacuanha C30, also called ‘Ipecac C30’.
Unfortunately this remedy is often overlooked because most patients do not have the typical gagging cough constantly all day long. I want to make it clear here that not all symptoms must always be present to justify the use of a homeopathic remedy. Look for the key symptoms that are typical for a remedy — in this case ‘annoying’ and ‘choking, gagging’.
It is important to mention that this also applies to dry coughing fits that leave very little time to take a breath in between.
If the coughing fits, for example, are very severe in the morning and you feel a gagging urge, you should always think of Ipecac C30. If the urge to vomit is dominant as well, you can safely take the remedy immediately.
But what if the gagging urge diminishes over the course of the day? Even if the symptom only occurs at a certain time of day, you should consider Ipecac. Over the day you may notice that there are pauses between the coughing fits, but these are usually only short. That too can be described as annoying and points to Ipecac. Coughing fits that leave very little time to breathe and are accompanied by a gagging urge are a dead-cert indicator for this remedy. Stay alert and observe your symptoms carefully.
Of course there are other remedies for cough. For a very mucous, productive cough or for whooping cough, Drosera C30 is often the indicated remedy. Coughs that sound as if a saw is cutting through wood respond well to Spongia C30. Hepar sulphuris C30 often helps with coughs that do not fall into any specific category, or when all other remedies fail.
Once you have selected the appropriate remedy, you should administer it at least four times and observe carefully what happens. If the patient’s condition improves during or shortly after taking it, you can be confident you chose the right remedy. Keep at it! For a stubborn cough you can take the remedy 2–3 times daily. For very severe coughing it can be given every three hours. Continue taking the remedy until the cough stops.
If nothing changes after taking the pellets, you should reassess your ‘case’ and look for a different remedy. Remember to document everything, including date, time, symptoms and remedy. I assure you that otherwise you will get confused and will no longer know which pellets you gave when — unless, of course, you have an exceptionally good memory.
Be sure to keep in mind that the aim is not to mask symptoms, but to tackle the disease at its roots and to avoid antibiotics and cortisone as far as possible. Every time you manage to avoid drugs, you move a step further on your path to self-determined health — without drugs, without chemicals and completely naturally.
With a little skill and powers of observation you will quickly become the heroine of the family. And when your children then excitedly tell you that the cough is gone, you can confidently take the opportunity to have them help out around the house again.
Photos: Shutterstock:Man Coughing_171525560 © image Point Fr
Category: Cases
Keywords: Cough, Cold, Gagging cough
Remedy: Ipecacuanha, short: Ipecac
