Learning from the Stones: an Amethyst Halyard

Case: The patient is an eight-year-old fair-haired boy who blinks his eyes conspicuously often.

Physical: He was a "crying baby"; even sleeping for ten minutes was a lot for him. From the fifth week of life he suffered from cow's milk allergy and eczema on the face, later also on the arms, legs and abdomen. As a baby he had two acute allergic attacks. From birth he reacts hypersensitively to stimuli. He tends to strong physical reactions and usually has either constipation or diarrhoea. The rash sometimes remains quiet, but is often infected and purulent. He frequently has bronchitis with shortness of breath and wheezing and then coughs for weeks. He is prone to ear infections; the infections start suddenly; they are severe and accompanied by high fever.

Pregnancy: he was originally one of identical twins, but after nine weeks of pregnancy the other twin died. His mother feared a premature birth. She knew it would be a difficult time, but that in the end everything would be fine. She has a good relationship with her son.

Psychological: Due to his behavioural disorders ((2) PDD-NOS with ADHD) he attends a special school. He feels insecure with other children and crawls under his mother's jumper. If you ask him something, he does not answer. As a toddler he could only look at his mother; looking at others is still a problem for him. He has difficulty with changes, for example with new clothes. He feels his clothes every day to see whether he can put them on; they must be soft enough for him to wear them. Before going on holiday with them, he lies on the floor and asks: "And what if we run out of petrol? Is there enough oil in the car?" He needs to be reassured.

Dreams: He tells one dream after another: he is chased by a monster with terrible teeth, he is followed by a black car and hides under a table or in an alley but is afraid the car will drive into the alley. He tells of round loudspeakers and car headlights that look like evil faces. He dreams of a rock cave and a stone monster that eats stones and tries to catch him - he locks himself in the toilet or hides behind a rock: "I need lots of places where I can hide!" Everything he says comes from deep within him. "I dare not sleep, because then I am nobody anymore. I have the feeling that I am not really here and not really alive. I hate it." At this moment the "stones" come to my mind and what I learned about stones from Alize Timmermann. I ask about his hobbies and he tells me that he simply collects everything; he is particularly crazy about special stones. He loves Irish music by Enya because it puts him into a trance. He loves flowers; his favourite flowers are poppies.

Character: He is highly sensitive and can express himself well, using both language and facial expressions. He is a quick thinker, at home he likes to show off, talks a lot and hates losing. He can give a lot of love and often talks about death. He is a perfectionist; nothing is good enough for him. He can also be wild and use aggressive language, yet at the same time is anxious: "I am afraid of water, afraid of sinking and drowning. I am afraid of lightning, of crowds, of losing control, and of noise."

Family background: control is very important to his father and paternal grandfather. They do not like being among people, they have an aversion to noises, yet they themselves speak very loudly. His grandfather was six years old when his father died and he was the only child to be sent away from his mother to an orphanage: he was "unwanted".

General: Difficulty falling asleep (takes the medication melatonin), but wakes again after a few hours and comes into his mother's bed. Prone to feeling cold. Perspires easily. Aversion to beans + +, tomatoes, beetroot, salt. Likes cauliflower, cheese (sauce), bread, sweets.

Acute / local: Cold sores. Nosebleeds with colds. Painful sinus catarrh. Hay fever. Recurrent otitis + + +, pneumonia, bronchitis, asthma. Frequent urination.

Gemstone themes: "Going deep". Enclosed, trapped, stuck. Numb, cannot feel his own needs and desires. Under pressure. Heaviness.

Outer impression: seems detached, distant, has presence. No boundaries, crosses others' boundaries and allows others to overstep his boundaries + + +. Clear, intelligent, strong, rational. Perfectionism.  

Amethyst themes: The fear of falling asleep. Feeling insecure, worse when away from home. Panic. Feeling of sensory overload (no boundaries). Fear of leaving the body. No boundaries when helping others, very helpful. Compassionate; confrontation is not avoided. They keep going on (no boundaries).

Amethyst themes in this case: Fear of falling asleep. Leaving the body: in trance (papaveracea). Fear of disappearing when he goes to sleep. Feels safe at home, insecure away from home. No boundaries, everything penetrates him.

Amethyst, traditional view: nervous disorders, headaches/migraine, diabetes, lung diseases, eye disorders, asthma, allergies, sleep disorders.

Amethyst proving by Barbara Seideneck
A-methystos means "not drunken".
Feeling of intoxication; detached feeling, excessive sensitivity to noises and smells, dreams of caves, dreams of overcrowded spaces, headaches, female symptoms; tingling and swelling in the extremities, eyes, nose (sinusitis), throat and stomach, sleep disturbances. Tester: "I don't want to look anyone in the eye."

Prescription: Amethyst 30K

Follow-up:
Soon after the first dose he changes: "I would now rather sleep in my own bed. I don't have such bad dreams any more." He is more relaxed and less panicky. Although at first he has more mucus in his nose and breathing is more difficult, the eczema improves dramatically.
After a year he has noticeably improved; he is clearer in his thinking, can concentrate better and say what he wants. He is no longer so compulsive, more self-confident and less panicky. Changes no longer cause him such great problems. Eye contact is no longer a problem. Swimming lessons do him good, and he is no longer afraid to bathe in the sea. Particularly remarkable is the fact that in the last year he has hardly been ill; if he gets a cold it clears up quickly. His skin is soft.

(1) Bernard of Clairvaux (1090–1153), abbot and founder of the Cistercian order

(2) PDD-NOS - Pervasive Developmental Disorder. In Germany the term "atypical autism" is used.

Photos: Wikimedia Commons
1. Black Forest, Kandern, Patricia Maché
2. Amethyst: Norsk (bokmål): Ametyst Geode; public domain; Juppi66
Category: Cases
Keywords: Dreams of stones, fear of falling asleep, of sinking, of disappearing, lack of boundaries, perfectionism
Remedy: Amethyst