The prescription of mineral combination remedies - a case of Natrium jodatum |
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It is not unusual, even for experienced homeopaths, to have difficulty choosing between several suitable mineral remedies. Besides knowledge of the individual elements, it is helpful to know which remedies are combinations of 2 or even 3 elements. In addition to the properties of the individual elements, a combination remedy has its own characteristics. We must be able to identify the various symptoms that characterise the remedy as a separate substance, independently of its individual components. One frequently prescribed remedy is Calcium phosphoricum, which contains the well-known aspects of Calcium carbonicum (desire for security and protection, bones, joints and teeth, theme of work and responsibility) and Phosphorus (longing for company and communication, fear of the dark and of being alone, respiratory problems, anxiety, sympathy for others, craving for cold drinks, heavy bleeding). Although each single remedy has its individual aspects, there are characteristic properties that occur exclusively in the combination remedy. Calcium phosphoricum, for example, has dissatisfaction, a desire to travel, craving for smoked meat, worsening during snowmelt, growing pains, headaches and abdominal pain. The following case shows an example where such a combination remedy was more successful than a remedy made from a single mineral. |
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F.K. is a 28‑year‑old patient with multiple sclerosis. She is a slim, dark‑haired young woman who wears thick glasses, and when she enters the practice she visibly limps. She initially appears self‑confident as she describes her struggle with multiple sclerosis and her anxiety. F.K. gradually relaxes while reporting that she is an art teacher and paints abstract pictures. She recently moved to teach at a local art school. This triggered an anxiety disorder that had originally begun at the age of 15, when her mother died of breast cancer. Her parents had been divorced for several years. Her father, who had remarried, told her that his new wife did not want her to live with them, and F.K. has since lived with her grandparents. |
She felt abandoned, very alone, and comforted herself with painting. In her unfulfilled desire to be loved, she began taking drugs and drinking alcohol to overcome her social anxieties and meet people. In her final year at high school F.K. was admitted to a drug treatment programme because of her substance abuse. She reports that she was closer to death than to life before she received help there. F.K. developed dizzy spells and visual disturbances and became increasingly anxious. She also had balance problems and felt hot, although her symptoms worsened in heat, and she craved fresh air. Obsessive thoughts arose in connection with the anxiety, which she could no longer get rid of, especially at night. Most of these thoughts concerned safety, the future and whether she could trust her new boyfriend. She had an immense fear of being abandoned, which created great insecurity. She could not trust that anyone loved her. She also feared that she might not be able to look after herself. Although she was very thin, F.K. reports that she had a huge appetite and particularly a craving for sugar, which she eats straight from the tin. She dreams that her boyfriend has left or cheated on her. She also had dreams in which she floats through the air. Key symptoms of the case: - Grief at the mother's death and abandonment by the father - Insecurity in relationships and fear of being alone in life; dreams that her boyfriend is unfaithful - Fear of seeking help to help herself - Anxiety and insomnia with obsessive thoughts - Multiple sclerosis; balance disturbances and dizziness as main symptoms - HOT, ravenous appetite, yet very thin - Family history includes relatives who survived the Holocaust 1 – Mind and disposition, complaints from the death of a parent 2 - Mind and disposition, fear of being alone 3 - Mind and disposition, delusion/dream, of floating in the air 4 - Generalities, warmth, sensation of 5 - Generalities, sclerosis, multiple 6 - Stomach, ravenous appetite with emaciation 7 - Extremities, clumsiness 8 - Extremities, shuffles feet when walking 9 - Generalities, weakness, heat 10 - Eyes, inflammation, optic nerve The remedies indicated from the repertorisation were: Natrium muriaticum, Phosphorus, Causticum and Argentum nitricum. F.K. had already received Natrium chloratum before her move, which helped initially, but after a while it stopped working. I looked for a remedy that covered the heat, the emaciation despite ravenous appetite and the obsessive thoughts. Iodine covers all these symptoms, and according to Jan Scholten Natrium jodatum has the feeling of being alone in its struggle for existence and in life. Prescription: One dose of Natrium jodatum C 200, then daily the C 6, until the symptoms improve. The remedy produced a dramatic improvement in the mental and emotional symptoms. F.K.'s anxieties receded and she can now fall asleep without obsessive thoughts. She and her boyfriend have developed a wonderful relationship and are engaged. F.K. has now gained enough self‑confidence to accept a permanent post as an art teacher at a larger university. Physically, the eye symptoms improved, her limp and balance disturbances diminished. When she applied for the new job six months later, which required a move to another city, her vulnerability returned and there was a relapse of all symptoms. The remedy was repeated twice at one‑month intervals in the C 200 potency during this time. She was accepted at the college of her choice and the symptoms subsided again. When I last heard from her six months after her move, she was about to be married and was coping well with her new situation. |
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Photo: Wikimedia Commons |
