Archive for the ‘Case Studies’ Category

This 27 year young woman with a doctorate in Pharmacology consulted me in October 2004 with a complaint of migraines which had started about 1 year back, a few months after she was married. The migraines attacked her at least 2-3 times a month with each episode lasting 2 days even with analgesics. The headache was concentrated in the right occipital region and when severe, it would radiate to the front. The pulsating pain was brought on by even 5 minutes in the sun, by skipping meals, stress, noise and often by rich, oily food. The pain would get worse after an afternoon nap and was also worse on holidays if she overslept. Movements of the head and jarring aggravated her. She got some relief by hard pressure and by oiling her hair. She mentioned that she always felt a sensation of heat and swelling of the right side of her face along with the headache.

Her job is a rather stressful one and she has a lot of responsibility to handle along with long hours of work. Her mother suffered from osteoarthritis of the knees and her father had undergone an angioplasty.

She had a good appetite and thirst. She disliked sweet things and meat and loved chocolates, sour foods, esp. sour pickles. She took extra salt with her food. She happily ate bitter food like bitter-gourd (karela). Spices aggravated her, esp. in the morning.

She hardly perspired in general but perspired quite a bit on the tip of her nose. She had a feeling of heat on her palms and felt as though she wanted to cool them. She slept more on her left side and was a light sleeper, easily disturbed by noise. If upset, she had great difficulty in falling asleep. She often woke due to starting in sleep as if falling or missing a step. She preferred a cooler climate, disliked crowds; as she said, “I like my space”.

She had a sensitive nature; was easily hurt by statements of others, but didn’t show it. She wouldn’t cry in the presence of anyone else. She was basically introverted and her ability to mix with new people was dependent on how they reacted to her. After an emotional upset, she would brood for days. She liked to maintain relations and hence tolerated a lot. She loved to read and used to paint earlier when she had more time.

Based on her symptom picture, I prescribed Natrum Muriaticum 200 as a single dose and she was given Bryonia 200 to use only when she felt her headache coming on.

At her first follow-up two weeks later, she said she felt happier, slept better and could handle stress better. She had used Bryonia once when she felt her headache coming on from loss of sleep and Bryonia had been successful in arresting it. At the end of a month, she reported that she had had no migraines. She had an episode of migraine in January 2005 when she also told me that she had pain in her knees as well for the last 2 years with swelling of the knees after exertion. Natrum Muriaticum was prescribed in a 1M potency. This prescription helped her further and she remained free of migraine episodes for the next few months.
I prescribed Sulphur 200 as an intercurrent remedy later and she remained free of migraines and knee pain. She later moved to London as her husband had a job-transfer and from what I heard from her family later (her mother and brother are also patients), she remains in good health.

This case appears a simple one with quick resolution. Not all cases respond so well; in fact, very few do. Her case history was uncomplicated making it easy for me to locate her remedy. In complicated cases, Homoeopaths often need much more time to find the right remedy and then the case may also need different remedies and intercurrents as the patient progresses. Not many patients are patient and switch doctors or therapies. In the long run, it is obvious that there are great benefits to being patient during Homoeopathic treatment.

Urticaria is an allergic condition manifesting on the skin in the form of red, raised, itchy blotches/wheals. The condition is also known as ‘hives’.The wheals can appear anywhere on the body, single or multiple, of different sizes. Urticaria can be brought about by exposure to cold, as an allergic response to an item of food/drink, or as a result of direct contact with an allergen (substance to which the body is allergic). Certain people are also allergic to chemical drugs.

At the base of urticaria, whatever be the cause, is an allergic constitution whereby the body reacts to the allergen with a stronger-than-necessary immune reaction. In conventional medicine, drugs are used to suppress the immune reaction; the allergic constitution is not modified. Unless the constitution changes, the allergic tendency remains and the chemical drugs have to be taken regularly; sometimes, in gradually increasing doses. The constitution rarely sets itself right by the body’s own efforts; Homoeopathic medicines are very useful here since they stimulate the body’s healing mechanism and set right the allergic constitution. After a suitable course of Homoeopathic medicines, the individual can remain free from medication and also from the troublesome allergy.

In 2002, a 55 year old gentleman came to my clinic. He had been a colonel in the Indian Army and had retired in 1998. He had been suffering from urticaria since the last 8 months and was taking an anti-histamine tablet daily. He had a chronic nose block and often had bouts of sneezing on waking in the morning. He was on thyroid medication as his thyroid functioning was below normal. He never wavered from his standard diet and was very particular about his health. Right from childhood, he had a disciplined upbringing and was the 2nd child with 5 brothers. He had strong faith in God with a strong sense of duty. His family came second, his ‘duty’ came first. He was extremely honest and particular about never doing anything wrong. He disliked quarrels and believed that the gates of communication should always remain open. Being a principled man, he hated anyone in his family going against his principles. He hardly had any personal requirements and liked peace and quiet. He read a lot of religious books and brooded on religious matters. He enjoyed reading poetry which often made him emotional. He was emotionally rather sensitive, particularly to the sufferings of others and to the sacrifices of others. He mentioned that his honesty and sincerity had often gone against him, demoralising him at times.

He disliked sweet things, preferred a salty taste. In the past, he had suffered from Bell’s palsy, herpes zoster of the ear and Pott’s spine (tuberculosis of the spine).

Going by his acute urticaria symptoms, Urtica Urens 30 was prescribed as an SOS medicine, so that he could reduce his use of the anti-histamine. Based on his case-history, a single dose of Aurum Metallicum 1M was prescribed. He was asked to continue Eltroxin for his hypothyroid state for the moment.

When he returned back after a fortnight, his urticaria was about 25% better in intensity and he had taken 5-7 doses of the SOS medicine. After a further month, the potency was stepped up to Aurum Metallicum 10M (again a single dose). During further follow-ups, he mentioned that his chronic nose block was much reduced and the need to use the SOS medicine also reduced drastically. The paroxysmal morning sneezing bouts were very rare. His sleep was much deeper and he felt more relaxed on waking.

After 4 months of starting treatment, he stopped getting any episodes of urticaria. He was asked to reduce Eltroxin to alternate day doses instead of daily ones. He stopped treatment soon after and returned back after 4 years, informing me that his urticaria had never recurred; however, he was still taking Eltroxin on alternate days.