This is a recent Graves disease case managed by our co-principal Christian Taylor. Here Christian presents the case, along with his analysis of the themes of the patient and the remedy that solved the case. “Hi Christian.
Hope all is good with you.
I usually refer to X______ but have had no answer for over a week, I am guessing they are away.
I have just been diagnosed with Graves disease. I realise that I must have had it for sometime and not known
I have informed the endocrine specialist I will be seeking alternative medicine as the prescribed drugs have side effects.
I am scared and anxious over this condition and want to get it under control.
I have booked acupuncture but do hope that you can help as well and there is a homeopathic remedy for this disease”
Graves Disease – diagnosed 3 weeks ago
Medication: Carbimazole 15 which >
Lost 1½ stone in 6 months
Pulse 106 at rest
Nosebleeds for the last 3-4 years. Copious 3-4x a week
Everything had been going well. Work productive
I was loopy
Pouring sweat at night all over with occasional flushes of heat in the day
Hyperactive – dashing around. I don’t walk, just dash. Getting up early
Fidgety, restless
Trembling < morning after rising
Mood was pretty upbeat
Before Carbimazole I felt incredibly well
Recurrent chest infection
Diagnosed with Helicobacter a few months ago {?} and much better since antibiotics for this – felt younger, really good
Frequent bowel movements 3-4x a day
Appetite – feel hunger pains but no real appetite. Have to force self to eat
+ vinegar recently last 3 weeks
Thirstless – force self to drink
COPD – really not a problem at the moment > since ‘aerobica’ machine to train the lungs
Always put others first. Now I am going to look after myself
Since I lost my daughter, I have a huge anxiety if someone doesn’t answer the phone.
I want to downsize and go traveling
Oldest sister hated me from my first breath. She has always been at me. Friends/not friends. Back stabbing especially in her last phone call. Felt like I did after daughter dies, something kicked in. I am never going to speak to her again.
Generally very even tempered but can flip and go crazy. I don’t hold grudges – forgive and forget
Drive? Used to be a bit mad – points on license and many tickets
Fear of dying here and no one finding me for days
Fear of being alone although I am happy on my own.
In the darkest place…I’ve never had a life. Dominating dad. Single mum. Looking after mum and dad. Then daughter dying and grief for 16 years. Then hit 60ys and think I haven’t had a life.
Feel vulnerable regarding men. Husband was abusive for 6 years. Wouldn’t be in the room with another man. I value my female friends. I had 3 brothers. I can see through men now. Can take them or leave them.
Planning a worldwide trip [as part of her new found fulfilling of self desires]
Need courage to go into the unknown undaunted
Assessment
Self vs others. Life not lived
History of grief/pain
Hatred/backstab/grudges
Aversion to men (with reason)
Didn’t feel particularly clear about this one. And decided to go down a more broad (constitutional) approach initially.
There is an ‘edge’ of irritability/bluntness underlying her ‘friendly’ nature. The story is of suppression of self-needs. Feeling attacked Attacked vs attacking Timidity vs courage/aggression in fits Alone Dominated by father. Abusive husband.
Sister always at me Friendly Always puts others first Generally, there is a state of feeling giving up her life for the sake of others. She feels that she has been unjustly attacked/dominated/hurt which means she has failed to life her own life.
Overly influenced by the vinegar liking (!) I gave
Nat-mur 200 x2 with Sepia 200 x2 to hold.
She took the Nat-mur then the rash appeared and she then took Sepia
Emails a week after taking remedy:
“Feeling much worse!, covered in a rash on my lower back and unable to move, walk, bend etc due to aching back/spine in lumbar region.
Just let you know the rash I have is shingles.
It is on my lumber region along my spine. It is really painful to sit, stand, drive, sleep, or turn.
At my wits end and in severe enough pain to take painkillers all day and through the night
Never had such discomfort or agony since childbirth. Mean it!
The remedies didn’t help Christian.”
Assessment
So, the acute shingles needs to be dealt with. Possibly this has come about from either a response to Nat-m or because the Carbimazole has lowered her immune response and a latent herpes has activated.
I repertorised the above.
I already had an idea about Ran-b and had chosen rubrics that reflected this but wanted to see what else might come up
Rhus-tox was an obvious choice but in this case movement seems to aggravate and the marked pain seems more dominant.
Ranunculus seemed like a reasonable fit for the acute. The aggravation form turning seems a little unusual ( it is actually turning and stretching in the mat med of Ran-b). The painfulness fits with the Ranunculaceae family them of excessive pain/sensitivity expressed in the case. See my notes below* Prescription Ranunculus bulbosa 30 x3, one every 8-12 hours
Follow-up email 24 hrs after remedies:
"The pills you sent were amazing!
The first dose, I felt the pain subsiding, after 3 doses. I am free of the shingles rash and muscle pain completely!
I went out for the first time in weeks yesterday.
Thank you so much! It’s been a horrendous 7 weeks of illness because my white cell count was so low due to carbimozole.
Fingers crossed all will be well. Thanks again.x” Assessment
A good response. No need to give anything more
It is interesting that there is an implication that this has helped the more the chronic state (illness of the last 7 weeks). Looking at the theme of Ran-b with it’s underlying sensitivity to being hurt and its blunt/suppressed exterior I can see how this might apply in this case in a broader context.
The idea of a suppressed state being breached and then a violent response could be seen to be similar to the patient’s non-responsiveness (even temper/victim history) with violent outbursts once pushed too far (I flip out and go crazy). Also, the lowered immune/medically suppressed with the very painful (violent) herpes eruption can be seen in a similar light.
quarrelsome - alternating with – timidity
This single symptom rubric is a good one as it expresses the idea of how the excessive reactivity and suppression reveals itself in the emotional range where quarrelsome=violence and timidity=suppression.
I can’t make too much of this as too little time has passed to know whether the Ran-b was just helpful as an acute or has other deeper implications.
My Notes * Ranunculaceae’s members have the entire range of nervous sensations. They lower the threshold at which the nerve signal is transmitted to the brain and are thus hypersensitive and hyper-reactive. The nerves are so raw that it hardly takes any contact at all or the nerve is activated. They are excessively sensitive to the slightest and least impression, provoked into action by the most trifling touch, sound, smell, impact or experience. Additionally, their response to these sensory impressions is also extreme. They are painfully sensitive and easily excitable. Everything in life is injurious and painful. Emotionally, this extreme nervous activity and injury results in anger, mortification, indignation, feeling crushed, grief etc. The nervous system cannot sustain this level of activity and it eventually becomes fatigued and then there is depletion, weakness, paralysis and collapse mentally and physically (Vermeulen, 2011)
SENSITIVE. Taking offense easily. Holding on to grudges. Cannot take a joke
Ailments from - Quarrelling with his father
IRRITABLE
IRRITABILITY - alternating with - cares
QUARRELSOME - alternating with - timidity
Vanishing of thought.
Nothing leaves an impression
The relationship with alcohol and the typical sensitivity of the Ranunculaceae means that there is possibly a theme of trying to blunt one’s hypersensitivity (through the use of alcohol) There are many rubrics relating to the subduing of the irritability There is a theme of the suppression of the irritability (which roots lie in sensitivity) The thick hard skin too seems to express this tendency to attempt to reduce the painful sensations of the world. Generally, the rubrics express a dull, vacant or confused response to the world. They literally become thick-skinned and just take the punishment the world metes out with little response. Where there once was ambition and excitement, now there is resignation, discouragement and boredom Where there was optimism there is now cynicism laughter Where once there was a fighting spirit, now there is fear and cowardliness If this threshold is breeched, however, then we see the extreme sensitivity expressed in their quarrelsome, irritable even violent behaviour. irritability
irritability - alternating with - cares
quarrelsome - alternating with – timidity*
even his painful herpes did not affect him as vividly as it ought to have done
Skin – thick and hard
sensitive - want of sensitiveness
thinking - complaints - agg.; thinking of his complaints
staring, thoughtless
thinking - complaints - agg.; thinking of his complaints
thoughts - vanishing of
confusion as if in a dream
concentration - difficult - attempting to concentrate; on - vacant feeling; has a
confusion of intoxicated - as if
discouraged
excitement
ambition
laughing - sardonic
cowardice
ennui
quarrelsome
violence
(Zeus Soft, 2022) * red indicates single symptom rubrics
References
Vermeulen, F. a. J. L., 2011. PLANTS: Homeopathic and Medical Uses from a Botanical Family Perspective. Glasgow: Saltire Books Ltd.
Zeus Soft, 2022. RadarOpus 3.15, Belgium: Zeus Soft.
Christian Taylor
https://www.littlewhitepill.com
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