Homoeopathy — Page 118
Belladonna 118 In Belladonna, the symptoms pertaining to the nervous system are much more pronounced than in Aconite. Belladonna affects the mind and may even cause severe frenzy. When an insane person gets too excited and is ready to kill somebody or himself, if he is extremely enraged and starts hitting even his carer, then Belladonna should be administered at once. If the condition becomes chronic, then Belladonna will not work. Belladonna is certainly effective in sudden cases of insanity such as in Meningitis and other delirious states, but Sulphur and Stramonium are more effective in chronic insanity. A severe state of frenzy requiring the patient to be chained typifies Belladonna. After Belladonna has relieved the acute problem, one should look for an appropriate, long-acting constitutional remedy to prevent recurrence of insanity. Aconite and Belladonna are not long- acting remedies. Sometimes, the attack of madness is only short- lived. However, a chronic form of madness, despite having subsided temporarily, can recur again and again. Stramonium works for a much longer period than Belladonna. In typhoid too, sometimes the symptoms may be similar to those of Belladonna. High fever affects the mind causing delirium. Belladonna may temporarily relieve the symptoms, but its effect will not be long lasting because typhoid and Belladonna are not alike in their characteristics. Stramonium is relatively more similar to typhoid and it works for a relatively longer duration. Thus, it may not only control the delirium of typhoid, but it will also cure the typhoid. Stramonium and Sulphur are very beneficial in mental patients, whether the madness is due to typhoid or something else. Sometimes an insane person is not only aggressive but may also talk obscenely. This is due to inflammation of the internal reproductive organs, and will also need to be attended to. Some people may become insane due to an old calamity affecting their mind, while others become insane due to intense grief or a big financial loss. Proper diagnosis of insanity needs an in-depth study of the case. Unfortunately, physicians do not always have enough time to go into details and thus make use of the everyday prescription of Stramonium and Sulphur to some benefit at least. One peculiar feature of Belladonna is that its fever is a continuous one. Once it is down, it does not recur. On the contrary, the typhoid fever is high at night and relatively low in the morning. It returns the following day higher than on the previous day. Sometimes it is so high