Homoeopathy — Page 396
Ignatia 396 epilepsy, is merely an indication of her being high-strung and is a reaction to grief and sorrow. In hot countries, often women may fall unconscious amidst a thick crowd. A very strange symptom of Ignatia is that a patient reacts overjoyed when she was expected to be angry, and behaves angrily when in fact she was expected to be happy on hearing good news. Similarly surprising is her reaction to physical ailments. For instance, if her joints have become stiff, red hot and swollen, she does not feel any discomfort. In short, Ignatia will be the essential part of the treatment of a woman expressing conflicting forms of response to mental and physical stresses. In a patient of Ignatia, swallowing relieves the throat discomfort. Local pressure relieves the pain. The patient tends to sleep on the painful side. The headache feels as if a nail has been driven into the head. Pressing the painful side over the pillow also reduces the pain. In Ignatia, like Cocculus, the patient vomits but there is no nausea or retching before it. It is amazing about Ignatia that if the patient happens to feel nauseated, he feels relieved on eating something hard and indigestible. A light soft diet will however, aggravate the condition. The cough resulting from the irritation of the throat further aggravates the problem, which in turn makes the cough linger on for a long time. If during the cough, the patient is given a dose of Ignatia, it will stop the cough surprisingly fast. It is my experience that if Ignatia is going to be effective in a given situation, it is so immediately. An Ignatia patient may sometimes develop constriction of the throat , producing a noise like snoring. Ignatia works wonderfully well in this condition. As soon as a few pellets are placed in the mouth, the spasmodic constriction of the throat disappears at once. In other words, Ignatia is full of surprises regarding its action as well as its ailments. The Ignatia patient is often in despair and depressed. She does not want to see or meet anybody. She loses her memory , develops hysteria and has a suspicious mind. She firmly believes that something dreadful is going to happen to her. She remains fearful of the death of her relatives or may even have such visions. If such a patient is not treated with Ignatia in time, she may become completely