Chelidonium Majus - General symptoms - Clarke

GENERAL

General

Chelidonium majus. Greater Celandine. N. O. Papaveraceae. Tincture of entire fresh plant, at time of flowering.

Chelidonium is a poppy and therefore allied to Opium and Sanguinaria Nitrica ^Sanguinaria, with both of which it has many features in common.

But its closest analogue is Lycopodium ^Lycopodium, with which it holds a complementary relation.

I have often cured with Chel. when Lycopodium ^Lyc. was apparently indicated and failed to act well.

The juice of Chel. causes vesication when applied to the skin.

The juice is yellow, resembling bile.

Probably on the "signature" of the bile-like juice it was recommended as a remedy in jaundice by Galen and Dioscorides.

Given on the broad ground of organ-homoeopathy, in material or semi-material doses, it has achieved notable results in cases of liver disease.

But it has also fine indications.

The chief "keynote" for its employment is a continued, bruised, aching pain at the inferior angle of the right scapula Chel. acts on spleen and kidneys as well as liver.

It is also a venous medicine.

Paralytic symptoms are prominent.

There is great debility and drowsiness after eating and on waking.

Prefers hot things. Desire to lie down after a meal.

Aversion to move, feels tired on least exertion.

There is the Opium sleepiness and yawning.

Yellowness of the skin; ulceration.

Chel. is a predominantly right-side medicine (like Sanguinaria Canadensis ^Sang. and Lycopodium ^Lyc.), and besides the right infra-scapular pain and the action on the liver it has neuralgia over the right eye and in right malar bone, and also an action on the caecum and right ovary.

and on the base of the right lung.

In pneumonia with bilious symptoms it is one of the chief remedies.

Chel., like Lycopodium ^Lyc., has fan-like movement of alae nasi in chest affections.

There may be either constipation (clay-coloured stools), or diarrhoea with bright yellow stools.

There is nausea (of pregnancy) with desire for food amel. by drinking milk.

Desire for hot drinks, only water almost boiling will stay on stomach.

Chills or creeps accompany the headache or the jaundice.

Tenderness over stomach with sinking, gone feeling, at times reaching a state of painful anguish; sickness at stomach, all symptoms amel. by eating.

Chel. 6x cured at once. "Aversion to cheese" is an indication for Chel. in many gastric conditions.

Teste, who proved Chel., places it at the head of a group which includes Capsicum Annuum ^Caps. and Viola. od.

He mentions the analogy between the juice of Chel. and the juice of Garcinia morella, Gamboge.

Both are bright yellow and pass to orange and brown on drying.

Some old-school authorities have recommended the juice of Chel. as a substitute for gamboge as a hydragogue cathartic.

Among its ancient external uses was, as an application in eye affections, to chronic ulcers, and to warts.

In Teste's proving he emphasised the following symptoms "1.30 p.m. dull and heavy, deep-seated pain in whole right side of chest and right shoulder, without cough, but with embarrassed respirations.

Chelidonium Majus pain, which is at times accompanied by dull beatings in the chest, does not allow him to draw a long breath; it is not perceptibly aggravated by the motions of the arm.

The pain is particularly felt in the axilla and under the shoulder-blade.

a sort of numbness of the muscles in the region of the liver, and in the whole right side of the neck, face, and head.

apprehension of threatening pneumonia.

great anxiety. constant desire to stir and change one's position (lasts an hour and decreases gradually)."-"Extremely profuse emission of a whitish and foaming urine."-"2 p.m. drowsiness which is so marked, even in the open air, that she is near falling asleep while walking.

lasts half an hour." According to Rademacher Chel. acts on the centre of the liver.

Chel. has a strong action on the respiratory sphere.

A characteristic cough is caused by a sensation of "dust" in the air passages.

St. Clair Smith relates a case.

A young lady had had for several weeks a dry, racking, fatiguing cough night and day, agg. night, no expectoration and no pain.

She looked completely worn out.

The cough was excited by a sensation as if throat and larynx were full of dust.

Chel. 3, a powder every two hours, was given.

She only took three when the "dust" left the throat and with it the cough, and never returned.

Carleton Smith cured this "Dry cough through day with pain and stitches right side; severe hoarseness 5 p.m., voice scarcely audible." In rheumatic affections Chel. has a large field.

OEdema, heat, tenderness and stiffness are the leading indications.

Here is a case A baby girl had had rheumatism of both ankles for a week, when it settled in the right one, which became greatly swollen, very tender, painful and hot.

Constipated for two months previous, whitish stools.

Chel. improved in twelve hours, and entirely cured in a week.

In another case of acute rheumatism of feet and ankles, supervening on a slow, remittent fever, Chel. cured after the failure of Rhus Tox ^Rhus and Bryonia ^Bry.

The patient was a girl of six.

Both ankles were affected, feet much swollen and extended.

The slightest movement or touch extorted screams.

The only relief was constant bathing with hot water.

W. A. Burr cured a case of right sciatic rheumatism, of ten years' history, in a very corpulent woman, aet. 55.

In her case there were aggravations coming on in the afternoon and evening of each day, and lasting into the middle of the night.

During the paroxysms the outer ankle and lower leg became cyanotic, swelling around ankle, constriction above, great sensitiveness to touch and motion.

Very nervous during the spells.

Great external sensitiveness; aversion to touch, and agg. from it.

Pressure amel. some symptoms and agg. others.

Eating amel. stomach symptoms all complaints lessen after dinner.

Change of weather agg.; warmth agg.; cold water amel.

Open air agg. headache; pain in right eye; and causes chill; and drowsiness.

Motion agg. most symptoms.

Coughing and blowing nose amel. headache.

Rest amel. Lying on face amel. pain in kidneys and bladder.

Lying on left side amel. pain in stomach.

Many symptoms are agg. 4 a.m.; also 4 p.m. and afternoon.