Homeopathic Materia Medica

Lectures on Homoeopathic Materia Medica, James Tyler Kent

Black Cohosh

This remedy has been only meagerly proved, yet there are a few useful points in it.

From its proving we can perceive that it is similar to diseased states in the human family, and especially in women, namely, hysterical and rheumatic conditions.

The patient is always chilly, easily affected by cold, sensitive to cold and damp weather, which rouses the rheumatic state and develops a state of rheumatism not only in the muscles and joints all over the body, but also along the course of nerves.

In the general nervous disturbance there is a lack of will balance, or great disturbance in the voluntary system, which is the underlying feature of hysteria, the symptoms are intermingled with rheumatism.

With the pains we have soreness all over the body. Trembling, numbness, jerking of muscles.

Inability to exercise the will over the muscles of the body, turmoil in the voluntary system, with stiffness.

Tendency to take cold and thereby she takes on sensitiveness in the glands and larger organs, such as the liver and uterus.

Complaints in these organs come on from cold damp weather (Dulcamara) and from being chilled.

The patient is sensitive to cold in all parts except the head, and is aggravated from becoming cold both in parts of the body and in general.

The headaches, however, are better in the open air and from cold, which is an exception and a particular, for the general feature is aggravation from cold.

Mind: There is a terrible mental state that alternates with physical states. It is an overwhelming sadness or gloominess, she is bowed down with sorrow.

Sits and mopes in great sadness, like Psorinum and Pulsatilla.

This may pass off instantly, or be brought on and aggravated from motion, from fear, from excitement, from taking cold.

Very commonly there is muscular soreness, a bruised feeling all over, with drawing and jerking.

This will let up very suddenly and leave a nervous, hysterical girl in a state of sadness, and she will sit and say nothing. When questioned perhaps she will break into tears or ex press in various ways the overwhelming sadness.

With the headache there is marked sadness. Changeable moods. The physical and the mental are all the time changing. Other symptoms alternate and change.

The jerking has made physicians see the resemblance to chorea in these hysterio-rheumatic constitutions.

The rheumatisms will change in a day into chorea, and again the choreic movements will keep on with the soreness throughout the muscles of the body.

The jerking and soreness and numbness often keep on together.

There are certain features about the chorea that should be noted. Jerking of the muscles when in a state of emotion or from becoming chilled. If any part of the body is pressed upon jerking of the muscles of that part will take place.

One of these nervous, rheumatic, hysterical subjects may not have chorea constantly, but as soon as she retires at night the whole of the side lain on will commence to jerk and prevent her from going to sleep. If she turns on the back the muscles of the back and shoulders will jerk and prevent sleep.

She turns over on the other side, but after a little while the muscles pressed on commence to jerk. All this time she has become so restless and nervous that she is driven to distraction.

The mind is full of all sorts of imaginations and the body is full of all sorts of uneasiness, because she can find no place to rest upon.

Sometimes the muscles are so sore that they cannot be lain upon for any length of time; sometimes it is a numbness, sometimes a jerking.

These things are queer, but they belong to the patient, affecting not one part, but the whole economy.

Full of fear, anguish and restlessness. Fear of death, excitement, suspicious, "Will not even take the medicine because there is, something wrong about it."

It has a mania such as occurs in nervous, hysterical women, and it has cured puerperal mania.

Puerperal mania from taking cold during or soon after confinement. The remedy belongs especially to women, because its symptoms are so commonly associated with the affections of women.

Mental states following the disappearance of rheumatism is a strong feature. The rheumatism gets better, but the mental state becomes worse.

Sometimes the rheumatism disappears in short order and the mind is not disturbed, but then it is because a diarrhea has come on, with great soreness and aching in the bowels, or because a flow from the uterus has given relief.

There must be some relief or a disturbance will take place like Abrotanum. Some flow must be established, and hence the menstrual flow or diarrhea gives relief; otherwise the mind takes on trouble, the patient becomes gloomy, or has a low form of mental excitement.

One of the symptoms is quite descriptive of this sadness I have referred to:

"Sensation as if a black cloud had settled all over her," while at the same time it weighed like "lead upon the head."

This is entirely figurative. It can all be expressed in the word "sadness."

We will find "melancholy," "gloominess," "low spirited," etc., running all through out text, but the word "sadness" is just as broad as any of them.

Head: The headaches are rheumatic.

"Sore, bruised feeling all over the head. Bruised sensation in the occiput. Sore, bruised feeling in the top of the head, as if the top of the head would fly off."

"As if cold air was blowing upon the brain."

Yet most of these headaches are better by being in the cold air.

"Headache brought on from catching cold, from the weather changes, cold, damp weather."

There are many headaches. Pressing headache. Many of the headaches are intense, and described as if a bolt were extending down into the back of the neck. Soreness in the back of the neck. Pain in the back of the neck. Hysterical girls; they have much pain in the back of the neck.

With the headache the eyeballs are very sore, "painful to turn in any direction."

"Pain in the eyes, bruised pain in the head."

"Soreness in the abdomen; sore and bruised. Alternate diarrhea and constipation. Alternation of diarrhea and physical complaints."

Genitals female: We pass now to the female genitalia, which form a center for a great deal of trouble in the remedy. A routine saying about Actaea is that it makes confinement easy.

That is not a legitimate saying concerning any remedy and such expressions encourage routine practice. It is true that when this remedy has been given to pregnant women in accordance with its symptoms it has proved capable of making confinement easy.

But the way it has been given has been the routine practice of giving it in the tincture or in the 2d or 3d, until the patient was under its influence even when it was not indicated, as it was not similar to the case.

But the homoeopathic physician never practices in this way. A remedy fits a general condition when the symptoms of that general condition are found in the remedy.

Remember that it does so because all the symptoms agree.

"Pain in the uterine region, darting from side to side. Bearing down and pressing out."

These bearing down sensations, taken with all the other states that relate to the patient in general, show that it is a very useful remedy in prolapsus of the uterus.

It has the relaxation of the parts. Do not suppose that our remedies are not sufficient to cure these conditions, when the symptoms agree. It is true that remedies will cure prolapsus when the symptoms agree, and at no other time.

If it fits the patient in general, these bearing down sensations will go away, the patient will be made comfortable, and an examination will finally show that the parts are in normal condition. You cannot prescribe for the prolapsus; you must prescribe for the woman. You cannot prescribe for one symptom, because there are probably fifty remedies that have that symptom.

There are menstrua! disorders in these hysterical rheumatic constitutions. Irregularity of the menstrual flow. It may be copious, suppressed or scanty. Severe pain all through the flow.

The more the flow, the greater the pain. That is very peculiar. Generally the flow will relieve pain, but with this remedy the pain is during the flow. Generally the most severe and most painful attack is at the beginning of the flow, and with some women again just after the flow has ceased.

Each woman is a law unto herself. In this remedy the sufferings are during the menstrual flow as a rule. The most severe mental symptoms, the most severe rheumatic symptoms, the most extreme jerking and cramping of the limbs and sleeplessness are during the menstrual flow.

During menses, epileptic spasms. All sorts of sufferings in the nerves. Soreness along the course of the nerves, soreness in the muscles or joints during the flow. Increase of mental symptoms.

Cold and chilly, must be wrapped rip.

"Rheumatism. Dysmenorrhoea."

"Soreness in the uterus and ovarian region. Lame, bruised feeling all, over; painful menstruation,"

and someone has named that rheumatic dysmenorrhoea, not a bad name.

Pregnancy: Many symptoms during pregnancy. It cures all sorts of conditions, in this kind of constitution, these nervous, rheumatic, fidgety women with jerking in the muscles.

So markedly do her troubles alternate with each other that alternation is in the nature of her case. You will commonly find that all the rest of her troubles have passed away, and that now nausea has come on. In all the years past she has had a hysterical constitution, but now when she is pregnant she has nausea all the time.

You will find when one set of symptoms becomes extremely severe others have temporarily subsided, and so they change about like Pulsatilla.

But the symptoms have to be taken collectively to get at the image of the patient. A woman will come to you with one group of symptoms today and may come back to you with an entirely different group in a couple of weeks.

These are very troublesome cases to prescribe for, and you have sometimes to take the symptoms a dozen times and put them all together as if she had felt them all in one day, and so make your prescription.

A hysterical patient is difficult to manage because of this changing of symptoms, and also because she has a tendency to deceive the doctor.

"Shivering in the first stage of labor. Hysterical manifestations through labor."

Pains have all ceased or are irregular, so that they do not good. No dilatation has taken place. But when the regular pains come on we have some important symptoms.

A pain comes on and it seems to be about to finish satisfactorily; it has been regular and prolonged until about two-thirds through, and all at once she screams out and grasps her hip-the pain has left the uterus and gone to the hip, causing a cramp in the hip, and she has to be rubbed and turned over.

This medicine will regulate the pains, and when the next pain comes it will hold on to the end.

So impressionable is this woman during confinement that if she is subjected to any emotion - such as having an emotional story told in the room - or if anything excitable occurs, the pain will stop.

If she has passed through the labor and the lochia has been established, from such a cause the lochia will stop, as if she had taken cold, and she will have cramps and troublesome after-pains, the milk will be suppressed, she will feel sore and bruised all over, and have fever.

This remedy should be compared with Caulophyllum, which has the following symptoms:

Weakness in the reproductive system of the woman. From weakness she is sterile, or she aborts in the early months of gestation. During parturition the contractions of the uterus are too feeble to expel the contents, and they are only tormenting.

Labor-like pains during menstruation with drawing pains in the thighs and legs, and even the feet and toes. Uterine haemorrhage from inertia of the uterus. Relaxation of muscles and ligaments. Heaviness, and even prolapsus. Subinvolution. Excoriating leucorrhoea. Menses too soon or too late.

She is sensitive to cold and wants warm clothing-quite unlike Pulsatilla. She is hysterical, like Ignatia. She is fretful and apprehensive. She is rheumatic, like Actaea, only the small joints are most likely to be affected.

Later she suffers from after-pains, and they are felt in the inguinal region. Rheumatic stiffness of the back and very sensitive spine.

She is sleepless, restless and withal very excitable. This remedy has cured chorea at puberty when menstruation was late.

You need not be surprised that such an emotional subject has a fluttering, quick pulse, and irregular, action of the heart, but many of the most marked hysterical features are present without any disturbances whatever in the action of the heart.

"A feeling in the region of the heart as if the heart were sore, and as if it were enlarged."

"Back of head and neck sore."

The head is drawn back from contraction of the muscles at the nape. Violent aching down the back.

Rheumatism in the back. Impossible to lie upon the back because of the contraction of the muscles of the back. impossible to lie upon the slide of the body because of the contraction and jerking of the muscles.

"Numbness of the limbs. Trembling. Soreness."

The symptoms of the nerves are simply a reiteration of what I have said.

"Hysterical spasms. Convulsions. Trembling of the legs; hardly able to walk."

The numbness is such as is associated with paralysis. Paralytic weakness.

The best effects have resulted from the 30th, 200th, 1000th and still higher potencies, and from the use of medicine in single doses.

It is similar in some of its conditions to the Blue Cohosh.

Compare it with Puls., Sepia, Natr. mur., Lit. t., Caulophyllum, and Ign.

A Dictionary of Practical Materia Medica, John Henry Clarke

Cimicifuga racemosa. Actaea monogynia. C. serpentaria. Macrotys racemosa. Botroflus serpentaria. Black snake root. Black Cohosh. (Canada, Georgia, Western States of America.) N. O. Ranunculaceae. Tincture of the root. Trituration of the resinoid, Macrotyn.

Clinical.─Abortion, tendency to. Angina pectoris. Appetite, disordered. Back pains. Breast, affections of. Cerebro-spinal meningitis. Change of life. Chest, pains in. Chorea. Delirium Tremens. Diaphragm, rheumatism of. Dyspepsia. Epilepsy. Faintness. Headache. Heart, affections of. Hyperpyrexia. Hypochondriasis. Hysteria. Lumbago. Melancholia. Meningitis. Menstruation, disorders of. Myalgia. Neuralgia. Ovaries, affections of. Perichondritis. Pleurodynia. Pregnancy, disorders of. Puerperal mania. Rheumatic gout. Rheumatism. Sciatica. Side, pain in. Sinking sensation. Sleeplessness. Spinal irritation. Stiff-neck. Tinnitus aurium. Tremors. Uterus, affections of. Vomiting of pregnancy.

Characteristics.─One of the most marked symptoms of Actaea rac. is found in the mental sphere: a sense of gloom and dejection, as if there was a black pall over everything; showing the appropriateness of the remedy in hysteria and hypochondriasis. There is also fear of death, as with Acon. Incessant talking, changing from one subject to another, as in delirium tremens. I have greatly relieved an inveterate case of epilepsy in which the aura was a "waving sensation in the brain," which is a leading symptom of the remedy. Many symptoms appear in the head and eyes. Feeling as if going crazy with headache. Headache reflected from pelvic organs. The headache is frontal, vertical, or occipital, and is accompanied by great pain in eyeballs > pressure; < slightest motion. Peculiar sensations are: as of lifting up of skull; as if top of head would fly off; as of a bolt through from base of skull to vertex. Inspired air seems to penetrate skull and into brain, causing a cold sensation. Intense pain in and around eyes (lancinating), < moving head or eyes. In cases of tinnitus aurium it has proved curative in old-school practice, in 15 to 30 drops of the tincture, whether due to direct or reflex irritation (L'Art Méd., July, 1898). In the face there is malar neuralgia, ceasing at night. There are many symptoms of disordered digestion, bad taste and breath and coated tongue; sticky saliva, viscid mucus in throat. Sinking at epigastrium is very marked. The generative organs in the female are particularly affected by Actaea. Uterine and ovarian pains are very marked. Infra-mammary pains. Tenderness of uterine region. Pains fly across hypogastrium, extending from one side to the other. Painful and irregular menstruation. Leucorrhoea, with feeling of weight in uterus. Labour-like pains. Left ovarian pains. Given before term it renders labours easier; cures sickness of pregnancy, and prevents after-pains and over-sensitiveness. According to Lippe a characteristic indication is: "The recently delivered uterus becomes actually jammed in the pelvis with great pain." Puerperal mania has been cured by it. It has also ensured living births in women who have previously borne only dead children, from no discoverable cause, given in daily doses of 1x for two months before term. In the respiratory sphere a dry, teasing cough, < at night, and < on every attempt to speak, is the most characteristic feature. The rheumatic action of the drug is shown in chest and heart pains and pains in the joints and limbs. I have found a pain at the nape of the neck very characteristic. Rheumatism affecting the vertebral joints and especially in the neck. Cerebro-spinal meningitis; head and neck retracted. There are sharp pains in chest, especially in heart region and down left arm, which is numb (Aco., Puls., Rhus) as if bound to the side. Palpitation from least motion. Heart ceases suddenly. A patient who was taking 6-drop doses of the Ø tincture complained of a feeling "as if his heart had stopped." The pains of Act. r. are like electric shocks here and there: sharp, lancinating in various parts; chest and uterine pains shoot from side to side. There is a general bruised feeling all over as if sore; < by touch. Rest >, motion < Cold air seems to penetrate the system; is very sensitive to it. But headache is > in open air; < in warm room. The symptoms are < at night (malar neuralgia > at night); in the morning. Pains in arms and tendo Achillis, < as evening approaches. < During the menses. Eating >. It is suited to the climacteric period; to nervous persons; to children during dentition.

Relations.─It is allied to Act. spi. and the other Ranunculaceae. Acon. antidotes the sleeplessness, and Bapt. relieved the headache and nausea of the drug. It is like Acon. in fear of death and restlessness; Bry. and Puls. in rheumatism; Cauloph. in uterine affections, also Sep., Nat. m., Lil. t., Ign., Gels. (uterine headache); Lyc. (pains go from side to side); Ars. (fears to be alone); Calc. (visions of rats and mice). In a case of Tansy Poisoning (taken by a pregnant woman in fifth month to procure abortion), with high fever, rheumatic pains, bearing-down sensation, and abdominal soreness, Act. r. promptly relieved after failure of Acon. and Bry. Pregnancy went to term.

The resinoid of Act. r., Macrotyn., has been used in the lower triturations in preference to the tincture, in cases of lumbago more especially.

Causation.─Anxiety. Fright. Disappointed love. Business failure. Over-exertion. Child-bearing.

SYMPTOMS.

1. Mind.─In all mental symptoms there is a want of natural coherence.─Thinks she is going crazy; with headache on vertex.─Miserable, dejected feeling.─Gloom as if a black pall over everything.─Feels grieved and troubled, with sighing.─Mania following disappearance of neuralgia.─Puerperal mania.─Suicidal.─Incessant talking, changing from one subject to another.─Visions of rats, etc.─Fear of death.─Not disposed to fix the attention on anything.─Irritable.─Indifferent, taciturn.─Feels faint at epigastrium when meeting a friend.─Effects of fright; disappointed love; business failures.

2. Head.─Vertigo, fulness, and dull aching in vertex.─Waving sensation in brain.─When sleeping head swims.─Rush of blood to the head; brain feels too large for the cranium.─Head dull and heavy as after a debauch.─Dull aching, particularly in occiput, during afternoon and evening; < indoors > in the open air.─Headache through the whole brain, with distinct sense of soreness in occipital region.─Sensation of a bolt through from base of brain to vertex.─Constant dull pain in occiput extending to vertex.─Severe pain in head and eyeballs increased on slightest motion.─Excruciating pain in right side of head, back of orbit.─Top of head feels as if it would fly off.─Headache > in the open air.─Headache of students.─Sensation as if vertex opened and let in cold air.

3. Eyes.─Intense aching pains in the eyeballs; > by pressure, < by slightest motion.─Pain over eyes, extending to occiput.─Ciliary neuralgia; acute pains in eyeballs or in temples, extending to eyes, so severe, esp. at night, it seemed as if patient would go crazy.─Dilated pupils, with dark spots before the eyes.─Peculiar wild look out of eyes.

4. Ears.─Sensitive to least noise.─Singing in l., later in both ears.─(Tinnitus from irritation of auditory nerve, direct or reflex.)

6. Face.─Pale, eyes large, sunken, surrounded by dark rings.─Forehead feels cold; deadly pale.─Neuralgia affecting malar bone; pain goes off at night and reappears next day.─Frequent flushes of heat; wants to be in the open air.─Lips dry; lower lip cracked as if bitten.

8. Mouth.─Breath offensive.─Mouth and tongue feel warm and dry.─Thick mucus on teeth.─Spitting of thick, sticky saliva.─Tongue swollen.

9. Throat.─Viscid mucus in throat; hawking.─Dry spot in throat, causing cough; dryness of pharynx, with constant desire to swallow; fulness in pharynx: mouth and palate swollen; neck stiff.─Inflamed throat; pains wake him at night.

11. Stomach.─Nausea, eructations, headache, and tremor (more in women).─Nausea with uterine affections.─Sharp pains across the hypogastrium.─Sinking or goneness in the epigastrium.

12. Abdomen.─Periodical colicky pains, better bending double and after stool.─Excruciating pains in the bowels, small of back, and limbs.─Abdominal muscles sore.─Sharp pains across hypogastrium.

13. Stool.─Alternate diarrhoea and constipation.─Frequent, thin, dark, offensive stools.

14. Urinary Organs.─Incessant flow of urine.─Urine frequent and quantity increased.─Pressing in region of kidneys and small of back.

16. Female Sexual Organs.─Menses profuse, early; dark, coagulated; scanty, irregular, delayed, or suppressed.─Hysterical or epileptical spasms at time of menses.─Feels strange, talks incoherently, screams, tries to injure herself.─Pains in uterine region shoot from side to side.─Pains in ovarian region shoot upward.─Bearing-down in uterine region and small of back; limbs feel heavy, torpid.─Severe pain in lower part of abdomen.─Rheumatic dysmenorrhoea.─Leucorrhoea, with sensation of weight in the uterus.─During pregnancy: nausea; false labour-like pains; sharp pains across abdomen; sleeplessness.─During parturition "shivers," first stage; pains too strong; spasmodic cardiac neuralgia; lochia suppressed (by cold or emotions); rigid os; Puerperal mania.─Tendency to abort at third month.─Infra-mammary pains, worst on l. side.─Burning in the mammae.

17. Respiratory Organs.─Night cough, dry, constant, short, < on every attempt to speak.─Tickling in throat, with violent cough.─Pains in (r.) side of chest, < from motion, extorting cries.─(Rheumatism of diaphragm.─Pleurodynia.)

19. Heart.─Pain in region of heart, followed by palpitation; pains extend down l. arm, which is numb as if bound to side.─Pulse weak and irregular; or quick and full.─Palpitation from least motion.

20. Neck and Back.─Severe pain in nape of neck (rheumatic fever; cerebro-spinal meningitis).─Rheumatic pain in the muscles of the neck and back; a feeling of stiffness and retraction.─Violent lightning-like pains in posterior spinal sclerosis.─Stiff-neck from cold air, from moving even the hands.─Sensitiveness of the spine; esp. in the cervical and upper dorsal regions.─Severe aching pain in the lumbar and sacral regions; down the thighs and through the hips, with heavy pressing down.─Head and neck retracted (in spotted fever).

21. Limbs.─Rheumatic pains in the joints, with heat and swelling.─Aching in the limbs.─Excessive muscular soreness.─Rheumatism affecting the bellies of the muscles.─Trembling of the fingers when writing.─Trembling in the limbs, is scarcely able to walk.─Uneasy feeling in limbs, causing restlessness.

22. Upper Limbs.─Pains down arms with numbness as if a nerve compressed.─L. arm feels as if bound to side (chorea).─Constant irregular motion of l. arm; is useless (chorea).─Cold sweat on hands.─Trembling of fingers, esp. when writing.

23. Lower Limbs.─Aching in sacrum, lumbar region, and down l. leg.─Pressure round hips with pain in sacrum.─Towards evening soreness, aching, and stiffness in region of tendo Achillis.─Dull, aching, burning in second joint of r. great toe, extending up the limb.

24. Generalities.─Rheumatism.─Weakness, trembling, and spasmodic action of the muscles.─Nervous shuddering; tremor all over the body.─Alternate tonic and clonic spasms.─Epileptic and hysterical convulsions.─Sharp, lancinating pains in various parts, associated with ovarian or uterine irritation.─Affects the l. side most.─Pains come on suddenly.─Pains like electric shocks here and there.─Chorea.─General bruised feeling of the whole body, as if sore.

26. Sleep.─Obstinate insomnia.─Sleepless, cannot rest, must change position, jerking of limbs.─Unpleasant dreams of being in trouble.─Restless sleep.

Keynotes and Characteristics with Comparisons of Some of the Leading Remedies of the Materia Medica (Allen's Keynotes), Henry Clay Allen

Black Cohosh (Ranunculaceae)

Puerperal mania; thinks she is going crazy (compare, Syph.); tries to injure herself. Mania following disappearance of neuralgia. Sensation as if a heavy, black cloud had settled all over her and enveloped her head so that all is darkness and confusion. Illusion of a mouse running under her chair (Lac. c., Aeth.). Ciliary neuralgia; aching or sharp, darting, shooting pains in globes, extending to temples, vertex, occiput, orbit, < going up stairs, > lying down. Heart troubles from reflex symptoms of uterus or ovaries. Heart's action ceases suddenly; impending suffocation; palpitation from least motion (Dig.). Menses: irregular; exhausting (Alum., Coc.); delayed or suppressed by mental emotion, from cold, from fever; with chorea, hysteria or mania; increase of mental symptoms during. Spasms: hysterical or epileptic; reflex from uterine disease; worse during menses; chorea < left side. Severe left-sided infra-mammary pains (Ust.). Sharp, lancinating, electric-like pains in various parts, sympathetic with ovarian or uterine irritation; in uterine region, dart from side to side. Pregnancy: nausea; sleeplessness; false labor-like pains; sharp pains across abdomen; abortion at third month (Sab.). During labor: "shivers" in first stage; convulsions, from nervous excitement; rigid os; pains severe, spasmodic, tedious, < by least noise. After-pains, worse in the groins. When given during last month of pregnancy, shortens labor, if symptoms correspond (Caul., Puls.). Excessive muscular soreness, after dancing, skating, or other violent muscular exertion. Rheumatic pains in muscles of neck and back; feel stiff, lame, contracted; spine sensitive, from using arms in sewing, type writing, piano playing (Agar., Ran. b.). Rheumatism affecting the bellies of the muscles; pains stitching, cramping. Rheumatic dysmenorrhoea.

Relationship. Similar: to, Caul., and Puls. in uterine and rheumatic affections; to, Agar., Lil., Sep.

Aggravation. During menstruation; the more profuse the flow the greater the suffering.

Leaders In Homoeopathic Therapeutics, Eugene Beauharnais Nash

Nervous symptoms, twitchings, spasms, convulsions, neuralgias; chills without shaking < at menstrual period. Muscular rheumatism; stiff neck, drawing head back; can't turn the head; rheumatism of the belly of muscles, by preference.

Headaches pressing outward; or upward, as if top of head would fly off, or into eyes (ciliary neuralgia), or down nape into spine.

Gloomy, sad, sleepless; thinks she will go insane.

Menorrhagia; pains run through hips into thighs, passing down.

Climacteric; infra-mammary pains left side, persistent.

Modalities: < menstrual period and during climacteric.

* * * * *

Actaea racemosa is another remedy which exerts a strong influence upon the female organism. The nervous system manifests its action in a multitude of symptoms, many of them being what is known as hysterical in character. There are twitchings, spasms, convulsions, neuralgias and mental symptoms in abundance. She shivers (nervous chill without coldness), faints, talks incessantly, frequently changing subjects; is grieved and troubled, with sighing, or is very gloomy with sleeplessness; thinks she is going insane, etc.

In the head there are severe pains, pressing outward, as if the top of the head would fly off, or running into the eyes, which ache fearfully or the pains settle in the occiput and shoot down the neck. There are very few, if any, remedies that have worse ciliary neuralgia than Actaea racemosa.

In the female sexual organs it cures "pains in the uterine region, darting from side to side". The menstrual function is performed irregularly. Sometimes the flow is scanty, but more generally profuse, and we have the mental and nervous symptoms above enumerated in abundance, with these irregularities. It is one of our best remedies in menorrhagia, when there is "severe pain in the back, down the thighs and through the hips, with heavy pressing down", as I have often proven. It is also excellent in infra-mammary pains in the left side during the climacteric, as I have also proven.

Also in backache and spinal irritation sympathetic with uterine troubles. It cures sharp lancinating pains in various parts, either nervous or muscular, if they are connected with uterine disturbances. In rheumatism the affection attacks the belly of the muscle by preference. Actaea is a many-sided remedy and adapted to nervous troubles of many forms.