Homeopathic Materia Medica

Lectures on Homoeopathic Materia Medica, James Tyler Kent

It would seem rather strange that the two remedies to which Hahnemann gave such a good start by proving and use should be so neglected and forgotten as Magnesia carb. and Magnesia mur. have been.

These two, if used, would cure many of the liver troubles that are not now cured. Magnesia mur. could cure many conditions in nervous, excitable women that now go uncured. These remedies are neglected, while Phosphorus and Sulphur are prescribed for almost everything.

Magnesia mur. is a deep-acting antipsoric suited to nervous patients with stomach and liver troubles. it has enlarged glands and irritation of the nerve centres and brain. This patient is often sensitive to cold, chilly, but be desires fresh air and open air.

Many of the complaints are ameliorated by the open, fresh air, but come head symptoms are an exception. The head must be covered, as it is so sensitive to the open air. He is extremely restless; only with great difficulty can he keep still, and if forced to keep still, he becomes anxious. Anxiety is the marked feature. Restlessness, fidgetiness throughout the body, coupled with anxiety.

This comes on at any time, but it is worse at night in bed and still worse on closing the eyes to go to sleep. When he closes the eyes he becomes go anxious, restless and fidgety that he must throw the covers off, take a long breath or do something.

He is kept awake at night by the anxious feeling. It was described originally by the prover as an uneasiness, but in the Guiding Symptoms it is spoken of as a restlessness in bed. If you study the hysterical nature, the anxiety and restlessness, you will see it is throughout the whole economy and should be classed under mind and nerves.

Some remedies have vertigo on closing the eyes, some have anxiety on closing the eyes. Conium has sweat on closing the eyes. These were the points used by keynote prescribers and some times good results were obtained. I remember once curing an organic stricture, which had been dilated but was no better.

The patient described his symptoms and the stricture was all he could think of. I did not see his remedy and gave everything without relief. One day, however, he told me he could not close his eyes to go to sleep without having a profuse sweat. I gave him Conium on that keynote alone but it cured him of the sweat and the stricture, brought back an old gonorrheal discharge and resorption of the inflammatory material took place.

A scientific prescriber would not do that; but when he heard that symptom he would not know it was in the nature of Conium to have the stricture, and in another case he would see that Conium did not suit, and he would know when and when not to give it.

Anxious in the room, ameliorated in the open air. Anxiety at night in bed on closing the eyes. While reading she felt as if someone were reading after her and she must read faster and faster. That occurs in patients who are tired from being worked up to the highest pitch and it seems as if they would fly to pieces. Any thought that comes into the mind tends to repeat itself.

Vertigo, ameliorated walking in the open air. Vertigo in the morning on rising. The head symptoms are troublesome. Silicea will be given in cases where this remedy should be given, because the Silicea headache is ameliorated from wrapping up the head. This remedy has it also. Soreness of the hair follicles. Sensation as if the hair were pulled. Headache ameliorated from tying a bandage tight around the head or wrapping up the head.

Yellowness all over the body. Yellow eye in jaundice and liver troubles. Eyes inflamed. Margins of lids and eyelashes crusty; fine pimples and eruptions. After leaving the head symptoms, which are relieved by warmth, we find many symptoms worse in the warm room.

Pulsation in the ears. Ulceration of the edges of the nostrils. Tongue has the appearance as if it had been burnt, excoriated and cracked in various directions. Fissures hum like fire. Hunger but knows not for what. Ravenous hunger followed by nausea. Aggravation from salt things, from eating salt food, from salt baths, from sea bathing, and at the seashore from inhaling sea air.

Chest complaints, liver complaints and constipation at sea. Bromine has complaints of sailors when they come on shore. Magnesia mur. has complaints from going to sea.

When a patient has urticaria at the seashore, Arsenic will cure in Arsenic cases and will often mitigate when it is the only symptom.

Foul eructations tasting like rotten eggs. Disordered stomach. Stomach easily disordered. Waterbrash, vomiting. Like Magnesia carb., it has inability to digest milk. Milk causes pain, and it is passed undigested lienteric stools. Fainting at the dinner table in hysterical women.

It has many liver troubles. Enlargement and induration of the liver, with jaundiced skin. Right lobe of liver sore, painful while lying on it and when he turns over to the left he is uncomfortable, as it feels as if the liver dragged over to the left.

Natrum Sulph. often cures that symptom, and Ptelea has a somewhat similar condition. These two symptoms, aggravation from lying on the right, that is, the soreness, and aggravation from lying on the left, that is, the dragging; come separately or together. It has much liver trouble from lying on the liver.

Tenderness in the region of the stomach and over the bowels. Attacks of gastralgia in the evening, A strong feature in this remedy is indigestion. The stomach becomes less and less able to digest and finally he cannot take a mouthful of food without distress.

Abdominal dropsies. Colic, cramps, tearing pains. Great flatulence. With this kind of digestive disturbance we have a good home for tapeworm, it hatches out easily in this patient. The most troublesome patients I have are those who come after having had a tapeworm removed by violent drugs. It takes a long time to restore them. If a patient will come with his worm and all his symptoms, I will give him relief, and he will soon be turned into order and the tapeworm will cause no trouble.

Constipation of infants, as in Magnesia carb. Chalky stools like Magnesia carb. When the patient is an adult and yellow with jaundice, the stools are light colored, bileless and there is no expulsive, power.

No Power to expel the contents of the bladder, so he presses with the abdominal muscles on the full bladder and passes a little. Lack of sensation in the bladder, so that sometimes he cannot tell whether, he has to urinate or not until his bladder is so full that it causes pressure. The inability to feel extends to the urethra, and he cannot tell in the dark whether he is passing urine or not. Metrorrhagia, with backache which is ameliorated by pressing hard back in the chair or lying on a hard pillow. Bearing down pains in the pelvis, especially in hysterical women and girls.

Congestion of chest from sea bathing. Chest troubles and colds on the chest at the seashore and from salt baths. Palpitation of the heart with anxiety. Anxiety and restlessness come on at rest; he must do something, must hurry. These symptoms are likely to come on again in the evening when he tries to go to sleep.

Shocks through the body, like electric shocks, when wide awake, jerking the whole frame; twitching and jerking. Numbness in the extremities. Tearing pains in the upper limbs and marked restlessness in lower limbs. Cramps in calves at night. Paralytic drawing, and tearing in all the limbs. Burning of the soles at night in bed. Foot-sweat is another symptom like Silicea. Numbness of the arms in the morning on waking.

Hysterical and spasmodic complaints. Weakness from sea bathing or salt baths. It is the aggravation from salt. Sleep unrefreshing, anxious dreams. Bodily state sensitive to cold, and great disposition to take cold.

Some complaints are ameliorated by fresh air, if not too cold.

A Dictionary of Practical Materia Medica, John Henry Clarke

Chloride of magnesium. Magnesia chloride. Mg Cl2. Solution. Trituration.

Clinical.─Biliousness. Bladder, paresis of. Cardialgia. Cold. Constipation. Deafness. Diarrhoea. Dysmenorrhoea. Dyspepsia. Foot-sweat. Headache. Heart, affections of. Haemorrhoids. Heartburn. Home-sickness. Hysteria. Leucorrhoea. Liver, affections of. Menstruation, painful. Nocturnal emissions. Ozaena. Palpitation. Pregnancy, nausea of. Smell, disordered. Spleen, enlarged. Stomach, disorders of. Taste, disordered. Tinea ciliaris. Urine, straining to pass. Uterus, pain in; induration of. Waterbrash. Whooping-cough.

Characteristics.─Whilst Mag. c. and Mag. sul. are recognised old-school remedies, I can find no mention of Mag. mur. or Mag. Phos. in modern text-books. Mag. m. first appeared in Hahnemann's Chronic Diseases. The general feature of Mag. c. appears in many symptoms, notably those of nervous disturbance and hysteria. The salt, says Guernsey, "is found in many mineral waters, and in seawater. It has a very bitter taste, and is decomposed by heat." The note about the sea-water is important. Mag. m. is like Nat. mur., and Aq. mar. in the relation to seaside effects. Nat. m. is particularly indicated in constipation," biliousness," and generally disordered health, which appear as soon as the patient goes to the seaside. Mag. m. is indicated when excessive weakness is felt after a sea-bath. The chief Localities of its action are: Head; r. hypochondrium; inner region of liver; rectum and large intestine; bladder; uterus; heart; feet. It is especially suited to: Diseases of women; spasmodic and hysterical complaints complicated with uterine diseases. Headache at menstrual period in hysterical women. Women after suffering months or years from attacks of indigestion or biliousness. Enlargement and congestion of liver Puny, rickety children during dentition. Men with disordered livers; and sexual disorders. Teste, who places Mag. m. in his Ferrum group, says that Mag. m. and Mag. c. "have been used for the cure of cachexia occasioned by long and painful diseases." He says he has seen Mag. m. produce great improvement in this case: "Hydrarthrosis of left knee, with emaciation of left thigh, consequent on a wandering neuralgia, which, after having commenced in the form of cystitis with (non-venereal) discharge from urethra, had successively invaded the shoulder, left elbow, eyes, and lastly, knees, where it had become seated." A connection between liver disorder and nasal obstruction has often been traced, and Mag. m. has a large number of symptoms in both. The nasal symptoms have led to its successful use in ozaena. One case cured had redness, swelling and scaliness of nose, and sweat about the head and feet. Mag. m. is one of the leading remedies in foot-sweat. Burning in soles, evening, must put feet out of bed. In liver affections there is enlargement, sensitiveness < from touch, and < lying on r. side; tongue large, coated, indurated. It is especially suited to liver affections in children who are puny and rickety, and have eruptions about the eyes. The constipation of Mag. m. is very distinctive, and has led to the cure of many extremely obstinate cases. The characteristic stool is knotty and conglomerate, like sheep's. It may remain in this condition, or it may crumble at the anus. Painful urging before stool; burning at anus after. As well as intestinal atony, there is atony of bladder: urine can only be passed by bearing down with abdominal muscles. The hysterical symptoms are marked: spasms, fainting, globus. Bearing down in uterine region; uterine spasms. Menses black or pitch-like, accompanied by pains in back when walking, pains in thighs when sitting. Leucorrhoea after every stool or following uterine spasms. Hysterical headaches. Patient is anxious, restless, always < by mental exertion; during or after dinner seized with nausea, eructations, trembling and faint spells, > by eructations. Palpitation < when quiet, > moving about. Perversions of taste and smell are marked in Mag. m., and I have frequently restored with it loss of taste and smell after influenza. Among the Sensations of Mag. m. are: As if some one was reading after her. As if boiling water was on side of head. As if hair pulled. As if tongue burnt; mouth scalded. Stools as if burnt. The pains are mostly boring and spasmodic contractive pains; dragging down. There is much burning and heat. R. M. Skinner reports (Med. Adv., xxiv. 383) this case: A farmer had been treated allopathically three months for chills, which were checked, but the man did not feel well. Spleen very large, sensitive, felt heavy when he walked or rode. Constipated, goes three or four days without a stool. It was for this that he sought advice. Abdomen distended. hard, especially in ileo-caecal region. Cold on left side and a crawling feeling, like a cold snake. Beating in umbilical region as if his heart beat there. Mag. m. 20 one dose on the tongue. At 8 p.m. the bowels began to act and went on acting with the exception of one hour till 3 a.m. He complained next morning that the medicine had "almost killed him," and he looked thin and tired. No further medicine was given, and in ten days he had no complaint, and the spleen was normal in size and without tenderness. In a large proportion of Mag. m. cases the Conditions will give the leading indications. There is general hyperaesthesia and < by touch or pressure; but the head pains are > by hard pressure; eye pains > by pressure, and the menstrual pains > by pressing on back. There is great sensitiveness to cold and disposition to catch cold, > wrapping up head warmly; but the skin eruptions on face, head, and eyes are < in warm room; cough < in room. Most symptoms except headache are > in open air. Sea-bathing = bloody expectoration; great weakness. Rest <; motion > (this is especially marked and peculiar in reference to palpitation). < Lying down. Palpitation is > lying on left side. Liver symptoms < lying right side, < on side lain on. [Also lying on left side = sensation of something (liver) dragging to that side.] Rumination < while walking. < At meals (fainting). > By eructations (nausea and trembling). < After coitus (pain in testes and cords). Mental exertion <.

Relations.─Antidoted by: Cham., also Camph., Ars., Nux. It antidotes: Merc. (metrorrhagia). Compatible: Bell., Sul., Nat. m., Pul., Sep. Compare: Hysteria, Mosch., Asaf., Val., and Castor. Uterine spasms, Ign. (Mag. m. may have induration); Caust. and Secale (both have continuous spasm). Erections and burning in penis, Pic. ac., Nat. m. Enlarged liver, < by touch and lying on right side, Merc. Foot-sweat and head-sweat, Sil. (Sil. is offensive); scrofulous and rickety children, headache > wrapping, Sil. Congestion of liver, enlargement, feeling of weight and pressure, Ptelea (Ptel. is > lying right side). Rumination, Sul. (Mag. m. is while walking). Nervous restlessness, Zn. > Motion, Rhus. Heart symptoms > by motion, Gels. Lips chapped and serrated, Nat. m. < After coitus, Kal. c., Bro. Enlarged liver of children, Calc. ars. Sensitiveness to noise, Ign., Nux, Ther. Eructations tasting like onions (Sinap., breath smells of onions). Leucorrhoea two weeks after menses, Bar., Bov., Con. Menstrual headache, Mag. c. (Mag. m. more hysteria).

Causation.─Sea-bathing.

SYMPTOMS.

1. Mind.─Uneasiness and lachrymose humour.─Peevishness and chagrin.─Aversion to conversation; prefers solitude.─Repugnance to exertion.─Nervous excitability, with tendency to weep readily.─Excited; unhappy; fitful; emotional.─Fearful and inclined to weep.─Anxiousness in room, > in open air.─While reading, felt as if some one was reading after her, and she must keep reading faster and faster.

2. Head.─Stupefaction as from intoxication.─Vertigo in morning, on rising, and during dinner; disappears in open air.─Heaviness in head, with a dizziness which causes falling down.─Pains, > by covering up head.─Sensation of numbness in forehead.─Compressive sensation in head from both sides, with a hot feeling, and with beating in forehead when pressing upon it.─Tearing and stitches in temples, with great sensitiveness of vertex, as if the hair were raised by pulling.─Tearing and stitches in r. temple, extending to eye; necessity to press eyes together.─Griping and raging in both temples, with a feeling as if he would become dizzy and lose consciousness; disappearing on pressing the head with both hands, in evening after lying down (5th day).─Tensive pressure in forehead and sinciput, with confusion and cloudiness in head, principally on awaking and when lying; > from exercise in open air and when wrapping head up warm.─Squeezing, as from a claw, and noise in temples, in evening, in bed, with sensation as if vertigo and loss of consciousness were coming on.─Jerking, or shooting and pulsative tearings, in head.─Congestion, with heat, painful humming, and ebullition in head.─Painful undulation and whizzing as of boiling water on side upon which one rests.─Quotidian headache.─Nervous pullings in head and face, extending to teeth, with a sensation of confusion in head.─Throbbing, jerking tearing in occiput.─Boils on head.─Great sensitiveness of scalp.─Nodes on occiput, tearing, painful to touch.─Tendency of head to sweat.

3. Eyes.─Inflammation and burning pain in eyes, with redness of sclerotica.─Lachrymation and burning in eyes, when looking at anything in broad daylight.─Nocturnal agglutination of eyelids.─Yellow colour of sclerotica.─Green halo round candle in evening.

4. Ears.─Pulsation in ear.─Dulness and hardness of hearing, as if something were placed before ear.─Shootings, acute pullings, and boring in ears.─Itching of herpes behind ears.─Great sensitiveness to noise.─Buzzing in ears.

5. Nose.─Scabs in nostrils, sometimes with painful sensibility of nose, when touched.─Excoriation of nostrils.─Discharge of corrosive serum from nose.─Stoppage of nose, with want of breath.─Pain as from excoriation, and of burning in nose.─Swelling, redness, induration, and heat of lower part of nose, which are < in morning.─Troublesome dryness of nose.─Nocturnal obstruction of nose.─Coryza, with loss of taste and smell; and emission of yellow and fetid mucus on blowing nose.─Ulcerated nostrils.─Loss of smell.

6. Face.─Pale, yellowish, or earthy complexion.─Drawing pains in nerves of face.─Tension in face, with cramp-like pain in bones of face.─Facial eruption.─Pimples on forehead, itching in evening.─Lips cracked.─Sensation of roughness on internal surface of lips, when touched by tongue.─Large and transparent vesicles on the red of the lips (of lower lip, itching, afterwards burning).

7. Teeth.─Toothache, aggravated to highest degree by contact of food.─Sensation of elongation in upper incisors.─Painful swelling and easy bleeding of gums.

8. Mouth.─Dryness of mouth at night.─Dryness of mouth and throat without thirst.─Rhagades in tongue with violent burning.─Tongue coated white early in morning.─Copious accumulation of serous saliva in mouth.─Sensation in interior of mouth as if it had been burnt.─Burning in tongue as from fire.─Tongue coated white early in morning; or tip and edges clean, large, flabby, yellow.─Bad taste, with poor appetite.

9. Throat.─Sensation, as if throat were excoriated and raw, < in evening, and at night.─Hawking up of viscid and thick mucus from the throat, often mixed with blood and very tenacious.─Dryness and roughness of the throat with hoarse voice.

10. Appetite.─Frequent thirst.─Violent thirst (3 a.m.).─Bulimy and craving in stomach, followed by nausea.─Hunger, without knowing what is wanted.─Poor appetite, with bad taste in mouth.─Desire for dainties.

11. Stomach.─Regurgitation of food, while walking.─Violent hiccough during and after dinner, which = pain in stomach.─Sensation as if a ball were ascending from abdomen into oesophagus; > by eructations.─Increased hunger, followed by nausea.─Eructations tasting like rotten eggs, like onions.─Nausea, esp. in morning, on first rising.─Frequent nausea with fainting, day and night.─Constant nausea, earthy colour of face and nervous excitability, with tendency to shed tears.─Aching in stomach, with nausea.─Tension, and pain as from ulceration, and as from a bruise in stomach, with excessive sensitiveness to touch.─Throbbing in pit of stomach.─Heat in stomach.─Painful commotion in stomach, when walking and in the act of planting the foot.

12. Abdomen.─Movings about in epigastric region, then in lower abdomen, > by emission of flatus, forenoon.─After each dose burning in pit of stomach, spreading to throat; if she has waterbrash it disappears.─Fermentation in abdomen.─Tension and shooting in hepatic region.─Affections of r. hypochondrium; inner region of liver.─Congestion of l. lobe of liver.─Burning in r, hypochondrium, up to r. scapula; when putting foot forward in walking.─Aching pains in liver, also when walking, or pressing the part, < lying on r. side.─Hardness and tightness of abdomen.─Violent and constant distension of abdomen, with constipation.─Painful hardness of abdomen, and esp. of r. side.─Cramp-like pains in abdomen, esp. in evening, and sometimes followed by leucorrhoea.─Tearing in abdomen.─Dragging down from region of r. ovary to thigh.─Cuttings, pinchings, and acute drawing in abdomen.─Stinging shootings in the muscles of the abdomen.─Colic (in the evening) in hysteric persons, extending to thighs, followed by fluor albus.

13. Stool and Anus.─Hard, difficult, slow, and insufficient evacuations.─Obstructions of bowels from induration of faeces.─Haemorrhoids pain during normal stool.─Burning and smarting in anus during and after stool.─Stools crumbling as if burnt.─Stool crumbles at verge of anus.─Faeces knotty, like sheep-dung.─Violent tenesmus, with scanty evacuation, or only an emission of flatus.─Chronic tendency to diarrhoea.─Violent diarrhoea of mucus and blood.─Greenish, yellowish, or brownish evacuations.─Faeces coated with mucus and blood.─Ejection of taenia.

14. Urinary Organs.─Frequent want to urinate, day and night, with scanty emission.─An emission can be accomplished only by contraction (bearing down) of the abdominal muscles.─Torpor of urethra.─Urine, pale-yellow, followed by burning in urethra.─Urine passes only by drops, always some seeming to remain behind.─High-coloured urine, loaded with lithates, accompanies the uterine symptoms.

15. Male Sexual Organs.─Violent itching in genital organs and in scrotum, extending as far as the anus.─Frequent erections; early in morning with burning in penis.─Burning in back after coition.─Pain in testicles (on touching or moving them) and cords (with swelling) after unrequited sexual excitement.─Nocturnal involuntary emissions, with or without dreams; scrotum relaxed and loose, often covered with sweat; constipation; indigestion; biliousness; itching at anus.─Scrotum relaxed.

16. Female Sexual Organs.─Catamenia too early and too copious.─Suppressed menses.─Black and coagulated blood during catamenia.─During catamenia: paleness of face, with pains in loins and depression; fainting; pain in l. leg.─Cramps in uterus, sometimes with pains extending to thighs, and leucorrhoea.─Leucorrhoea, esp. during movement, or preceded by cramps in abdomen.─Scirrhous induration of uterus.─Leucorrhoea immediately after stool.

17. Respiratory Organs.─Hoarseness, with roughness and dryness of throat.─Hoarseness in the morning after rising.─Tingling in larynx.─Bloody expectoration brought on by sea-bathing.─Dry cough, in evening, and at night, with burning pain and sensation of excoriation in chest.─Cramp-like cough at night, with violent tickling in throat.

18. Chest.─Oppression of chest, in region of heart.─Oppression in pit of stomach.─Sudden feeling of weight in chest, with obstructed respiration during dinner.─Tension and contraction in chest.

19. Heart.─Shootings (stitches) in heart, which impede respiration.─Pain at apex of heart, a pricking as of needles and pins, with pain under l. scapula as if knife were hacking the bone.─Palpitation of heart, when seated, disappearing on motion.

20. Neck and Back.─Swelling of glands of neck.─Pain as from bruises above and in small of back and both hips, with sensitiveness of the parts to touch.─Shooting, tearing, and burning pains in the back.─Contractive and cramp-like pains in loins.─Tearing stitches in loins.─Burning in back after coitus.─Drawing in loins after a stool.─Gnawing in spinal cord.─Burning and bruised feeling between scapulae.─Tearing in r. scapula, then in hip; in both scapulae.

21. Limbs.─Lancing, drawing, and tearing in extremities (Possart).

22. Upper Limbs.─Drawing and paralytic tearings in shoulder-joint, extending as far as arm and hand, < by movement.─Numbness of arms in morning, on waking; or in evening in bed.

23. Lower Limbs.─Great lassitude in legs, even when seated.─Heaviness of legs.─Jerking tearings in hips.─Uneasiness and tension in thighs.─Aching pain, or paralytic pulling in the knee.─Cramps in calves, at night.─Burning pain in soles, in evening.─Sweating of feet.

24. Generalities.─Boring or contractive cramp-like pains.─Paralytic drawing and tearing in limbs.─Indurations after inflammations.─Attacks of spasms, and of hysterical weakness.─Hysteria, which may occur several times in a day or night.─Liability to take cold.─Bodily weakness, which sometimes appears to proceed from stomach.─Sensation of uneasiness (soreness), and of painful weariness, in whole body, with acute sensibility to least noise.─General uneasiness in evening in bed, as soon as she closes her eyes.─Sensation as of boiling water on side on which one rests.─The majority of the symptoms present themselves when the patient is seated, or at night, and are generally > by movement.─Uneasiness in evening in bed on closing the eyes.

25. Skin.─Tingling in different parts of the skin.─Formication of the skin (face, chest, and soles of feet).─Itching pimples, with burning pain after scratching.─Pustular eruptions.─Eruption of small red papulae.─Furunculi.─Swelling of the glands.

26. Sleep.─Great inclination to sleep during day, with yawning and indolence.─Retarded sleep and sleeplessness, caused by heat, with thirst, and great agitation in whole body on shutting the eyes.─Anxious and frightful dreams, with talking and cries during sleep.─Sleep unrefreshing; tired in morning.─Jerking in body, when lying awake at night.─Nightmare.

27. Fever.─Shivering in evening, which disappears in bed.─Chill in evening from 4 to 8, even near warm stove.─Chill, followed by heat in evening till midnight.─Heat in evening with perspiration only on head.─Perspiration with thirst, from midnight till morning.─Sweat after midnight.─Pulse accelerated with ebullitions while sitting.

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

Chloride of Magnesia (MgCl)

Especially adapted to diseases of women; spasmodic and hysterical complaints, complicated with uterine diseases; who have suffered for years from attacks of indigestion or biliousness. Children: during difficult dentition are unable to digest milk; it causes pain in stomach and passes undigested; puny, rachitic, who crave sweets. Great sensitiveness to noise (Ign., Nux, Ther.). Headache: every six weeks, in forehead and around the eyes; as if it would burst; < from motion and in open air; > from lying down, strong pressure (Puls.), and wrapping up warmly (Sil., Stron.). Great tendency of head to sweat (Cal., Sanic., Sil.). Continual raising of white froth in mouth. Eructations, tasting like rotten eggs, like onions (breath smells of onions, Sinap.). Toothache; unbearable when food touches the teeth. Pressing pain in liver, when walking and touching it, liver hard, enlarged, < lying on right side (Mer., Kali c.). Constipation: stool hard, scanty, large, knotty, like sheep's dung; difficult to pass; crumbling at verge of anus (Am. m., Nat. m.); of infants during dentition. Urine; pale, yellow, can only be passed by bearing down with abdominal muscles; weakness of bladder; Menses: with great excitement at every speed; flow black, clotted; spasms and pains < in back when walking, extend into thighs; metrorrhagia, < at night in bed, causing hysteria (Act., Caul.). Leucorrhoea: after exercise; with every stool; with uterine spasm; followed by metrorrhagia; two weeks after menses for three or four days (Bar., Bov., Con.). Palpitation and cardiac pains while sitting. < by moving about (compare, Gels.).

Relations. - Compare: Cham. in the diseases of children.

Leaders In Homoeopathic Therapeutics, Eugene Beauharnais Nash

Constipation, stools knotty or lumpy, like sheep dung; crumbling at the verge of the anus.

Nervous headache, > from pressure (Puls.); on wrapping the head up warmly (Sil.).

Palpitation of heart when the patient is quiet, > when moving about.

Urine; pale yellow; can only be passed by bearing down with abdominal muscles; weakness of bladder.

Adapted to nervous, hysterical women inclined to spasms.

* * * * *

This salt of Magnesia seems to act differently from the Magnesia carb., for while the latter most characteristically produces diarrhea, and we find it oftenest useful there, the former constipates. It has a peculiar form of constipation. The stools are hard, difficult, slow, insufficient, knotty, like sheep's dung, and crumble at the verge of the anus. Sometimes can only be passed by bearing down with the abdominal muscles. The remedies most resembling it in this form of constipation are Natrum mur. and Ammonium mur. and now that I think of it I might as well mention here another similarity between Ammonium mur. and Magnesia carb. which is characteristic, viz.: The menstrual flow is worse at night. I forgot this when writing of Magnesia carb. Perhaps it will be all the better remembered for this interruption. With the Magnesia mur. menstruation is very painful; accompanied with severe cramps, which may increase to general spasms of a hysterical nature. This nervous condition, if found coupled with the peculiar constipation above described, will be a sure indication for the use of this remedy. Again it has a peculiar nervous headache, which is better from strong pressure (Pulsatilla), or wrapping head up warmly (Silicea). This headache also is often hysterical. The spasms in connection with uterine troubles may find rival remedies in Actaea racemosa and Caulophyllum, the tout ensemble must decide. Magnesia mur. is a liver remedy, and in some symptoms resembles Mercurius, notably, the tongue takes imprint of the teeth and the aggravation from lying on the right side. But the stools of these remedies are characteristically very different. Again, while Mercurius is best adapted to acute affections of this organ, Magnesia mur is more so to the chronic. Ptelea, liver troubles are worse when lying on the left side. A very peculiar symptom of Magnesia mur., often confirmed is: Palpitation of the heart when the patient is quiet, relieved when moving about.

Children cannot digest milk during dentition (Sepia).