Minutus

Dear Joy,
After having read Cuprum on your website, you metion that you have a theory on epilepsy.
I was wondering, as you're on holidays, whether you would have the time to elaborate.

If it's too much like work, perhaps some time in the future.

Regards,
Michele.

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Dear Michele, my musings were based on some thoughts I had about
genetic memory and causative factors regarding not only epilepsy but
any diseased state that has a serious and deep mental and/or emotional
basis such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, deep depression,
obsessive-compulsive states, hallucinations, tourette's syndrome etc. I
was particularly interested in epilepsy and some of the more psychotic
states because of the sometimes strange physical stances that occur
such as talking excitably at a wall; curling up into strange positions;
constantly moving; cutting oneself + other forms of self abuse; mania
that adopts a religious form, an animalistic or erotic or just wild
form (you get the picture).

In the Cuprum piece I wrote, "why someone has epilepsy or convulsions
might have something to do with a lost past, a forgotten memory. I
sometimes wonder if the person who has epilepsy and convulsions isn't
trapped with a genetic memory of a forebear."

The genetic memory here could be relating to past abuses, persecution
or any other destructive forces etc and the physical stance taken is
one of protection or escape or even retaliation. Cuprum has ailments
from fright and fear and there's nothing to say that this fright and
fear isn't as genetically inherited as anything else. If we can become
trapped within our susceptibilities and these susceptibilities are a
mixture of near and not so near previous generations, as well as our
own unique and individual contribution, then in my opinion they will
probably include mental illness as well.

I realise also that a lot of these states could be syphilitic
(suppressed?) in origin and hence why they can be difficult to treat
but if they are states that are well locked into the past then that
would be another reason why they can be such a challenge. Perhaps
others could contribute to this idea? Best wishes, Joy
http://www.homeopathicmateriamedica.com
http://www.homeopathicmateriamedica.blogspot.com
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"Become trapped within our susceptibilities" -- I love that metaphor. It's very powerful and profound. In treating people with serious mental illnesses, I've seen this process occur several times, as I'm sure others have, where initially finding a "way in" is extraordinarily difficult --- the epitome of the "one-sided case," with little to go on other than the presenting mental state. Even where there are peculiar aspects of this -- amazingly, with all of the delusion rubrics that we have -- I've found that sometimes the only way to start unlocking the case, to produce some initial response, lies outside the repertory.

One example: I have one patient who had OCD, religious delusions, and sexual issues, who responded with huge aggravations to even the most dilute solutions of the "indicated" remedies based on repertorization (including Cuprum). He first responded positively for a short while to Crotalus cascavella. The remedy that followed and then helped considerably over more than a year was Cenchris. Eventually that no longer worked, either. The case had not resolved, although the client was feeling and doing considerably better -- the substrate was still there. When Cenchris failed, nothing else seemed to fit. The case had shifted, though. He was better able to control the rage that seemed to drive the OCD. Now the compulsiveness had shifted from repeated destructive actions to an obsession with pornography. And a few peculiar physical symptoms had emerged.

I finally came to Nuphar luteum, which is a remedy about which I had previously known nothing. But it corresponded to the unusual physical symptoms which he had now begun to experience as well as to the sexual focus that had emerged behind the OCD and rage (compulsive fascination with pornography, a feeling of being really evil because of this, impotence, involuntary seminal emission when urinating.... ) and he kept complaining that he felt like he'd been bitten by bugs all over his body, but there was no evidence of insect bites or insects!.

Two doses of Nuphar (LM1, triple diluted) had amazing results. The key was recovering what Joy referred to eloquently as a "lost memory." He became conscious of when the OCD had started. He and his sister had had an incestuous relationship when he was 5-7 years old, that had ended with terror one night when he was with his sister in her bed and at that moment a car hit the electric pole outside the house, causing huge flashes and sparks in the electrical system and shaking the house violently. He was terrified, and had thought it was God coming to get him for his sin (This made a lot of sense, as he had started out with delusions that God was coming to get him every night to punish him for some unknown reason).

He had suppressed the memory, but had struggled with the OCD ever since. When the memory came back to him, it lifted that whole layer of terror from him. He processed the memory amazingly calmly, and let it go. He's not totally free of his OCD, but it's basically become a background annoyance. He's become much more balanced, is able to control his anger, has reconciled with his sister and with the memory of his parents, has lost the sexual obsessions, has actually begun thinking that it wouldn't be so bad if he had children, has felt good for almost a year.

He called me recently because a close family member had just died, and he wanted help getting through the shock and grief. His symptoms clearly indicated Ignatia, which helped him! I was amazed that the one-sidedness has disappeared, and that now he clearly shows balanced symptoms that point to a remedy that one might expect and that can help.

It was an excellent example of "being trapped in one's susceptibilities." In such a state, a person simply doesn't present a clear remedy picture.

I have another current case of severe manic depression of 20 years duration, which is evolving similarly, through layers starting with suppressed memories of incest (which have been coming unsuppressed as we go along, but that she is being able to deal with in a balanced way as they emerge). In this case, the remedy has been Staphisagria, proceeding through LM potencies.

Again it was a one-sided case, with few physicals to start out with, and not a lot to go on other than the endlessly deep mental illness along with severe rheumatic joint pains. The lethargy with repeated suicidal attempts and a sensation of heaviness heaviness alternate in this case with violent anger (leading, along with the arthralgia, to Staph as the lead-in remedy). Gradually, slowly, the heaviness has been lifting.

She occasionally now has moments when she feels joy, she says for the first time she ever remembers, and it's extremely unsettling because she doesn't know how to be in that state. She called me a couple of weeks ago with a cold (coryza, sore throat, head pain...). When I talked with her, she said she never remembers having gotten any acute illness before in her life -- even when her whole family has been sick with something, she's always been immune to any symptoms from it. The cold lasted only a few days and was very mild, but afterwards she felt much better emotionally. I have to assume that getting a cold represents the direction of cure as well, possibly, as a return of old symptoms. In any case, the return from being really trapped in a deep state of susceptibility with "lost memories" is beginning to become evident in this case as well.

Both clients have previously been hospitalized on several occasions for their mental illnesses, and treated with allopathic drugs, which they found so disagreeable that they had stopped taking them, and have been living on disability (public assistance) struggling with their illnesses on their own. Neither of them had suffered additional strong drug-caused miasms on top of their initial mental illnesses (this unfortunately circumstance can really make such severe illnesses impossibly difficult to treat). Both also obviously had a very strong will to get better and a willingness to stick and be patient with a treatment way "outside the box" (in the US), namely homeopathy.

Joy, I was reminded of these two cases by your fascinating observation: "In the Cuprum piece I wrote, "why someone has epilepsy or convulsions
might have something to do with a lost past, a forgotten memory. I
sometimes wonder if the person who has epilepsy and convulsions isn't
trapped with a genetic memory of a forebear."

Both of these cases, obviously, are based on "forgotten memories." The genetic memory of a forebear is of course an equally fascinating thought, with undoubted validity, but it's a whole lot harder to find evidence of this!

The etiology of the disease becomes obvious as the case evolves, and other symptoms also get uncovered, but initially, it's very challenging to figure out what's there -- because the person himself or herself also has no idea. It also takes a very long time to treat these cases, initially, and the initial remedy reactions are very subtle. Generally the person is unaware of these subtle actions for the first few follow-ups, although there must be some unconscious awareness of the healing process, or they'd never have the patience to stick with the remedies during that time. I take the opportunity to educate them about the "direction of cure" and about why seemingly minor things that they report are really excellent prognostic signs that the remedy will work for them.

Rosemary

Dear Rosemary,
Fascinating case. In mental cases, aren't these one-sided cases quite common? How did you arrive at the Nuphar luteum? There was no evidence of an ordinary miasm, not a drug miasm whatever that is?
Blessings,
Ellen

Dear Rosemary I was very moved by what you wrote and extremely
fascinated with the cases you have shared, many thanks for doing this.
Serious mental illness does indeed present a huge challenge in
unlocking all the possibilities.

Nuphar is one of the few rx that has an intense love and sympathy for
animals but the pond lilies are most interesting anyway although
phallic looking above water it is below, deep down in the mud where it
all happens, literally and metaphorically

Many thanks again for the great cases. Best wishes, Joy
http://www.homeopathicmateriamedica.com
http://www.homeopathicmateriamedica.blogspot.com
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That's why the lily is the focal image for the chakra at the vertex of the head, the un-subconsious mind. (not sure which). Ellen

I think it may also be because it is the reported experience of
many meditators that they have seen cascading light in the shape of
lotus petals at the brow.

So it may be not based purely on analogy but on experiences
Simon
All things are possible, some are just more probable than others.
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Hi Rosemary,

Thanks so much for these wonderful write-up! Now for a lovely piece of
serendipity--have you seen, the latest issue of Homeopathy Today has a
write-up on a case of Nuphar--I'd never heard of it before yours, and
now I see it twice in as many days!

Shannon

No, I haven't looked at it yet -- thanks for telling me. -)) Rosemary

It's extraordinary that in contrast to this patient's frequent rages, he's also extremely sympathetic with other sufferers -- not specifically animals, though -=- but that's really good to know.

From: Joy Lucas
To: minutus@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Wednesday, October 26, 2005 10:46 AM
Subject: Re: [Minutus] epilepsy
Dear Rosemary I was very moved by what you wrote and extremely
fascinated with the cases you have shared, many thanks for doing this.
Serious mental illness does indeed present a huge challenge in
unlocking all the possibilities.

Nuphar is one of the few rx that has an intense love and sympathy for
animals but the pond lilies are most interesting anyway although
phallic looking above water it is below, deep down in the mud where it
all happens, literally and metaphorically
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