KEY SYMPTOMS

Weepiness, conditions that improve for sympathy, desire for open air, thick, yellowy-green catarrh, changeable mood.

REMEDY PROFILE

People who respond best to Pulsatilla are sweet-natured, gentle, and compliant. They will avoid confrontation, but their moods

change frequently and rapidly, and they can be stubborn in their demands for attention and sympathy. Their physical symptoms can be equally changeable. Easily moved to laughter or tears, they are highly prone to weepiness when ill, but are soon consoled by hugs.

Other common traits are a dislike of stuffy rooms or fatty foods, a lack of thirst, and a preference for fresh air. Pulsatilla is given for labor, menstruation, menopause, and pregnancy problems. It is used for respiratory illness marked by yellowy-green catarrh, eye complaints, and indigestion with variable symptoms.

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ORIGIN
Native to Scandinavia, Denmark, Germany, and Russia, and now found across northern and central Europe.

BACKGROUND
Prescribed by the Greek physician Dioscorides in the 1st century CE for eye problems, and in 18th-century Europe for cataracts, ulcers, and tooth decay.

PREPARATION
The fresh, flowering plant, including the root, is chopped and macerated in alcohol, before being diluted and succussed.

COMMON NAMES
Small pasque flower, meadow anemone, wind flower.

KEY SYMPTOMS

Stupor, apathy, dulled sensitivity to pain, hyperactivity with difficulty in sleeping.

REMEDY PROFILE
Opium is given to people who exhibit either or both of two opposite states. One is stupor, apathy, and dulled sensitivity to pain. The other is hyperactivity and intense sensitivity, often with insomnia.

If symptoms occur with one or both of these states, Opium is given for insomnia, sleeping disorders, respiratory problems, constipation, and shock. It can also be used to help treat recovery from stroke paralysis, brain injuries, delirium tremens, and alcohol withdrawal.

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ORIGIN
Native to western Asia, and introduced to southeast Europe 3,000 years ago. Now grown mostly in India, Iran, China, and Australia.

BACKGROUND
Dedicated by the ancient Greeks and Romans to the gods of night, dreams, and death. Opium has been used since antiquity as a sedative and analgesic, and has also been used illicitly for many centuries as a recreational drug.

PREPARATION
Sticky latex (sap) from the unripe, green seed pods is dried, dissolved in alcohol, and succussed.

COMMON NAMES
Opium poppy, big smoke.

KEY SYMPTOMS

Anticipatory anxiety, lack of self-esteem, flatulence and constipation, desire for sweet foods, person feels worse between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.

REMEDY PROFILE

Lycopodium is prescribed when anticipatory anxiety features strongly in the psychological symptoms. Lack of confidence is often hidden by a veneer of arrogance or sarcasm. There is a dislike of close company, but also of being
left alone.

Physical symptoms usually focus on digestive problems, with excessive bloating and gas. Complaints are often right-sided, or move from the right to the left of the body. Another typical physical trait, poor physical stamina, is often worse in the afternoons.

Desire for sweet foods is common. Lycopodium is also used for kidney and prostate problems, headaches, and chest infections.

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ORIGIN
Native to temperate areas throughout the Northern Hemisphere, and commonly found growing on moorland and in mountainous
areas and forests.

BACKGROUND
Traditionally used for antibacterial and sedative action, it has also been given by herbalists as a digestive, a diuretic, to treat kidney stones, and to lower fever.

PREPARATION
The spikes are cut in summer and their spores are collected. These are then steeped in alcohol for at least five days, before being filtered, diluted, and succussed.

COMMON NAMES
Club moss, wolf’s claw, stag’s-horn moss, running pine, lamb’s tail, fox tail, witch meal, vegetable sulfur.

KEY SYMPTOMS

Hurry and impatience, intense sexual urges, preference for cool, fresh air, sensation as though the heart is being gripped.

REMEDY PROFILE
Lilium is traditionally linked with people who are hurried and impatient, and generally trying to do too many things at once. They often feel wild and out of control, and may even fear that they are going insane. They like to be the center of attention and can be quick to anger if they are not. Alternatively, they may be filled with feelings of remorse, especially of a religious nature, and torment
themselves endlessly about their behavior.

A conflict between very high moral standards and intense sexual urges is characteristic in these people. The suppression of their sexual desire generally aggravates frustration and anger. They are often sensitive to criticism, easily offended, irritated, even by kindness, and hurried beyond reason. People who respond well to this remedy typically have a burning sensation in their hands, and prefer cool weather.

Lilium is prescribed chiefly for female reproductive-system disorders. It is also given for states of despair and depression, and for urinary complaints, angina, and poor circulation.

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ORIGIN
Native to China and Japan, but now grown worldwide, almost always for ornamental purposes. Prefers moist, acidic soil in full sun, but with its base in shade.

BACKGROUND
Introduced to Europe and the Western world from China and Japan, and has since become a popular ornamental flower for cultivation in gardens.

PREPARATION
The stalk, leaves, and flowers of the fresh plant are finely chopped and soaked in alcohol for at least ten days. The mixture is then filtered, diluted, and succussed.

COMMON NAMES
Tiger lily.

KEY SYMPTOMS

Ailments triggered by grief, tendency to bottle up emotions, fear of birds, sensation as if there is a lump in the throat.

REMEDY PROFILE
Ignatia is best suited to people, especially women, who are experiencing strong emotional problems, such as a broken relationship or acute grief after a death. They are frequently emotionally fragile, artistic, and hypersensitive. Prone to mood swings and feelings of self-pity, they may have a rather brittle air, often laughing and crying at the same time. Suppressing their emotions can lead to hysteria. High expectations of those close to them are typical, and they find it hard to break the bond with their partner if disillusioned in love.

Contradictory physical symptoms are typically treated with Ignatia, such as indigestion that is relieved by eating, or a sore throat that is better for swallowing solid food. There is often great sensitivity to pain, with a tendency to yawn and sigh frequently. There is also a dislike of crowds, and a fear of birds, especially chickens.

Ignatia is used to treat illness that develops from emotional stress. Such conditions include headaches, nervous tics and twitches, digestive disorders such as nausea and vomiting, and a sore throat.

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ORIGIN
Native to the East Indies, China, and the Philippine Islands. This large tree bears a bitter fruit that contains the seeds within its pulp.

BACKGROUND
In the late 17th century, the Dutch used the seeds of St. Ignatius’s bean to treat conditions such as gout, cholera, asthma, and epilepsy.

PREPARATION
The dried seeds are powdered before being steeped in alcohol at least five days. This is followed by filtration, dilution, and succussion.

COMMON NAME
St. Ignatius’s bean.