Argent. Nit. (Argentum Nitricum)

Remedy Profile
Common names: Hellstone, devil's stone, lunar caustic.
Source: Acanthite, which is found in Norway, the US and South America.
Parth used: Silver nitrate

Silver nitrate (a cimpiund of silver) is caustic and antibacterial and was once used medicinally to cauterize wounds and to treat warts, epilepsy, and eye infections in newborn infants. In large amounts, silver nitrate is highly poisonous and causes severe breathing difficulties and damage to the skin, kidneys, liver, spleen and aorta. The Argent. nit. remedy is mainly used for nervous and digestive problems.

Ailments Treated
This remedy is used for all types of fear and anxiety brought on by an over-active imagination. Stage fright claustrophobia and anxiety in the face of unexpected situations are all helped by Argent.nit. Often these fears and phobias are accompanied by a superstition that something awful is about to happen, for example being crushed by a tall building.

Sometimes there is also a sense of great difficulty in resisting reckless behaviour and dangerous impulses, such as jumping from a high window. Anxiety induced sweats or palpitations are also helped by Argent.nit.

This remedy is given for digestice complaints, for example, diarrhoea, flatulence and vomiting, and pulsating headcahes with a slow inset which are caused by eating too many sweet foods or nervous excitement.

Argen.nit. also effective for pain that is better for pressure and fresh air but worse for movement or talking, asthma, colicky pain during weaning, warts, laryngitis with splinter-like pain and hoarseness, sore throatsm epilepsy, and dizziness.

In women, this remedy is given for a bearing down sensation in the uterus due to prolapse or menstruation. It is also good for inflammation of the mucous membranes, especially in the eyes and it used for conjunctivitis.

Complaints treated with Argent.nit are usually left-sided.

Symptoms better for fresh air; for pressure; in cool surroundings.
Symptoms worst for warmth; lying on the left side; for emotional stress or overwork; for talking or movement; in hot weather.

Key Uses
-Anxieties, fears and phobia.
-Disgestive complaints brought on by nervous excitement or from eating too much sweet food.
-Ailments accompanied by a craving for sweet foods.

Constitutional Type
Argent.nit types are often found in jobs that require quick thinking and a good memory, where the emphasis is on performance, for example, acting. They are driven individuals who think, talk, and act rapidly

Personality & Temprament
These types are extrovert, cheerful, and impressionable. They find it difficult to control their far-ranging minds and emotions and readily laugh, cry, or lose their tempers. This can make them perpetually agitated and apprehensive and may intensify into fearful anticipation, for example, worry and fear about missing a train or forgetting lines in a forthcoming performance. Their constant anxiety and worry may lead to irrational fears, for example, being crushed by a tall building or impulsively jumping from a great height.

The Argent.Nit. Child
-Looks prematurely old.
-Hates stuffy rooms.
-Nervy, excitable and apprehensice and may be nauseous or sick at the thought of school.
-Prone to insomnia due to anticipatory anxiety.
-Craves salty and sweet food, which may cause diarrhoea. Breastfed babies have colic and diarrhoea if the mother eats sweet foods.

Physical Appearance
Argent.nit types tend to have sunken features and develop early lines and wrinkles which them appear prematurely old and mentally overtaxed. They may be prone to sudden, profuse, nervous sweats.


Source of picture: http://members.chello.nl/~h.vandenbersselaar/fotohomeopatie.htm

Aconite (Aconitum Napellus)

Remedy Profile
Common names: Monkshood, friar's cap, wolfsvane.
Source: Grows in mountainous areas of Europe.
Parts used: Fresh root, flowers and leaves

This deadly plant has been used throughout history as an arrow poison in hunting. Its name is derived from the Latin word "acon" for dart. The Homeopathic remedy was proved by Hahnemann in 1805 and was used extensively for fevers and sudden complaints with severe pain, which had up until then been treated by blood-letting.

Ailments Treated
Aconite is used to treat complaints that come on suddenly and acutely, often due to shock or fright, exposure to dry, cold winds and occasionally, intensely hot weather. This remedy is usually needed at the onset of an infection, such as colds and coughs, and ear, eye, and throat complaints. It is also used for eye inflammation due to injury. Symptoms of inflammation and infection include restless, agitated sleep. The face is red, hot, flushed, and swollen with severe burning pain, but on rising becomes very pale.

This remedy is also given for fear with associated restlessness, for example, in panic attacks with palpitations, numbness and tingling in the body. The person looks very anxious with dilated pupils, this fear often relates back to an alarming event. This is a good remedy for women who fear death during labour.

Symptoms better in fresh air, for warmth.
Symptoms worse in stuffy rooms, for music; lying on the affected area.

Key Uses
-Acute infections with sudden onset, especially in health people exposed to abrupt climate changes.
-Fear, shock and a fear of dying when ill.
-Burning pain and numbness.

Constitutional Type
Aconite adults and children are strong healthy and full-blooded. When well, these types desire company. They tend to lack self-esteem and want to prove themselves, and may be insensitive and malicious. When ill, they fear dying, even to the point of prediciting the exact time of death. These people react badly to shock and have intense fears, especially of being in crowd, and dislike going out.


Source of Picture: http://wolf.mind.net/swsbm/Images/New10-2003.html

Roman Influence

During the 1st to 5th centuries AD the Romans made great advances in medicine. They introduced more herbs into the pharmacopoeias and placed greater emphasis on the improtance of preventative health care by improving public hygiene. Roman physicians, especially Celsus, Galen, and Dioscorides, increased the knowledge and understanding of the structure and function of the human body but Hippocrates theory that "like can cure like" and his idea of an individual prescription for an individual patient were largely ignored.

During the Dark Ages in Europe, after th decline of the Roman Empire, there was little medical advancement. Altough Greek and Roman medical traditions survived in Persia and throughout the muslim empire, it was not until 16 th century that European medical study resumed and progressed.