2008 January

Successive remedies in Chronic Eczema

by Frank Beijering
Chronic eczema
of the hands and fingers.


Male, at the age of 20 years, a student of psychology, came because of his eczema which bothered him since the age of 14.
Next to the basic dermatological steroid ointments he tried Bioresonance, Homeopathy, Oxygen therapy, urine therapy, and Bach remedies.
The diversity of treatments shows that he was desperate.


Family:
His parents are German and in good health. His father is an organ player and his mother is a vicar.
His aunt (S.M.) had Tuberculosis his grandmother (M.M) had Diabetes and another aunt (S.F) had Carcinoma.
He grew up in between two brothers. There was an open atmosphere and everyone could speak freely and they had ethical discussions.
In his youth he had chronic bronchitis with frequent use of antibiotics until he was about 7 years.


His eczema started medial from his thighs, in the hollows of the knees and elbows.
The eczema was suppressed for sometime after ointments, but then re-appeared on his hands.
He frequently has cramps in the calf at night. He can wake up with numbness and weakness of his arms. During the day he can have this numbness and tingling in his legs and feet when hanging down. Then he has to change his position.
He says that he feels unstable. He can have an idea to undertake something, but he lets go easily. He thinks himself of being not consequential. For example; He started doing Tai Chi and after some time “What the heck, who cares" and then quit.
He sometimes has cracks in the corners of his mouth, his stool tends to be hard and slow, sometimes black and hard.
He mentions salivation during sleep and a foetor ex ore, no perspiration.
He likes strong black coffee.
He had a growing spurt when he was about 13 years old, just before the outbreak of the first eczema.


Because of the symptoms: growing spurt and tingling in extremities, changing position ameliorates,
I gave him Phosphorus LM Vl.


According to his mentioned in-consequence, he quits treatment after the first time indeed
But at the age of 29 years (9 years later) he came back, stimulated by a friend who I helped with his complaints. In the meantime he finished his studies and got a job in a centre for drug abuse.
He went through hypnotherapy and did "some soul-searching" and now we started treatment again.
He says: "I want to be happy with the things I do, is this what I want ?"


He developed dandruff since two years and shampoo aggravates his skin condition.
He is "allergic" to alcohol-products like perfume, colofonium, and basic substances in ointments. The eczema is also aggravated by alternative ointments like Cardioflor or Calendula. He is very sensitive to odors.
His eczema is very bad now. Crusts, bleeding, vesicles, and cracks in his fingers and palms of his hands. The itching is unbearable. He has to put steroid-ointments almost everyday and the skin got delicate and thin like cigarette paper.
Because of his alternating mentality, being burdened by doubts which haunt and torment him, I give him Tantalum, with no effect.



Then he mentions his being insecure about his capacities and the fear of failure plus being a bit bloated; he gets Lycopodium.


Then he developed herpes on the lower lip, an "old" symptom recurring, the first time he had it was at age 17. The eczema had been very bad.
We went on talking about his family: He says that his role in the family was one of harmonizing because he felt that his parents were going to separate, but they never meant to split up and there was no actual reason.
I gave him Magnesium muriatic MK. (Muriaticum because of the vesicles), but without effect.



About his family, he goes on:
There was an open atmosphere indeed, but the parents put pressure on the family too. Inside the family you were different than outside. It was like playing a role.
On account of his striving for harmony and cracks in the skin, I give him Graphites. Then there is an amelioration of the eczema and again he says that he is not satisfied with his job,he keeps on comparing himself with others, about what else he could do and if the others are more happy than he is. But he uses less steroids, so he continues the Graphites, LM VI.
His eczema remains tolerable, then he tells me that he sleeps with a scarf around his neck in order not to get sick. He does it for some years because of a "low resistance".



Recently, 3 weeks ago, he got sick again with coryza and pain in the throat. Since then he produces greenish brown mucus, his nose hurts from inside, has bleeding crusts which are hard to get rid of. He mentions homesickness as a child.
I decide to return to Phosphorus, but soon after the consultation I mail him that I want to try first to lower the potency to Graphites LM lll.
The argument for lowering the potency is the amelioration of the eczema, so the autocracy is apparently alerted.


When I saw him after 5 weeks the throat complaints and the crusts in the nose have completely disappeared and he feels that his immune system improved a lot. He no longer has a feeling of "hanging on to a cold", but he does not dare to sleep without the scarf yet.
Then he also mentions that his feet are painful and he uses artificial sole- support in his shoes.
Although the eczema is less bothersome, a new outbreak is to be expected, the quality of his stool is not improved.
When he mentions his memory problems I decide to give him Petroleum, and see what happens.


Then the stool ameliorates, but the eczema gets worse with terrible itching.
He calls himself "neurotic" because of his continuous comparing himself to others and looking for confirmation. “I feel like a social whore”.
He confirms that he is really happy if he can help somebody.
Then I decide for Manganum phosphoricum. XMK. once a week.


When he returns from a children's camp in France (working as a volunteer) he says: "it was amazing how I followed my own impulses independent of the approbation of others". The eczema improved in the sense that he now only uses ointment every fourth day. This is an acceptable rhythm for him.
He goes on to take Manganum Phosphoricum LM 24 twice a week.


After 3 months the eczema has completely disappeared which never happened before. No need to use steroids anymore. His hands are completely clean. He sleeps without a scarf without problems.


Analysis
The fact that more than one remedy was needed for different aspects in this case shows that the unity theory can not withstand reality all the way. A cure is a time related process mostly based on several remedies. Even if one remedy seems especially suitable, other remedies serve as a way to reach the goal.
The character from Graphites, the striving for harmony and unity in contrast with the skin cracks, fit well to his "immunity", but not to his eczema.
The Manganum Phosphoricum fits well because being intermediary between his parents, his "helping" attitude was focused at a problem that did not even exist. He felt that his parents needed help "only" in his imagination.
The cure also shows that Phosphorus, the main remedy for sympathy and communication, is recognizable in his youth with his two brothers. It implies an appeal on the communication and where his growing spurt can be interpreted as a desire to "be part of it", to belong to a group.


Frank Beijering
Amsterdam NL
email: frank@beijering.demon.nl





Categories: Remedies
Keywords: eczema, Phosphorus, dandruff, Tantalum, Lycopodium, Magnesium muriaticum, Graphites, Petroleum, Manganum phosphoricum
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