Case of
puerperal insanity
cured by “Agnus Castus”.
By L.
Shafer, M. D.
Presented by Dr.
Sayeed Ahmad D. I. Hom. (London)The insanity of Mrs. – commenced with conception.
The following were her symptoms :She was melancholy and of a Hypochondriacal mood the
entire day, dissatisfied with herself constantly, incapable of attending
to anything, and entirely indifferent to things around her. She felt at
times as if she were nobody, and would rather be dead than have that
feeling ; while in that mental state she had no courage to
undertake anything, and when free from it she was elated and desired to
do something to excite the admiration of her friends. Her absence of
mind was extreme, hence she found reading difficult, being unable to fix
her attention. She was profoundly impressed with the idea that she would
live only a short time longer, but did no fix the date of her decease.
Occasionally, particularly if crossed, she threw out hints of her
purpose to commit suicide. When a remedy was proposed, and at other
times, her earnest exclamation would be, “There is no use in doing
anything, as I shall die soon”.
Intolerable itching, which was relieved for a short
time only by scratching, affected the face, arms, perineum, and the
entire body. There was the absence of affection for her husband, and
after the birth of her child, that received a share of her animosity.
There was an entire absence of sexual desire.During her insanity, and particularly during the six
months after the birth of her child, various remedies were prescribed
which were only partially indicated, and with but slight, temporary,
palliative results.When the child was six months old, I made a careful
search for the remedy homœopathic to the case. This resulted in the
selection of Agnus Castus, which
presented the similimum to all except her sexual symptoms. (Those are
not developed, as the remedy has not been proved on women).In obedience to a law deduced from Hahnemann’s
Organon, sec. 276, that “the more homœopathic the remedy, the
higher should be the potency and the smaller the dose,” a few
pellets medicated with the M potency (Jenichen), the highest in my
possession, were placed dry on the patient’s tongue on the evening of
Friday, the 10th August, 1877. Subsequently the patient took
no other remedy for twenty-one days. The result : On the following
Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, there was a progressive
and very rapid improvement of her symptoms in every particular.On Thursday the entire cloud was lifted from the
patient, and she was restored to her right mind. Love of life,
contentment, affection for her husband and child and sexual appetite
were normal again.She now stated that during the past few months she
went frequently to the cistern for the purpose of drowning
herself ; but, knowing that she was watched by her family and
neighbours, the thought that she might be drawn out before life was
extinct prevented her from executing her project. She intended to commit
suicide in the near future. Possessed by this controlling idea, she
secured a vial of chloroform and also a vial of laudanum, believing
these would enable her to accomplish her design ; but the
apprehension of not succeeding, through the interference of others, led
her to procrastinate.(Courtesy :
The Organon Vol. I, p. 296).Copyright © Dr. Sayeed Ahmad
2004