Violent Remedies

By Papaphilippou George.

In our Materia Medica there are many violent remedies. In some rubrics like "Mind, Violent, Rage" or "Mind, Rage" there are more than 100 remedies. In other small rubrics like "Mind, Wildness" or "Violent deeds, rage, leading to" or "Anger, violent" there are less remedies and in even smaller rubrics like "Mind, violent" or "Rage, kill people, tries to" or "Rage, violent" there are only a few remedies.

If we take into consideration the intensity of different remedies in these rubrics we see that the remedies which appear first are the following: Hyos., Stram., Bell., Hep., Verat., Anac., Lyc., Nux vom., Aur., Nit ac., Cham., Lach., Merc., Staph., then other less violent remedies.

The three remedies to consider firtst Hyos., Stram., Bell. are complementary to each other. A case will need perhaps two or three of these remedies or all of them to be treated.

Hyoscyamus

The basic disorder in this remedy is jealousy and suspiciousness. The child becomes jealous in families where the parents take more care of another child. Jealousy is so strong, that the child loses his personality, becomes introvert, with blocked sentiments. The Hyos. child comes into a situation as if it stops living. They are possessed by jealousy, they want to take revenge, but they cannot and the expression of the sentiments stops. Only jealousy is there and with the first opportunity in a quarrel, violence comes up. They strike, they want to kill and they can kill. It is very possible also that they will turn to suicide. Children can throw their brother or sister into the swimming pool because of jealousy or they try to strangle them. Finally the desire to kill arises.

They express themselves with coldness (want of sentiments, coldness, logic). The mental disorder drives to increased sexuality, without sentiments. They lose any inhibition, expose their genitals to anyone and constantly occupy themselves with their genitals. They curse using crude words.

Generally Hyos. is more passive, occupied with his internal situation. When they are disturbed they react violently. That is why this remedy is more often prescribed in acute situations, but it is also a useful remedy in chronic situations.

Stramonium

This is for situations where the subconscious, that has been loaded with frights and bad experiences, erupts. They were very frightened or scared. The first symptom in children is a fear at night in bed. He tries not to express his violence because he is afraid of of the intensity he feels. Stram. is the most violent remedy. They can injure, breaks things, glasses. They also have fear of being injured, of suffering. In this case he falls down and acts like if he struggles with himself.

During rage they can bite, strike and even kill. They also have sexual aggressiveness. The little boys touch or prick the back or the breast of a woman. When they are not in a rage they look very quiet. They feel a sleepiness when they have to face difficult situations or when they speak about a bad experience which made them frightened.

Belladonna

This remedy is characterized by great intensity and vividness in the patient and in the disease process. In anger they explode, they burst out, they become violent. They pull, they bite, they strike, they knock their head. Their face becomes frightful and red. The rage is strong, but without passion and malice (like in Stram.) and stops suddenly. They feel pulsation of the arteries during rage.

Bell. are healthy and balanced people. They have no great fears, except fear of dogs.

In pathological situations (fever, neurological disorders, etc.), the big fantasy they have can produce delusions. In these situations they lose the sense of the environment and they become violent, nobody can stop them. They climb up, they bite like dogs or throw things away.

Hepar

Oversensitiveness and abusiveness are the keywords for this remedy. The patient appears as if his nerves are on edge, as if the nerve edges are raw and exposed. In this situation he feels that he cannot take the slightest physical or psychological pressure, otherwise he will break apart. So he becomes angry, nasty, vicious and abusive to other people.

His oversensitiveness is visible in the beginning with irritability over small things. Later he becomes very hasty and angry for the slightest reason (the smallest illness or something the other says). Verbal abusiveness is very characteristic. But he could have the impulse to kill, even his child (Sep., Nux v.), especially at the sight of a knife. He might also have the desire to set things of fire.

Later the Hep. patient can develop suicidal thoughts. (Not as strong as in Aur., but more like Nit.ac., but without fear of death).

Hep. is oversensitive to the slightest coldness (even by uncovering part of the body) and produces suppurations and purulent discharges, (which helps in the differentiation with other remedies).

Veratrum

The keyword for this remedy is restlessness on all levels and malice. The children are restless and untamable, their mind works all the time with different ideas. They can do all sorts of damage. They want to be constantly in motion. They do the opposite of what you tell them. They curse, are obstinate, hard, jealous. They want to reduce the others. You strike them and they don't say anything or they become violent. They have the need to always be active (physically or mentally), the need to do something bad.

In the older people, characteristic is the intensity in every symptom. They are critical and jealous, because they think they deserve more. They are quarrelsome especially in the evening when they feel worse. Intensity of emotions with malice and desire to curse, to strike. Later they can develop religious delirium and they shout in the streets "change your minds" etc. and they pray. Then they are not violent.

In rage they have the desire to kill. Also desire to tear, to cut things with scissors.

They are over-sexual and can develop sexual mania. They exhibit their genitals and become crude.

In psychosis they appear as Christ or Napoleon etc. We differentiate Verat. from the other remedies by the vomiting and the desire for ice, salt and sour.

Anacardium

The keywords of this remedy are hardness against others because of an inferiority complex. Due to lack of self-confidence they behave with hardness. They torment animals. The anxiety produced through this complex appears at the beginning as weakness of memory and later as irritability, restlessness and violence. They are very easily irritated, they speak badly, often with irony (trying to cover their want of self-confidence) and want to belittle others.

In front of the doctor they will not speak about their violence. We have to search in depth to discover their hardness. But they don't change their minds about this hardness. In the hardness they are similar to Med., but more hard.

Anac. strikes his child, but afterwards he helps the child to study. He thinks that everybody is an enemy, that he is separated from others and is afraid of everybody.

He thinks that the others are responsible for his situation. So he doesn't care about the sentiments of the others and hits hard before the dialogue starts, he strikes the other person. At the end he develops a division of his personality and feels that someone is urging him to do wrong and someone else to do good.

In Anac. the pain and other symptoms have a characteristic wedge-like feeling.
They have fear that they will strike and hurt the others and themselves because they know that they can do it. They can curse for the slightest reason. In a quarrel they want to hurt the others and they can even take a knife. Because he knows this will have consequences after a while he throws the knife away.

Lycopodium

The central idea of this remedy is lack of self-confidence. He is insecure and cowardly with a fear of responsibility. He tries to avoid situation which might bring up this fear and insecurity. To cover up he acts dictatorial and authoritative, particularly with the family, while outside he is nice. To relieve the anger he does not show outside he becomes violent, screams and curses or hits his children and wife.

Nux Vomica

This person is very ambitious, intelligent and capable, with a strong sense of duty. He is very irritable and wants everything around him to be perfect and in order. He is disturbed by others around him, is impatient and cannot stand disorder or objection. he is ready to quarrel at any time for these reasons. At first he tries to suppress his anger and not to quarrel, then with next unimportant matter he bursts out shouting, cursing even throwing or tearing things. He loses his self control. They weep from irritability (Plat.).

The second stage is characterized by destructiveness. here the wife can hit her husband or have the impulse to throw the child into the fire or kill it, (Sulph., Thea). In the deeper stages this impulse becomes a fear and is followed by weakness and depression. Despite feeling weak she feels she will burst out at the slightest provocation. They are very anxious with oversensitive senses (Cannot bear noise, light, touch, drafts of air and has a fear of wind). He has suicidal thoughts, by shooting, or throwing himself from a balcony. The woman is very irritable before menses (Lac,. Lyc., Nat mur., Sepia., Caust., Cham.). Nux can be compared to Hepar in their irritability, violence and abusiveness. Nux however, has more self-control.

Aurum

They want to be brilliant, the first in the class, yet are very sensitive. They are easily hurt and cannot stand big shocks. They get depressed and people around think they are just quiet. However in the family they burst out and do not accept any criticism. They want to be approved of by others and think that nobody loves them. They become bad and destructive. When they have a love disappointment they take revenge on the next boy or girlfriend. They are very hard on them and make them suffer.

Aurum patients are workaholics (Nux vom., Sep.). There are two types of Aurum personality. The idealist who wants justice and the anarchist who wants to reform the world his own way. After a failure or disappointment they become depressive and suicidal. The young patient will attempt suicide the older on (over 40 to 45) will commit suicide as a philosophical consequence. Aurum has a self-destructive violence. They drive very fast, drink and smoke too much. Before the suicidal stage they become violent when irritated. They also become violent or commit suicide from pain (China.). Aurum loses the sense of love for life as Sepia loses the sense of love for others.

Nitric Acid

These patients are always miserable and disappointed under any conditions. They therefore become critical of themselves and others. Nobody wants their company. He is irritated by faults and very obstinate denying any consolation. He never forgives. He is miserable on all levels and develops an anxiety about health, especially about cancer as this leads to death. His psychological condition leads him to depression and suicidal thoughts, but due to fear of death he cannot commit suicide. Nitric Acid is easily irritated, curses, weeps, and is easily started.

Chamomilla

This remedy is indicated for patients who cannot control their reaction to different annoying situations and especially to pain. They cannot bear anything, themselves, others, the pain. They do not know what they really want, are easily irritated, impolite, bitter and violent. This behavior only comes out when they are ill. In acute pathology the patient becomes troublesome e.g. the child during dentition is irritable an weeping and only stops when carried or are in a moving car (Nit ac.). They can even become blue and faint from weeping. They throw the things offered away, the older child, screams, curses or even hits the mother or doctor. They weep during sleep. The adult becomes irritated and over strained after anger or coffee abuse (Coffea). They have fear of wind (Puls., Nux vom.), and irritability before the menses. It is difficult to differentiate in adults between Nux vom., Bell., Nat mur. and Coffea.

Lachesis

The characteristic of this remedy is the great internal pressure. There are two types. One is full of passion and suspicion and is very possessive. They are envious and you cannot take anything from them. They are sexual people and start early with masturbation. The second type has his strong instincts under control. Both types are unreasonably jealous. They are revengeful, bitter and can hurt others.

Mercury

The basic idea here is a lack of reactive power coupled with instability or inefficiency of function. They are easily excited from different irritations, e.g.. nervous laughing in alternation with weeping Later in the pathology they become unreasonable and have impulsive ideas. They become anxious and fearful that these impulses might become a reality. He has impulses to hit, throw or even kill a loved one. (Plat., Nux vom, although Nux has the power to realize these impulses). He also has fear of insanity particularly at night. Later, in the paranoid stage Mercury believes that everyone wants to hurt him. He therefore develops a fear of people and becomes suspicious, hiding himself away. They feel everybody is their enemy.

Staphysagria

The key idea here is suppression. They are easily angry or offended, but don't show it. They suppress their anger at the beginning but later become very irritable and burst out by throwing things at people who offend them. They suppress their strong sex desire and start young with masturbation.

Tarentula Hispanica

Restlessness on all three levels. They want to run. They are oversexed people (nymphomania) and have violent emotions. Destructiveness. They love to dance and fell better with loud music. Tarentula is indicated in hysterical situations. They react violently.

Sepia

The central idea here is stagnation on all levels. All the emotions disappear. They become irritated and angry with the emotion demands of the family. When the child comes for affection she feels the demand is too much and gets angry. She wants and sometimes does, hit the child. When the child cries she wants to throw it out of the window.