A blog on homeopathy -- Ruminating on Remedies

Feel the Fear

5/14/2023

“Of all the liars in the world, sometimes the worst are our own fears.”
Rudyard Kipling

The other day, driving slowly over a speed bump not far from home, I noticed a woman I have met before but I don’t know. Given her house is right next to the speed bump, I’ve had occasion to notice her many times over the years. This time, she was standing next to her dog who was lying under an opened umbrella propped on the ground next to him, and her stance said she was concerned about the dog. What was really memorable about this woman in the beginning days of May of the year 2023, however, was that she was outside, by herself with not one, but wearing two (!) masks on her face. I have since seen her a couple more times, still donning both masks.

I have nothing but compassion for this woman who is clearly frightened beyond comprehension. What makes you think she is frightened? Maybe she is protecting herself from allergens? Remember, I’ve seen her over the years, standing in the same place in her yard, yet the masks are relatively new.

This is not an article about the pros and cons of masking. This is an article about that extremely powerful emotion which I am surmising lies behind the masking: fear.

According to Louise Delagran, writing for the University of Minnesota’s “Taking Charge of your Health & Wellbeing,” fear and anxiety impacts us in the following ways:

Fear weakens our immune system, can cause cardiovascular damage, GI problems and decreased fertility and lead to accelerated aging and even premature death.
Fear can impair memory and cause damage to certain parts of the brain which can, in turn, make it even more difficult to regulate fear and leave the person with chronic anxiety. “To someone in chronic fear, the world looks scary and their memories confirm that.”
Fear can disrupt the processes which allow us to regulate our emotions which, in turn, impacts thinking and decision making.
Long-term fear can lead to fatigue, clinical depression and PTSD.

This, she says, is the case despite the threats being real or simply perceived.

The mind is a powerful thing!

Fear & Homeopathy

Frederik Schroyens in his Synthesis Adonis repertory, lists 1,400+ rubrics listed under: Mind, Fear. Some examples: Fear of being alone. Fear of cancer. Fear of cats. Fear of crossing a bridge. Fear of disease. Fear of being neglected. Fear of liquids. Fear of open spaces. Fear of thunderstorms. And, fear of death is a big one, with nearly 100 sub-rubrics listing all sorts of ways people fear they might die.

Using homeopathic remedies to address your fear can help your body help itself to avoid the fear taking root and taking control of your physical and mental well-being.

With over 1,000 homeopathic remedies which may be indicated in various manifestations of fear, where does one start?

The beginning of the alphabet, of course!

Aconitum napellus or Aconite for short. This is a good and easy one to remember because “Aconite” rhymes with “fright.” If you have a scary experience, Aconite is an excellent place to start. Even if that scary experience was in the past, Aconite is indicated in ailments from frights and can help clear out the fear “residue,” if you will. Fear of death, fear of doctors… overpowering fear. Sudden fear and panic attacks also may be helped with Aconite. Physical ailments may begin suddenly.

Argentum nitricum can be particularly helpful with the nervous system — people who anticipate everything that could go wrong. Fear of accidents; being alone; losing control; claustrophobia. Argent-nit is part of a very helpful combination remedy known as "AAA." (See: "What Goes Up" for more info on AAA.) Argentum nitricum sufferers often have gastro-intestinal issues: nervous diarrhea as well as impressive belching.

Arsenicum album is particularly good for fears about one’s health. Fear of disease and germs; fears of being incurable; fear of being poisoned; fear of suffering. Physical ailments may have a burning quality to them as well as a general restlessness.

Calcarea carbonica is for the worrier. They are overwhelmed, over-worked, over-burdened and they worry about their health, too: cancer, germs, infection and contagious, epidemic diseases. Fear of insanity; fear of rats, insects and monsters. Physically, they get worn out easily and may have a sensation of inner trembling.

Lycopodium clavatum is particularly well indicated when low self-esteem and low confidence come into the fear picture. Lycopodium fears: failure and humiliation; public speaking, or, the undertaking of anything. Physically, Lycopodium is another good gastrointestinal remedy, this time with bloating and loud abdominal rumbling.

Phosphorus is more indicated for a sort of free-floating anxiety and for those who are over-sensitive to external impressions, especially when they are alone. Fear of the dark; ghosts; noise; thunderstorms. Physically, there may be a tremendous thirst or excessive bleeding, including nosebleeds.

It’s important to remember that all of these remedies are considered polycrests or, very large homeopathic remedies, which cover a great variety of symptoms, both physical and mental and these are just tiny snippets to help give a sense of the remedies and how they relate to fear.

Dr. Edward Bach, the homeopath who discovered the Bach Flower Essences a century ago, said it was “our fears, our cares, our anxieties and such like that open the path to the invasion of illness” (Mcintyre 1996).

There are a number of Dr. Bach’s flowers which could apply here, (especially if we were to compare them to the homeopathic remedies listed), but I am just going to briefly focus on a small handful.

Aspen to address a fear of the unknown or the supernatural — the faceless fears that go bump in the night… The generalized, nameless anxieties.

Cherry Plum is for the fear of losing control.

Crab Apple addresses a fear of contamination, by a disease, for example.

Mimulus is for the fear of “known” things. If you can put a name to what you are afraid of, Mimulus is your flower.

Red Chestnut for the fear or worry for the well-being of others, especially loved ones.

Rock Rose for terror, as such following an accident or nightmares.

Don’t be afraid to address your fears. After all, “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Whether you choose to try homeopathy or flower essences or cognitive behavioral therapy, (or, even better, a combination of all 3!), feel the fear and do it anyway**!

Julia Coyte, CHom
Classically Practical homeopath

#wellnessawaits

** Full disclosure, I’ve never read this book, but I’ve always loved the title!

Reference list
Delagran, L., 2012. Impact of Fear and Anxiety | Taking Charge of Your Health & Wellbeing [online]. Taking Charge of Your Health & Wellbeing.

Jeffers, S., 2023. Feel the Fear... and Do It Anyway. Harvest.
LeDoux, J., 1998. Fear and the brain: where have we been, and wwww.biologicalpsychiatryjournal.com/article/S0006-3223(98)00282-0/fulltexthere are we going? Biological Psychiatry [online], 44 (12), 1229–1238.

Mcintyre, A., 1996. Flower power : flower remedies for healing body and soul through herbalism, homeopathy, aromatherapy, and flower essences. Holt.

Schroyens, F., n.d. Synthesis Adonis. (accessed through Radar Opus software).

Steimer, T., 2002. The biology of fear- and anxiety-related behaviors. Dialogues in clinical neuroscience [online], 4 (3), 231–49.

0 Comments

What goes up…

9/4/2022

0 Comments

… must come down. Our evening on the mountain, part 2.

While we were waiting to board the tram for our return trip down the mountain, there was a woman who was absolutely terrified. She made the trip up, so I thought maybe she was playing things up a bit. She was really over the top in her demeanor.

We were on the tram together on the way down and it turned out that she was not putting on a show. I was next to her as she buried her head into her husband’s shoulder and held on tight to him.

I asked her if she would like a homeopathic remedy for fear.

To my pleasant surprise, she did. So, I reached in my purse and gave her 2 pellets of AAA.

AAA — a combination of three really excellent fear Remedies: Argentum nitricum, Ambra Grisea and Anacardium.

In an ideal world, I would have been able to ask the person what she was afraid of. I didn’t know if she was afraid on the way up. I didn’t know how she felt walking around up there. Is she generally afraid of heights? Is it the tram, suspended over nothing that worried her? Was she afraid for her safety or her family’s safety?

In a regular homeopathic consultation, I would have inquired about an awful lot of things: where did she feel the fear? What else brings about such terror like she was experiencing? If it’s heights that freaks her out, is it a fear of falling? Or just a general fear of high places? Or, was she fighting an urge to throw herself from the edge?

Does she experience vertigo when at height? If so, is it a falling sensation? If so, which direction does it seem she is falling? Does she experience vertigo in other circumstances?

Back to the fear: does she feel the fear in her stomach? Does she get chattering teeth with the fear? Does she experience panic attacks? Does she shiver with the fear? Does she get heart palpitations? Does she have trouble breathing when in this state?

Is it being in the small, enclosed tram car that troubled her? Is it being in a crowd that troubled her?

These are just the first things that come to mind — there were a lot of questions that could have been asked, if the situation had allowed for such things.

As it was, I didn’t know anything else about this woman except that she was completely freaked out.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I keep a few remedies in my purse and just through happenstance, I still had AAA with me (and, I think it will now forever live in my little bag of goodness).

Why was AAA a good fit for this lady?

Homeopathic Argentum nitricum — Fear of:

heights as well
fear of falling from a height
claustrophobia
impending danger
accidents
anxiety in a crowd

Homeopathic Ambra grisea for:

fear of impending danger
anxiety felt in the stomach
vertigo

All three remedies are indicated in:

trembling
lacking in confidence
feelings of despair
nervous people

Homeopathic Anacardium, in addition to the symptoms listed above for “all three remedies” is also indicated for anxiety with fear as well as lack of emotional control.

Yep. AAA was a really good remedy choice for this poor woman. By the end of the short trip, she thanked me and said that this journey was better and easier than the trip up.

In the end, I forgot to bring my homeopathic Coca, but that would have been a decent choice, too: fear of accidents, fear of downward motion, fear of falling and fear of heights.

What else happened during our little excursion to 10,000 feet? My youngest son, who is prone to nosebleeds, could feel one coming on, or, rather, he could taste one coming on. He could taste blood in his mouth like he said he gets when a nose bleed has started. The other thing I keep in my little bag is Ferrum phos. One dose of Ferr-phos 3x and a few minutes later, the taste and the feeling had passed -- no nosebleed ever arrived.

Other than that, it was a delightful evening out with a beautiful sunset shown above.

I truly hope our frightened fellow traveler heard the word “homeopathic” and decided to investigate further what this marvelous medicine can offer her.

Julia Coyte, CHom
Classically Practical homeopath

#wellnessawaits

0 Comments

Feel the Fear

What goes up…

Julia Coyte, CHom

Archives

Categories