Friday, October 2, 2009

Remedy of the Month: Gelsemium sempervirens (Gels.) - Yellow Jasmine

Remedy of the Month Gelsemium sempervirens (Gels.) - Yellow Jasmine

Gelsemium is used to treat acute influenza (flu) or sore throats, with weakness, limp limbs, chills, fever, headaches with double vision, and heavy, drooping eyelids. There may be a lack of thirst, even during fever. In addition, the remedy can be given for hay fever if accompanied by these symptoms.

GELSEMIUM KEYNOTES:

Gelsemium has many predominant keynotes that a trained homeopath looks for when prescribing this remedy.
Many of the predominant ones are shown below and in capital letters:

WEAKNESS LEADING TO PARALYSIS, on all levels.
FEELING OF WEAKNESS
, of not being able to cope with daily life, responsibilities, work. Timidity.
ANTICIPATION. Desire to be quiet, to be left alone. Avoid people and distress of life.
STAGE FRIGHT, fear of exams, to take on new tasks. Feel almost paralyzed.
Mental weakness. Dullness. Forgetful.

AILMENTS FROM ANTICIPATION, FRIGHT, EXCITEMENT, BAD NEWS.
Flushes of heat alternating with chills, aggravated on back.
Acute coryza, agg. left side, with dull headache.
Face Flushed. Hot, dusky red. Dull, heavy expression.
Pain from throat to ear on swallowing.

DIARRHEA FROM ANTICIPATION, EXCITEMENT, FRIGHT, BAD NEWS.
CHILLINESS UP AND DOWN THE BACK. TREMBLING AND WEAKNESS.
Heavy feeling, especially lower limbs.
Sleeplessness from exhaustion, anticipation, excitement. Drowsiness. Sleepiness of students.

More About Gelsemium
Text below reprinted by permission from The People's Repertory by Dr. Luc De Schepper

Gelsemium is characterized by the "D's": drowsy, dopey, dizzy, dumb, disoriented and dull. You can see right away why it is such a classic flu remedy. The person feels all of the above "as if a truck drove over me." He has chills going up and down the spine, he feels so tired that he thinks he cannot even lift a finger to take something and he even has aching upon moving his eyes. Yet he can't fall asleep. Curiously enough, in spite of the fever, he has absolutely no thirst and a slow pulse! Symptoms are made worse by motion, light, noise and stuffy rooms. There is trembling although the person is listless and has low stamina. The flu is accompanied by a headache. Gelsemium was the main remedy for the 1996-97 flu epidemic!

Besides being good for flu, Gelsemium is a great remedy for "hearing bad news" : the person reacts to hearing bad news (for example a doctor saying that your mammogram is positive and it might be cancer) as if she is paralyzed, she can't move, she just sits trembling.

It is also effective for fright with trembling after earthquakes and in case of anticipation anxiety (like Argentum nitricum). However, unlike with Argentum nitricum (where the anxiety can start weeks in advance), with Gelsemium the anticipation anxiety starts just before the event takes place; for example, you have a speaking engagement, everything seems to be all right until you have to start speaking, then you are overcome with fear and trembling.

Gelsemium is the #1 remedy for fear of the dentist, and I give it to my dog when he has to go to the vet. It is greatly indicated in headaches, especially ones precede by an aura of blurred vision and improved when the person passes great amounts of urine. In the past, acute cases of polio were cured by Gelsemium.