Chamomilla cham.
Characteristic
Adapted to persons, especially children— new-born and during dentition—with light or brown hair, excitable, nervous temperament; oversensitive from use or abuse of coffee or narcotics.
Peevish, irritable, oversensitive to pain, drives to despair
(Cof.); cannot return a civil answer.
Child exceedingly irritable, fretful; quiet only when carried; impatient, wants this or that, becomes angry when refused, or when offered petulantly rejects it (Bry., Cina,
Kreos.); "too ugly to live;" cross, spiteful.
Patient cannot endure anyone near him; cannot bear to be spoken to, answers snappishly; whining, moaning.
One cheek red and hot, the other pale and cold.
Oversensitive to open air, aversion to wind.
Complaints from anger, especially chill and fever.
Pains; spasmodic, distressing, wants to get away from them.
Toothache if anything warm is taken into the mouth (Bis.,
Bry., Cof.); on entering a warm room; in bed; from coffee; during menses or pregnancy.
Pain : seems unendurable, drives to despair; < by heat ; < evening before midnight; with heat, thirst and fainting; with numbness of affected part; eructations <.
Convulsions of children from nursing, after a fit of anger in mother (Nux—after fright in mother, Op.).
Violent rheumatic pains drive him out of bed at night, compel him to walk about (Rhus).
Sleepy, but cannot sleep (Bell., Caust., Op.).
Burning of soles at night, puts feet out of bed (Med., Puls., Sang., San., Sulph.).
Relations
Complementary : Bell. in diseases of children, cranial nerves; Cham., abdominal nerves.
In cases spoiled by the use of opium or morphine. Mental calmness contra-indicates Chamomilla.
Aggravation
Evening, before midnight; heat; anger; open air.
Amelioration
From fasting; warm, wet weather; being carried.
Type
Quotidian; regular stages in afternoon. Anticipates, usually two hours every day. Continued, typhoid, from anger, care, grief, taking cold.
Time
11 A. M.—4 P. M. lasting till 11 P. M. Fever without chill, 9 A. M. to 12 M. with redness of one cheek and paleness of the other.
Cause
Spring fevers (Canch.) in nervous, sensitive persons, especially residents of cities; from anger or abuse of coffee or opium; during dentition.
Prodrome
Very irritable, cross, peevish, irascible. Aching in all the joints.—E. V. Ross.
Chill
Without thirst; slight shiverings frequently creep over the body, alternating with heat of face. Shivers, when uncovering or undressing (Hepar); in the cold air; in some portions, in the face, on the arms, over back and abdomen. Shivering of single parts and heat of others (sweat and heat of single parts, Bry.). Shivering and heat intermingled, mostly with one red and one pale cheek. Chill only on posterior with heat of anterior portion of the body, or vice versa; returns in paroxysms. Cold limbs, with burning heat of the face, in the eyes, and burning hot breath. Coldness over the whole body, with burning heat of the face, which comes out of the eyes like fire. Chill and coldness of the whole body, with burning heat of the face and hot breath.
Heat
With some thirst. Long-lasting heat, with violent thirst and frequent startings in sleep. Heat and shivering intermingled, with one cheek red, the other pale. Burning heat in lightly covered parts, though almost cold when not covered. Heat and sweat of the face when eating and drinking (Anac., Bell.). Great agitation, anxiety. Very irritable, can hardly answer one civilly (Bry.—exceedingly irritable, everything makes him angry, Anac.)
One cheek red and hot, the other pale and cold. Coldness of body with burning heat of face (Arn.).
Sweat; hot, of head and face; profuse on covered parts (Cinch.).
Instead of fever paroxysm, violent bilious colic with vomiting and diarrhœa from anger or vexation.
Sweat
Hot perspiration, especially of the face and head; sweats easily. Profuse sweat on covered parts (Cinch.—affected parts sweat profusely, Ant. t.). Profuse sweat at night; on walking the sweat ceases, and returns on falling asleep (Sabad). Sweat frequently of sour odor and with smarting of the skin (Caps.). Relief of pain, after sweat, not during.
Tongue
Coated yellowish; or white at the sides and red in the middle (reverse of Ant. t.). Blisters on the tongue. Taste—bitter, sour, putrid.
Apyrexia
Never clear; constitutional and mental symptoms of this stage are usually guiding. Patients suffer from bad digestion.
In consequence of anger or vexation, we often have instead of the usual fever paroxysm, violent colic, bilious bitter vomiting and diarrhœa. Chamomilla vies with Cina and Arsenicum in the treatment of intermittents occurring in children.
Analysis
Fevers of children; irritable, cross. Fever attacks in spring, in nervous persons residing in cities; from anger, vexation.