# Cocculus (HMT)

## Remedy Classification
- **Type:** Remedy
- **Alternative Names:** Indian Cockle
- **Miasm:** Psoric Miasm
- **Temperament:** Neutral
- **Aggravation Time:** Neutral/Anytime

## Keynote Indications
Cocculus is famous for the treatment of vertigo.  Vertigo results from
an imbalance of fluid in the deeper part of the ear (inner ear) or due to
the weakness of the vestibular ne rve which carries the sensation of
balance from the ear to the brain.  The resultant delay in nerve
conduction results in dizziness a nd the person cannot maintain
balance.  When the patient turns his head one way or the other, the
message about the movement does not reach the brain promptly.

Due to the weakness of the nervous system , the physical efficiency
and the efficiency of the brain is di sturbed.  The patient feels tired and
weak.  Later, this weakness may turn into full-fledged paralysis.  The
victims of this condition are us ually people who become mentally
exhausted after taking care of their near and dear ones for a long time.
They virtually remain awake day and night and are in constant state of
fear and anxiety.  The resultant physical and mental exhaustion will be
cured by Cocculus.

This exhaustion usually does not aff ect midwives and nurses because
they take care of the patient as a pa rt of their professional duty.  They
do not have any direct personal re lationship with the patient.
Generally, their physical fatigue does not convert into nervous
tension.

In the Cocculus patient, the body starts feeling weak as a result of
mental pressure, supplemented w ith physical exertion or physical
exertion with mental anxiety.  The patient does not sleep well. He is
always in a state of  anxiety and apprehen sion, which results in
headache.  There is a tendency to develop vertigo, nausea and
vomiting.  The symptoms get worse with movement.   It further gets
worse by stumbling during walking.  The symptoms are aggravated
during travel.  One must always keep  Cocculus as the initial treatment
for imbalance resulting from sudden motion.

The skin of a chronic Cocculus patient shivers.  The hands tremble
when picking up an object .  There is loss of coordination in the
movement of the limbs resulting in  imbalance.  The patients cannot

make a quick turn.  They have to turn slowly to avoid severe
dizziness.

Some symptoms of Cocculus rese mble those of Belladonna.  In
Belladonna, the dizziness gets worse with sudden motion but this is
due to the variation in the pressure of the blood towards the brain.  In
both Cocculus and Belladonna, a slight  noise and sudden jerk become
unbearable.  In both, the patient suffe rs from sleeplessness and mental
anguish.  Unlike Belladonna, the face of a Cocculus patient is of
normal complexion and there is no u nusual flow of blood towards the
face.  In Cocculus the muscles become  stiff and taut.  To contract or
stretch the limbs causes severe pain.

In Cocculus, the patient feels severe colicky abdominal pain.  There
is griping and cramping over the stomach .  Sometimes, the pain
makes breathing uncomfortable.  So me women may actually become
unconscious due to severe pain.  Th e patient dislikes food and their
appetite disappears.

In Cocculus, there is a delay in message relay from one point to
another. There is also a fee ling of time passing rapidly.  The legs
become paralysed and numb or insensitive.  The background of this
paralysis is a long period of worr isome night vigil, problems and
apprehension.

Due to mental anguish and nervous exhaustion, the Cocculus patient
answers questions very sl owly.  He is lost in his own thoughts.  He
often gets severely depressed.  The head feels heavy.  In addition
Cocculus is useful in the treatment of headache secondary to heat
exposure, like Belladonna and Glonoine.

In Cocculus, the eyesight becomes foggy, but this does not last long.
Due to nervous weakness, it become s blurred temporarily.  Mental
fatigue is also temporary.  The inability to open the eyes, especially
during night, due to severe pain in the eyes, swollen eyelids or
constriction of the pupils, are also the symptoms of Cocculus.

In Cocculus,  there is a metallic taste in the mouth, which is somewhat
acidic.  There is a feeling of acidity in the stomach  along with the
tendency of nausea and vomiting .  In Cocculus, there are some
symptoms similar to malaria but the aches are only in the legs rather

than the whole body.  The fever associated with nausea and vertigo
will respond to Cocculus.

In Cocculus the patient cannot bear the smell of food, which in fact
causes nausea.  This symptom is also present in the case of
Colchicum.  Whenever a gland is inflamed and enlarged , the
treatment could be Kreosotum or some other homoeopathic remedies,
but in Cocculus the swelling an d inflammation is secondary to
paralysis.  Similarly, due to the paralysis of the intestines and the
muscles of the abdomen , the patient gets constipated  and finds it
very difficult to expel the stools.

In women, the periods are either too frequent or much delayed and
continue for much longer.  Thes e symptoms are present in other
remedies also.  For a proper diag nosis, the specific symptoms of
Cocculus must be kept in mind.  If so found, Cocculus will be the
ideal treatment.  The specific symp toms of Cocculus are generalized
weakness, partial paralysis, movement aggravating the symptoms, and
delayed conduction of sens ation along the nerves.  Copious watery
discharge in between the periods is specific to Cocculus.  It gradually
makes the patient very weak, so mu ch so that she talks with great
difficulty.  The right and left hand s become cold and hot alternately
and can become numb also.  Sim ilarly, the patient may have cold
sweats alternately.  A Cocculus patie nt cannot tolerate gusty wind or
the wind draft.  He is oversensitive to both cold as well as hot air.  The
symptoms aggravate in the open, su n and warm bedding, as well as at
nighttime.  Generally Cocculus is used in potency 30 but when there is
paralysis of the lower half of the body, it needs to be given in potency
CM, to be repeated after a long pe riod.  This kind of  paralysis is
treatable with Cocculus and only Cocculus; otherwise the patient
remains untreated for life.

Antidotes: Coffea, Nux Vomica
Potency: Usually 30, but in case  of the specific paralysis, up
o CM.

## Symptoms by System