Sulphur 658 Like Silicea, in tuberculosis and chronic lung diseases, Sulphur should also be used with the utmost care for fear of provoking a severe response from that part of the body. The lungs, already weakened, may rupture. Sulphur exposes the causative organisms (tuberculous bacilli), out of the cells and their prot ective shells just as in Silicea. If bacteria are abundantly present a nd overwhelming, then the weakened body will not be able to cope with them. Rather it will be overcome with the disease. Silicea has th e natural tendency to expel foreign bodies from the body, which may mere ly be a particle of sand, a retained bullet or a piece of glass. Silicia will provoke a severe body response in the presence of a dvanced and well-established tuberculosis, the patient may even die.
It is the duty of every good homoeopath to avoid giving a very high potency Silicia to such a weak person. At the outset, a low potency should be administered and then as the body gets acclimatised, higher potencies may gradually be administered. Additionally, Stannum may also be used to build up the defensive capability of the body. It should not be forgotten that a Sulphur patient is of a hot constitution and a Silicea patient is of a cold constitution. Calcarea Carb, unlike Silicea and Sulphur, helps form a protective shell of calcium around the bacteria which become imprisoned. It should be remembered that the administration of Sulphur imme diately after the treatment with Calcarea Carb can cause severe comp lications. If Sulphur has to be given at all, Lycopodium must be us ed prior to its use.
Sulphur also works well in the treatment of shingles (herpes zoster). Sulphur is also useful in the treatment of morning diarrhoea . Dr. Kent has, however, warned against the use of Sulphur in treating morning diarrhoea in a patient of tuberculosis, because by suppressing the diarrhoea it will badly affect th e lungs already diseased, resulting in serious consequences. The diar rhoea of a tuberculosiis patient should first be treated with milder remedies and then the attempt may be made to cure the tuberculosis. Sulphur is also very useful in the treatment of measles. If the burning sensation and restlessness aggravat e, but the typical rash does not appear and there is a fear that the disease could affect the internal linings, then besides Sulphur, Arseni c may also be used. In Sulphur, restlessness is not as profound as in Arsenic, though the feeling of intense burning is similar to Arsenic.
Clinical Observations
Sulphur, like a few other homoe opathic remedies, may also control the side effects of vaccination . A Sulphur patient is philosophical in nature and some indeed happen to be so. If this desire amounts to a frenzy, then a dose or two of Sulphur in high potency will make th em feel well. Some of them are “economic philosophers” who simply present economic schemes all the time, but do not do anything pract ical. Even if they put their scheme into practice, they lose a ll their assets. They are extremely lazy. They cannot put their heart into anything. They remain lost in their own ideas. These pe ople should also be tr eated with Sulphur in high potency. A Sulphur patient frequently suffers from headache , at least once a week. Unlike other symptoms of Sulphur, which get worse in a heated bed and a warm room, the headache gets better with the application of heat and hot fomentation.
They have flashing lights before their eyes. Sometimes, on lifting the head up, the patient sees stars. He may see spots of different colours before his eyes. Usually these sy mptoms occur before the onset of headache . Sulphur given at the outset will prevent the headache. Sulphur is also useful in the treatment of eczema and chronic itching as well as chronic cold associated with a bad smell from the nose . The patient is aware of this bad smell himself, whereas normally he is not aware of his own smell. Sulphur is also very useful in the treatment of neuralgic pain on right side of the face. Sulphur is also a good homoeopathic remedy for the lips becoming fissured and ulcerated . Sulphur can also be helpful in the treatment of chronic enlargement of the glands, as well as the serial enlargement of the neck glands both on the right and left side.
If other symptoms of Sulphur are present, then it can also cure swollen gums and loose teeth . If only one tooth hurts, then some other remedies should be looked for, instead of Sulphur. Flatulence and distension of the abdomen with gas can benefit from many remedies, though a pr ecise remedy is difficul t to find. In case Sulphur 660 other remedies have failed, Sulphur may be useful, especially if the gas is offensive. Sulphur is very important in the treatment of cholera . During an epidemic, Sulphur should be used extensively as a preventive measure. Sulphur 200 once a day for a few days can protect against cholera in the absence of other common remedies. Sulphur alone may suffice. Sulphur is very deeply related to cholera. Sulphur has a profound effect on the prostate gland . For a better result, it should be given combined w ith Thuja.
If ot her symptoms of Sulphur such as foul smelling sweat from the feet and armpits, symptoms of the scalp, hands and feet, do not resemble that of Sulphur, then Sulphur will not be effective. In other words, the mere presence of urinary symptoms is not enough to necessitate treatment with Sulphur. Sulphur is beneficial in the treatment of sexual weakness in men as well as in women . It is also very effective in the treatment of infertility in women . The mental symptoms of Sulphur are pronounced: a weak memory , difficulty in concentrating, a headache getting worse on lowering the head, constant recurrent headache, and dandruff causing the hair to fall, are also indicative of Sulphur. A Sulphur patient feels pressure and a burning sensation over the area of the heart and breathing becomes laboured.
The patient likes to be in the open air. He feels suffocated at night, with a feeling of pressure on the chest. The Sulphur ailments become worse on resting, standing up, by the warmth of the bed, on taking a bath and in the morning. The patient feels relieved by lying on th e right side and in hot weather. In people working in coal mines or related to the coal industry in any way, Sulphur is a very usef ul and essential remedy to prevent the diseases of the lungs .
Detailed Symptomatology
Adjuvants: Aloe, Psorinum, Aconite, Arnica, Stannum, Pyrogenium and Thuja, etc. Potency: 30 and higher (Sulphuric Acid)
Sulphuric Acid contains Sulphur, which affects the human defences deeply. During indigestion, the Su lphuric acid contained in the stomach produces Hydrogen Sulphide gas, with its typical foetid odour. Every acid in the body has cer tain basic properties, which affect the patients accordingly. Ever y kind of hyperacidosis can result in a sudden severe disabling weakne ss of the body. Sulphuric Acid is the ideal homoeopathic remedy for hyperacidity in the stomach . By studying Sulphuric Acid, one ca n easily understand how the imbalance of different elements in the body results in different kinds of symptoms and signs. Sulphur is such a strong remedy that it produces a burning sensation on the body from the head to the toes. The addition of an atom of hydrogen converts it into Sulphuric Acid, which has a different nature from that of Sulphur. Its patient suffers in both the heat and cold. One symptom of Sulphuric Acid is that the patient quivers all over. This is not due to the cold, but is a spontaneous response on the part of the body. Bleeding is of dark colour. Dark blood oozes from under the nails and the junctional areas where the skin and the mucous membranes meet (like the bleeding from snakebite). The bleeding being in the skin, tends to surface externally.
Sometimes, spontaneous red spots appear on the skin (petechiae). These spots may also be dark coloured, raw looking and ugly. A strange kind of skin condition can also develop on the face making it difficult to diagnose. Such type of haemorrhage occurring internally is found in Sulphuric Acid, but may be found in other remedies too. Sulphuric Acid is useful in the treatment of many skin diseases . If the nature of common remedies is know n, it is definitely beneficial. Some of the symptoms of Sulphuric Acid resemble those of Sulphur, such as profuse morning diarrhoea. Some of the Arnica symptoms are also shared by Sulphuric Acid, such as bruised feeling with pain, weakness and feeling of cold. Haemorrhagic spots develop on the sk in. The spots may be darker in Sulphuricum Acidum 662 colour or bluish.
Unlike Arnica, th e blood percolates to the surface of the skin, forming haemorrhagic bliste rs that then spread. These are indicative of a serious unexplained deep illness. Sulphuric Acid is very effective in treating this condition. If other symptoms of Sulphuric Acid are also present, a dose or two of Sulphuric Acid may suffice. A Sulphuric Acid patient becomes easily exhausted mentally and his circulatory system may be disturbed due to the slightest carelessness. Serious blood disturbance may also result. Boils develop on the skin. The patien t feels very weak. His facial complexion is not normal. He be comes hypersensitive. The aches and pains intensify gradua lly and then suddenly ge t better. Potentially serious and chronic diseases devel oping due to an excess of Acid Sulph may sometimes abruptly get better without l eaving any long lasting ill effects.
The discharges of a Sulphuric Acid patient are acidic as well as corrosive in nature . Hyperacidity in the body (acidosis) may be accompanied by a feeling of sudden severe weakness when eating food. The patient sweats profusel y. Mere eating f ood can tire the patient. A lightning type of pain swi ngs from one side to the other. Some patients may actually enjoy this experience, which is a peculiarity of Sulphuric Acid. The headache and body aches intensify gradually and then stop suddenly. Hearing loss progresses slowly and does not return quickly whic h is rather different from the overall picture of Sulphuric Acid symptoms. Hearing returns in due course of time after the pain, pus and bad odour from the ear have been gone awhile. Sometimes, secretions from the nose can block the ear from the inside and affect the hearing .
Further Indications
Other symptoms of Sulphuric Acid being present, this condition is well within the domain of Sulphuric Acid. Toothache goes on gradually getting stronger, and then ends suddenly without leaving any aftereffects. Sores and ulcers form inside the mouth and the throat , causing difficulty in eating. Children may not be able to suck milk. Sulphuric Acid is extremely useful in the treatment of this condition. The stomach begins to fail due to the effects of hyperacidity. The breath is extremely foetid and pungent . Usually, people get constipated on eating acidic things, but the Sulphuric Acid patient develops diarrhoea instead. For example Oysters, (a kind of sea-shell) as well as raw and sour fruit, can cause diarrhoea for which Sulphuric Acid is still the treatment of choice for such patients who have abdominal pain .
In women who see dreadful dreams during their periods , one should, besides other appropriate re medies, also remember Sulphuric Acid (for details, see unde r Arnica and Arsenic). Sulphuric Acid may be the ideal homoeopathic remedy to treat women who cannot conceive due to exce ssive menstrual bleeding, if the patient is of a Sulphuric Acid constitution. In reality, there are innumerable causes of infertility . To find the correct remedy is a very laborious job. This subj ect has been touched upon under the chapters on Pulsatilla, Caulophyllu m, Sabina, Calcarea Carb, Ashoka and Gossypium. In Sulphuric Acid, the patient feels weakness of the back. He wishes to keep lying down. He finds it difficult to stand up or sit down. Slow walking offers some relief. The patient sweats in the morning, which is usually due to some t uberculous matter in the body.
Sulphuric Acid is the best remedy in alcoholics . In Europe, there are many, who are given to regular dr inking, which unfortunately kills them eventually. Treatment with Sulphuric Acid works wonders. A drop of Sulphuric Acid should be diluted in a whole glass of water, which should be divided into three doses to be taken in one day. Many alcoholics who were considered incurable, recovered within a week of this treatment, and never touched alcohol again. In the field of remedy, there is nothing better than this therapy.
