Bryonia

Bryonia alba is one of the polychrest remedies of the homsopathic materia

medica. The common Bryony of this country is the Bryonia dioica, which has been substituted

for the B. alba, and has probably identical properties; but the 4/ba alone has been proved, and

consequently this should always be dispensed. Less rapid in its action than Aconite, it goes

deeper in its effects, and often takes up the work where Acon. leaves off. It not only disorders the

circulation, but alters the blood itself. It corresponds to fevers of almost all kinds, especially

rheumatic, typhoid, bilious and remitting. In these, as in all other complaints, the exquisite

sensitiveness of the drug to movement of all kinds is a leading characteristic. The patient avoids

even the movement of the eyes; raising head from pillow causes faintness, nausea, and vomiting.

Allied to this is > from pressure; from lying on painful side. (This distinguishes Bry. from Bell.

in pulmonary complaints. A case of intense pleurisy with high fever grew steadily worse under

• ▸Bry.
• ▸until I noticed that the patient lay on the unaffected side.
• ▸Bell.
• ▸was then given, and cured

rapidly. Lying on the painful part keeps the part at rest.) There is also an intense headache, dull

throbbing or sharp stabbing pains; sharp pain in or over eyes. "Headache or neuralgia in (left)

side of head and face; > from hard pressure and cold applications; < moving. Head greasy, scalp

tender; eyeballs tender." Mouth very dry; tongue coated white down the middle, the edges may

be quite clean; later it becomes yellow with bitter taste; later, very dry, but still coated. If the

fever is intermitting there is chill mixed with heat: during chill, head hot, cheeks deep red,

decided thirst, generally for large quantities at long intervals; sweat < by least motion, sour or

oily. The lips are dry and cracked. Facial eczema has been cured with it in an infant five months

old, presenting these additional symptoms: Constipation, peevish, fretful, thirsty, face and lips

cracked and sore, child scratched continually. The mother had had a similar eruption for some

years, and it disappeared suddenly at the sixth month of her pregnancy. The mucous membranes

are dry, especially those of the mouth and stomach; deficient secretion. The serous membranes

are inflamed, the seat of sharp, stitching pains, < from motion; later on, exudation occurs. The

muscles, likewise, are inflamed and sore. Irritability of mind and tissues runs through the

remedy. H¢émorrhages are frequent. In this connection it may be remembered that Bryonia dioica

is a popular remedy for "black-eye" as a local application. I have often known nose-bleed occur

in patients to whom I have been giving Bryonia, especially in the night, 3 to 4 a.m., which is

characteristic. This may or may not be preceded by a sense of fulness in the head. Nose-bleed

occurring consequent on suppression of the menses is characteristic. The characteristic mental

• ▸state of Bry.
• ▸is irritability.
• ▸Easily angered (with biliousness, headache, dyspepsia, &c.
• ▸), and it

corresponds to the effects of anger, fright, chagrin. The patient desires things to eat which cannot

be had; or are refused if offered. In fever cases there is often a stupid, drowsy condition; or mild

delirium, in which the patient has the delusion that he is somewhere else and "wants to go

home." The headache is dull, frontal; or bursting, splitting; < by any motion or by the concussion

of cough; goes from before backward. The headache of drunkards; of over-feeding. Nausea and

faintness when rising up, > when lying still. Bry. is a gourmand (Nux an epicure); dirty wash-

• ▸leather, foul tongue, congested eyes, bitter nausea.
• ▸Bry.
• ▸is a coarse feeder.
• ▸Food lies at the

epigastrium like a stone; > bringing up wind. The digestion is < in summer. Symptoms < after a

• ▸meal.
• ▸There is intolerance of vegetable food.
• ▸Everything tastes bitter.
• ▸Thirst for large quantities.

"Eructations of tasteless gas" is characteristic. Sour stomach. Van den Berghe has found Bry.

signally curative in chlorosis. There is diarrhsa and constipation. Diarrhsa occurs: in the morning

"as soon as he moves"; from cold drinks in warm weather; on every spell of hot weather. The

usual Bry. state is one of constipation; there is the usual dryness of mucous membranes; atony of

the bowels; stool large, dry, hard, brown or black; as if burnt or charred; crumbling. (Plat. has

sticky, tenacious stool; sticks to rectum.) Stools smell of old cheese. The liver is tender and

inflamed. The kidneys also are inflamed, the urine being dark red without deposit (from excess

• ▸of colouring matter).
• ▸Mastitis, hard, tender.
• ▸Left ovarian pain, > lying on painful side.
• ▸The

respiratory organs and heart are profoundly affected. Dropsical swellings, swellings of the legs,

sensitive to touch. "joints red, swollen, stiff, with stitching pain from slightest motion." Synovial

• ▸swellings.
• ▸I have cured a case of congenital hydrocele with Bry.
• ▸The Bry.
• ▸patient dreams of the

• ▸occupations of the day.
• ▸The child kicks the covers off.
• ▸Speech is hasty.
• ▸"Frequent desire to take a

long breath; must expand the lungs" is a characteristic.

The typical Bryonia patient is of dark complexion and hair, choleric, bilious tendency with firm

fleshy fibre; tendency to great irritability and bad temper; but Bryonia has a wide range, and no

great stress must be laid on the absence of these features. Teste takes Bryonia as the type of a

• ▸group which includes All.
• ▸sat.
• ▸, Lyc.
• ▸, Digit.
• ▸, Nux v.
• ▸, Coloc.
• ▸, and Ignat.
• ▸All these act with much

more power on carnivorous than on herbivorous animals. They are thus appropriate to persons

who over-eat or eat excessively of meat, and have strong constitutions; "persons accustomed to

rich living, with rich blood, firm resisting flesh." Teste regards the digestive canal, and more

particularly the stomach, as the principal seat of the action of Bry. With regard to the burning

thirst of Bry., which is < by drinking beer, he says, the gastric derangement of Bry. "absolutely

requires water as a dissolvent." The constipation of the remedy is not due to inertia merely; it

depends on "a more or less marked antiperistaltic movement of the rectum: hence the pains and

the ataxic phenomena that accompany it sometimes, as is the case, for example, in the period of

constipation of low typhoid fevers, &c." A peculiar and characteristic symptom of Bryonia in

brain affections is: Constant motion of the mouth as if chewing. Complaints from taking cold or

getting hot in summer; from cold drinks in hot weather. Complaints when warm weather sets in

after cold days. Most symptoms are < by warmth and in warm room (cough, chilliness). < From

warm food; but there is thirst for large draughts of cold water, which >. Rash > getting warm in

bed. Pains in joints and limbs > by warmth. Toothache is > by pressing head into pillow; by cold

• ▸applications.
• ▸Chilliness predominates.
• ▸Dry, burning heat as if blood burning in veins.
• ▸Sweat

profuse night and morning; sour or oily. Cough, headache, diarrhsa < in morning. Nose-bleed <

• ▸3-4 a.
• ▸m.
• ▸Symptoms generally < evening (9 p.
• ▸m.
• ▸).
• ▸< While coughing; after eating; while

swallowing; from motion of all kinds; exertion; ascending; sitting up in bed (can't sit a moment

gets faint, or sick, or both on sitting up). < After suppression of eruption or discharge. Headache

following checked coryza. > Descending; lying, especially on painful side; sitting. > From

pressure.

• ▸Anger; fright; chagrin.
• ▸Suppressed eruptions and discharges.
• ▸Alcohol.
• ▸Gluttony.

Wounds. Cold winds.

Exceedingly irritable; everything puts him out of humor. Delirium; wants to go home; talks of business.

Anxiety and inquietude, with fear of the future.—Frequent tears —Despair of being

cured, with fear of death.—Restlessness, with fear of the future; fear of death, which he thinks is

• ▸near.
• ▸—Fear, with desire to run away.
• ▸—Discouragement.
• ▸—A version to conversation.
• ▸—Exceedingly

irritable and inclined to be angry.—After having been angry he is chilly; has a red face and heat

in the head.—Irascibility and passion —Want of memory.—Momentary absence of

• ▸mind.
• ▸—Giddiness.
• ▸—Desire for things which are rejected when obtained.
• ▸—Delirium (at night) and

ravings about the transactions of the day.—Unconsciousness.

Over-sensitiveness of the senses to external impressions.—Rheumatic and

gouty pains in the limbs, with tension; worse from motion and contact.—Tension, drawing pains,

acute pullings and shootings, esp. in the limbs, and chiefly during movement, with insupportable

pains on being touched, sweat of the part affected, and trembling of that part when the pains

diminish.—Stiffness and shootings in the joints, on being touched and when moved.—In the

evening, pain, as from fatigue, in the limbs, with paralytic weakness.—Torpor and numbness of

the limbs, with stiffness and pain of fatigue —Pale, tense, hot, swelling —Red, shining swelling of

some parts of the body, with shooting during movement.—Pain, as from a bruise, or of

subcutaneous ulceration, or as if the flesh were detached from the bones.—Dragging, with

pressure, on the periosteum.—Swelling and induration of the glands.—Hard nodosities, in several

parts of the skin, like small indurated glands —Pain, with shivering and cold in the

body.—Disposition to catch cold; inflammation of the inner parts.—Startings of the muscles and

of the limbs.—Convulsions.—A ggravation of the pains and sufferings at night, or in the evening,

towards nine o'clock, as well as after having eaten, and from movement; amelioration during

repose.—A ffections of the r. hypochondrium; inner lower belly; inner region of the liver; inner

navel region; of r. upper and r. lower extremity —General uneasiness, sensation of squeezing,

with shiverings, caused by the pressure of the clothing —Sensation of pulling throughout the

whole body.—Trembling of the limbs on rising after lying down.—Want of strength in the limbs

on walking, after having been seated.—Great weariness and weakness, esp. in the morning, or on

• ▸walking in the open air.
• ▸—Necessity to remain in a recumbent posture.
• ▸—Syncope.
• ▸—Sensation of

weakness, esp. on walking in the open air.

• ▸Vertigo, nausea, faintness on rising, confusion.
• ▸Bursting, splitting headache, as if everything would be pressed out; as if hit by a hammer from within; worse from motion, stooping, opening eyes.
• ▸Headache becomes seated in occiput.
• ▸Drawing in bones towards zygoma.
• ▸Headache; worse on motion, even of eyeballs.
• ▸Frontal headache, frontal sinuses involved.

Confusion, giddiness, and cloudiness of the head.—Giddiness, with sensation of

looseness in the brain when stooping, and when raising up the head.—Staggering and

drunkenness, as if from congestion of the head.—Staggering backward.—Tendency to run

• ▸backward.
• ▸—Vertigo only when stooping.
• ▸—Swimming in the head, esp.
• ▸on rising from a seat, or

on getting up after lying down.—Cephalalgia, as after a nocturnal debauch.—Headache after

every meal.—Attack of headache, with vomiting, nausea, and urgent inclination to lie

down.—Headache in the morning as soon as the eyes are, open.—Great fulness and heaviness of

the head, and digging with pressure towards the forehead, and, when stooping, a sensation as if

everything were going to fall out through the forehead.—Expansive pressure, or compression of

the brain.—Shootings in the head, sometimes on one side only.—Pulsative starting pains,

increased by movement, with aching in the eyes.—Congestion in the head, with heat in the

brain.—Burning pain in the forehead —Headache aggravated by movement, or rapid walking, or

when the eyes are opened.—Painful sensibility of the scalp, as if from excoriation.—Drawing and

starting pains in the head, from the cheek-bone to the temple, increased by contact.—Tearing in

one (r.) side of the head, extending into the cheek and jaw-bones; worse from motion, touch, and

heat; better during rest and external pressure.—Burning heat of the head, externally.—Heat of the

head with dark-red face; with coldness of the rest of the body; with much thirst and pain in the

• ▸limbs when moving them.
• ▸—Cold sweat on the forehead.
• ▸—Hair very greasy.
• ▸—Oily, greasy, sour-

smelling perspiration on the head (and the whole body) during sleep; at night, esp. towards

morning.

Pressing, crushing, aching pain. Glaucoma. Sore to touch and when moving them.

Pains in the eyes on moving them.—Aching of the eyes, as if they were going to start

• ▸out of the head.
• ▸—Pressure on the eyes, as if from sand, esp.
• ▸morning and evening.
• ▸—Stitches in the

• ▸eyes.
• ▸—Shooting and drawing pains in the eyes.
• ▸—Burning pain in the eyes.
• ▸—Inflammation of the

eyes and of the eyelids, with redness.—Inflammation of the eyes, < by heat —Inflammation of the

eyes, esp. in gouty subjects.—The eyes feel very sore to the touch, and when moving

them.—Painful swelling of the eyes, with suppuration, and the conjunctiva swollen and red.—Red

swelling of the eyelids, esp. of the upper lids, with aching pains.—Furfuraceous tetters on the

eyelids, with burning itching.—Stye on the eyelid.—Abscess in the internal angle of the

eye.—Nocturnal agglutination of the eyelids, with lachrymation during the day, esp. in the sun,

and with confused sight.—Eyes dull, glassy, turbid, or sparkling, and, as it were, drowned in

• ▸tears.
• ▸—Presbyopia.
• ▸—Confusion of the letters when reading.
• ▸—Blackness or flames before the

eyes.—Photophobia.

Aural vertigo (Aur; Nat sal; Sil; Chin). Roaring, buzzing.

Contractive pains in the ears, with diminution of hearing.—Shootings in the ears, while

walking in the open air, and afterwards.—Swelling, like a knob, before and behind the ear

• ▸(parotitis).
• ▸—Bleeding from the ears.
• ▸—Sensation in the ears, as if they were stopped.
• ▸—Buzzing in

the ears.—All noise is insupportable to the ears.

• ▸Frequent bleeding of nose when menses should appear.
• ▸Also in the morning, relieving the headache.
• ▸Coryza with shooting and aching in the forehead.
• ▸Swelling of tip of nose, feels as if it would ulcerate when touched.

Swelling of the nose, with painful sensibility to the touch, and obstruction of the

nose.—Inflammation and ulceration of the nostrils—Ulcer in the nostrils, with gnawing

pain.—Frequent bleeding of the nose, sometimes in the morning, or when the catamenia are

suppressed, or even when sleeping.—Epistaxis, esp. just before the beginning of the menses, or in

pregnant women, just before the time for the menses to appear.—Dryness and obstruction of the

nose, sometimes obstinate.-—Fluent coryza, with shooting and aching in the forehead.—Dry

coryza, sometimes obstinate ——Catarrh with dryness, sudden suppression of discharge and

headache.—Hard mucus, drying in crusts.

Face of a pale, yellow, earth-coloured hue —Face red and burning.—Red spots on the

face.—Hot, bluish, and brownish swelling of the face.—Pains in the face, mostly aching,

mitigated by external pressure.—Swelling of the face, sometimes on one side only, or under the

eyes and at the root of the nose.—Swelling of the cheek, close to the ear.—Small nodosities and

indurations in the face, like subcutaneous glands.—Lips swollen and cracked, with bleeding, and

sensation of burning on being touched.—Lips dry.—Exanthema on the under lip; parched, dry,

and cracked lips (very characteristic).—Eruption on the lips, with burning smarting.

• ▸Lips parched, dry, cracked. Dryness of mouth, tongue, and throat, with excessive thirst.
• ▸Tongue coated yellowish, dark brown; heavily white in gastric derangement.
• ▸Bitter taste (Nux; Col).
• ▸Burning in lower lip in old smokers.
• ▸Lip swollen, dry, black, and cracked.

Dryness of the mouth, with burning thirst—Dryness of the mouth, tongue, and

throat—Accumulation of a soapy and frothy saliva in the mouth.—Salivation.—Putrid smell of the

mouth.—Tongue dry, loaded with a white coating, or dirty, or yellow; esp. in the

middle.—Tongue furred, usually dry and hard with deep cracks.—Dark coloured and wrinkled

state of the tongue.—Burning blisters on the edge of the tongue.—Speech indistinct, from dryness

of the throat.

Toothache; shooting from one tooth to another, or into the head and cheeks; from an

exposed nerve (sensitiveness of the decayed teeth to contact of the air); pain < from smoking or

chewing tobacco; from introducing anything warm into the mouth; > momentarily by cold water,

and when lying on the painful side.—Toothache, with urgent inclination to lie down, < at night by

hot things.—Jerking, pulling odontalgia, with a sensation as if the teeth were too long, or as if

they were loose, esp. during a meal and afterwards.—Pains, as of excoriation in the gums, with

loosening of the teeth—Gums spongy.

Sore throat, with hoarseness and difficult deglutition.—Pain, as of excoriation in the

throat, during empty deglutition.—Sensation of swelling and constriction in the

Ssophagus.—Sensation of dryness, and great dryness, in the throat——Pressure in the pharynx, as

from a hard and pointed body.—Shootings in the throat on contact, also on turning the head and

on swallowing.—Tenacious mucus in the throat, which is not detached without effort.

Dryness, sticking on swallowing, scraped and constricted (Bell). Tough mucus in larynx and trachea, loosened only after much hawking; worse coming into warm room.

• ▸Nausea and faintness when rising up.
• ▸Abnormal hunger, loss of taste.
• ▸Thirst for large draughts.
• ▸Vomiting of bile and water immediately after eating.
• ▸Worse, warm drinks, which are vomited.
• ▸Stomach sensitive to touch. Pressure in stomach after eating, as of a stone.
• ▸Soreness in stomach when coughing.
• ▸Dyspeptic ailments during summer heat.
• ▸Sensitiveness of epigastrium to touch.

Loss of appetite.—Taste insipid, clammy, putrid.—Insipidity of food—Sweetish

taste.—Bitter taste of all food, or only after meal-time, or at other times, as well as in the

morning.—Burning thirst, sometimes after a meal, increased by taking beer.—Infrequent, but

copious, drinking.—Bitter taste and thirst—Great desire for wine, for acid drinks, for coffee, and

even for things which are not eaten Abnormal hunger; he must often eat something. —Morbid

hunger, which forces frequent eating, and little at a time—Bulimy, often with absence of

appetite, or with thirst and transient heat, sometimes even in the night.—Loss of appetite after the

first morsel has been eaten.—Repugnance and disgust for food.—After every meal, risings, with

pressure on the stomach and on the epigastrium, colic or vomiting, principally after having eaten

bread.

Risings, especially after having eaten, mostly bitter or sour, with a taste of the

• ▸food.
• ▸—Empty risings.
• ▸—Regurgitation if the food after every meal——Hiccough.
• ▸—Nausea and

inclination to vomit, esp. after eating food which has pleased the palate, or on rising after lying

down.—Nausea, with inclination to vomit and anxiety, when sitting, or on forcing one's self to

drink.—Nausea in the morning.—Retching, with water-brash—Vomiting soon after drinking, and

• ▸esp.
• ▸on drinking after a meal.
• ▸—Bitter vomiting, when drinking immediately after a meal.
• ▸—In the

evening, vomiting of viscid mucus.—Vomiting in general of what has been eaten, which comes

up very soon after eating, of food in mouthfuls at a time (vomiting very often excited by motion);

of a watery fluid; bitter and flat taste; belching or eructations; collection of water in the

mouth.—Vomiting of food, with hiccough and retching, or vomiting of bitter water, or of bile,

even at night.—Vomiting of solids, and not of fluids Vomiting of blood.—Shootings in the left

side of the abdomen, during the vomitings.—Pressure in the stomach after eating, esp. after eating

bread.—Pressure, as if from a stone in the stomach, esp. after a meal, or on walking, sometimes

accompanied by ill-humour.—Incisive pains in the pit of the stomach, as from

knives.—Contractive pains in the stomach, sometimes with vomiting of food.—Squeezing in the

pit of the stomach, and painful tension on being touched, with sensation of heat—Shootings in

the stomach, when lying on the side, as well as in the pit of the stomach, during movement and

walking, or making a false step.—Pain, as of excoriation, in the pit of the stomach, sensible to the

touch, or on coughing.—The least pressure on the pit of the stomach is insupportable.—Sensation

of burning in the pit of the stomach, and in the stomach, esp. when moving.—Inflammation of the

stomach.—Sensation of swelling in the pit of the stomach.

Liver region swollen, sore, tensive. Burning pain, stitches; worse, pressure, coughing, breathing. Tenderness of abdominal walls.

Pains in the liver, mostly shooting, tensive, or burning, esp. on being touched,

on breathing, or on coughing.—Tractive pains in the hypochondrium, extending to the stomach

and the back, in the morning and after dinner, sometimes with vomiting.—Hard swelling in the

hypochondriac and umbilical regions.—Shootings in the region of the spleen.—Colic with tension

of the abdomen, and water-brash.—Inflation of the abdomen, with pressure in the epigastrium,

esp. after dinner —Inflammation of the liver.—Tearing in the stomach, from the hips to the pit of

the stomach.—Cramp-like pains, pinching, or cuttings and shootings in the abdomen, chiefly after

eating or drinking (esp. hot milk), sometimes with loose evacuations.—Hard swelling round the

navel.—Dropsical swelling of the abdomen.—Gurgling and borborygmi in the abdomen, with

escape of flatus; sometimes only in the evening, in bed.

Constipation; stools hard, dry, as if burnt; seem too large. Stools brown, thick, bloody; worse in morning, from moving, in hot weather, after being heated, from cold drinks, every spell of hot weather.

Constipation.—Féces too large, with difficult evacuation.—Stools too large

in size; too hard and dry.—Féces scanty, but hard, and as if burnt.—Diarrhsa, with colic,

sometimes alternating with constipation and gastralgia—Loose evacuations, of a putrid smell, as

of rotten cheese; (worse (or only) in the morning; during hot weather).—Involuntary stools while

asleep.—Evacuations of undigested substances.—DiarrhSa in the morning; on beginning to move

about.—Diarrhsa preceded by pain in the abdomen.—Nocturnal diarrhsa, with burning pain in the

• ▸anus.
• ▸—Colliquative diarrhsa.
• ▸—Constrictive colic, during an evacuation.
• ▸—Loose and frequent

evacuations, of a brownish colour (in the case of infants at the breast).

Urine scanty, reddish, brownish, and hot.—White, turbid urine.—Urine is

dark; becomes turbid; often casts a pinkish stain all over the bottom of the chamber.—Urgent

inclination to make water, without power of retention.—Frequent emission of aqueous

urine.—Inclination to make water, with suspended respiration, on lifting loads. —Inclination to

make water at night—Involuntary emission of hot urine, when moving.—Sensation of burning,

and incisive pains in the urethra, before making water.—Cutting in the urethra, or sensation of

constriction while urinating —Sensation of contraction.—Shooting and burning pains in the

urethra.

Red, brown, like beer; scanty, hot.

• ▸Menses too early, too profuse; worse from motion, with tearing pains in legs; suppressed, with vicarious discharge or splitting headache.
• ▸Stitching pains in ovaries on taking a deep inspiration; very sensitive to touch.
• ▸Pain in right ovary as if torn, extending to thigh (Lilium; Croc).
• ▸Milk fever.
• ▸Pain in breasts at menstrual period.
• ▸Breasts hot and painful hard.
• ▸Abscess of mammae.
• ▸Frequent bleeding of nose at appearance of menses.
• ▸Menstrual irregularities, with gastric symptoms.
• ▸Ovaritis.
• ▸*Intermenstrual pain, with great abdominal and pelvic soreness (Ham).

Catamenia suppressed.—Suppressed menses, with bleeding of the

nose.—Catamenia premature.—Menstruation too early and too profuse, with dark, red

blood.—Menses with bad smell.—Acute, tractive pains in the limbs, during the catamenia—Flow

of blood between the periods ——Metrorrhagia of a deep red blood, with pain in the loins and in the

head.—Burning pains in the fundus uteri, during pregnancy, increased by movement, diminished

• ▸by pressure and repose.
• ▸—Swelling and inflammation of the labia majora (< 1.
• ▸).
• ▸—Swelling of one

of the labia, with a black and hard pustule-——Lumps, indurations, and inflammations of the

mammé, with diminished or retarded secretion of milk.—(Puerperal fever.)

Red, itching, miliary eruption on the glans penis ——Shootings in the

testes.—Stitches in the testicles while sitting.

• ▸Soreness in larynx and trachea.
• ▸Hoarseness; worse in open air.
• ▸Dry, hacking cough from irritation in upper trachea.
• ▸Cough, dry, at night; must sit up; worse after eating or drinking, with vomiting, with stitches in chest, and expectoration of rust-colored sputa.
• ▸Frequent desire to take a long breath; must expand lungs.
• ▸Difficult, quick respiration; worse every movement; caused by stitches in chest.
• ▸Cough, with feeling as if chest would fly to pieces; presses his head on sternum; must support chest.
• ▸Croupous and pleuro-pneumonia.
• ▸Expectoration brick shade, tough, and falls like lumps of jelly.
• ▸Tough mucus in trachea, loosened only with much hawking.
• ▸Coming into warm room excites cough (Nat carb).
• ▸Heaviness beneath the sternum extending towards the right shoulder.
• ▸Cough worse by going into warm room.
• ▸Stitches in cardiac region.
• ▸Angina pectoris (use tincture).

Hoarseness, with tendency to perspiration, cough and rattling in the

• ▸chest.
• ▸—(Acute bronchitis).
• ▸—Deep, slow breathing.
• ▸—Difficult breathing only possible with the

assistance of the abdominal muscles.—Frequent sighing, breathing.—Continued inclination to

draw a long breath—Breathing quick, difficult, and anxious; caused by stitches principally in the

chest, compelling him to sit up.—Stitches in the chest, when breathing or coughing.—Inclination

to cough, as if from viscid mucus, afterwards pains, as of excoriation, in the larynx, aggravated

by speaking, or by smoking tobacco.—Cough, mostly dry, excited by a tickling in the throat, or

as if caused by smoke in the larynx, with a necessity for breathing often —Cough, from tickling

in the throat and pit of the stomach; in the evening at night without expectoration; during the day

the expectoration is yellow, or consists of coagulated brown blood, or of cold mucus of a

disagreeable flat taste——Cough and stitches in the head and chest; or pain as if the head and chest

would burst.—Cough: with involuntary secretion of urine; hoarseness; thirst; sneezing; stitches in

the chest and small of the back; red face; aggravated by motion, talking, laughing, eating, and

• ▸drinking.
• ▸—Cough, as if from irritation of the stomach.
• ▸—Cramp-like, suffocating cough, esp.
• ▸after

midnight, or after having eaten or drunk, and often with vomiting of food.—Cough in the

morning, with water-brash.—Cough which seems to bruise the chest.—Cough, with shootings in

the sides of the chest, or with aching pains in the head, as if it were going to split, as well as with

shooting pains in the pit of the stomach, or with pains in the hypochondria.—Cough, with

expectoration of mucus of a dirty reddish colour.—Cough, with yellowish expectoration.—Cough,

with expectoration of pure blood, or of slimy matter with streaks of blood——On coughing, pain,

as of excoriation, in the pit of the stomach.—Fit of choking before the paroxysm of nocturnal

cough.

Respiration difficult, or short, rapid, and anxious, or sighing.—Oppression, with fits

of choking.—Respiration impeded by shootings in the chest.—Respiration deep and slow, esp.

while making any exertion.—Constant occasion to make a deep inspiration.—Fit of dyspnsa, even

at night, sometimes with shooting colic and inclination to evacuate.—Pressure on the chest, as if

from a weight, with oppression.—Contractive pain in the chest, excited by the cold air.—Tension

in the chest, on walking.—Shootings in the chest and in the sides, as from an ulcer, esp. when

coughing or breathing deeply, obliging the patient to remain seated, and when lying down to rest

only on the back; aggravated by every movement.—Heat in the chest (pleurisy,

pneumonia).—Heat and burning pain in the chest, with anxiety and tightness.—Sensation in the

chest as if all there were detached, and were falling into the abdomen.

Beatings of the heart; frequently very strong, and attended by oppression

(carditis).—Frequent sharp pain, stitching in cardiac region.

Painful stiffness in nape of neck. Stitches and stiffness in small of back. From hard water and sudden changes of weather.

Painful stiffness of the neck.—Rheumatic stiffness and tension in the nape

of the neck, and in the neck.—Red spots on the sides of the neck.—Red miliary eruption on the

neck, with violent itching —Sweat in the arm-pits.—Sacral pains, with rigidity, which does not

allow of walking upright.—During rest, pain, as if caused by a bruise in the loins. —Contractive,

cramp-like pain all over the back.—Shootings in the loins and in the back.—Painful stiffness in

the small of the back, compelling him to walk and sit crookedly.—Shootings under the left

shoulder-blade, extending to the heart, greatly aggravated by cough and respiration.—Pressure on

the shoulder, with shootings on breathing deeply.

Rheumatic swelling of the r. shoulder and upper arm, with

stitches.—Tractive pains in the joints of the shoulders and of the arms, with tension, shootings,

and shining red swelling.—Tractive pains in the whole arm, and to the ends of the

fingers.—Convulsive movements, startings, and trembling of the arms.—Burning pains and

weariness in the arms.—Constant trembling of the arms, and of the fingers.—Swelling of the arm,

round the elbow.—Swelling of the elbow and hand joints, and upper parts of the hands —The

wrist feels as if dislocated when moving it.—Shootings in the joints of the elbow, and of the

hand, with heaviness of the hands.—Red miliary eruption on the forearm.—Pain of dislocation in

the joints of the hands, on moving them.—At night, inflammation in the back of the hand, with

• ▸burning pain.
• ▸—Swelling of the hands.
• ▸—Sensation of torpor in the palms of the hands.
• ▸—Shooting

pains in the fingers when writing.—Hot and pale swelling of the joints of the fingers.—Starting of

the fingers on moving the hands.

Cracking and dislocation of the hip-joint, when walking.—Stitches in the

hip-joint, extending to the knee.—Drawing pains in the thighs.—Shootings in the thigh, from the

buttock to the ankle, with insupportable pain on being touched, and during movement, as well as

with great sweat over the whole body.—Weariness and instability of the legs, esp. on going up

stairs.—Paralysis of the legs.—Tensive and painful stiffness of the knees—Red and shining

swelling of the knees, with violent shootings, esp. on walking.—Painful stiffness of the knees,

with stitches, esp. when moving them.—Staggering and yielding of the knees, while

walking.—Tensive shootings and cramp-like pains in the knees, with tension extending to the

calves of the legs.—Sharp pains in the knees, extending to the tibia.—Tensive and drawing

shootings from the calves of the legs to the ankles, with red, shining swelling of the parts

affected —The ankle feels as if dislocated, esp. when walking.—Putrid ulcers on the lower

extremities.—Cramp in the calves of the legs, night and morning.—Lassitude of the legs when

walking and standing for any time.—Swelling of the legs, extending to the feet.—Pain, as of

dislocation, in the foot when walking.—Swelling of the feet, with redness and heat; pain, as from

a bruise, on stretching the feet, tension on moving them; and pains, as from ulceration, on being

touched.—Shootings in the feet, the soles of the feet, and the toes, esp. when resting on the

foot.—Corns, with pressure, or with burning shootings, or with pain of excoriation on being

touched.

• ▸Knees stiff and painful.
• ▸Hot swelling of feet.
• ▸Joints red, swollen, hot, with stitches and tearing; worse on least movement.
• ▸Every spot is painful on pressure.
• ▸Constant motion of left arm and leg (Helleb).

Yellow; pale, swollen, dropsical; hot and painful. Seborrhoea. Hair very greasy.

Yellow colour of the skin—Skin moist and clammy.—Burning and pricking over the

whole body, as if from nettles, after slight emotions.—Erysipelatous inflammation, esp. in the

• ▸joints.
• ▸—Nettle-rash —Miliary eruption, esp.
• ▸in children, and lying-in women.
• ▸—Phlycténoid

eruptions, with gnawing or burning itching.—Hard knots and blotches.—Furfuraceous tetters,

• ▸with burning itching.
• ▸—Petechi¢.
• ▸—Putrid ulcers, feeling cold.
• ▸—Ulcers, with sensation of cold or

with pulsative or smarting pains.—Chilblains —Corns, with pressure, or burning shootings, or

pains of excoriation on being touched.

Drowsy; starting when falling asleep. Delirium; busy with business matters and what he had read.

Constant inclination to yawn.—Great sleepiness during the day, esp. after

dinner.—Drowsiness, with half-closed eyes.—Failing asleep late; not refreshing; complaints

causing sleeplessness; lying on the back during sleep.—Comatose sleepiness, interrupted by

• ▸anxious delirium.
• ▸—Sleeplessness, esp.
• ▸before midnight, caused by heat.
• ▸—Sleeplessness before

midnight, with thirst, heat, and ebullitions —Ebullition of the blood, and anxiety, esp. in the

chest.—Sleep disturbed by thirst; with bitter taste in the mouth on waking.—Inability to remain

• ▸lying on the r.
• ▸side.
• ▸—Starts, with fright, on going to sleep and during sleep.
• ▸—Unquiet sleep, with

confused dreams, and great flow of ideas.—On going to sleep, cries and delirium, as soon as the

• ▸eyes are closed.
• ▸—Delirium as soon as he awakes.
• ▸—Disagreeable, vexatious dreams.
• ▸—Vivid

dreams of the transactions of the day.—Nocturnal delirium, and visions with the eyes

• ▸open.
• ▸—Groans, esp.
• ▸towards midnight—Somnambulism.
• ▸—Nightmare.

• ▸Pulse full, hard, tense, and quick.
• ▸Chill with external coldness, dry cough, stitches.
• ▸Internal heat.
• ▸Sour sweat after slight exertion.
• ▸Easy, profuse perspiration.
• ▸Rheumatic and typhoid marked by gastro-hepatic complications.

Pulse full and hard, tense, and quick; seldom intermitting.—Chill, with external

coldness of the body.—Coldness and chilliness, mostly in the evening, and often only on one (r.)

side.—More chilliness in the room than in the open air.—Cold and shivering in the body, even in

bed, in the evening, or accompanied by pains in all the limbs and cold sweat on the fore"

head.—Shiverings, with trembling, often with heat in the head, redness of the face, and thirst; or

followed by heat, with sweat and thirst—Before the shiverings, vertigo and cephalalgia; then

shivering with tension and drawing in the limbs.—Fever, with bitter taste and thirst —Dry,

burning heat, mostly internal, as if the blood were burning in the veins.—Dislike to food and

drink during the shiverings.—Heat, at first alternately with shiverings, then burning heat and

thirst, afterwards copious sweat.—Universal dry heat, external and internal, almost always with a

strong desire for cold drinks.—Want of perspiration.—Wants to drink much water during chill and

fever.—Heat on one side only.—During the heat, vertigo and cephalalgia —Febrile attack, with

cold, and shivering predominating; type, tertian; nausea, and necessity to remain in a recumbent

posture, or with shooting pains in the side and in the abdomen, and thirst during the shiverings

and the heat —At the termination of the fever, dry cough, with vomiting, shootings and

oppression in the chest.—Cold sweat on the forehead and on the head.—Copious sweat while

walking slowly in the open, cold air.—Greasy sweat, day and night—Sweat, with anxiety and

inquietude.—Sighing-like breathing, short cough, and pressure on the chest.—Profuse sweats,

night and morning, sometimes of a sour smell.—Compound fevers in general; chilliness and heat

alternately; heat and shuddering alternately.

• ▸Alcoholism.
• ▸AmenorrhSa.
• ▸Anger, effects of.
• ▸Aphthé.
• ▸Apoplexy.
• ▸Asthma.
• ▸Bilious

• ▸attack.
• ▸Brain, affections of.
• ▸Breast, inflamed.
• ▸Bronchitis.
• ▸Cancer.
• ▸Chill, effects of.
• ▸Chlorosis.

• ▸Constipation.
• ▸Consumption.
• ▸Coryza.
• ▸Cough.
• ▸Dentition.
• ▸Diaphragm, rheumatism of.
• ▸Diarrhsa.

• ▸Dropsy.
• ▸Dyspepsia.
• ▸Eczema.
• ▸Enteric fever.
• ▸Eruptions.
• ▸Gastro-enteritis.
• ▸Hémorrhages.
• ▸Hands,

• ▸swollen.
• ▸Headache.
• ▸Heart, inflammation of.
• ▸Hernia.
• ▸Hiccough.
• ▸Hydrocele.
• ▸Hydrocephalus.

• ▸Influenza.
• ▸Intermittent fevers.
• ▸Jaundice.
• ▸Joints, pain in.
• ▸Lactation, disorder of.
• ▸Liver, disorders

• ▸of.
• ▸Lumbago.
• ▸Measles.
• ▸Meningitis.
• ▸Menstruation, vicarious.
• ▸Miliaria.
• ▸Milk fever.
• ▸Myalgia.

• ▸Nephritis.
• ▸Nose-bleed.
• ▸Peritonitis.
• ▸Phlegmasia alba dolens.
• ▸Pleurisy.
• ▸Pleurodynia.
• ▸Pneumonia.

• ▸Pregnancy, morning cough of; sickness of.
• ▸Puerperal fever.
• ▸Pyuria.
• ▸Relapsing fever.
• ▸Remittent

• ▸fever.
• ▸Rheumatism.
• ▸Scarlatina.
• ▸Screaming.
• ▸Side, pain in.
• ▸Sleep, anxious dreams in.
• ▸Spina bifida.

• ▸Stiff-neck.
• ▸Suppressed eruptions, bad effects of.
• ▸Thirst.
• ▸Tongue, coated.
• ▸Toothache.
• ▸Trachea,

• ▸pain in.
• ▸Vertigo.
• ▸Waking, starts and screams on.
• ▸Water-brash.
• ▸Whooping-cough.
• ▸Yellow fever.

• ▸Bryonia is antidoted by: Acon.
• ▸, Alum.
• ▸, Camph.
• ▸, Cham.
• ▸, Chel.
• ▸, Clem.
• ▸, Ign.
• ▸, Mur.
• ▸ac.
• ▸,

• ▸Nux, Puls.
• ▸, Rhus, Seneg.
• ▸Teste found, by accident, Fer.
• ▸mur.
• ▸the best antidote in his experience.

• ▸It antidotes: Alum.
• ▸, Chlorum, Chi.
• ▸, Frag.
• ▸vesc.
• ▸, Merc.
• ▸, Rhus.
• ▸Compare: The Cucurbitaceé (all

• ▸have belching, with unaltered taste of food); Aco.
• ▸(pallor on rising up.
• ▸Aco.
• ▸has more

• ▸restlessness and tossing about; is full of fears; Bry.
• ▸must keep still); Amm.
• ▸, Ant.
• ▸c.
• ▸(nausea,

vomiting, and diarrhsa; aversion to milk); Arn. (h¢émorrhages, wounds, soreness all over; also

• ▸Bap.
• ▸); Ars.
• ▸(unlike Bry.
• ▸, drinks often and little, and eats seldom but much); Asclep.
• ▸tub.

• ▸(pleurisy); Bell.
• ▸(delirtum, hasty speech, hasty drinking.
• ▸Bell.
• ▸has headache < lying down, Bry.

• ▸must lie down; Bell.
• ▸has < lying on painful side, Bry.
• ▸> lying on painful side; Bell.
• ▸has "chewing

• ▸motion of jaws" but without the dry, cracked lips of Bry.
• ▸).
• ▸Calc.
• ▸c.
• ▸(very like Bry.
• ▸, but the

resemblance is too close for compatibility. They should never be given one after the other

• ▸without an intercurrent remedy between.
• ▸Calc.
• ▸, like Bry.
• ▸, Chi.
• ▸, and Bell.
• ▸, has "as soon as he

• ▸closes his eyes sees all sorts of objects"); Carb.
• ▸v.
• ▸(miliaria); Caust.
• ▸, Cham.
• ▸, Ign.
• ▸, Ipec.
• ▸(miliaria);

Kali c. (miliaria, bilious affections, chest affections; sharp pains in right hypochondrium

shooting up into chest; sharp pain coming from lower lobe right lung, but Kali c. has not

• ▸necessarily < by motion); Kre.
• ▸, Lach.
• ▸, Lyc.
• ▸, Merc.
• ▸, Nat.
• ▸s.
• ▸(morning diarrhsa); Nat.
• ▸m.
• ▸(headache

• ▸in morning, oily, sour sweat on face; Bry.
• ▸on head generally; cracked lips; Bry.
• ▸and Nat.
• ▸m.
• ▸go

well together, and are often complementary); Nit. ac., Nux (digestive organs; corresponds to

• ▸epicures, Bry.
• ▸to gourmands); Op.
• ▸, Pet.
• ▸, Pho.
• ▸, Pod.
• ▸, Puls.
• ▸(morning diarrhsa); Ran.
• ▸b.
• ▸(pleurisy,

rheumatic affections); Rhus (rheumatism; headache; typhoid. Rhus is restless and > by

• ▸movement and by warmth); Rumex (morning diarrhSa); Sep.
• ▸, Sil.
• ▸, Spi.
• ▸(pleura); Sul.
• ▸, Squil.

• ▸(pleura).
• ▸Pul.
• ▸and Chi.
• ▸have nausea < on sitting up.
• ▸Ars.
• ▸has gagging at the end of a cough like

• ▸Bry.
• ▸, Cimex, gagging and belching after cough.
• ▸Aco.
• ▸is like Bry.
• ▸in effects of cold, dry winds

• ▸(cold, moist winds, Nx.
• ▸m.
• ▸, Calc.
• ▸, Ars.
• ▸, Dulc.
• ▸); Ham.
• ▸and Millefol.
• ▸(h¢morrhages).
• ▸Bry.
• ▸follows

• ▸well: Aco.
• ▸, Amm.
• ▸Nux, Op.
• ▸, Rhus.
• ▸/s followed well by: Alum.
• ▸, Ars.
• ▸, Kali c.
• ▸, Nux, Pho.
• ▸, Puls.
• ▸,

• ▸Rhus, Sul.
• ▸Complementary: Alum.
• ▸, Rhus.
• ▸Alumina is the "chronic" of Bry.
• ▸; and Kali c.
• ▸and Nat.

m., hold a similar but less pronounced relation to it.

• ▸Complementary: Upas when Bryonia fails.
• ▸Rhus; Alumina. Illecebrum.
• ▸--A Mexican drug.
• ▸--(Fever with catarrhal symptoms, gastric and typhoid fever symptoms).

Antidotes: Acon; Cham; Nux.

Compare: Asclep tub; Kali mur; Ptelia.

First to twelfth attenuation.

remedies come on suddenly, with great violence, with great rapidity,

stay but a short time in their paroxysm, and go o£E as it nothing had

happened. Others come on slowly, are deep acting and continuous,

like the continued fevers. We notice the complaints of Ignatia, how

flitting and intermittent and unexpected everything is ; we notice in

Aconite how complaints come on with violence, and in Belladonna

with what suddenness they come on. When we come to the study of

Bryonia we find it is a most persistent remedy ; its complaints develop

• ▸slowly, i.
• ▸e.
• ▸, slowly for acute conditions.
• ▸Its complaints are continuous,

remittent, and only occasionally intermittent. They increase into

violence, but the violence is not the first flash as in Aconite or BelU

adonna, and hence it conforms to a type of disease with continued fever ;

to rheumatisms that come with gradually increasing severity, gradually increasing and involving one joint after another, until all the

white fibrous tissues are in a state of inflammation, pain and distress.

It has inflammatory conditions anywhere about the body, but particularly of the fibrous tissues, serous membranes, ligaments of joints and

aponeuroses. It also affects the coating of nerves with its congestions,

and these gradually increase in severity.

During menstruation there is epistaxis. Congestion of the head is

present at the menstrual period. Epistaxis appears as a vicarious flow

in cases of mcnorrhoea. If the menstrual flow should be checked

suddenly from cold, nosebleed comes on. Dryness in the nose.

The aspect of the face is important ; the besotted, purple, bloated

countenance is not dropsically bloated, although it has the oedematous

face sometimes, but puffed from vascular stasis, not pitting upon

pressure ; swollen and puffed, purple, with a doltish state of the mind,

as if he were drunk. He will look at you and wonder what you were

doing, and what you said ; a stupefaction of the intellect ; the eyes do

not look at you intelligently. When a patient is about to come down

with some Bryonia complaint, with a remittent, or with head congestions, or pneumonia, or some other respiratory disease, the family will

notice w^hen he awakes in the morning that he has that besotted expression, and he says he has to make such an effort to think or do anything, and his head aches hard, and is worse from motion. Or the

face is red and burning, “red spots on the face and neck “hot,

bloated, red face.*'

In children, as well as adults, there is gradually increasing cerebral

trouble, dilated pupils, besotted countenance, and continual lateral

motion of the lower jaw. This motion of the jaw in a congestive

attack is a strong feature of Bryonia. It is not the grinding of the

teeth so much that I refer to now, although that is found in Bryonia,

but a lateral movement of the jaw as if chewing, but the teeth do not

come in contact and they keep it up night and day. A great many

remedies have grinding of the teeth. When intermittent fever comes

on with marked congestion, stupefaction of the intellect, violent rigors, even to a congestive chill, the patient lying in stupefaction or a

semi-conscious state, without grinding the teeth, yet wagging the jaw

back and forth by the hour, Bryonia is often suitable. Constant

motion of the mouth as if the patient were chewing, in brain affections

of children ; it occurs in little ones when there are no teeth ; but they

keep up a chewing motion.

In regard to the lips and lower part of the face, that bloated, swollen condition, the sluggish circulation, a venous congestion or stasis

will be found in Bryonia, making the aspect as of one long intoxicated ;

it is not so marked as in Baptisia and is not accompanied by so low a

state, so advanced a stupor, as in Baptisia. Great dryness of the lips ;

the lips parched and dry. “Children pick the lips.“ “Lips cracked

and bleeding.” Lips parched, dry and bleeding, such as will be seen

in typhoid states, where the whole mouth is dry and brown, cracked,

parched and bleeding ; dry, brown tongue. Sordes on fhe teeth. In

Arum triph. there is marked picking of the nose and lips ; they pick

and pick and bore the finger into the nose.

HS

Bryonia has toothache, worse from warmth. "Tearing, stitching

toothache while eating from warm drinks, from warm foods, worse

in a warm room, wants cold foods in the mouth, wants to be in cold

air, but worse from motion. ‘Toothache > by cold water or lying

on painful side.’’ Pressing hard upon the painful tooth ameliorates

it. ‘Toothache < from smoking. ’ You see how the relief from

cold and aggravation from heat go along with us : vve shall keep reiterating these modalities that affect the patient as a general state, and

we shall see as we go through that nearly all his symptoms are worse

from motion, worse from heat, etc. He keeps on telling us they are

better from pressure in each region we go over, until liiially we come

to the conclusion that they are general. We may have in tw(^ reme*

dies the same set of symptoms, and yet they arc all made worse from

the opposite things. Thus you see modalities indicate and contraindicate remedies. This is the studying of remedies by their modalities, for modalities sometimes constitute strong generals.

You will not be surprised to know that Bryonia loses his sense oL

taste, so that if he has a coryza nothing tastes natural. Not only is

there mental sluggishness, but there is a slowing down of his sensations, his whole state is benumbed, "laste flat, insipid, pasty ’’ His

intelligence is so affected that he does not know where he is even,

thinks he is away from home* and even Ins tongue is no longer intelligent ; so that something that is sour tastes as though bitter ; lus

senses deceive him. ‘Tongue; thickly coated white." In typhoid,

in cerebral congestion, in sore throat, in pneumonia, in all diseases of

the respiratory apparatus, in rheumatic affections, the tongue is

thickly coated. "Dry and bleeding and covered with crusts." Such

a tongue is found in typhoid fever, a dry, brown, cracked, bleeding

tongue. When he takes a cold the mouth becomes dry. It is very

common for the Bryonia patient to have great thirst ; he is apt

to drink large quantities of water, at wide intervals. With this

dry, brown tongue, however, he loses his taste for water and does

not want it ; dry mouth and thirstless like Nvx moschata. "Aphthae.”

"Bad odor from mouth.”

Bryonia has nondescript sore throats, with stitching pains, with

dryness, with parched appearance of the throat, and thirst for large

quantities of water at long intervals. "Constitutional tendency to

aphthous formations in the throat,” little white spots in the throat.

Then we come to the desires and aversions that relate to the

stomach, and they are greatly perverted. He is worse from eating.

The stomach has lost its ability to digest, and hence he has an

aversion to all food. "Desires things immediately, and when offered

they are refused.” He is changeable, docs not know what he wants.

He craves in the mind the things he has an aversion to in the

IIRYONIA

Stomach. When l>e secs it he docs not want it. His intelligence is

in a state of confusion. He craves acids. “Great thirst day and

night he wants cold w^ater. ‘Thirst for large quantities at long

intervals.*’ Many remedies want to sip water all the time. In

Bryonia the large quantities relieve the thirst immediately, In

Arsenic the drink does not relieve, he wants a little and wants it

often.

The stomach complaints of Bryonia are relieved from warm drinks ;

that becomes a particular liecause his desire is for cold drinks, but

his stomach is better from warm drinks. In his fever and head complaints and febrile states he wants cold things, which often bring on

and increase the cough and pains, but the hot drink, which he does

not crave, relieves the stomach and lx>wel complaints. In the chill,

Bryonia often has desire for ice-cold water, which chills him dreadfully ; and hot water relieves. “Desire for cold and acid drinks.”

Aversion to rich fat food ; all gieasy things. “Desire for things

which are not to be had.”

When patients are under constitutional remedies, they need caution about certain kinds of foods that are known to disagree with

their constitutional remedy. A Bryonia patient is often made sick

from eating saner kraut, from vegetable salads, chicken salad, etc.,

so that you need not be surprised, after administering a dose of

Bryonia for a constitutional state, to have your patient come in and

say she has been made very ill from eating some one of these things.

Jt is well to caution persons who arc under the influence of Ptds, to*

avoid the use of fat foods, because very often they will upset the

action of the remedy. It is well to say to patients who are under

Lyc\, “See that you do not eat oysters while taking this medicine.”

These medicines arc known to produce states in the stomach inimical to certain kinds of foods ; certain remedies have violently inimical relation to acids, lemons, etc. If you do not particularly mention

the fact, and say, “You must not touch vinegar or lemons ; nor take^

lemon juice while taking this medicine,” you will have the remedy

spoiled, and then wonder why it is. The medicine often stops acting

and the patient gets a disordered condition of the stomach and bowels ;

a medicine that should act for a long time ceases action and you do

not know what the trouble is. Homoeopathy will rule out such things

as are inimical to the remedies and inimical to patients in general,

or do not agree with a particular constitution. To have an iron-clad

rule is not correct practice : the only iron-clad rule is to be sure that

the remedy is similar to the patient when you administer it. and the

things that he is to have are to be in agreement with that remedy.

It is not an uncommon thing for a patient who has been under the

influence of Rhus tox., and has been doing well up to a certain time,

BRYONIA 247

after he has taken a bath, to have his symptoms return in the form ol

a Rhus state ; the action of the remedy stops right there. He must

of course take a bath, and yet it is true that some constitutional

cases under Rhus must stop taking their ordinary bath in order to

keep themselves under the influence of Rhus. It is the same with

Calcarea — a bath will often stop the action. 1 only speak of these

things to impress upon you the importance of feeding and treating

yoUr patient in accordance with the remedy ; in accordance with a

principle and not by rule ; do not have one list of foods for your patients ; do nor liave a list of things for everybody. There is no such

thing in Homoeopathy.

The patient himself in all the strange and peculiar things is worse

from eating ; the cough is worse from eating, the complaints of the

head, the headaches, are worse from eating, and the respiration is

• ▸worse from eating.
• ▸Tht stomach is distended with wind after eating, but especially after oysters.
• ▸Oysters are not, as a rule, a dangerous article of diet, yet some are poisoned by oysters.
• ▸“Worse after

eating or drinking.'' When the case is one of whooping cough, the

cough is worse, the paroxysms are more violent and all the symptoms

are worse a little while after eating, but later, when digestion is

finished and the stomach is empty, he is much relieved. The Bryonia

patient is ordinarily relieved fron^ drinking, but if, when overheated,

he drinks cold water, all of his rheumatic symptoms arc worse, the

cough is worse, and the headache is worse. He will have a violent

lieadachc after drinking cold water when heated. In Rhus patients

complaints are worse from drinking cold water when heated. The

headache increases into a throbbing and l)ursring pain tenfold greater

than it was before drinking.

Tlie Bryonia patient is vsubject to hiccough, to belching, to nausea

and vomiting, so that disordered stomach is the general term. Bitter

eructations, bitter nauseous taste. He vomits bile. After eating

all these things are increased. In the stomach and abdomen we

have a great many symptoms resulting from disordered stomach, or

from taking cold, or from Ixjcoming overheated, or from drinking

ice water when overheated. Disordered stomach ; irritation of the

stomach so that he cannot eat without extreme pain, and this increases until the inflammatory condition involves tlie whole stomach

and abdomen, and there is sensitiveness to pressure, and it can be

diagnosed as a gastro-cntcritis, with the soreness and tenderness,

stitching, burning pains, all worse from motion ; nausea and v omiting,

diarrhoea, tympanitic abdomen ; unable to move because it so increases the pain.

With the exception of the abdominal and stomach pains, the

Bryonia pains are better from pressure. The Bryonia patient with

248 BRYONU

these inflammatory conditions will often be seen lying perfectly quiet

in bed with the knees drawn up ; lying with the limbs flexed in

order to relax the abdominal muscles ; he docs not want to be talked

to, docs not want to think ; every moment is painful, and increases

the fever and often causes alternation of chilliness with heat ; high

fever.

I'he Bryonia patient, when lying perfectly quiet, is sometimes

(jiiite free from nausea, but the instant the head is raised from the

pillow the dreadful sickness returns, so that he cannot sit up. He

('annot ht raised up in bed l)ecause of the nausea, and if he persists

ill rising up the nausea comes on more than ever, wdth burning in

the stomach. With every motion lie gulps up a little mucus and

slime, which is putrid.

All sorts of pains are felt in the stomach and howxls, but most

particularly stitching and burning pains; feels as if the slomacli

would burst, as if the abdomen would burst. Peritoneal exudations.

Awful soreness. Sensitiveness of the pit of the stomach, and sensitiveness over the wdiole abdomen. This is commonly relieved by

heat, althoLigli the patient himself w^anis to lie in a cool room. The

heat of the room is oppressive, yet heat applied is agreeable. Every

inspiration, every motion of the chest greatly aggravates these pains,

so that you wdll find a Bryonia patient shortening up his breathing

instead of breathing deep. He keeps that up until he cannot stand it

any longer, and then he takes a long breath that causes groaning.

Gastric inflammatory affections and disordered stomach, gastric

affections in young girls from suppression of the menstrual flow^

gastritis, gastroenreritis.

Bryonia has inflammation of the liver and many other liver symptoms. The liver, especially the right lobe, lies in the hypochondrium

like a load, with soreness and tenderness to pressure, and he cannot

move. Every motion, every touch, every deep breath causes pain

in this organ, as in the abdominal viscera. The breathing is short,

quick, land when followed by taking a deep breath it causes pain

through the liver ; it burns and stitches. With this, he has the disordered stomach, nausea and retching worse from motion ; spitting

up of bile. Stitching pains, sticking pains and burning in the liver.

‘'Transient stitches in right hypochondrium these are in the liver.

When he coughs it feels as if the liver or right hypochondrium would

burst. Severe pains when coughing.

Bryonia furnishes many symptoms in connection with the stool

• ▸and rectum.
• ▸It has constipation, and it has dysentery.
• ▸The pathogenesis is full of these conditions as well as many symptoms relating to the parts themselves.
• ▸In the constipation the stool is dry

and hard, as if burnt. No desire for stool, but after going many days

BRYONIA 249

there are passages of little hard pieces as if they had been burned.

No moisture about the parts, no mucus to often the hard stools.

Any mucus that may be present will be discharged separately. Sometimes the stool is composed of little hard particles looking as if burned,

at times scanty, again quite a lot, and then will follow the passage

of mucus, as if lying about the mass of faeces was quite a lot of

mucus. In most inveterate constipations Bryonia is sometimes suitable. It has also diarrha^a that drives the patient out of bed in the

morning ; i.e., on first beginning to move in bed he begins to feel

nauseated, he is bloated and distended with colic, and he has urging

to go to stool ; or a little while after getting up and moving about

the bowel is distended causing colic, and he must hurry to stool.

The purgation is sometimes enormous, frequent, and no sooner does

the patient finish than he is perfectly exhausted, lies down like one

almost dead, covered with sweat ; so tremendously fatigued he can

hardly reach the vessel the next time, and then it comes a gushing,

copious, bilious stool. If, while lying, he makes the least motion, he

must hurry to stool. Bryonia cures dysentery with all the tormina

and tenesmus possible to imagine, with pain in the abdomen : with

bloody and mucous discharges. In the constipation the straining is

often ineffectual. He has urging to stool and goes several times

before there is any result. The stool seems to remain in the rectum,

although he seems to be compelled to strain ; there is inactivity and

inability to strain. Ordinarily he has plenty of power and is quite

likely to have a passage, but itds so dry. Bryonia has another kind

of diarrhoea. It is like the yellow corn meal mush. Just such a stool

as this you will find in the typhoid patient, a yellow, mushy stool.

This is sometimes intermingled with mucus and slime, sometimes

with blood. It may be useful to the physician to know whether this

is in the typhoid state or in the form of chronic diarrhoea. Bryonia

has cured many cases of chronic diarrhera where this yellow, mushy

discharge w^as present, and frequent : several times a day, but more

frequent in the morning. Sometimes he has several stools in the

morning that will satisfy for the whole twenty-four hours, or only one

or two in the afternoon and five or six in the morning ; during the

night no stools at all, because when he keeps cjuiet in bed and comfortable he has not very much urging to stool ; every motion or keeping upon the feet increases the urging to stool. So that some w^ould

think of it as a diarrhoea only in the day-time, and would associate it

with Petroleum ; but with Petroleum, no matter how much he moves

about in the night, he will not have a stool, but will have all of the

stools in the day-time. It says here: “Diarrhoea putrid ; smelling like

old cheese,” “Very offensive.” “Brown, thin, faecal stools.” Sometimes chronic Bryonia patients will diet themselves, eating only thin

3 ^

liquids, avoiding solids, etc., and yet the food will come right through

the next morning almost undigested ; lienteric stools. “Urging followed by copious pasty evacuations.'* “Involuntary stools while

asleep.’’ ‘‘Burning of the anus with every passage.” This is

especially at night if he moves, but motion is more common in the

day-time, and every motion will bring on urging to stool.

There are plenty of urinary symptoms in this remedy ; inflammatory condition of the kidneys ; pinkish urinary deposits, uric acid

crystals ; urine profuse. Whenever he strains himself in lifting, or

any unusual motion, there is pain in the kidneys, a rousing up of congesting and long-lasting pain. It is a gouty constitution with kidney

troubles, so that after overheating or overexertion he gets pain in the

back. “Pressure to urinate and involuntary discharge of urine.”

“Burning in urethra, when not urinating ;” relieved by passing urine.

There are many symptoms of the female sexual organs of great

interest. Painful menstruation, dysmenorrhoea ; pain in the ovaries

at the menstrual period. Every menstrual period is associated with

marked congestion of the ovaries, wdth sensitiveness to touch. The

sensitiveness at the approach of every menstrual period, in both

groins, will be spoken of by the patient, increasing as the menstrual

period comes on, until the soreness proceeds across the abdomen and

meets, and then the whole abdomen is painful during the menstrual

• ▸period.
• ▸The uterus is sore, the hypogastrium is tender.
• ▸Inflammation of the uterus.
• ▸Burning pain mostly in the body or fundus of

the uterus. The Bryonia patient is subject to amcnorrhoea, or the

flow is suppressed upon the slightest provocation. If she becomes

overheated from exertion, such as from ironing or washing a few

days before the menstrual period, it will be suppressed, and the next

time she will have a harder time than ever. In young plethoric

women, after violent exertion, these complaints come on in that way.

Violent exertion then scanty urine. Soreness of the abdomen, but the

flow does not come, or is postponed a good many days after violent

exertion ; scanty urine and suppression of menses in plethoric girls.

From overexertion and becoming overheated, threatened abortion. In inflammation of the breasts and stopping of the milk flow in

the lying in period. Bryonia must be consulted. In milk fever and

pains and swelling of the breast Bryonia must be studied. During

confinement a woman becomes overheated *and naturally perspires ;

just at the close of it as the delivery takes place, if the nurse and tho

doctor do not observe and throw more clothing over her, or at least

keep the room warm enough, there will be sudden suppression of the

sweat, and this will bring on milk fever and other febrile symptoms

which will need Bryonia. Threatened peritonitis, from such causes,

gonorrhoeal troubles, old rheumatic troubles, pains or aches, if mad^

BRYONU

^ 5 *

worse from the slightest motion. If due to septicaemia rather than

to suppression of the sweat, very commonly a deeper acting remedy

is required. In inflammatory conditions of the breast one of the

most striking things is the stony hardness of the breasts, hardness

and heaviness. Bryonia is often suitable for inflammation of thq

breasts at other times ; heaviness and hardness of the breast prior

to menstruation.

Then we come to the respiratory tract again, w^hich we have only

hinted at, and here we have a tremendous study before us. Very

commonly the Bryonia conditions commence with a cold ; it may be

at first loss of voice, with rawness in the trachea and great soreness

in the chest; dry, hacking cough, as if the chest would burst from

coughing. The Bryonia patient sits up and holds the head, or holds

the chest ; presses both hands upon the chest when coughing, feels

as if the chest would fly to pieces when coughing ; pains in the chest

on both sides, but mostly the right side. Bryonia prefers the right

side when the condition is pneumonia. We see a patient who had

first a cold, and the cold has travelled down the air passages, with

hoarseness and rawness in the chest and cough ; the cough shakes

the whole body, then comes a hard chill. He is now down in bed,

and when the physician sees him he sees the state of inflammation and

knows the meaning of it, and listening confirms the diagnosis of

pneumonia. The patient cannot move hand or foot ; the pain is mostly

in the right lung, and he is conipelled to lie on the right side or back

and dreads motion. Sometimes the pleura is involved and we have

the sharp pains ; every respiration causes intense pain, whether it be

plcuro-pneumonia or a simple pneumonia. But we see the Bryonia

patient lying upon the side that is affected, upon the painful side, in

order to diminish the motion that respiration causes ; and every often

he will have a hand under it to sec if he cannot hold it still. With

Bryonia the expectoration is of a reddish tinge, is rusty, and if you

have this symptom and the right side affected it is all the more

strongly Bryonia. There are a few medicines that look somewhat ,

like Bryonia ; take, for instance, a case with high fever, intense heat,

great excitment, and consider the rapidity with which the trouble

has come on, involving the left side and in the pan you see the

sputum consists of bright red blood. Aconite will be the remedy. If

the liver is involved, there is fulness in the side, stitching pain over

the liver, and the face is yellow, it is not impossible for Bryonia to

be indicated, for it has such things, but with pain very severe, continually going from the front to the back through the right shoulderblade, Chelidonium is more likely to cure than Bryonia. These comparisons may be carried out indefinitely, but the study of Bryonia as

to the respiratory apparatus is a wonderful one. With these colds

2J2

From the beginning there are present the characteristic features,

and it may be seen that this patient is coming down with a Bryonia

sickness. The patient has scv'cral days of preparation. He does not

feel very well, is languid and tired, docs not want to be spoken to, does

not want to move, and this gradually increases ; pains begin to flit

over the body, they move around here and there over the fibres in one

place and another, and every time he moves the pain increase, until

they end in a steady and continuous pain. The parts become hot and

inflamed, and at last he is down with rheumatism. The complaints

come on after taking cold, not the first few hours, as in Aconite or

BelL, but the day after an exposure he begins to feel uneasy and he

sneezes and the nose discharges, there is rawness in the chest, and

in a day or so he has a chill and comes down with some inflammatory

trouble, pneumonia or pleurisy. Its inflammatory complaints include

inflammation of the membranes of the brain, sometimes extending

into the cord ; the pleural membranes, the peritoneum and the heart

covering, these are the most common ; it also has inflammation of

organs. When these conditions come on there is noticed, very early

in the case, even before the pains begin, an aversion to motion, and

the patient does not know why, but finally he observes that his

symptoms are made worse if he has to move, so that the slightest

inclination to move is resisted with a feeling of anger, and when he

does move he finds he is aroused to great suffering, and that all the

aches and pains of the body come on. Thus we have the well-known

Bryonia aggravation from motion. This runs all through the remedy.

^37

This medicine is suitable in a great many diseases, diseases of a

typhoid nature, diseases that take on a symptomatic typhoid, diseases

that start out as remittents and run into a continued fever, as in

pneumonia, pleurisy, inflammation of the liver, of glands, of the

bowels, etc. It may be a gastro-entcritis or peritonitis, or inflammation of the bowels, with the sensitiveness, the aggravation from motion

and the desire to keep perfectly still. Inflammation of joints, whether

of rheumatic character or not, whether from cold, exposure or injury. Bryonia is often indicated in injuries of joints where Arnica

would be a failure.

There is an extreme state of irritability in Bryonia ; every word

which compels him to answer a question or to think will aggravate

him. The effort to talk will be attended with horror. At the beginning of complaints you go to the bedside of a patient v/ho has been

grumbling a few days ; something is evidently coming on ; the family

meet you at the door and say, “The patient is almost unconscious

you look at him, the face is puffed and purplish, he seems to be dazed,

there appears to be a short of venous stasis all over the body, but

especially about the face ; his countenance is almost that of an imbecile,

yet he is perfectly capable of talking, although he has an aversion to

it and appears to outsiders to ignore everything that is said. This

sometimes comes on apparently in a short time ; the patient awakens

in the morning with a dull, congestive headache and a stupid feeling

in the head ; dulness of mind tp that he cannot work, and this feeling

gradually increases; such a state is sometimes the forerunner of a

serious illness. We find, wh6ri a pneumonia or inflammation of the

liver, or some slow insidious inflammation is coming on somewhere

in the body, but not yet located, that this state will begin in the morning. This is peculiar about the aggravation of Bryonia — its troubles

commence many times early in the morning. On waking, with the

first move, he realizes that things are not all right, there is a state of

stupidity bordering on unconsciousness. Those who have been

grumbling for a week or ten days wake up in the morning feeling

miserable, some time that night or the next day they have to send for

the doctor. If this is watched for a few days, a continued fever is

observed. Or at night a chill will come on, with much pain in the

chest, rusty expectoration, short, dry cough and other symptoms that

will be spoken of under Bryonia later, showing that the trouble is

going towards the chest ; or the condition may gradually increase as

a congestive, dull headache. This will be seen when congestion of

the brain is coming on. Bryonia sickness often picks out plethoric

subjects, those who are venous in their make up, those who, when

suffering with cold, come down with catarrhal congestions. Catarrhal

fever may be covered by Bryonia. This sluggish state of the mind

BRTOm

^438

then is the state of Bryonia, not an excitable state, as in Co'ffea, Ntix

vomica, Ignatia, but sluggish, aggravated from motion, aggravated

from being talked to, wants to lie still in bed ; very great irritability,

which is as extreme as that found in Nux or Chamomilla, It also has

acute complaints aggravated from anger, from being aroused, from

being disturbed, from controversy. Following the early sluggishness,

there is later a state of complete stupefaction in Bryonia, in which he

becomes quite unconscious, as in typhoid. He goes from a state of

partial unconsciousness to one of complete unconsciousness, as in

hydrocephalic children.

In rheumatic complaints, in pneumonia, and in typhoid conditions,

when he is aroused from this stage of stupefaction he is confused,

sees images, thinks he is away from home and wants to be taken home^

Sometimes he will lie and say nothing but that he “wants to go home.”

The delirium is of a low type ; it is not the flashing wild excitement of

Bell or Stram. ; it is the very opposite ; he talks and wanders and does

not say much unless he is disturbed. You disturb him and he says,

“Go away and let me go home,” and if you let him alone he will relapse into a perfectly quiet state and seldom speak. “Irrational talk

or prattle of his business, aggravated after 3 p. m.” Usually you will

find the delirium commencing about 9 p. m., and keeping up all night

like the fever. The acute mental state you will find manifesting its

symptoms on rising in the morning, but as the febrile state advances

• ▸and takes possession of him the symptoms will take on a 9 p.
• ▸m.
• ▸aggravation ; those who have chill will have it at 9 p.
• ▸m.
• ▸; in those who

have a fever, the fe\er will come at 9 p. m. If mental symptoms are

uppermost they increase and spread over the night. It has a 3 p. m.

aggravation. Bell, will begin at 3 and run on towards midnight, but

• ▸Bryonia will begin at 9 p.
• ▸m.
• ▸and run on through the night.
• ▸The aggravation of the Chamomilla patients, who are also extremely irritable,

is at 9 A. M. Sometimes we go to the bedside and can hardly distinguish between Bryonia and Cham, because they are both so spunky,

but the Cham, baby is worse at 9 a. m. and the Bryonia baby is worse

at 9 p. M.

In Bryonia there is a key-note which really applies to a dozen or

more remedies, “he wants something and he knows not what.’' It is

a very important symptom of Bryonia. It is a symptom that calls

for Bryonia only when the rest of the symptoms agree. You go to a

child who is being carried in the arms of the nurse and wants one toy

after another ; you get the toy he wants and he does not want it and

will throw it back at you. Wien that case is looked into thoroughly

it may be covered by Kreosote ; another is never satisfied with anything and rejects everything he asks for ; you look into that case and

it may be covered by Chamomilla.

BRYONU

“Desire for things that cannot be had which arc refused, or not

wanted when offered.” “Apprehensiveness ; fearfulness.” “Anxiety

in whole body compelled him to do something constantly.” There is

a feature worthy of consideration because it sometimes makes a case

appear inconsistent. It is due to his anxiety that pervades the whole

body. In Bryonia as in Arsenic there comes an anxious and uneasy

feeling which compels him to move, but he is worse from motion, yet

so uneasy and anxious that he must move. There are pains so violent

that he cannot keep still, and yet when he moves he screeches from the

pain. So it is really not an inconsistency but simply due to the great

violence of the pain. Even though he knows that the motion is going

to make him worse, he cannot keep still, for the pain is so violent.

Early in the case he was able to keep still, and found that he was

better from keeping still, and that the mental state was better from,

keeping still, and that the anxious restlessness increased the more he

amoved, until finally a reaction comes and he is obliged to move. You

would think, looking at the case superficially, that that patient is better

from motion as in Rhus tox., but in Rhus you find that the patient

moves and in moving he gets feeble, and when he sits down the pains

begin to come on again, 'fherc is the distinction between the two,

and yet they look alike if not examined into carefully. It is common for

Bryonia to be ameliorated from cool air, and from cool applications.

Now, if he moves, he gets warned up, the pains are worse, but there

are rheumatic complaints of Brypnia which arc better from heat, and

under these circumstances he is f better from continued motion. It is

another form of relief, and another of the modalities. I sometimes

wonder whether Bryonia has a greater element of relief from heat,

or greater element of relief from cold. Most of the head complaints

that are of a congestive character arc better from cool applications,

from cold air, etc. Yet there are some of the Bryonia head complaints that are relieved by hot applications, and these seem to have

no accompanying cerebral congestion. So that Bryonia has opposite modalities, but in all its opposite states there is still a grand

nature running all through, sufficient to detect it.

In a damp climate Bryonia is one of the most frequently indicated

remedies, but in the clear climates, where the thermometer runs low.

Aconite will be indicated more than Bryonia. Still further South, the

complaints assume more of the constitutional state of Gelsemium in

inflammatory conditions. We know in the far North the sudden,

violent cold brings on violent colds like Aconite, while here the complaints are more insidious, like Bryonia, and further South. These

atmospheric changes should be thoroughly considered in relation to

our Materia Medica.

The mental state of Bryonia is usually relieved from cool air, he

wants the windows open. Anxiety, confusion of mind, fear, etc., are

ameliorated from being cool. Sometimes the delirium, and the

congestive fulness of the head affecting the mind, will increase if the

room becomes very warm, or from the heat of the stove, from becoming heated, or from warm covers. In children this will be noticed,

whereas if the window be thrown up to relieve the stuffiness of the

room the child will sleep quietly. Such remedies as Bryonia,

Pulsatilla, and many others, come in here. If you go into a room

and find the child raging with delirium, turning and tossing, and the

mother is trying to keep the room warm because she is chilly, and you

say, **Why, how stuffy it is in here !” and you open the window and

then notice that the child goes off to sleep, do not overlook that ; because that relief was caused by something. There should be nothing

that can possibly occur to a patient, but that you should solve the

meaning of before you leave the room. Settle in your mind as to

what it was that caused it.

‘Tear of death.’’ Full of fear, anxiety, despair of recovery, great

despondency. Both mental and bodily quietness is required, that is,

• ▸he wants to keep still.
• ▸Often he wants the room dark.
• ▸It has complaints from getting excited.
• ▸Bryonia patients are nearly always

worse from visitors. “Morose.” Do not cross a Bryonia patient for

it makes him worse. “Bad effects from mortification.” “Ailments

arising from chagrin these are headaches usually. Violent, congestive headaches that come on a few hours after altercation or controversy, or little misunderstandings with somebody that he cannot

talk back to, will be covered by Staph., but Bryonia also has that.

Staph, is suited to irritable, violent, nervous, excitable people, that

get into violent altercation or dispute. If a headache comes on, such

a patient may need Bryonia. If in a chronic state a patient says,

“Doctor, if I ever have a dispute with a man over anything I come

down with nervous excitement, sleeplessness, headaches you do

not have to work long upon that case, because more than likely Staph.

will be suitable.

Bryonia has dizziness ; the dizziness is worse in a warm room. You

will notice, as I go through, that in everything of a nervous nature,

nervous excitement, and commonly the bodily state, the patient is

worse from a warm room, worse from too much clothing, worse from

the warmth of the bed, wants the windows open, wants to breathe

fresh, cool air. He suffers more than ordinary persons, from a stuffy

room. Persons who arc subject to Bryonia conditions suffer in

church, at the opera, in close warm rooms, like Lycopodium. Girls

jthat faint every time they go to church are relieved by Ignatia.

We commence now with the study of the head. The head complaints may be looked upon as striking features of the remedy, because

BRYONU

there is pain in the head with almost every acute complaint. Head^

aches are associated with inflammatory and congestive complaints.

The mental dullness and confusion of the mind is spoken of with the

congestive headache, and bursting headache. The head feels so full

she wants to press it with the hand, or tic it up ; tight pressure, over

the whole skull, is grateful. The headaches arc worse in a warm

room and commonly worse from heat. Sometimes superficial

neuralgias have relief from local heat, but a warm room or a close

room is very distressing to the Bryonia headache. Headaches as if

the skull would split open ; the pains are worse from every motion,

even the winking motion of the eyes, the motion necessary to talking,

and the effort ol thinking, so that all exertion of lx)dy or mind becomes impossible with a sc\ere headache. Must keep perfectly

(juiet. Sometimes lying down and keeping perfectly quiet in a dark

room will give some relief. Light aggravates ; if you think a moment

you will sec that the accommodation to light and shadow of a room

involves motion ; it is said that the light aggravates, but even here it

is the motion that is carried on by the muscles of accommodation.

The headaches of Bryonia arc very commonly the forerunner of other

complaints, congestion of the lungs, bronchitis, or congestion of some

other part of the body ; he wakes up in the morning with headache ;

if it be coryza that is coming, he has the headache in the morning and

through the day he commences to sneeze ; or if the trouble is in some

other part of tlic body, before the symptoms develop, he w^akes up in

the morning with this congestive headache over the eyes or in the

back of the head, or both ; it s^ms as if the head would burst ; better

from pressure, worse from the warmth of the room, and worse from

every motion. Headache over the eyes, sometimes like the stabbing

of a knife, worse from the first motion. He realizes it on waking

upon moving the eyes, with soreness in the eyeballs, with bruised feelings all over. The motion of the arms, doing work with the arms, as

in various kinds of business that are carried on with the use of the

arms and hands, is geiicriilly accompanied by complaints of the upper

part of the body and especially the head, so that one of the old keynotes in the time of Hering was ‘‘complaints from ironing,” You

know that ironing is commonly carried on in a warm room, it involves

the motion of the arms, and thus brings in two most striking features

of Bryonia, so that this key-note is no longer an abstract statement ;

it is not to be considered apart from the general nature, but only serves

to bring it out. Splitting, violent congestive headaches; headaches as

if everything would hurst out of the forehead. Pressure pain in the

forehead, fulness and heaviness in the forehead as if the brain were

pressed out. This fulness or congestion of the head is accompanied

by what was described as sluggishness of the mind, and it will often

be noticed that the countenance is somewhat besotted. The patient

looks as if he were an imbecile. The face is mottled, and purple,

with congestion in a marked Bryonia state. The eyes are red and

congested ; he is listless, does not want to move, to speak, or to do anything, because all these things are motion, are clforts, and they make

him worse. You will see this is also true in Bell. ; it has all of this

congestion and pressure ; but remember Bryonia is slow, sluggish,

passive and insidious in its approach and progress, while in Bell, the

mental symptoms and everything in connection arc marked by activity.

With the headaches there is more or less burning, and sometimes

throbbing. The throbbing is seldom felt until he moves. After any

movement, like going up stairs, walking, or turning over in bed during the headache, he feels the violent throbbing ; on keeping still a

moment it settles down into a bursting, pressing pain as if the skull

would be pressed open. There are many other pains in connection

with the Bryonia headache ; in the text it is described “tearing and

stitching pains.’' “Shooting pains,” sharp pains. Some of the pressing pains are described as if a great weight were on the head, but the

same idea prevails ; it is an internal pressure ; a sluggishness of the

circulation in the brain, a stasis as if all the blood in the body were

surging in the head. “Stitches in the head.’* “Splitting headache.”

“Rush of blood to head.’ Threatened apoplexy. “Headache after

washing himself with cold water w^hen face was sweating.” That is,

taking cold from suppression of perspiration. “Always on coughing, motion in head like pressure,’’ The headache is so bad in many

cases of pneumonia or bronchitis, in fact in any of the inflammatory

or congestive conditions, that very often you will sec the patient grasp

the head when he know^s he is going to cough. He holds his head

because it hurts so from the action of coughing. Many remedies

have this, but it is in keeping with the general aggravation of Bryonia

• ▸from motion, from jar, from any effort.
• ▸“The headache is expanding, aggravated by the slightc\st motion ; after eating.
• ▸” The aggravation after eating is in keeping with the Bryonia stale in general.
• ▸The

patient himself, in all complaints, feels worse after eating. It hardly

matters what the trouble is, it is worse after eating ; the cough is

worse aftci eating, the gouty state is increased by eating. The Bryonia patient will finally sum up the whole subject and say, “I am

always worse after eating so that it becomes a general. The headaches are often accompanied by nose-bleed. “Obstinate headache with

constipation.” Bryonia is particularly suitable in venous, sluggish

constitutions, with sluggish heart, poor circulation, yet apparently

plethoric, apparently rugged, but subject to gouty exacerbations from

change of weather.

Dandruff is common ; sensitiveness and great soreness of the scalp ;

worse from the slightest touch of the scalp, feels as it the hair were

pulled ; women must always have the hair hanging down. In the

Bryonia headaches, as well as rheumatic attacks, if he can perspire

freely, he will get relief. Bryonia is ameliorated in all its complaints

as soon as the perspiration becomes free and general.

Catarrhal conditions of the eyes are found in Bryonia ; it is not so

often thought of as an inflammatory remedy for the eyes when there

are no other symptoms, but eye symptoms will be found, redness, inflammation, congestion, heat, enlargement of the veins, burning and

smarting, associated with headaches, witlt coryza, with troubles in

the air passages, bronchitis, etc. Sore aching in the eyes, the eyeballs

can hardly be touched, so tender to touch, as if bruised, increased from

coughing or pressure. Such conditions come with chest complaints,

with colds and headaches. “Soreness and aching of eyes when moving them.*’ “Pressing, crushing pains in eyes.'' “Inflammation in

eyes and lips, especially in new-born infants." Think of Bryonia

when gouty conditions have left certain parts and all at once the eyes

are affected, tumefaction of the lids, the conjunctiva looks like raw

beef, so highly inflamed is it, red and oozing blood. You find out

that a few days before the patient, an old gouty subject, had rheumatic attacks of the joint, and now he has sore and inflamed eyes.

“Rheumatic iritis, caused by cold." Rheumatic inflammation of the

eyes, /. e., in inflammatory conditions and congestion with redness,

associated more or less with gouty affections. In olden times it was

described as “arthritic sore eyeis," which means sore eyes in a gouty

constitution.

Many of the complaints of Bryonia commence in the nose ; sneezing, coryza, running at the nose, red eyes, lachrymation, aching

through the nose, eyes and head the first day ; then the trouble goes

down into the posterior nares, the throat, the larynx, with hoarseness,

and then a bronchitis comes on, and if not checked it goes into pneumonia and pleurisy, so that the trouble has traveled from the beginning of the respiratory tract, the nose, to the lung tissue. This is a

field for the complaints of Bryonia. Al! are worse from motion, all

parts are subject to a good deal of burning and congestion ; more or

less fever, sometimes intense fever . the patient himself worse fronii

the slightest motion and wants to keep still ; dullness of mind, pressive, congestive headaches ; sore, lame and bruised all over, often

worse at 9 o'clock in the evening ; increased dullness of the mind after

sleep or on waking in the morning. The cough comes on with great

violence, racking the whole body and increasing the headache, and

with copious discharge of mucus from the respiratory tract.

^Trequent sneezing." “Sneezing between coughs." “Loss of

smell." Bleeding from the nose in these congestions, or with coryzas.