Iron
Watery, dull red; photophobia; letters run together.
Mucous membrane relaxed, boggy, anaemic, pale.
Fiery-red and flushed from least pain, emotion, or exertion. Red parts become white, bloodless and puffy.
Pain in teeth; relieved by icy-cold water. Earthy, pasty taste, like rotten eggs.
Undigested, at night, while eating or drinking, painless. Ineffectual urging; stool hard, followed by backache or cramping pain in rectum; prolapsus recti; itching of anus, especially young children.
Involuntary; worse daytime. Tickling in urethra extending to bladder.
Pale; flushes readily; pits on pressure.
Complementary.: Chin; Alum; Hamamel.
Compare: Rumex (similar in respiratory and digestive sphere and contains organic iron).
Ferrum aceticum (alkaline urine in acute diseases. Pain in right deltoid. Epistaxis; especially adapted to thin, pale, weak children who grow rapidly and are easily exhausted; varices of the feet; copious expectoration of greenish pus; asthma; worse, sitting still and lying; phthisis, constant cough, vomiting of food after eating, haemoptysis).
Ferrum bromatum (sticky, excoriating leucorrhoea; uterus heavy and prolapsed, scalp feels numb).
Ferrum cyanatum (neuroses with irritable weakness and hypersensitiveness, especially of a periodical character; epilepsy; cardialgia, with nausea, flatulence, constipation, alternating with diarrhoea; chorea).
Ferrum magneticum (small warts on hands)
Ferrum muriaticum (Arrested menstruation; tendency to seminal emissions or copious urination at puberty; very dark, watery stools; diphtheria; phlegmonous erysipelas; pyelitis; haemoptysis of dark, clotty blood; dyspareunia; pain in right shoulder, right elbow, and marked tendency to cramps and round red spots on cheeks; bright crystals in urine. Anaemia, 3x, after meals. Tincture 1-5 drops 3 times daily for chronic interstitial nephritis).
Ferrum protoxalatum (Anaemia). Use 1x trit. Compare also; Graph; Mangan; Cupr.
States of debility where the blood is poor in hematin require material doses; plethoric, haemorrhagic conditions call for small doses, from the second to the sixth potency.
We will take up the study of Ferrum metallicum. The Old School
has been giving Iron for anaemia throughout all tradition. They have
given it in great quantities, in the form of the tincture of chloride,
and the carbonate. Whenever the patient became anaemic, pallid,
waxy and weak, Iron was the tonic. It is true that Iron produces
anaemia, and it would be aistonishing to any one who ever read the
provings of Fcrrum of the allopaths did not create additional bloodlessness with the doses of Iron they administer. It is true that under
the provings, and under those circumstances where Iron has been
given in excess, the patient becomes greenish, waxy, yellow and pallid,
with a sickly and ana:inic countenance. The lips become pale ; the
cars lose their pink color ; the skin of the body L'ccoines waxy, and
there comes a tendency to haemorrhage, at limes with clots, but commonly with copious, thin, liquid blood, very dark. The clots will
separate and the iluid parts look brown, dirty and watery. The
patient gradually emaciates. He is pallid and waxy ; liis muscles
become flabby and relaxed ; he is incapable of endurance. All the
muscular fibers become tired from any exertion. Rapid exercise, oC
any unusual exertion, is impossible. Any rapid exertion or motion
brings on weakness, dyspnoea, sinking and fainting.
A strange thing running through all the constitutional conditions
of Ferrum is that the pains and sufferings come on during rest. The
palpitation sometimes comes on during rest, the dyspnoea comes on
during rest, and even the weakness. The patient is ameliorated by
moving gently about, but any exertion tires and causes faintness. Any
rapid motion aggravates the complaints. The pains are ameliorated
by moving about the house slowly, so that tlie exertion does not excite
or fatigue. In many cases ihc paiieni is dropsical. The skin pits
upon pressure and is pale, yet tlie face shows an appearance of
plethora. From every little excitement the face becomes flushed.
During the chill the face becomes red. From faking wine or stimulant the face becomes flushed, and the patient, though flabby, relaxed
and tired, does not get credit for being sick. She fails to get the’
sympathy of her friends. She is feeble, she suffers from palpitation
and dyspnoea, she has great weakncvss with inability to do anything
like work, she feels tliai she must lie down— yet the face is flushed.
This is called a pseudo-plethora. The blood-vessels arc distended,
the veins variccjse, and their coatings relaxed. On this account bleeding takes place easily ; capillary oozing : hamorrhage from all parts
of the body ; hemorrhage from the nose, the lungs, tlie uterus. Women
suffer much from hemorrhage from the uterus, especially during and
after the climacteric period. Ferrum will be found of great value—
when the symptoms agree — in that wonderful anemic state called
''green sickness,’’ that comes on with girls at the time of puberty and
!in the years that follow it. There vdll be almost no menstrual flow,
but a cough will develop, with great pallor. So common is this sickness among girls that all mothers are acquainted with and dread it.
In a large practice you will have a number of cases of chlorosis.
Sometimes the early menstrual period is attended with a, copious
flow, then a great weakness occurs, and this goes on for a number;
FERRUM METAIXICITM
of years before anything like menstrual regularity is established. In
these cases the Old School always used to feed their patients Iron in
great quantities, but the more Iron the patient took the worse she grew.
Congestion, tending upwards, with red face, hot head and coldness
of the extremities. But the heat of the head and face is not at all
in proportion to the red appearance. It will be found that this congestion upward in Ferrum will take place during a chill, in septic
fevers or in other forms of fe\cr, and the head is not always hot, but
sometimes cool. The face may be red and cool.
Another grand feature of Ferrum is that, like China ^ it has complaints from loss of animal fluids ; from prolonged haemorrhage, with
weakness remaining a long time. ThcTc is no repair, no assimilation.
The bones are soft and easily bent ; they take on crooks. Emaciated
and feeble children. Dryness of the joints, causing cracking on
motion. Sudden emaciation, with false plethora.
Redness of face— a healthy looking bloom — in one who is unable
to walk fast on the street, or to stand any exertion. Yet some of the
complaints of Ferrum are better from occupation, from doing vSomeihing, from taking a little exercise, because the complaints come on
during rest. Over-cxcitability and sensivity of the nerves ; oversensitiveness to pain. The sensitive woman who needs Ferrum has
a flushed face and is often complaining because she gets no sympathy.
She does not look sick, yet she puffs on going up stairs ; she feels
weak and wants to lie down.
Restless when keeping still ; mutit keep the limbs moving. Rending pains in the limbs ; dull aching in the limbs. These pass off when
moving about (juictly and gently, like Pulsatilla. But Ferrum is a
very cold remedy, and is ameliorated by w^armth, except the pains
about the neck, face and teeth, which arc ameliorated by cold. But
most of the pains are ameliorated by heat ; the patient wants to keep
warm and dreads anything like fresh air or a draught.
Weakness and prostration ; weakness even from talking. Prostration with irregular pulse and rapid pulse, or with too slow pulse ;
palpitation. And then comes paralytic weakness ; the limbs give out.
Paralytic conditions from anannia or liamorrhage. Fainting speels
from haemorrhage. Jerking and twitching of the muscles-; chorea;
catalepsy.
You may easily imagine something of the character of the mental
symptoms, for they are like the physical. The mind is confused and
the patient tearful. Depression of spirits ; mental weariness and depression. The highest degree of depression and despondency.
Anxiety from the slightest cause; irritability. The least noise, like
the crackling of paper, sets the patient wild. It brings on nervousexcitement and restlessness ; she must get up and move. Excitement
from the slightest opposition. Any sudden or rapid motion, or the
least hurry, causes blackness before the eyes ; dizziness ; things turn
in a circle ; she must sit down. And with all this the face is red.
When alone and at rest, the face becomes pale and cold, but the least
excitement brings a flush to the cheeks.
The headaches are congestive in character, with mounting of blood
upwards. There is a sense of fullness and distension, with red face.
Fullness and distension of the eyes ; fullness of the neck. Palpitation
of the heart. Exophthalmic goitre. The headaches are ameliorated
headache. Coughing aggravates the headache ; pain in the head and
occiput from coughing. These pains are sometimes ameliorated by
walking gently. Going up stairs, sitting down, rising from a seat —
unless iit is done very deliberately — will arouse all the pains of
Ferrum. Any sudden motion will bring on hammering and a feeling
of great expansion in the head. And then will come more or less
shooting, tearing pains. Beating in the back of the head from rising
or from coughing, because coughing is a sudden motion. Confusion
of mind with hammering headache. Rush of blood to the head. Congestive headaches from excitement ; from taking cold ; from exposure ;
lasting three or four days or a week. The face is flushed and perhaps
cold, the head somewhat hot, but not as hot as would be expected.
Redness of the eye ; engorged vessels. Great weakness, dyspnoea
and palpitation. Writing — a mental operation — causes the headache
to reappear. Great sensitiveness of the scalp. The patient must let
the hair hang down. Mental disorders and headaches accompanying
Over-sensitiveness to sound ; ringing in the ears.
The symptoms of the nose are numerous. Colds and catarrhal
troubles, ending in nosebleed. Nosebleed on slight provocation, with
headaches at the menstrual nisus. Scabs form in the nose. Extreme
paleness of the face ; face becomes red and flushed on the least
emotion. Flushed face with dropsy of the lower limbs ; flushed face
with chill. Thirst during the chill is a striking feature of Ferrum,
During the menstrual period there are violent pains, and as soon as
the pain starts the face becomes flushed.
Nothing taken into the stomach digests, and yet there is no special
nausea. It is the exception to find nausea in Ferrum. Food goes
into the stomach and is vomited without nausea — simply emptied out.
Sometimes there are eructations of food by the mouthful, like Phosphorus, Phosphorus was the remedy with all the old masters for
Spitting up of food by the mouthful until the stomach was empty.
Canine hunger. It says in the next: “Double the amount of an ordinary meal in the evening was hardly sufficient/’ All food tastes
meat. Aversion to meat, to eggs, to sour fruit. Aversion to milk,
and to his accustomed tobacco and beer. Sweet wdnes agree, but sour
wines and all sour things disagree. The tongue feels as if burnt.
As soon as the stomach is empty vomiting ceases until he eats again.
Vomiting of food, immediately after midnight. Vomitus tastes sour.
Ferrum is occasionally indicated during pregnancy. A few weeks
after becoming pregnant the woman commences to throw up her food
by the mouthful. There is no nausea, but the face is flushed and the
woman is flabby and weak. She vomits without becoming sick. Fullness and pressure in the stomach ; pressure in the stomach after eating.
Ferrum is an unusually interesting remedy because of this peculiar
stomach. It is like a leather bag; it will not digest anything. Fill
it up and it empties itself just as easily as it was filled.
Ferrum has a troublesome diarrhoea, with acrid watery excoriating
stool. Morning diarrhoea. Many of these patients are old sinners
with broken-down constitutions, who have suffered long from constipation. Chronic constipation with iiieffectual urging and hard, difficult
stools, ;
Relaxation runs through the j^medy. From this relaxation there
is prolapsus of the rectum, vagina and uterus. Dragging down in the
lower part of the body, as if the organs would come out — and sometimes they do come out.
The bladder is also relaxed. Its sphincter is weak, and there is no
regularity of its muscular action. Hence, we have involuntary urination from suddeen motion, from walking, or from coughing. In little
children the urine dribbles all day. Just as long as the child plays the
urine dribbles and keeps the clothing wet, but this better while kceping perfectly quiet. The bladder is so relaxed and tired that it cannot
hold the urine, and as soon as it is partially filled it allows its contents
to escape. This relaxation runs through the remedy and gives it
character, just like a human being. You know what each one of your
friends is likely to do on every occasion. So it is with a remedy.
You ought to know what it is most likely to do, in order to know
what it will accomplish in curing the sick.
Weakness and relaxation of the genital organs is common to Ferrum.
The menstrual flow comes in for its share. Copious, watery flow ;
haemorrhage or suppression — ^amenorrhoea — ^no flow at all, only a
Difficult respiration ; pains and disturbances in the chest. Difficult
breathing, with a sense of a great load on the chest. Suffocating fits
at night ; catarrhal conditions of the respiratory tract ; congestion of
the chest ; dyspnoea. Spasmodic cough, such as we find in whoopingcough, coming on in violent paroxysms. Cough after every meal,
with gagging, emptying the stomach of its contents. Cough felt in
the head. Cough worse from the abuse of brandy, tobacco or tea.
Cough coming on after the loss of fluids, as after haemorrhages. Chest
troubles following uterine haemorrhage, and after other haemorrhages.
Coughing up blood : bleeding from the lungs. Persons debilitated by
secret vices, with a tendency to go into tuberculosis.
Palpitation of the heart from fear, excitement, or exertion. Rapid
action of the heart, or sometimes slow action. Fatty degeneration of
the heart. Pulse accelerated toward evening. Pulsations throughout
the body, feeling like little hammers.
Rheumatic pains in the extremities, ameliorated by heat and by
gentle motion ; aggravated by cold, by exertion, or by rapid motion.
Pains through the deltoid muscles are spoken of more prominently
than pains in other parts, but these pains are no more striking than the
pains anywhere in Ferrum. Tearing pains through the limbs.
Inability to raise the arm ; paralytic pains — that is, pains that are
benumbing. Pains that make him feci as if he were going to lose the
power to move the part. Violent pains in the hip-joint arc just as
common as the pains in the shoulder. Lippe says, “Rheumatism in
the left shoulder,’’ but it is just as common in the right. Rheumatic
pains in the deltoid muscle of either side. Violent pain in the muscles
and along the nerves. Pinching in the right deltoid ; boring in the
right shoulder : aggravated by motion and by the weight of the bedclothes ; ameliorated by heat. Tearing and stinging pains. The Ferrum pains come on in the night, because the patient attempts to keep
still in bed. Rest brings on the Ferrum pains. When moving gently
about in the daytime he will not have so much pain. Coldness of the
limbs ; and again, heat of the soles and palms — they change about.
With all this weakness and prostration dropsical conditions come on,
so that the feet and hands become bloated.
Evening chill or chilliness with fever, cold hands and feet and red
face. Icy cold feet vdth the chill. Chill ameliorated after eating.
febrile symptoms are better by slowly moving about. In intermittent
fever after the abuse of quinine.
Open the workspace. Type a real case from this week — one you're still chewing on. Watch Repertify rank Ferrum against the totality, cite the rubrics, and surface the §246-correct posology with the rule inline. You'll know by the third turn.
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