stramonium
But in order to understand its sphere of action, we need to understand the toxicological pathways of this plant.
The plant Datura Stramonium when ingested activates the anticholinergic system.
This works by blocking the action of the muscarinic neurotransmitter, a receptor that has a role in the peripheral and central nervous systems. The cholinergic system is an important part of the autonomic nervous system and plays a role in movement, circadian rhythmicity, digestion and blood pressure, among others.
The cholinergic system has also been shown to play an important role in processes such as motivation, pain, cognitive flexibility, perceptual memory, spatial learning, thinking and emotions.
All parts of the plant are toxic.
Symptoms of toxicity may include intense thirst, difficulty with speech and swallowing, reduced urinary and gastrointestinal motility, sinus tachycardia, vomiting and diarrhoea, fever, confusion, restlessness, hallucinations, delirium, dilated pupils, convulsions and loss of consciousness.
Not surprisingly, the affinities of Stramonium in homeopathy are the Spinal nerves, Brain and Mind, Circulation, and Muscles.
These are some of the symptoms covered in the Materia Medica, which correspond with the toxicological reports:
-mouth and throat extremely dry and difficulty swallowing
-violence in most physical symptoms: violent thirst esp for sour drinks, violent hiccough, violent perspiration, violent congestion of the blood to the head
-secretions are suppressed, passes neither urine nor stool
-increases the mobility of the muscles of expression or locomotion: trembling, tremors, convulsions with consciousness, spasms worse at night, twitching
-hydrophobia- very thirsty yet dreads water
-fear of water
-great loquacity
-one side paralysed, the other convulsed
-face hot and red with cold hands and feet
-great mobility of voluntary actions and suppression of all secretions
-paralysis of muscles and excessive secretions and excretions
This is one of the remedies often indicated when working with children with neurodevelopmental disorders that affect how the brain functions:
-Brain damage from birth or as a result of injury.
– ADHD
-Autism
-Cerebral Palsy
-Tauretts
-Conduct disorders
Stramonium is also one of the remedies first thought for complaints that have started after fear and fright and present some of the symptoms above. This is also a remedy for children after a traumatic child birth.
The fright layer remains active even though the actual threat may have already passed, and some of these behaviours remain coming to the surface either at night in the form of dreams or when awake. This is why you will find in the material medical the keynote ” lives under the impression of some immediate danger”.
The behaviours or symptoms displayed are unconsciously designed to attract attention and ensure they are noticed and engage attention, for instance, hitting and biting- wild and aggressive character-, talking all of the time, and foolish gestures. They also tend to become quite clingy if this is in children and a need for constant company in adults. This is one of the reasons you will find the well know modality in this remedy – better by company.
These are some examples of situations that could cause the need for this remedy:
-dysfunctional home environment
-separation in parents
-traumatic shock with fear
-a child that is left behind while one of the parents is away for work
-death in the family
-any kind of PTSD
–a dog that has been attacked by another dog
-a car accident- either as a witness or passanger
-foster children
-children that are given for adoption
-separation from a loved one
In many cultures, the plant is strongly associated with moments of passage: initiation and death. For many Indian tribes, the plant is strongly associated with death and is used in rituals to connect to the other side for its hallucinogenic properties.
Hence this becomes a theme running through the symptoms in the materia medica.
-fear of cemeteries, ghosts, spirits
-fear of closed places
-sees ghosts, hears voices, talks with spirits
-all objects look black
-awakes in fear at night: either clings to close ones or strikes them
HOMŚOPATHIC MATERIA MEDICA