Silicea terra 200c

Sil.
Obstinacy is the result of the will forcing itself into the place of the intellect.
[Arthur Schopenhauer]
Signs
Silica. Silicon dioxide. Silicic anhydride.
CLASSIFICATION Silicon is a non-metallic element in group 14 of the periodic table. It is the second element of the group, carbon being the lightest and germanium, tin and lead being heavier. Silicon makes up more than one quarter of the earth's crust. It is the second most abundant element on earth, after oxygen. It is present in the sun and stars and is a principal component of a class of meteorites known as 'aerolites'. Silicon exists in two allotropic forms: as a hard, dark grey solid with a diamond-like crystalline structure, and as a dark brown amorphous powder. Not occurring free in nature, it is found as silica [quartz, sand, sandstone] or as silicate [feldspar, kaolinite, micas, olivine, zeolites, asbestos, granite, and some 1,000 others more]. Silicate minerals consist of silicon and oxygen combined with a metal. They form a group of rock-forming minerals that make up about 90% of the earth's outer crust and constitute one-third of all minerals. Compounds of silicon also occur in all natural waters, in the atmosphere, in many plants, and in the skeletons, tissues, and body fluids of some animals. In petrified wood the cell structure of the wood has been replaced by silicon dioxide. Silicones are synthetic polymers with a linear, repeating silicon-oxygen backbone akin to silica.
FEATURES Silicon and carbon have many chemical and physical similarities, although silicon is chemically less reactive than carbon. Silicon in its elementary form has the same crystal structure as diamond. Like carbon, silicon is relatively inactive at ordinary temperatures. It combines with oxygen at red heat and reacts when heated readily with the halogens, burning in fluorine and chlorine. It is practically insoluble in water and is unaffected by acids, except hydrofluoric acid or a mixture of hydrofluoric and nitric acids. At red heat, silicon is attacked by water vapour or by oxygen, forming a surface layer of silicon dioxide. "Silicon's atomic structure makes it an extremely important semiconductor; highly purified silicon, doped with such elements as boron, phosphorus, and arsenic, is the basic material used in computer chips, transistors, silicon diodes, and various other electronic circuits and switching devices. Silicon of lesser purity is used in metallurgy as a reducing agent and as an alloying element in steel, brass, and bronze."1 Elemental silicon transmits more than 95% of all wavelengths of infrared. "Immediately to the south of carbon lies silicon. As is so often the case with neighbours, it is an uneasily ambiguous adjacency. Like carbon, but to a lesser degree, silicon is capable of forming some of the long-chain molecules needed in any process as complex as life, but it has not achieved a life of its own. It may be a sleeper in this regard, however. Carbon's principal products, living organisms, have struggled over a few billion years to establish mechanisms for the accumulation and dispersal of information [an austere distillation and definition of what we mean by 'life'], and silicon has lain in wait. The recent alliance of the two regions, in which carbon-based organisms have developed the use of silicon-based artefacts for information technology, has resulted in the enslavement of silicon. However, such is the precocity of carbon's organisms that they are steadily developing silicon's latent powers, and one day silicon may well overturn the suzerainty of its northern neighbour and assume the dominant role. It certainly has long-term potential, for its metabolism and replication need not to be as messy as carbon's. Here we may see one of the most subtle interplays of alliances anywhere in the periodic table, for silicon will not realize its potential without the burden of development being carried out by carbon."2
SILICA Silica, or silicon dioxide, occurs in nature as agate, amethyst, chalcedony, cristobalite, flint, opal, quartz, sand, and tridymite. It consists of colourless or white vitreous crystals, or of amorphous powder. As the mineral quartz, it can be softened by heating and shaped into glassware. Quartz occurs in well-formed crystals more frequently than any other mineral. Unlike most minerals with which it occurs, quartz, however, has no cleavage, but breaks with a conchoidal fracture in a manner similar to glass. Silica has the lowest coefficient of expansion by heat of any known substance. It is insoluble in water or acids, except hydrofluoric acid. The crystallized forms of silica are scarcely attacked by alkalies, while the amorphous is soluble, esp. when finely divided. In the form of sand and clay it is used to make concrete and bricks as well as refractory materials for high-temperature applications. Silica is of great importance in the glass industry and in the manufacture of abrasives, ceramics, and enamels. 3 It is the basis of both clear and opaque silica glass, which is used on account of its transparency to ultraviolet radiation and its resistance to both thermal and mechanical shock. Silicon is used in domestic and personal products such as cleaning solvents, hand-cream, hair and skin products, and antiperspirants. Silicone oil is commonly used as a lubricant in syringes and blood giving sets. People with insulin dependent diabetes are exposed to small but regular doses of silicone oil, resulting in a large, cumulative exposure to silicone over a period of time. Silicones are also used during surgery to repair retinal detachment.
QUARTZ "Most of the beliefs connected with quartz centre around its use as a communications device or an object which enhances vision or brings 'visions' to its possessor. It is interesting that one of its modern uses is in the controlling of radio frequencies. Quartz was discovered to be piezoelectric in 1921, meaning it will generate an electrical charge. A plate of quartz cut parallel to the direction of its prism faces produces a charge when stressed. When vibrated by the introduction of an electrical current it has been used to stabilize the frequency of radio transmissions. If alternating current is used the quartz slice oscillates dimensionally. This predictable and regular oscillation is used in controlling radio frequencies and in the regulation of time pieces. [Due to their incredible precision, quartz crystals are now used as time standards.] Quartz is also pyroelectric and will generate a charge when heated or rubbed vigorously. The magical powers of quartz have been recorded since earliest times. Large crystals of fine quality were found in the eight thousand-year-old Egyptian Temple of Hathor. This ubiquitous gem has been held in reverence by nearly every ancient culture. The Greek priest Onomacritis, founder of the Hellenic mysteries, gave the following advice in the 5th century BC regarding this transparent crystal. 'Who so goes into the temple with this in his hand may be quite sure of having his prayer granted, as the gods cannot withstand its power.' He further states, 'that when this stone is laid upon dry wood, so that the sun's rays may shine upon it, there will soon be seen smoke, then fire, then bright flame.' The flames were known to the ancients as 'holy fire' and thought to be the most pleasing way to burn offerings to the gods. The word quartz is an old German mining term of unknown origin which has been in general use since the 16th century. Also known as 'rock-crystal', it was known to the Greeks as krystallos, meaning clear ice. They held that krystallos was ice which had petrified and was held in a permanent solid state. The ancient Romans also connected colourless quartz with ice. Pliny the Elder related the story that it was congealed water, found in dark mountain caverns under extremely cold conditions. Crystals balls were often held in the hand to reduce the effects of summer heat. Romans also used quartz crystals for glandular swelling, to reduce fevers and relieve pain. The 1st century mystic Apollinus of Tyana used quartz to 'transport' himself. It is said that Apollinus dematerialized and materialized in the presence of Caesar Domitian. He then used the gem to disappear and reappear at the foot of Mt. Vesuvius. The Renaissance Viennese scientist Pribill claimed to have recreated this feat through extensive experimentation. He stated the secret lay in the cut of the stone. First exposed to the tropical sun, then held in the mouth and accompanied by the proper incantation, Pribill claimed to have disappeared and reappeared on numerous occasions. The belief that quartz is super frozen water has led to its use in rainmaking and divining water. The Maya used quartz crystals in the Yucatan to divine water and to ensure a bountiful harvest. The Ta-ta-thi of New South Wales, Australia use rock crystal in an elaborate ritual to bring rain. Tribal wizards break off a fragment of the crystal and toss it to the heavens. The remaining part is wrapped in feathers and immersed in water. After it has soaked for an appropriate time, it is buried underground or otherwise hidden in a secure place. Rains are certain to follow if the ceremony is performed properly. Similarly, rock crystal pebbles are buried in fields by Irish farmers to bring rain and assure a good crop. A story of the origin of quartz is given in Indian Sanskrit texts. The demon god Vala was slain by the demigods and dismembered. His body parts were scattered across the universe, creating the gemstones we know today. The Vedic texts say the potent semen of Vala were transformed into the seeds of quartz. These seeds germinated in the Himalayas and the 'lands to their north.' The virility of Vala's seed caused quartz crystals to spread across the globe. The texts state that wearing pure crystals of quartz, when set in gold, will bring good fortune in life and protect one from dangerous animals, including tigers, wolves, leopards, elephants, and lions. Quartz also brings the wearer extraordinary sexual prowess and protects from drowning, burning and theft. Finally, these Indian texts advise that wearing pure quartz while drinking a toast to one's ancestors will bring them lasting happiness. A number of beliefs about quartz relate to fire or sparks. This may have originated in its use as a fire starter, or because of the bright sparkles produced from particularly clean surfaces of well formed crystals. It is interesting that a gem so closely associated with water and ice should also be associated with fire and fire gods in many cultures. In the 1st century medical men of Rome used rock crystal balls to heal wounds. They prescribed allowing the sun's rays to pass through the ball and onto the wound as the best method of cauterizing and promoting healing. ... Legends say that the stone emits sparks when it is struck and, if buried with the deceased, may serve to light the way in the after-life. The use of quartz as a burial stone is widespread. In their studies of traditions in the British Isles, Janet and Colin Bond found, 'Until recently, crystals of quartz and white stones [called Godstones] were placed in Irish graves, and the fisher-folk of Inveraray [Strathclyde Argyll] followed the custom of placing white pebbles on the graves of their friends.' The Celts used quartz as an essential part of their burial rituals, burying pieces of the gem in the spiral barrows they constructed for the dead. It is interesting to note that the structure of quartz is a helix or spiral, a property officially discovered in 1926. Since earliest recorded history the spiral has served as a symbol of life and rebirth in many cultures. White quartz pebbles are also placed in the mouths of the deceased in Scottish tradition to allow them to communicate more efficiently in the after-life. ... In the Scottish Highlands, a crystal set in silver and worn about the back was thought to be effective for diseases of the kidneys. In the Shetland Islands quartz pebbles were, 'believed to cure barrenness when dropped into a pool in which women wash their feet.' Tribes in Burma revered quartz and 'fed' the stones by rubbing blood over them at regular intervals. Tasmanian aboriginals believe the gem allows communication with others, living or dead. A practice in China is to hold a quartz pebble in one's mouth to avoid thirst during a journey. The belief that rock-crystal is congealed water may have also led to its use as a remedy for dehydration. In Japan, a small crystal ball is worn as a cure for dropsy and other 'wasting' diseases. ... Dorland notes that quartz gives off electrical vibrations which may interact with natural brain waves, like radio waves or transmissions, a property which quartz is known to exhibit."4 Throughout the world, quartz was considered a 'milk' stone. It was either placed on babies or worn by their mothers to increase lactation and to ensure their babies' assimilation of this basic food. Indian mineralogy distinguishes the quartz crystal from the diamond by its embryological development, crystal being a diamond which has not reached its full time.
PLANTS Silicon accounts for stalk strength in grain crops [particularly rice], provides resistance to fungus and insect infestations, reduces water loss, and prevents the bending over of stems by heavy winds or rain. Plants with significant amounts of silicon include grasses in general [including bamboos], Equisetum [horsetail; in plant], Urtica dioica [stinging nettle; in leaves], Carya [hickory; in shoots], Bertholeletia excelsa [Brazil nut; in seed], Pistacia [pistachio; in seed], Petroselinum [parsley; in leaves], Juglans nigra [black walnut; in seed], Anacardium occidentale [cashew; in seed], Brassica rapa [turnip; in root], Phaseolus vulgaris [black bean; in fruit], Prunus dulcis [almond; in seed], Euphrasia officinalis [eyebright; in plant], Echinacea [coneflower; in root]. The best dietary sources of silicon include grains [particularly oats, wheat, and barley], nuts, onions, beet, turnip, millet, rice, spinach, beans and peas, and pineapple.
ESSENTIAL ELEMENT The following symptoms have been associated with silicon deficiency: cardiovascular and arterial disorders, fragile bones, joint deterioration, digestive disorders, dental caries and weakened gums. It was not until 1972 that silica was classified as an essential trace element. "More recently, silica, along with manganese, copper, molybdenum, chromium, nickel, vanadium, tin, arsenic, boron and cobalt, have been re-defined as ultratrace elements; representing those elements that are required by the body in less than trace amounts. It is now scientifically recognized that silica plays a role in stimulating growth, initiating calcification of bone, and promoting the synthesis of connective tissue. ... Silica appears to be very efficiently absorbed in the small intestine, but apart from this, very little else is presently known. The kidneys appears to be the main excretory organ, with daily urinary loss of about 10 mg. Between 5%-10% of ingested silica is excreted in the urine, with losses being more or less equal to intake. It is estimated that the average intake is in the order of about 200 mg a day. Silica is primarily found in connective tissue, with particularly high concentrations in cartilage, ligament, skin, hair and nails. The function of silica is primarily structural, where it contributes to the rigidity of larger molecules, and assists in the laying-down of intercellular matrix. It appears to confer chemical resistance to keratinous tissue, alters the permeability of cell membranes, and may also act as a barrier to absorption and exudation. All cells of the body contain silica in small amounts, esp. cells of the liver, heart, muscle and arterial walls. ... In the manufacture of new bone, silica and calcium levels both rise congruently. For some time it has been observed that new bone crystals will not form, until a trigger occurs, even if the major bone constituents of calcium and phosphate are present in saturated solutions. It now appears that silica provides the seed crystal that calcium phosphate builds upon. This argument is supported by the observation that the silica content of new bone is much higher than that of mature bone. ... A loss of silica from connective tissue is accompanied by losses of water and polysaccharide chains."5
SILICOSIS The ubiquitous presence of silica has made it an occupational hazard ever since humans began shaping tools from stone, and silicosis remains a significant industrial hazard throughout the world in occupations such as sandstone and granite cutting, metal mining [lead, copper, silver, gold, coal], sandblasting, pottery making, and foundries. Silicosis in humans may be acute or chronic. Acute silicosis occurs only in subjects exposed to a very high level of respirable particles [of silica] over a relatively short period, generally a few months to a few years. These patients have worsening dyspnoea, fever, cough, and weight loss. Respiratory failure rapidly progresses and usually ends in death within a year or two. Chronic silicosis has a long latency period; exposure of 10 to 30 years is necessary before the disease becomes apparent. Uncomplicated silicosis [single nodular silicosis] is almost entirely asymptomatic. On x-rays fibrotic nodules are observed, generally in the apical portion of the lungs. The hilar lymph nodes have peripheral calcifications known as eggshell calcifications. The affection may progress into conglomerate silicosis, in which conglomerate nodules larger than 1 cm in diameter are present, usually in the upper and midlung zones. The patients have severe dyspnoea, cough, and sputum. Persons occupationally exposed to silica have three times the risk of developing tuberculosis; generally, the more silica in the lungs, the greater the risk. With the decline of silicosis, there has been a concomitant decrease in the incidence of tuberculosis. 6,7
IMPLANTS "Few more controversial issues exist in modern rheumatology than the putative association between silicone breast implants and systemic connective tissue disease. The term silicone refers to a family of chemically related organic silicon compounds derived from silica [SiO2]. Small quantities of silicone are found in joint prostheses, artificial heart valves, and baby bottle nipples, but the major medical use of the fluid compound, polydimethyl siloxane, is in implants. Silicone breast implants were developed in 1962 and are used mainly for cosmetic augmentation [80%] and reconstruction after surgery for breast cancer. By 1992, 1-2.5 million women had received such implants in north America, and 100,000-150,000 British women are currently estimated to have them. Silicone implants have been associated with hardening [thought to be due in part to leakage], occasional rupture, and enlargement of lymph nodes draining the implant site. It is the possible link with systemic connective tissue diseases, however, that has fuelled an acrimonious medical, regulatory, and legal debate. Although the first report of a connective tissue disease after direct injection of silicone into the breast dates from 1964, the first three patients with silicone implants who developed these disorders were documented in 1982. Since then over 290 patients have been described in the English language literature. Although the most common specific diagnosis is scleroderma, a range of disorders has been reported, and many cases had a non-specific syndrome that did not fulfil conventional clinical and laboratory criteria for particular connective tissue disorders."8 Silicone breast implants are banned in America, Japan, Canada and France. Manufacturers have reported incidence of rupture as low as 0.2 to 1.1% and while some investigators describe rupture as being uncommon, other authors cite rates of rupture up to 71 %. Silicone leaking from implants has been found in women's lymph nodes, chest, ribs, upper arms, elbow, hands and liver. There have been a number of anecdotal reports that children born to mothers with a silicone gel breast implant [SBI] have developed swallowing difficulties, irritability, non-specific skin rashes, fatigue and a constellation of symptoms similar to those occurring in women with a SBI.
PROVINGS •• [1] Hahnemann - 7 provers; method: unknown.
•• [2] Ruoff - 15 provers, c. 1838; method: repeated doses at irregular intervals of Silicea in increasingly lower potencies, e.g. 40 drops of 30th dil. on first, third, and fifth days, 21st dil. twelfth and fourteenth days, 100 drops of 17th dil. sixteenth day, 5th dil. nineteenth and twentieth days; altogether the following dilutions were employed: 30, 28, 25, 24, 23, 21, 20, 18, 17, 16, 13, 12, 10, 9, 7, 6, 5, and 4, as well as the first three triturations, the tincture, and 'spiritus silicea'.
•• [3] Robinson - 14 provers, c. 1869; method: 30th., 200th, or 1000th dils., every third morning [10 provers], every second morning [1 prover], every night and morning [2 provers], or once a week [1 prover]; not stated for how long this was continued.
•• [4] Schulz - 17 provers, 1890s; method: daily doses for 2-6 weeks in increasing amounts of 4x, 3x, 2x, 1x, and 'pure silicic acid'.
A summary of the results of the latter proving is given by Leeser9:
[*] Acne, esp. on face, forehead, neck, and back.
[*] Furuncles with indeterminate borders and hard infiltration of the vicinity [4 provers].
[*] Increased perspiration, particularly of feet, smelling sour [5 provers].
[*] Soreness of feet; desquamation of skin between toes and fingers; desquamating rhagades; tendency to suppuration [4 provers].
[*] Old scar thickened and became painful [1 prover].
[*] Desquamation of scalp; falling of hair - head and beard [5 provers].
[*] Painful finger nails, which seemed to grow more rapidly [1 prover].
[*] Sensation as if legs could not bear weight of body.
[*] 'Considerable' symptoms in bones, muscles, and joints [heaviness, lassitude, tension, deep-seated pains, stiffness]. 'Running and jumping were impossible.'
[*] Aversion to physical exertion; inability to concentrate the thoughts.
[*] Dull headache or sensation of pressure increasing up to pain [practically all provers]. "The headache was now more diffuse, now unilateral [right sided], now limited to single spots, and often began in the occiput."
[*] Sensation of oppression in the chest [4 provers]; sudden palpitation [1 prover]; anxiety in chest [1 prover].
[*] Gastrointestinal symptoms occurred in 16 of 17 cases. "Many times the picture was of such a nature that at first marked collections of gas occurred in the intestine with flatulence; there was colic and gurgling in the abdomen, at times very severe cutting pains with urgency for stool. The stools were irregular, often constipated, at times painful and then also after normal stools, suddenly soft, light yellow and diarrhoeic. The urgency to stool was often without result, only flatus being evacuated. Tormenting tenesmus and the sensation as though the stool would be large although it was actually small and frequent."
[1] Encyclopaedia Britannica. []2 Atkins, The Periodic Kingdom. [3] Merck Index. [4] Knuth, Gems in Myth, Legend, and Lore. [5] Fisher, The Clinical Science of Mineral Therapy. [6] Klaassen, Casarett and Doull's Toxicology. [7] Merck Manual. [8] Cooper and Dennison, Do silicone breast implants cause connective tissue disease? There is still no evidence that they do; Br. Med. Jrnl, Editorial 7 Feb. 1998. [9] Leeser, Textbook of Hom. MM: Inorganic Medicinal Substances.
Affinity
NUTRITION. Children. Tissues [elastic; cellular]. NERVES. GLANDS. Tubes [Eustachian; tear ducts, etc.; fistulae]. Bones. Cartilage. Mucous membranes. Skin. * Left side. Right side.
Modalities
Worse: COLD [AIR; DRAFTS; damp; uncovering [esp. the head]; bathing; checked sweat, < feet]. Sensitive to [nervous excitement; light; noise; jarring spine]. Change of moon. Night. Mental exertion. Alcohol. During menses. After vaccination. Milk. Better: WARM [WRAPS, to head; becoming]. Profuse urination. Warm room. Magnetism. Main symptoms M Lack of SELF-CONFIDENCE. Apprehension and ANTICIPATION. [Stage fright is for Lycopodium a matter of ego, a fear for loss of face; for Silicea it is a matter of communication, a fear of being unable to find exactly the right words: "Apt to use wrong words in speaking."] Fear of undertaking new things. [Compare: Vertigo on going forward; he imagined he was going backward. - Hahnemann] Bashful TIMIDITY. M Delicate, refined, YIELDING. MILDNESS [yet inner resistance]. M Obstinate; fixed ideas. • "Does not openly revolt but sticks to her opinion. Convinced against her will, but of the same opinion still." • "This fixity of thinking, the difficulty in accepting things from outside and the violence against everything that goes against her fixed ideas, all find their expression at the physical level in the form of asthma, intolerance of vaccination and foreign bodies and also a strong chronic defence against them." [Sankaran] M Conscientious about TRIFLES. • "Great precision, great calculation and great exactitude, but with little feeling. Everything neatly marked, but without conveying anything new; no imagination." [Sankaran] M Overworked MENTAL state. • "Even from little conversation, his head at once becomes muddled and there is general exhaustion, so that he has to break off the conversation." [Hahnemann] • "Dizzy, he feels silly, he could not think of the proper expression and almost continually used the wrong words [at once]." [Hahnemann] Yet they PUSH themselves to the utmost, stubbornly refusing to lay off and rest. • "Talking becomes arduous, he seeks for words, and has even greater difficulty in expressing his thoughts in writing. Nevertheless he wants to go on working, even though he has reached the limit of his endurance long ago. He may then be in a state of semi-consciousness, in which his will, already absent, can no longer intervene. He even lacks the strength to stop working in order to have the absolute rest he needs. We are all familiar with profoundly depressed patients who are aware of their physical and mental deterioration, but will not listen when their families beg them to stop and rest." [Vannier] Or: Mental CLARITY. c One prover was on the second day unable to read, write and think, but experienced after five days as an "after-effect" for three consecutive days: "Great readiness in thinking and facility in expressing himself in a fluent style." [Hahnemann] [An austere believer in the 'pure' effects of proving substances, termed by him 'primary action', Hahnemann was inclined to discard such symptoms as the above as 'reaction of the vital force of the organism, secondary action, curative action'.] • "If we rub two pieces of silica together, sparks are produced. Our little Siliceas, once 'warmed up', can become resplendent human beings, with a gift for communication." [Grandgeorge] • "All the Silicea people I have known have been intelligent, discriminating individuals, who were more interested in the subtleties of the life sciences, such as psychology, medicine and in once case podiatry, and in the arts, than in the cut and thrust of commercial business. Kent notes that Silicea is not suitable for the treatment of 'business brain-fag', but rather for the mental exhaustion of 'professional men, students, lawyers and clergymen'. In other words, she has a subtle and profound mind that tends not to be interested in business purely for the sake of making money, but rather in the pursuit of knowledge." [Bailey] M Devotion in profession [are highly appreciated by others]. Narrow-mindedness at home. Lack of EMOTIONAL INDEPENDENCE. • "How he appears is very important. Wants a fixed, definite opinion. Feeling O.K. is conditional to having a very specific image. Image-bound." [Sankaran] M Stuck, split, or separated. • "The conflict can be between inner life and outer life, again underlining the fact that the Silica type lacks the ability to enter fully into life; they are too refined and may themselves to be too special. This individual is too much in the head, not in touch with instinct and feeling, not rooted. Indecision is a big problem; the patient may say that she feels her mind doing one thing and her body doing another. A conflict between different walks of life or different interests could also be present. An example here would be a split between art and science, the scientific thinking temperament battling with the artistic feeling or intuitive temperament. The split often occurs in the field of relationships with others. The person can be pulled between their own wants and needs on the one hand and the demands and expectations of relatives, friends and society in general on the other. This of course leads to indecision and not knowing their own mind. I have often seen, when listening to the patient's story, that as a child the patient was caught in the middle between two conflicting parents. This was not necessarily overt conflict or warfare, but could have been an underlying tension, unresolved conflict, or temperamental differences, which the Silica patient, being so sensitive to the psychic atmosphere, would pick up on and experience as an internal split. ... They become stuck in the middle, unable to go in either direction. They can feel in the middle of the opposing tendencies within them, or more likely they feel stuck in the middle of opposing tendencies in their environment. ... It also seems that the natural responsibility of Silica means that they easily carry the unresolved conflicts of the family, struggling to be the good person who makes everything alright. ... [The element of being] separated from the body; not on earth continues the theme of being divided and split. The person feels that he is not in his body and cannot cope with being in the world. To be in the world is to take on form and to take a stand. Ultimately the Silica patient is afraid of and withdraws from the commitment of life, preferring somehow to remain free of the restrictions of physical manifestations. ... Isolation is a word constantly used by Silica patients. They feel isolated and separated from other people and the world in general. They also say that they feel cut off from themselves."1 M Pins and needles; sharp things. Although originally given as an illustration of fixed ideas - Boericke: "Fixed ideas; thinks only of pins, fears them, searches and counts them - the symptom began leading a life of its own as a fear of pins because materia medica authors just copied it from each other. Kent lists it in the second degree in his repertory, suggesting that it appeared more than once in the provings. In the whole context of the Silicea picture, sharp things certainly make sense, for instance in the splinter-like pains in the throat, in the ability of Silicea to bring foreign objects - e.g. splinters - to the surface, and in the appearance of the quartz crystal. It also allows symbolical interpretations such as the one given by Grandgeorge: "These children fear anything that is sharp and pointed, esp. needles [injections], which can pierce the bubble around them that keeps them safe and happy." The symptom, however, is not a proving symptom at all, but derives from one case of "hysteria" reported by Hering: "Complains of pain in throat on swallowing; although there is no indication of any inflammation, the condition of her throat is the sole thing occupying her mind; believes she has swallowed pins, and asks those about her whether she has not done so; seeks for hours for lost pins; will take no sewing into her hand, and carefully examines her food for fear of pins; very indifferent to friends and former amusements; restlessness; etc." According to Saine, the 'fear of pins' has the following origin: "The case was a woman - and that was reported a long time ago, like 1835. It was a woman that was preparing a cake. She made food for the family and she noticed that there were pins in the kitchen that she couldn't find afterwards. She had fear that the pins went into the cake that she baked and she searched the cake to look for the pins and then she couldn't find them. So she searched all over the rest of the food, she was sure about that they were in the food. ... That was a cured case with Silicea and it was reported: 'fixed ideas because thinking of pins'. ... Because I have never seen it reported in a cured case, besides that single case in 1835, I doubt that the symptom is real." Yet: "People here at the seminar told me they did a proving with a high potency of Silicea and experienced basically one symptom: dreaming of swallowing needles, needles of about five centimetre long."2 G Keenly SENSITIVE; to NOISE, pain, draft and cold. G SLOWNESS. [development and growth; recovery; delayed aggravations; late in developing relationships] G Tremendous CHILLINESS. [The ancient Greeks knew quartz as 'Eternal Ice.'] G Easy PERSPIRATION. Especially head, hands, feet. G < SUPPRESSED perspiration, esp. of feet. May or may not have offensive foot sweat, "but you will find there is a history of perspiring feet." G Very THIRSTY. G < Becoming COLD: extremities, feet, head. G > Warm bed; warm stove; warm wraps.
G Easy SUPPURATION.
• "Every hurt festers; stubborn suppuration; abscesses; proud flesh; cicatrices, etc." [Boger]
G Frequent and RECURRENT INFECTIONS.
[colds, otitis, tonsillitis, bronchitis, sinusitis, boils, styes, acne, fungal infections]
• "Chronic infections are a characteristic feature. The weak resistance power is unable to ward off infections and to overcome them. Therefore the stage of suppuration remains, the pus is of a bad quality, thin and greenish, the chronic nature of suppuration might cause decomposition of the pus which becomes offensive. Healing reaction of the connective tissue is insufficient, time and again it forms hard scar-tissue which is penetrated by new pus formation, and the result of this struggle is the fistula. Chronic suppuration and fistula will be found particularly in the supporting tissues of the bones and all neighbouring organs. Therefore we may expect mastoiditis, chronic suppuration of the ear, of the orbits, sinus suppuration, dacryocystitis, dental fistulas and, of course, osteomyelitis. The skin might show eczema, never ripening boils with hard margins, abscesses which do not break, but burrow under the skin, ulcers without healing tendency with hard walls and secretion of the typical pus. The lymph glands become enlarged and hard; they break and form fistulas. Everywhere the weak surface is penetrated and struggles in vain to close up by a reactive formation of scar-tissue." [Gutman]
G GLANDULAR affections.
G Sensations: SPLINTER, HAIR.
P HEADACHE.
Starting in occiput, extending to forehead and settling over one eye [< RIGHT]. < Draft of air, cold air. > Wrapping head up warmly; pressure; profuse urination.
[1] Carlyon, Revisioning Silica; The Homoeopath, Dec. 1992. [2] Saine, Seminar Psychiatric Patients, p. 149.
Rubrics
Mind
Anxiety, about himself [2]. Confusion, < conversation [2], being in his mind in two places at the same time [1HA]. Consolation, sympathy < [2]. Delusions, divided into two parts, left side did not belong to her [1/1], body is separated from soul [1C], he is separated from the world [1C], body is too small for soul [1C], she walks backwards when walking forward [1]. Fear, of undertaking a new enterprise [2]. Forgetful > after eating [1/1]. Forsaken feeling, sensation of isolation [1C]. Magnetized, > [2]. Monomania [2]. Remorse about trifles [2/1]. Restlessness, after drinking beer [1H]. Violent when crossed [2/1]. Always washing her hands [1]. Yielding disposition [2].
Vertigo
Comes up the back [2/1]. Sleep, while half asleep [2].
Head
Pulsating, vertex, > bending head back [3/1]. Feeling of twitching in vertex like electric sparks [1H].
Vision
Colours, objects seem grey [2]. Dim, during headache [2], after headache [2]. Objects appear to be turning round [1H].
Hearing
Impaired, suddenly coming and going [1H].
Nose
Sneezing from combing or brushing the hair [1/1].
Throat
Pain, burning, when yawning [1H].
Stomach
Vomiting, when eating anything warm [1H]; of curdled milk [3].
Abdomen
Pain, menses, when flow becomes free, > heat [2].
Rectum
Sensation of a lump during menses [2/1].
Limbs
Trembling, upper limbs, before epileptic attack [2/1].
Sleep
Sleeplessness from obstruction of nose [1H].
Dreams
Having been betrayed [1]. Being pursued by ghosts [1]. Storms [2].
Chill
Icy coldness of body during menses [2/1].
Generals
Hot bathing > [2]. Convulsions, after suppression of foot-sweat [3], after vaccination [3].
* Repertory additions: [H] = Hughes; [HA] = Hahnemann; [C] = Carlyon.
Food
Aversion: [3]:Meat; mother's milk. [2]: Cheese; cooked food; food, if seen; milk; warm food. [1]: Food, after eating a little; hot food; salt.
Desire: [2]: Cold food; ice cream; milk. [1]: Bread; cold drinks; eggs; fat; fried eggs; ice; lime; raw food; salty things; sand; sweets; warm food.
Worse: [3]: Cold food; wine. [2]: Cold drinks; honey; potatoes; smoked food; tobacco. [1]: Beans and peas; beer; cabbage; dry food; fat; flatulent food; hot food; meat; milk; pepper; pungent; salt; sight of food; warm food.
Better: [2]: Hot food. [1]: Cold food.