ARGENTUM NITRICUM -Claustrophobia

-GEORGE VITHOULKAS
Another classic fear of Argentum nitricum is claustrophobia. The patient may be completely incapable of entering an elevator, prefering to walk several flights of stairs instead. In some cases the anxiety about health is aggravated in a closed room. He may be comfortable sitting and conversing in a small room until his companion gets up to leave and closes the door. At that point he suddenly feels enclosed in the room. The room feels like a tomb; there is a feel of death about it, and he becomes quite anxious. The patient may also suffer claustrophobia when in a crowd or a theater (Acon. ). He must sit close to the rear of the theater for he cannot bear the thought of being caught in a line when leaving. This claustrophobia will arise again in the delusions of Argentum nitricum. In febrile deliriums or in advanced mental cases the patient may have a delusion that the walls are about to crash in upon him.
It is easy to understand from the nature of these many fears that the Argentum nitricum patient may well also have a fear of tunnels. Furthermore, combining the fear of heights and the fear of narrow places, one finds that Argentum nitricum also produces a fear of travelling by airplane. It must be stressed again that it is not necessary that a patient have all these fears in order to merit the remedy; a few of the fears will suffice as long as he possesses the general qualities attributed to this remedy.
The progression of mental pathology by degrees seen in this remedy is an important element to understand. The patients first display anxiety and impulsiveness and then become more and more fitful, impulsive, fidgety and restless. From these transient states of impulsive behavior the disturbance crescendoes until the whole nervous system is in tremendous turmoil. Their memory breaks down completely; they cannot remember words, cannot remember the name of their spouse nor to whom they are married. They become very impulsive and assertive in a crazy way -- shouting, demanding, slapping their own face, especially when they cannot find the right words. It is a deep degenerative process. It is similar to the picture of Alzheimer's disease. When such an advanced state has been reached, Argentum nitricum will afford some relief, but it will not cure; the case is too far gone.
This same idea of escalation of pathology applies to chorea; Argentum nitricum covers the entire range of chorea, from slight choreic movements to states of violent choreic movement. The severe chorea can be so violent that the patient can hardly remain in his seat or bed. Similarly with regard to anxiety, these patients may progress from transient states of mild anxiety to states where the anxiety reaches panic dimensions and can cause tremendous tremblings and convulsions throughout the body. The last stage of Argentum nitricum (such as in old age) is characterized by a state of apathy with loss of memory (where they search to find the right words), a generalized trembling, ataxic gait, and an old appearance -- the face looks much older than seems consistent with the chronological age.

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