Calcarea carb Symptom Complex

The first acute Calcarea case in which I observed a total absence of thirst came to me about thirty-five years ago. It was naturally not the absence of thirst which led to the prescribing of the remedy. It was the coldness, the paleness, the general weakness and the patient’s inability to perform any kind of even slightly sustained exertion, also mental exertion, which led me to
think of Calcarea. There was a general lack of appetite. Drinking even slight amounts of water produced heaviness in the stomach. On the basis of these symptoms, Calcarea carb was the remedy best indicated. One dose of the 10m was given and within in a very short period of time thirst and appetite returned. The patient could eat and drink without any difficulty,
whereas previously eating even the smallest amount had produced great heaviness and bloating. The thirstlessness and lack of appetite had existed for a week. Hering recorded thirstlessness as a Calcarea symptom in cases of coryza in his Guiding Symptoms1. Kent included it in his repertory. I have observed that the symptom is also guiding in a range of acute illnesses including bronchitis, sinusitis, systemic illnesses of the stomach and bowels and illnesses of the chest. The above mentioned case reminded me of my own proving of Calcarea in a high potency.
My stomach had felt as if I had drunk lime-water2, which I remember trying once or twice in my childhood, and I experienced long periods of thirstlessness. I filed away these experiences

1 Hering, Constantine, The Guiding Symptoms of Our Materia Medica, under the Calcarea Ostrearum heading “Appetite, Thirst. Desires, Aversions; No thirst, (cured in case of) coryza.”

2 Lime-water was formerly often given to children to supplement their intake of calcium. It was also given as an antacid to adults. (See Yasgur’s Homeopathic Dictionary, p. 137) in my mind’s Calcarea carb compartment, ready to be tested, especially in acute cases other than coryza with Calcarea symtoms. Calcarea carb is not as frequently indicated in acute cases as Arsenic or Nux vomica; it is not even frequently indicated in acute cases of children. However, on occasions, I discovered that even when only slight indications for Calcarea existed in a case, the  resence of thirstlessness was a guiding symptom to the remedy, proving itself consistently to be the simillimum . This was especially helpful in mixed cases where one must be careful of one’s
conclusions. Another pertinent case was marked by five days of thirstlessness and lack of appetite. Weakness was prominent: even climbing two steps was a major effort. Coldness was also
present and, to top it off, the only desire for food was a boiled egg, which appeared on the fifth day. Calcarea carb brought great relief within minutes. It is always amazing to see how quickly the right remedy brings relief and positive change—often within minutes—in acute cases. Nevertheless, as I said, Calcarea is rare in acute cases. Formerly, children with acute illnesses had come along needing this remedy, but no adults. Children who need Calcarea have many other symptoms which point to the remedy so that thirstlessness is not of the highest importance. Over the years, however, I began prescribing Calcarea to adults in acute cases when thirstlessness was present. In acute cases of the respiratory tract and the stomach Calcarea is totally thirstless and this symptom can persist for days. If lack of appetite is also present then we an important part of the symptom complex3. If coldness is present and the patient just cannot get warm, then we have the complete symptom complex. Calcarea is generally slow in its development, but this symptom complex is a sure guide to its selection, even in the beginning of the case. This will generally hold true if we are dealing with a simple acute case and no other conditions or symptoms intervene.

3 In homeopathy, symptom complex refers to a group of symptoms belonging to a remedy in certain conditions. Thirstlessness is, in my experience, the most important part of the symptom complex. I confirmed this point recently in an fascinating case. The patient had been acutely sick with sinusitis and bronchitis for a week. Because of his thirstlessness he had taken Pulsatilla which alleviated his severe headache without further improvement. Generally he was still suffering considerably and the sinusitis was especially troubling him. The patient also lacked appetite.
There was only one factor which could have prevented me from giving Calcarea: He was warm. He desired fresh air and wanted it cool, despite the fact that it was winter. Now, Calcarea may be a cold person but, I have observed that mental activity leads to congestion of the head and he has to rush out and get a dose of fresh air otherwise “he would go mad.” H.C. Allen in his Key Notes4 gives us this symptom: “Longing for fresh air (when in a room) which inspires, benefits, strengthens (Puls., Sulph.).”  Illnesses don’t always present themselves in a typical way.  herefore, if we can discover and verify symptom complexes, including the order of importance of the symptoms, we have a great aid, especially in atypical cases. In the case of Calcarea, the symptom of highest importance is thirstlessness followed by lack of appetite and, lastly, coldness. That has been my experience up to the present. So I prescribed Calcarea in the C200  potency every two hours. Immediately after the first dose the patient felt improvement and was soon on the road to recovery. The Calcarea dosage was reduced to every 4 to 6 hours and three days later the complaint was completely cured. This case was very gratifying but also once again showed me that such eliminating symptoms as “hot and cold person” and which, on the authority of Margaret Tyler, have beocme a part of repertorisation have to be taken with a pinch of salt.

4 H.C. Allen, Keynotes in the Homeopathic Materia Medica