Revisiting: Insomnia — It’s All I Care About!

Hi Mom, it’s time for the April Quiz!  I have so many announcements to make …

Like the fact that it’s almost your birthday?

I’ll be 27 on the 22nd.  But enough about me!  We have deaths to announce–important deaths!  So I’m just going to move on.

Where are we going?

Try and pay attention, OK?  A founding member of the O’Jays, Bill Isles, died last month of cancer at 78.

He was with the group from 1958 to 1965.

Below: the O’Jays circa 1963.  From left to right, Eddie Levert, William Powell, Walter Williams, Bill Isles, Bob Massey.

 

As you may know, The O’Jays happen to be the greatest singing group of all time in my humble opinion!  They’re best known for their hits “Back Stabbers”, “Love Train” and “For The Love Of Money” in the early-to-mid ’70’s.  Bill Isles quit the group just maybe minutes, even seconds, before they sky-rocketed to super-stardom; even though they did apparently have a minor hit with “Lipstick Traces” while he was still there.

Bill Isles may have sung on my favorite O’Jays song, “Stand In For Love” which came out in ’66.

He became the O’Jays tour manager in the ’70’s, probably up to and including “For the Love of Money” and “Give The People What They Want”, the latter of which is apparently the theme for some sports show on ESPN, hosted by somebody who hosts a sports podcast and “Give the People What They Want” is his catch phrase.

Would that anyone cared!

Also guess what?

What?

Apparently the O’Jays just released their last album ever, “The Last Word”.  They’re retiring!

No way!

Here’s a rare performance of “Lipstick Traces” from 1966 (I think Bill Isles is on the left.)

So from left to right then, Bill Isles, Bob Massey, Eddie Levert, William Powell and Walter Williams on lead.

So here’s what happened, Bill Isles left the group in roughly ’65, Bob Massey left in ’71, William Powell died of cancer in the mid-’70’s and was replaced by Sammy Strain who came from the Imperials, and that’s the line-up that lasted the longest: Eddie Levert, Sammy Strain and Walter Williams.  Here they are now in this FANTASTIC video from 1979, doing one of my favorite songs, and it clearly shows why they’re the greatest group of all time!  The O’Jays with “Forever Mine”:

Eddie, Walter and Sammy are still alive but Sammy left the group in ’92 to go back to Little Anthony and the Imperials, for some inexplicable reason.

They never should have let him leave!  Standing in the center always, and being a fantastic dancer, he was the glue that held that group together!

Eddie and Walter are roughly 75 years old and Sammy is retired at 79. 

I have to move on to my next announcement.  I am very sad to have to report that we lost 2 members of Danny and the Juniors within a month of each other, whose record “Rock and Roll Is Here To Stay” is like a rock ‘n’ roll anthem!  Joe Terry, the bass singer of the group, actually died today–April 15th–and David White we lost in March.  Here they are below on “Bandstand” in 1958:

From left to right, Dick Clark, David White, Danny Rapp, Frank Maffei and Joe Terry.  Frank is the only member of the group still living.

David White was actually a very special guy, an activist for liberal causes including the environment, animal rights, civil rights… As a song writer, he not only wrote hits for Danny and the Juniors but also Len Barry’s “1-2-3” and Leslie Gore’s “You Don’t Own Me”.  Wish we could have known you sooner, David!  Here is the iconic, “Rock and Roll Is Here To Stay” by Danny and the Juniors!

 

 

And now for the Quiz!

Who’s in the Quiz this month, Mom?

“Hillary E. Clinton”!

Hillary E. Clinton again?????

What can I say, she’s got problems:

 

********************************

 

Insomnia–that’s all I care about!

 

Name: Hillary E. Clinton

Age: 64

Male or Female: F

Weight: 131

Height: 66 in.

Date: 4/3/2019

Email Address: *******

 

1. Describe the complaint or complaints in your own words.

INSOMNIA, getting worse gradually.  Used to be I’d wake at 3 and fall back asleep but lately it doesn’t feel as though I’m getting any sleep after 3 (occasionally wake at 2 am or not until 5 if I went to bed later).  My heart is often pounding, although it doesn’t seem as bad as it used to be.  I occasionally have a mild headache with the insomnia, usually pressure on the vertex or pressure in the sinuses in the forehead or at the root of the nose.  Kali carb doesn’t help (it improved my mood one night but didn’t help with sleep, didn’t do anything after that).

 

2. Etiology–

I don’t know.  Sometimes I think over-exercising affects me for more than a day or two.  I’m not aware of worrying at night.  There’s too much light coming into my bedroom from the apt. next door, but I do have an eye covering I wear at night.  I also wear earplugs because it’s a noisy neighborhood.

 

3. Sensation–

When I fall asleep normally, it’s as though I’m sinking, relaxing.  But with the insomnia, it feels as if I just can’t relax, can’t sink.  I’m not thinking, in fact I’m spending a lot of time with the TM mantra you recommended many moons ago, but that doesn’t help.  I do a lot of relaxation exercises, meditation, but nothing helps.  I’m not aware of worrying at night, though.  I’m probably worried some about money. We’re moving into a new house the first of May and it needs a lot of work.  For most of the winter we were paying a mortgage in CA and paying rent here.  I told my husband today I feel as though we’re bleeding money.

 

4. Appearance– anything remarkable about how you look?

I look tired.  My eyelids up to my eyebrows are reddish.  My face seems more wrinkled than normal

 

5. Location–

Itching: more limited less intense itching than last report: front of thighs, around knees.  More aware of it at night.

 

6. Modalities–

Heat makes me feel better, but it’s harder to get to sleep initially if it’s warmer than about 70.

I feel better during the day.  A moderate length walk makes me feel better.  Hot bath makes me feel better.  Heat on my neck makes me feel better.  Sunshine makes me feel better.  Cold makes me feel worse.  Rainy days and storms moving in make me feel worse.  Cold foods like salads make my guts feel worse.  Going for more than a few hours without eating makes me feel worse.  I spend too much of the day lying down; I don’t think that helps me sleep at night.  I just don’t feel like getting up.  Reading helps me ignore being tired (has to be lightweight like cozy mysteries).  I’ve been reading a lot of lightweight novels.

 

7. Concomitants

Ringing occasionally in left ear.  When I sing sometimes the inside of my ears itch.  Occasional pressure headaches forehead, sinuses near nose.  Pain between shoulder blades, in upper back along spine.

 

8. Discharges–

Rare: runny nose that’s clear and watery

 

9. Generals–

I’m cold.  I’m irritable.  I can’t stand the smell of broccoli (uncooked, even).

 

Have you tried Sepia?

 

10. The mentals:

I get irritable easily.  I’m forgetful.  I don’t remember simple things, like what the landlady’s husband looks like.  I don’t spend the time to figure out what’s going on, make assumptions.

 

11. What have you been saying?

I’m feeling really irritable.  I’m tired.  I want my bed (in storage…sleeping on futon on top of camping pad)

 

13. Describe your thirst and appetite

Still have to remind myself to drink water.  I like the water cool, not really cold.  Not much appetite, eating out of habit.  I seem to crave cheese; I have to be careful not to eat too much.

 

14. Fever?

No fever.

 

15. Sweating?

Sometimes when I wake up around 3 (or whenever I wake up and can’t get back to sleep) I start feeling hot and sweat some (face and torso).  Eventually I cool off and have to pull the covers back on.

 

16. Odors?

No.

 

17. What is most striking, peculiar or identifying about your condition?

I often catch myself with my mouth open as if I’m breathing through my mouth, but I’m breathing through my nose.

 

18. Is there a diagnosis?

No

 

19. Describe your energy–

Tired, low energy, have to force myself to do things.  Once I’m walking, though, I seem to have plenty of energy (then I get really sleepy a few hours later).

 

20. What does your tongue look like?

Deep, bright red on the tip of the tongue, and around the ages, pink in the middle with a crack down the middle of the tongue, slight indentation in both sides from lower bicuspids.

 

21. If you have a cough, please tell what it sounds like

None

 

22. If you haven’t already said if you’re hotter or colder than usual…

Occasionally get really hot but if I take clothes or bedclothes off, I cool off really quickly.  I tend to be chilly, have trouble getting warm enough.

 

23. This question only applies to complaints of a more chronic nature: I need to know what you eat, drink and “take”.

Still eating more citrus than before.  The acid tastes really good to me.  Otherwise no changes.  OK, I took a dose of Sepia 200C and didn’t notice any improvement in sleep or palpitations last night; though, I feel a bit less irritable today.  Forgot to mention: Tight jaw, crunching sound on left side sometimes when I open my mouth.  A couple of times I’ve opened my jaw and gotten a ringing sound.  When I wake, palpitations seem worse when I’m lying on my left side.  I think I need to mention how stressed out I am by being in a small apartment without access to most of my stuff.  I feel as if I’m in limbo, with life suspended.  I’m bored.

 

HEC

 

Hillary, it looks like you should try _______________.

 

Hi Elaine,

The __________________ seems to be working.  The first night after I took it, I had that sense of glowing well-being one hopes for from a constitutional remedy— but I didn’t get any more sleep.  The next two nights I slept much better and my overall energy has been better.  I didn’t sleep as well last night, but I think I needed to plus the bottle; I did that this morning, so we’ll see how it goes.  I haven’t been irritable since the first dose either.

 

Regards,

Hillary E. Clinton

 

_______________

 

OK….if you know the remedy, write to me at [email protected] and let me know what it is.  The answer will be in next month’s ezine.  Meanwhile, in honor of David White of Danny and the Juniors who died in March, it happens that he wrote one of my favorite songs: This is Leslie Gore with a very important message to all you possessive, over-bearing, controlling, presumptuous and jealous guys out there:

“You Don’t Own Me”!

 

 

Bye, see you in May!

 

---

VOTES

Rhus tox–3

Sepia 1M

Arsenicum

Nitric acid

****

 

Hi Elaine and Shana!

Hi Maria!

Tricky quiz.

Yes, it truly was.  And frankly, I will be shocked if anyone gets it right!

I will vote for Sepia 1M because the 200ch had a positive effect on her.

But that’s just it, Maria, it did have an effect on her.  It made her less irritable.  But since she said, “Insomnia is all I care about,” and Sepia didn’t affect the insomnia at all, I would be hesitant to stick with it. 

Also what strikes me in the case is the limbo she wrote about, the “life suspended”.

Well, you know what Maria?  Her life IS suspended!  She’s in between houses.  She moved from Washington to North Carolina, and she’s living in an apartment waiting to move into her new house.  She literally is in limbo!  So, if the symptom makes sense, we can’t use it.

She brought in my mind the word Stasis.  It is the word that Vithoulkas is using to describe Sepia in his Radar Keynotes.

She desires acidic foods in which sepia is a 3.

The time of waking, also Sepia, is a 3.

She mentions the flushes of heat.  And Sepia is 1 under homesickness.

If it’s only a 1, then we should probably ignore it.  You know what doesn’t go for Sepia here?  Worse before and during a storm.  Sepias love storms.

It is not an easy vote.

I know, not easy at all!

I thought of Phosphoric acid which is a 4 for homesickness and has the frozen emotions and tiredness.

I also thought of Capsicum which has sleeplessness with homesickness and lack of feeling, shuts off emotions.  It has also the cracking of joints.

Anyway both Capsicum and Ph-ac. imply that the reason for the insomnia is homesickness, which I am not sure is the case.  So I went for Sepia 1M because she also stated that the insomnia is worse from over- exercising.  And who likes so much to exercise?  Sepia!

If I am wrong I will try again.  Great quiz and great Tidbits article too, again!

Thanks, Maria!  Well, I picked this quiz reluctantly to show that every case you get isn’t going to be so neatly tied into a perfect little package!  I had no idea what the remedy was!  But, the last thing she said turned out to be a keynote of a remedy; and Robin Murphy always says, “If you see a keynote of a remedy, give the remedy!”

She said, “My palpitations are worse if I wake up and I’m lying on my left side.”  I said to myself, “Wait a minute…. That’s Phosphorus!”  Here’s the rubric–

Heart: palpitations, waking, on, lying on, left side, from.  (Translation:  “Heart, palpitations on waking from lying on left side”.)

There are only 2 remedies listed for that–China sulph and Phosphorus.  What’s the likelihood that our patient has China sulph?  Not very likely.  Plus, it was only a 1.  Now, having chosen Phosphorus, which scored higher as a 2, all I had to do was go back and see if anything else in the case went for Phosphorus.  I thought it was interesting that she said it felt like she was “bleeding” money.  And of course, what is Phosphorus famous for?  Bleeding!  Nosebleeds, hemorrhages, bleeding of bright red blood!  Coincidence that she said that?  Who knows, but, I thought it was interesting!  Being worse before and during a storm also goes for Phosphorus, as does being worse for not eating (“fasting agg.”)

So, not the best Phosphorus case in the world, but, it worked!

 

Oh look, it’s Neil!

 

Hi Elaine,

Hi Neil, sorry I kept you waiting!

Well im going for Rhus tox or Lycopodium for the insomnia quiz.

Better warmth, likes a hot bath, worse cold and cold wet and cold food, worse vigorous exercise but better prolonged medium exercise.  But doesn’t mention restlessness which rhus tox is but says better when moving.

Red tip of tongue, crack down middle, money worries.

irritable and forgetful … mind you, lack of sleep makes you forgetful and irritable as a consequence.  I talk from experience.

So, I’m going for Rhus tox.

The modalities do make you think of Rhus tox; but, I saw a keynote of a remedy, it was the last thing she said–or almost the last thing.  She said she had palpitations when she woke up if she was lying on her left side.  Do you know what remedy that is?  It’s Phosphorus!  There are only 2 remedies in that rubric–Phosphorus and China sulph.  Figuring she wouldn’t have China sulph anyway, I just ignored that and looked to see if anything in the case went for Phosphorus, and then I saw a whole bunch of things including the sensation as if she were “bleeding money”.  Interesting, n’est-ce-pas?  So, yeah, that was it–Phosphorus!

Thanks Elaine.

Interesting, the worse for cold food and cold drinks goes against Phosphorus so that’s why i didn’t go there.

That’s true, but other things did support Phosphorus.  For instance, Phosphorus is in bold under “fasting agg.”  Her remark, “I feel like we’re bleeding money” when Phosphorus is a remedy for hemorrhaging of bright red blood I thought was telling. 

In fact, you can really see a lot of different remedies in this case, suggesting that her vital force is unstable (doesn’t put out a clear remedy picture) but, in cases like this, we have our Hierarchy of Symptoms to fall back on!  And, how does that go again?

1. Etiology

 

2. Diagnosis

 

3. Onset–sudden 

 

4. Delusions and Strange/Rare/Peculiar

 

5. Mentals

 

6. Emotionals

 

7. Generals

 

8. Locals/Particulars

 

So, we don’t really have an etiology for the insomnia, though it’s obvious she’s not sleeping in her own bed, she’s in an apartment waiting to move to her new house, she’s worried about money…so, under the circumstances, you can see why she’d have insomnia.  Diagnosis–disruption of her normal routine, nothing’s familiar, everything is new; so, not sure I know what the rubric for that would be…?   But also, “worrying”.  We’ve got “Ailments from worries” and Phosphorus is in bold for that. 

The “onset” doesn’t apply. 

Then we’ve got “delusions” and “strange, rare, peculiar”.  For delusions we can pick “delusion: bleeding money”, and for “S/R/P” we’ve got “Palpitations on waking when lying on left side”.  Only 2 remedies are listed for that, that’s how strange it is!  Phosphorus is rated the highest of the two.  When you’ve got something like this in your case, you only need to look back and say, “Does anything else go for Phosphorus in this case?”  rather than starting at the bottom (the local symptoms–itching on the legs, etc., the generals — better hot bath, better warmth, worse cold) and picking Rhus tox when Rhus tox doesn’t match the top of the hierarchy, right?  Peculiars and “ailments from” are at the top; in other words, you’ve got a confusing case, an unstable case, many remedies appear to jump out at you, but what matches the top of the hierarchy?  That is the question!!!  Whatever that is, go with that!

Now, I know, no one knew that Phosphorus had the keynote “Palpitations, worse lying on the left side”; so, that was a big stumbling block for you; but, hey, now you know!

Phos tends to like very cold drinks too and she stated only moderately cold.  I never focused  on the palpitations, I must admit.  Every day a school day!

Exactly!

Neil

 

Oh look, the gang from Slovakia is here!

Hello Elaine and Shana,

Hi Miroslav and Jitka!

Here is a quiz solution, but only from one member of our “gang”…:)

No way!  Really?

Miroslav:  Rhus tox

I chose this remedy based on the following symptom:

tongue, red, tip

other symptoms:

insomnia with palpitations

No, wait; the rubric you’re quoting is Sleep: insomnia, palpitations from, not “WITH”.  She doesn’t have insomnia due to palpitations.  Palpitations are a concomitant, not the etiology.  And not just any palpitations either; she has palpitations only when lying on the left side!  So that’s very important.  Do you know what remedy has that?  Phosphorus!

headache, forehead

Too big a rubric, won’t help us.

legs, itching, night

eyes, red, eyelids

That could be from not sleeping.  If a symptom makes sense, we can’t use it.

hot bath ameliorates

cold, aggravates

nose, discharge, sparse

No, she has a watery nasal discharge, she doesn’t use the word “sparse” or anything that means “sparse”, BUT, she does say that this discharge is rare, which means it hardly ever happens; so, it’s not going to help us.  Is that what you meant by sparse?  That it hardly ever happens?

mind, irritated

You mean “Mind: irritable”, but that’s too big a rubric to help us, and as Neil said, insomnia can make a person irritable; so, again, if it makes sense, it’s not a symptom, and we can’t use it.

generals, fatigue

Again, she has fatigue because she’s not sleeping; so, once again, if it makes sense, we can’t use it.

walking ameliorates

feels tired after walking

Generals: weariness, walking, after–Muriatic acid.  It’s the only remedy!  I’m not sure you want to hang your hat on that one remedy, do you?

jaw pain, left side

No, she says her jaw is “tight”, and on the left side, there’s a “crunching” sound when she opens her mouth, but she doesn’t say it’s painful.

So, what are you actually left with?  The modalities–better heat, worse cold and legs itching at night.  You didn’t have as much as you thought you did.  Do you want to know what the remedy was?  Phosphorus!  Why?  We had a keynote!  A “strange, rare, peculiar”–palpitations on waking when lying on the left side.  Only 2 remedies!  Phosphorus and China sulph.  If you look back at the case, you can find other symptoms of Phosphorus, including “worse from not eating” and “worse during a storm”.

Jitka:

I’m not going to guess the quiz this time because Miroslav sent his solution before I had a chance to come up with a remedy.  I think his solution is right.

Well, then, Jitka, don’t look now, but, you just voted!

But I can’t participate on his triumph.

Well, it wasn’t much of a triumph; but, then again, what is?

It appears that we don’t have a winner this month but what we do have are a lot of great participants, and that’s the important thing!  To that end, here’s an appropriate song:

“I Guess That Don’t Make Me A Loser” by The Brothers Of Soul.

 

 

See you again next time!