Clinical Cases

An Autistic 5 Year Old Boy A Case of Crocodylus

autism

Homeopath Catherine Sharfstein presents a case of autism in a boy of five.

May 20, 2015

A mother came with a little 5 yr old boy for consultation. The boy was non-verbal, he was making sounds, he was very irritable, communicated with mom by gestures, and crying voice. He was saying something that resembled the word “no” to anything his mother offered him. He was touching and moving what was movable in the office. He completely disabled the phone on my desk and he was standing behind my back, while I was talking to his mom. It was almost impossible to work. The boy was pushing my chair with me in the chair. He was strong. Mom was taking him to the bathroom quite often, because he was having accidents with urination and bowels. He did not know how to ask to go to the bathroom.

Mom was having problems getting pregnant and keeping pregnancy. He was the 4th pregnancy. The delivery was complicated; the boy was wrapped with the cord around his neck. Placenta did not discharge. He was not breast-fed. He was waking up during the night every 3 hours.  He started crawling at 8 months, walking at one year. He is an active boy and has very strong arms. He was making sounds and knew 5 words by 2.5 years. But later he was not using even these words. He understands many things, but cannot say what he wants. He eats very limited foods like pizza, bread and sausages, and he does not try any new food. He does not know how to behave properly; he has several tutors and a speech pathologist. He is selfish, athletic and he does not want to study. He knows how to use an I-pad, finds Youtube symbol and finds American TV. He is not interested in food or clothes, but he likes cars, horses, and Disney movies like Lion King. He likes music, snow white. He does not like the movie “Tom and Jerry”. He is a big boy; he is taller than other kids of his age. He is not aggressive (I observed differently). He likes bright colorings. He has temper tantrums if you do not do what he wants you to do. He is unpredictable. He may not want to get dressed. He likes to be naked at night, and even during the day, does not wear his pajamas. He likes jeans, but he does not like socks, gloves, hats and anything around the neck. He likes cotton clothing.

He sleeps at night with me or with our dog. He cries in the middle of the night or in the morning when he wakes up. He has loose green stools and vomiting. He is afraid of his father, of Freddy Kruger but he is not afraid of darkness or monsters. He looks at monsters on Youtube. The boy was sticking out his tongue, his mouth was open and he salivated on his shirt. It is impossible to make him do things. He likes water very much, and he swims very well, much better than kids of his age who come to the pool with him. He has a problem with swallowing. He is not chewing his food to the end, and then he vomits his food.

I did all the vaccines that doctors recommended, his developments stopped gradually after he became 2.5 years old. It is impossible to make him do things, or stop doing things. However, he is very brave and he can learn new software by himself.

The boy looked just like his mother. I had difficulty starting working with him. I was observing the boy while he was demolishing my office and periodically standing behind my back and pushing my chair. I decided to take the case of the mother, so I can start treating the boy.

H – Please tell me your fears?

P – I had many fears: Freddy Kruger, strangers, heights. I am afraid of everything, except of water. My son is the same way, he loves water (possible that mother and son needed the same remedy). I would not watch the horror movies. Also, blood and needles scare me.

H- Please tell more about the needles?

P – I do not like to see how a needle is being injected into a human body. I cannot see someone in pain. I do not want to see needles. Needles are sharp and cold…..coldness, it is in the atmosphere that something bad will happen. Coldness, indifference, no feelings.

H – Please tell a bit more about coldness.

P – It is hard to see pain of another person or discomfort, it is a beginning of something bad. I feel cold. (It was quite warm in the office). I like bright colors. I do not like winters, darkness, and coldness. People are indifferent, they could say something and hurt someone, or not to say the truth. I am easily getting together with people, I am cynical. I have a difficult situation with doctors.

H – What did you experience in your situations with doctors?

P – I feel I need to protect myself. I feel I need to be my own advocate. I do not take their opinions as facts. We are hard people. (This is peculiar. I have three qualities of the substance: cold and hard, and mother and son like to be in water). The doctors wanted to remove my uterus. They did not see me as a person; they just wanted to hurt me. I decided: “No, It will not happen”. I felt momentarily hatred and anger to the doctor. I wanted to choke and destroy the doctor. (It is a very aggressive reaction)

H – Please tell me about this hatred and anger to the doctor?

P – Blinding, choking. I did not have control over myself. The anger was boiling. I could not breathe. The ground was going away from under me. I was like a wounded animal, like an animal trapped in a cage, or a cornered animal.

H – Please talk more about a wounded cornered animal?

P – I am in the corner or in the cage, like a very strong animal.  This situation is not good for this powerful animal. He does not want to do anything.

H- Please tell more about the powerful animal?

P – Powerful animal, it used to be free. He is jumping on the Safari in Africa. It is like lions and tigers.

H – Anything else about powerful animals?

P – I am afraid of mice. I am not close to nature. I live in a city. I like dogs. I like to see animals in the Zoo. I take all animals as they are. I do not like to look at hippo. I am indifferent to elephants, giraffes. …..(Pause). Crocodiles, their skin is slimy. They live in the darkness of water, and they take you down into the murky water with them. They are totally unpleasant.

At this point the boy was very disruptive. I could not continue working so I stopped the appointment.  I ask the mother to come again alone.

March 25, 2015

Continuation of the appointment with mother of the Autistic boy

H – What bothers you?

P – Back pain. When it hurts, it is a very strong pain, it reflects into my right leg, inside, above the knee. It was a dull, not a sharp pain, like someone was pulling a nerve. I feel it when I walk. It is like a hardball, warm, round, not big in size. Smooth, not with sharp ends.

H- Please tell about the ends?

P – It is sharp corners (not sharp and sharp – peculiar), but dull, it of a triangular shape, smooth, surface, hard and warm.

H – Tell me about hard (hard was in the initial part of the appointment)

P – It is like a stone, smooth, even, the shape is not changing.

H – What do you mean “shape is not changing”?

P – It is consistent, not very hard, it is getting into a round or oval shape, warm and smooth.

H – Explain round or oval?

P – Smooth surface, no corners. It is easily rolling from place to place, no obstacles to move my hand. No corners to stop the hand movement. It is smooth and pleasant to touch.

H – Explain pleasant to touch?

P – It is not that the surface is cold, slimy, or rough, and it has no sharp corners.

H – Talk about the rough surface?

P – It has cracks, and holes, it is not even, and it has sharp edges. It is slimy.

H – Talk about slimy surface?

P – It is wet, cold, not pleasant to touch, it is disgusting. The edges are sharp and you can get hurt.

H – Can you tell more about this surface?

P – It is like a medusa, cold and wet, large in size. I have to be careful with it. It could be dangerous and I do not know how it will behave.

H – What do you mean?

P – If it is a snake, it is large and long, flexible, slimy, cold, it is changing shape.

H – Describe the snake?

P – It is green, long, flat, it lives in murky water, it is hard, and it has triangular head, slimy and wet on the top, the skin is rough…(Pause)… I think I am describing a Crocodile.

Mother landed in both interviews on a Crocodile, all qualities of the surface correlated with this animal.

Recommendation for the boy: Crocodylus 200c – May 25, 2015

Follow up July 15, 2015

Remedies taken Crocodylus 200c on June 5 and July 2.

H – What changed with your son during the past period?

P – In 1.5 weeks after taking the first dose he became more stable. It was easier to communicate with him. It was easier to wake him up in the morning. He did not wake up during the night. He gets up with good energy in the morning. He talks better, and has more words. He is more positive, no wining. It is hard to recognize him.

H – What else changed?

P – He is in a summer camp and he on a swim team. He does all activities. His bowel stabilized, it is easier to concentrate. He did not get sick, but we have problems with bed-wetting. He gets annoyed easily. He is trying very hard to do the math, but it is not easy for him.

Recommendation Crocodylus 1m – July 15, 2015

Follow up September 7, 2015

Remedies taken Crocodylus 1m on July 17, August 7, August 28

H- How was your son’s summer?

P – He was in a camp. He did not get sick, he started to read books. Did not have any incidents of bad behavior. He plays better with his sister. I was giving him remedies when he was whining and having temper tantrums. He is much calmer. His bed-wetting stopped. He has a better appetite, but he does not try new foods.

Follow up October 28, 2015

Remedies taken Crocodylus 1m September 11, October 2, October 23

H – How is your son?

P – He goes to a regular school. I am switching him away from special needs program. He is involved more in construction with blocks. He is calmer; he is getting dressed by himself to go to school. He still wares pumpers, but he is dry. No accidents. Yesterday he asked for spaghetti, he said that word “spaghetti”. His handwriting improved. His drawing is better. Everything is getting better, he does not ask any more for candies.

Follow up December 21, 2015

Remedies taken Crocodylus 1m on November 20, December 11

H – How is your son?

P – He is on a good level with all other kids. He was performing in a holiday show. He sleeps well, no bed wetting accidents. His behavior is much better, no temper tantrums. No Complaints.

Recommendation: Crocodylus 10m – December 21

Follow up February 16, 2016

Remedies taken Crocodylus 10m on January 1, January 22

H – How is your son?

P – My son is doing very well. He is much better in math, something clicked in his head, and it was a big shift. He is reading much better, he can concentrate and he can add up numbers in his head. It is difficult to express in words his progress (It was a very emotional moment for mother and me. We both were holding tears in our eyes). It is like he never was autistic.

Follow up April 6, 2016

Remedies taken Crocodylus 10m February 26 and April 1

H – What is the progress with your son?

P – He does very well in school academically and no complaints of his behaviors. Speech and communication skills are significantly improved. I can talk with my son. He talks in sentences.

About the author

Catherine Sharfstein

Catherine Sharfstein RSHom, immigrated to the USA from the Ukraine in 1979, and started a homeopathic practice in 1994. She is a registered member of NASH and certified by the CCH. She has practices in Fair Lawn, New Jersey and Brooklyn, New York. Her cases have appeared in The American Homeopath, Simillimum, LINKS and The Homeopath. Catherine has given workshops at NASH conferences in NY and Florida and also taught a seminar on periodic table at Toronto Homeopathic College and Ontario College of Naturopathic Medicine. She has also presented at seminars in India, and in Brussels she taught prescribing from the animal kingdom.

6 Comments

  • Hi Catherine. Lovely Case! I was wondering which Crocodylus you gave. There are two species listed,
    Crocodylus acutus ( american croc) and Crocodylus novoguinea (New guinea)

  • Great Work. Only Homeopathy will bring good health for all of us. World needs Good Homeopath like you. My dream to see popularity of homeopathy all over the world before my last breath. Congrats Madam.

  • Catherine, thank you for sharing this inspiring, wonderful case. It is a testament to the need for remaining ever-open to previously unconsidered possibilities of what may be lurking beneath the surface expressions of our patients!

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