Case Quizes Clinical Cases

Revisiting: It Feels Like 3 Bees Are Stinging Me!

Elaine gives the answer to last month’s quiz

Mom, it’s time for the quiz!!

Shana, I’m right in the middle of doing my taxes!

Fine!  I’ll just make my announcements then!  I was reading the Classic Rock News and saw that the Rolling Stones are re-issuing their 1971 “Sticky Fingers” album.

No one cares, Shana!

There’s still a chance for a 14-city North American tour.

Aaaaaaaaaah!!!!!!!

They will reportedly play the entire “Sticky Fingers” album at every show.

It sounds like a form of torture.

And now for the Death Report.

Which hopefully will be more inspiring than what we just heard.

The co-creator of “The Simpsons”, Sam Simon, recently died at age 59 of cancer.  He’s also written some of my favorite episodes including “The Way We Was”, which is about when Homer met Marge.

And finally, it’s James Taylor’s birthday.  

Oh geez!

Here he is with his cover version of Jimmy Jones’ “Handy Man”:

James Taylor’s best song, if you ask me!  And I have a REAL treat for the Quiz audience today!

What is it?

It’s your audition tape from “Dancin’ On Air”!

Mom, I’m pretty sure no one wants to see it!

I’m pretty sure they do!  We’ll just wait quietly until everyone comes back.

MOM!!!!

Are they back yet?  

No!

And now for another exciting episode of The Hpathy Quiz!  Today’s quiz features Claire again.  Her 10 year old daughter, AB, had a bladder infection–lucky for her, it’s a homeopathic household!  And now, heeeeeeeeere’s Claire!

**************************************************************
Hi Elaine!!!  A lovely, delightfully straightforward acute today!

Oh good!

It resolved beautifully!  Love it when that happens, particularly since everything else is so convoluted in our chronic stuff!

I have come to the conclusion that acute prescribing is the only thing you can really count on!

So AB got up today, all was fine, she wanted to take a bath and wash her hair; it was a brief bath, it had been a while (sometimes she wants to bathe often and other times she has a week-long aversion to it).  After her bath, she was fine, started working on projects, eating breakfast.  Sometime later, she complained that her bottom hurt.  She had to keep running to the bathroom, because it felt like she needed to urinate, but nothing would really come out.

Bladder infection!

That’s what I thought.  She thought it was hurting because one of the twins kicked her from behind last night when they were playing some sort of game; and while I didn’t rule out some sort of minor sensitivity due to injury, I wondered if she had the beginnings of an infection.  I asked if it felt bruised, or burning/stinging, etc.  She was whimpering on the toilet and she said it felt like “three bees are stinging me!!!”  She was extremely intolerant of the discomfort/pain.

I had Calendula in water from her loose tooth incident a few weeks ago, and it had been in the fridge so I poured a little on a folded paper towel and suggested she hold it on the area.  I was afraid it was too cold but she said it really helped, she said the cold felt good. I am not sure a topical application of Calendula was what relieved; at this point, I think it was the cold.

So I gave her 3 pellets of _______________ 30c.  Her mood changed, she seemed more tolerant, not wincing and complaining and running to the bathroom.  About 15-20 minutes later, she went to the bathroom; it still was stinging a bit so I gave her a water dose of _____________30C.  That dose lasted about 30-35 minutes and she needed one more water dose and that was it!  At some point later, she said it didn’t hurt at all anymore.  Good mood, no more abnormal urination urges.  Kinda hard to believe when it’s this simple!!

Claire, only simple when you know what to ask and give examples!  Kudos to you!  Where are my gold stars?  Where did I put them?!  Oh!

And the award for excellence in case-taking goes to……….. (you know your name, right?)

Great case!  What happens to other families when this happens?  I don’t know how you take a child to the doctor when she can’t leave the bathroom!  Would I want to be in this fix without homeopathy?  I don’t think so!  If you know the remedy, write to me at [email protected].  The answer is on its way!
_____________________

Votes:

Apis-10

Arnica-1

Sulphur-1

____________________________

Well, don’t look now, but, it seems the majority has spoken.  Apis it is!  Who do we have here with us today?  Hello!  You’re on the air at Hpathy.com!

3 bees stinging?  Might they be ‘honey bees’?.. 🙂

They might….

My vote is for Apis; seemingly, yet again, a bit too obvious, but I have heard if you know how to listen to your patient that they will often tell you what remedy they need.

I wish my clients would do that!  It would save sooooo much time!  But still, the practitioner needs to know not to accept words like “It hurts,” or “I have a pain.”  That doesn’t help us.  We have to learn what to ask in the interview or we will only get information meant for doctors.

This happened literally with my mom-(a bit of a skeptic when it comes to homeopathy).  She has a hernia and is prone to overindulge in weird combinations of rich/exotic foods.  She called to tell me she was so ill and admitted she overate.  I told her I could give her a remedy to try; she said, “right now I would take strychnine!”  I was already thinking of Nux Vomica and gave it to her and the episode passed quickly!  LOL

Hopefully she’s not STILL a skeptic, is she?

Sadly, she still is.

What?????  Oh for the love of God!

Back to the stinging bees.  Given the scanty urination, the relief from applying cold water to the labia and the stinging pains…the tearful whining…I have to say Apis would have been my choice.

You are correct, madam!

Blessings from Virginia!

Natalie

 ***

Thanks Natalie!  Hello, is anybody else there?  You’re on the air at hpathy.com!

Hi Elaine!  I’m one of your biggest fans.

Mom?

Bees!  Stinging?  Better cold application?

Even i can answer this one: Apis mel.

You’re right!!!!  That about summed it up for me too: stinging pain, better cold applications, Apis.  Case closed!

AA

***

Who’s up next?  Maryam from Pakistan?  Come on down!

Hi Elaine!  How are you?

Fine thanks!

How is Shana?

Couldn’t be better!

We are feeling so bad today, Pakistan has lost the quarter final match (cricket world cup).

Again with the crickets?

Do you like cricket?

Who doesn’t like crickets?  They make such adorable chirping sounds.

Anyways my suggestion to this case is Apis.
-Pain burning, stinging, sore.
-Aggravation from getting wet, but better from washing or moistening the part in cold water.
-The burning is like hot needles. (Dr.S.R.Phatak)
-Stinging pains like bee stings occurring occasionally. (E.B Nash)
-And Kent says: as soon as a few drops of urine collect in the bladder the urging comes; constant, ineffectual urging.  The smarting, burning and stinging along the urinary tract will be found under Apis.  The shriek is a very strong Apis feature.
So I wanna go with Apis.

You are correct, Maryam!!!!  Give my regards to Pakistan and its many crickets.  

***

I’ll take the next person in line?

Hi,

I will use following rubrics:

  1. sensation: Bee stinging…………………. APIS arn
  2. Ineffectual urge to urinate……………….ARN

While there are covered by Arnica and with possibility of some trauma I would start with ARNICA

regards

Mahbub

You’ve forgotten the all-important modality, cold applications amel.  Modalities mean a lot to us!  They are BIG!  If I don’t find modalities in a case?  I despair of ever being able to solve it.

You can’t use “ineffectual urging” because that’s a common symptom of the illness, it’s what defines “cystitis”, you feel like you have to go, but nothing comes out except for a few drops, and then five minutes later, you have to go again.  So, here’s what the rubrics are (Murphy’s Repertory):

Thanks that’s how we learn….yes … in reality I would have given Apis on the second day, perhaps, thus making the patient suffer more…

In a case of acute suffering like this, you would give the remedy about an hour to show that it was going to do something, and if no improvement or even an aggravation was seen within that time, you would have to assume that either the remedy was wrong or the potency was too low.  So you would either try the next higher potency if you were convinced the prescription was correct, or go to the next remedy.

***

Oh look, it’s Wayne from Australia!

Hi Elaine,
Would the answer be
“Children: Urine, retention in”– Apis?
My answer is Apis.
Best wishes,
Wayne Butcher

Yes, the answer is Apis!  But, I think it’s more because it’s a case of cystitis, under which Apis is in bold; the modality is “better cold applications”, which Apis is well-known for, and finally “stinging pain”, again, makes us think of Apis.

This isn’t really a case of “Urinary retention”.  She’s not retaining urine.  She has the common symptoms of cystitis (a.k.a. “bladder infection”).  The symptoms are: constant, painful urging to urinate with nothing coming out but a few drops.  There are 154 remedies in that rubric; so, by itself, it’s not going to help us.  What makes it Apis is the modality (better cold applications) and the sensation, “stinging pain”.

Thanks for your comments Elaine – always appreciated.

Wayne

***

Oh look, everyone, it’s Miroslav and Jitka!

Hello, Elaine and Shana,

Hello Jitka!

We are going to try our luck in your next quiz.  By the way, thank you very much for a nice song “Golden Heart”.

I think you meant “Heart of Gold”, but, you’re welcome!

 

Here is Miroslav’s answer:

Miroslav says: Apis

It seems that the case had a rapid progression, it was therefore something “stormy”.

What has a stinging pain?  The bees point the direction . 🙂  Cold ameliorates,

painful urge to urinate, irritating pain … I think I would try Apis.

So would I!  Yes, stinging pain, better cold = Apis.

Jitka guesses: Sulphur

At the beginning 3 bees, stinging pain, cold application, which ameliorates allured my attention to the remedy Apis.

As it should.

But then I realized that the girl doesn’t like bathing, which is strange in a girl and moreover bathing caused her complaints.

It did????  Maybe you’re right, it does seem like the bath MIGHT have been the cause!  BUT, what about the bath, is the question!  You know, I don’t really approve of baths because if you’re all dirty, and if you’re not a good washer, you may actually be bathing in all your germs from all your parts, if you know what I mean!  It’s very easy to see how one might pick up bacteria from the anus and have it travel to the urethra in this way!  Plus, I also hear that many brands of bubble bath cause inflammation!  I don’t know if she was using bubble bath but it’s possible.  (I would stick to showering, personally!)  But the point is, when we’re told that such-and-such a thing was the cause of a complaint, we have to find out which component of that thing was at fault!  So many possibilities!  What ABOUT the bath?  Worse getting the head wet?  That might make us think of Rhus tox.  The answer is: we just don’t have enough information to say, “bathing agg.”; plus, “aversion to bathing” seems to have more to do with the constitutional case than the acute case.

These two symptoms are characteristic for the Sulphur remedy.  I then sought more rubrics that correspond to the problem of AB and the Sulphur was there.

Sulphur:

Generalities, injuries (including blows, falls and bruises)

Generals: bathing, aversion to

Generals: bathing, agg

Environment, cold, cold amel.

No, it’s not cold weather amel., it’s cold applications amel.

Bladder, inflammation
Bladder, inflammation (cystitis), cold, from taking

I think this means cystitis from getting chilled?  Or from having a cold?  Either way, it’s not part of the case.  There’s no mention of cold other than cold applications.

Bladder, pain, stitching, stinging

Bladder, urging to urinate (morbid desire)

The rubric “cystitis” covers that.  Do you have Murphy’s Repertory?  Go to “Bladder, cystitis”.  The next two rubrics you mention, constant urging and sudden urging, are covered by “cystitis”.

Bladder, urging, constant

Bladder, urging, sudden

Well, here’s the thing, yes Sulphur may seem obvious in a way; BUT, obvious as a possible constitutional remedy; however, we don’t have a constitutional case before us, we have an acute case, a bladder infection with a clear sensation and modality.  Does Sulphur have stinging pains?  Is it better for cold applications?  In the rubric, “Generals: stinging pain, bee-sting-like”–there are only two remedies listed: Apis (3), Gelsemium (1).

Under “Generals: wet applications, cold, amel.”–Sulphur’s not there.  Gelsemium’s not there either.  Apis is a 2 (there are no 3’s).  Apis is, of course, listed under “Bladder, cystitis” as a 3. Apis seems to cover everything.  Do we care that it doesn’t cover her possible constitution?  No, we totally do not care.  Kent is very clear about not mixing up constitutional and acute symptoms into one grand totality.  Keep the two separate.

Every once in a while you will find that a constitutional Arsenicum, let’s say, has an Arsenicum acute, and in that way, everything in the case points to Arsenicum, making the case very easy to solve; but you can imagine how confusing it might be if you see symptoms for 2 different remedies in a case and weren’t aware that you’re supposed to separate out the constitutional from the acute presentation.

Sometimes, the acute presentation is vague and you’re at a loss as to what the remedy might be, but the constitutional picture is very clear, making you move toward a constitutional prescription even though it’s an acute case and yes, that remedy should cure the case; but, more often than not, you can easily separate out the acute presentation from the chronic state, such as in this case: a diagnosis, a sensation, a clear modality, and there it is–Apis!

Let’s say that someone has a clear Gelsemium flu (dopey, drowsy, dizzy, droopy and dull), does that mean that, therefore, the person has to be a constitutional Gelsemium?  No, of course not, we would never think that way; and therefore, you can’t think the opposite way either.  

However, I have to throw this advisory in:  When you have a clear etiology, like “Ailments From Fatty Rich Foods”, which we all know goes for Pulsatilla, you may not see a single Pulsatilla symptom in the case!  You might see no weeping, no desire for company, no aggravation from warm, stuffy rooms; and yet, it is still Pulsatilla!  Why?  Because etiology over-rules symptomatology!  

Anyway, congratulations to Miroslav this time!

So, OK, it’s time to salute our winners, and here they are:

Nola Daniel

Dr. Jayedul Kader

Shweta

Wafaa Abdul Samad

Wayne Butcher

Miroslav

Maryam from Pakistan

Natalie

AA

Maria

All our winners get “I Got Stung” by Elvis Presley!

_____________________

Elaine Lewis, D.Hom., C.Hom.

Elaine takes online cases! Write to her at [email protected]

Visit her website: elaineLewis.hpathy.com

About the author

Elaine Lewis

Elaine Lewis, D.Hom., C.Hom.
Elaine is a passionate homeopath, helping people offline as well as online. Contact her at [email protected]
Elaine is a graduate of Robin Murphy's Hahnemann Academy of North America and author of many articles on homeopathy including her monthly feature in the Hpathy ezine, "The Quiz". Visit her website at:
https://elainelewis.hpathy.com/ and TheSilhouettes.org

About the author

Shana Lewis

Shana spices up the Hpathy Quiz with her timely announcements and reviews on the latest in pop culture. Her vast knowledge of music before her time has inspired the nickname: "Shanapedia"!

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