Cicuta virosa
A powerful remedy for violent convulsions and epilepsy. Convulsions with opisthotonos. Head turned or twisted to one side. Pustular skin eruptions. Effects of brain injuries.
Source
Tincture of the fresh root of Cicuta virosa (Umbelliferae), gathered at time of flowering.
Available Potencies
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Keynote Symptoms
Violent spasmodic convulsions — opisthotonos. Head turned or bent backwards. Trismus (lockjaw). Epilepsy from head injuries. Eruptions that form thick, honey-colored crusts. Pustular eruptions, especially on face and head. Hiccough. Staring, fixed gaze before convulsions.
Mind & Emotional Symptoms
Confounds the present with the past. Childish behavior. Suspicious. Mistrustful. Moaning, howling. Everything appears strange and terrible. Difficulty distinguishing reality. Mania.
General Symptoms
Violent convulsive action on nervous system. Spasms, opisthotonos, trismus. Head drawn to one side or backward. Catalepsy. Effects of head injuries, concussion. Eczematous eruptions with thick crusts. Worm complaints in children. Hiccough.
Physical Symptoms
Head
Head turned to one side. Effects of concussion. Staring eyes before convulsions. Vertigo with tendency to fall backward.
Eyes
Staring, fixed look. Objects appear double. Pupils dilated or alternating.
Mouth
Trismus. Foam at mouth during convulsions. Grinding of teeth.
Stomach
Hiccough, violent and persistent. Thirst. Nausea with vertigo.
Abdomen
Flatulent distension. Rumbling.
Extremities
Spasms of extremities. Jerking. Extremities flex involuntarily.
Skin
Eczema forming thick, lemon-yellow to honey-colored crusts. Pustular eruptions, no itching. Suppurating eruptions on scalp and face. Scabby eruptions.
Modalities
Better From
Warmth. Rest.
Worse From
Touch. Jar. Drafts. Concussion. Cold. Dentition. Tobacco smoke.
Constitutional Type
Not strongly constitutional. Used in acute convulsive states and chronic epilepsy. Children with convulsions during dentition. Persons with history of head injury developing seizures. Those with thick, crusty skin eruptions.
Clinical Indications
Epilepsy (especially post-traumatic). Convulsions. Opisthotonos. Tetanus. Trismus. Eczema with thick crusts. Head injuries. Catalepsy. Hiccough.
Comparative Materia Medica
Compare Belladonna (convulsions with fever and dilated pupils), Stramonium (convulsions with terror and violence), Natrum sulphuricum (head injury effects with depression). Cicuta is distinguished by opisthotonos, thick-crusted eruptions, and convulsions from head injuries.
Safety Information
Arnica. Coffea. Opium. Tobacco.
Cicuta virosa is one of the most toxic plants in the Northern Hemisphere. Contains cicutoxin, which causes violent convulsions and death. Even small amounts of root are lethal. Mother tincture is extremely dangerous in material doses.
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