BRYONIA ALBA (Wild Hops)

Bryonia  is useful in pains worse by motion and better by rest. These characteristic stitching pains, greatly aggravated by any motion, are found everywhere, but especially in the chest; worse pressure. The Bryonia alba patient is irritable; has vertigo from raising the head, pressive headache; dry, parched lips, mouth; excessive thirst, bitter taste, sensitive epigastrium, and feeling of a stone in the stomach. Bryonia alba is a great medicine to relieve the dryness in stools that are large and hard as well.

Bryonia Alba has marked action on flu and rheumatism. Coryza with frequent sneezing, dry nose and loss of smell. Onset of fever is slow and insidious. Fever caused by taking cold in hot summer weather, from exposure to draught of cold wind. During fever, the patient lies quietly. Does not want to move, even a little bit of motion makes him worse. There is low muttering delirium during fever. Also talks about his daily business. There is constant motion of left arm and left leg during fever. Bryonia Alba is a chief remedy for rheumatism and arthritis. The knee joints are stiff and painful. There is hot swelling of the feet. Joints are red, swollen, hot with stiching pain relieved by absolute rest and pressure and by lying on painful side. Worse on least movement.

Bryonia Alba also helps in respiratory symptoms like dry cough, bronchitis, asthma and also early stages of pneumonia. Cough is caused after taking cold or getting hot in summer. Right side of the chest is usually involved. Cough is dry, hard with gagging and vomiting with stitching pain in chest. The patient holds the chest while coughing as slightest movement worsens the pain. Cough is worse during night, from motion, from laughing, from talking and from heat of room. It is also indicated in early stage of pneumonia. Lower lobe of right lung is affected.

Bryonia Alba is useful in gastro-intestinal symptoms. There is dryness of the mucus membrane of the entire alimentary canal. Dryness of mouth is well marked. Dyspepsia with soreness in stomach. Vomiting of bile immediately after eating. Pain in the abdomen worse after eating and not relieved by pressure. Most of the pains relieved by pressure but not the gastric pain.

Bryonia is also useful in constipation. Stool is dry, hard, knotty as if burnt. Headache due to constipation, with thirst for large quantity of cold water at long intervals. Bryonia Alba is also useful in gastro enteritis causing diarrhoea. Morning diarrhoea as soon as the patient gets up from bed and puts the feet on the floor. Watery stool containing undigested food particles.

Bryonia Alba is also helps in headache caused due to draught of cold air, from constipation and from ironing. Pain is bursting type as if brain going to burst. Feels that the contents of cranium would be pushed out. Headache is worse from motion, in morning and better from pressure and lying on painful side.

Cough relived is dry as the dryness runs throughout the whole remedy. The dropsical effusions into synovial and serous membranes are treated by bryonia alba. Bryonia alba affects especially the constitution of a robust, firm fiber and dark complexion, with tendency to leanness and irritability. It prefers the right side, the evening, and open air, warm weather after cold days, to manifest its action most markedly. Children dislike to be carried or raised. Physical weakness, all-pervading apathy. Complaints apt to develop slowly. Aggravation by MOTION and amelioration REST are the important features of bryonia alba.

Mind 

– AVERSION BEING DISTURBED. Irritable, wants to be left alone. Reserved.

– Fear of poverty, fear of starving, anxiety about future.

– Materialistic. Possession oriented.

– Insecurity, withdrawn into themselves, isolated from social contact.

– Thoughts, talks about BUSINESS. Determined.

– Despair of recovery. Seem to hold others responsible for their suffering.

– Dullness morning on waking worse exertion, conversation.

– Children ask for things that are difficult to find, immediately throw it away (Cham).

– Exceedingly irritable; everything puts him out of humor. Delirium; wants to go home.

Generalities 

– Worse least MOTION but may be restless from severe pains, better rest

– Heat, over-heating.

– PRESSURE, lying on painful side.

– Cold applications, except stomach: Worse cold applications.

· Often slow onset of acute diseases.

· Injuries, sprains, etc.

· Stitching pains.

· Acute  · Slow onset (Gels).

· GREAT THIRST FOR LARGE QUANTITIES, often; at long intervals.

· Also possible: dry mouth and thirstless.

· Pains: aggravated SLIGHT MOTION, heat.

Food and drinks  

– Desire: meat, oysters, warm drinks (milk) or cold drinks.

– Aversion: Fat.

– aggravated by Beans and peas, bread.

– Great THIRST for large quantities (often or long intervals).

Vertigo 

– Sensation they are sinking through bed.

Head 

– Pain: starts over LEFT eye, extends to occiput and whole head,  Worse on moving eyes, light (=motion of iris), jar, cough, touch, when constipated,  Better by pressure, holding head, closing eyes.

– Meningitis.

–  Vertigo, nausea, faintness on rising, confusion.

– Frontal headache, frontal sinuses involved

Eye 

– Pain on moving eyes or lids.

– Pressing, crushing, aching pain. Glaucoma.

Ears

Aural vertigo. Roaring, buzzing in ears.

Nose 

– Frequent bleeding of nose (Epistaxis) when menses should appear; Worse morning after rising.

– Coryza with shooting and aching in the forehead. Swelling of tip of nose, feels as if it would ulcerate when touched.

Face 

– Chewing motion, in arteriosclerosis or fever with brain involvement.

– Dry, cracked lips.

Mouth 

– Dryness of mouth, tongue, and throat, with excessive thirst.

– Discoloration tongue brown or white.

– Bitter taste.

– Lips parched, dry, cracked.

– Burning in lower lip in old smokers. Lip swollen, dry, black, and cracked

Teeth 

– Pain better by cold water, lying on painful side.

Throat

– Dryness, sticking on swallowing, scraped and constricted (Bell).

–  Tough mucus in larynx and trachea, loosened only after much hawking; worse coming into warm room.

Stomach 

– Capricious abnormal appetite, loss of taste.

– Gastritis better by warm drinks.

– Vomiting on slight motion, while coughing, immediately after drinking, after eating and warm drinks.

– Sensation of a stone, worse after eating, Stomach sensitive to touch.

– Nausea and faintness when rising up.

– Soreness in stomach when coughing.

– Dyspeptic ailments during summer heat. Sensitiveness of epigastrium to touch.

Abdomen 

– Appendicitis aggravation touch and better by pressure, lying on painful side.

– Peritonitis.

– Pain in liver, better lying on right side.

– Burning pain, stitches; worse, pressure, coughing, breathing. Tenderness of abdominal walls.

Rectum 

– Constipation and Dryness.

– Diarrhea, worse by motion; morning after rising and moving; fruit; warm weather.

Stool

– Constipation; stools hard, dry, as if burnt; seem too large. Stools brown, thick, bloody; worse in morning, from moving, in hot weather, after being heated, from cold drinks, every spell of hot weather.

Female

– Menses too early, too profuse; worse from motion, with tearing pains in legs; suppressed, with vicarious discharge or splitting headache.

– Stitching pains in ovaries on taking a deep inspiration; very sensitive to touch. Pain in right ovary as if torn, extending to thigh. Milk fever.

– Pain in breasts at menstrual period. Breasts hot and painful hard. Abscess of mammæ.

– Frequent bleeding of nose at appearance of menses.

– Menstrual irregularities, with gastric symptoms. Ovaritis.

– Intermenstural pain, with great abdominal and pelvic soreness.

Cough 

– Dry, hard painful worse motion, warm room.

Chest 

– Pneumonia, Bronchitis, Pleuritis, Mastitis.

– Pain on coughing, hold chest to keep it immobile.

– Pain on inspiration in pleuritis.

– Soreness in larynx and trachea. Hoarseness; worse in open air.

– Dry, hacking cough from irritation in upper trachea.

– Cough, dry, at night; must sit up; worse after eating or drinking, with vomiting, with stitches in chest, and expectoration of rust-colored sputa.

– Frequent desire to take a long breath; must expand lungs. Difficult, quick respiration; worse every movement; caused by stitches in chest.

– Cough, with feeling as if chest would fly to pieces; presses his head on sternum; must support chest.

– Expectoration brick shade, tough, and falls like lumps of jelly. Tough mucus in trachea, loosened only with much hawking.

– Coming into warm room excites cough. Heaviness beneath the sternum extending towards the right shoulder. Cough worse by going into warm room.

– Stitches in cardiac region. Angina pectoris

Back

– Painful stiffness in nape of neck. Stitches and stiffness in small of back. From hard water and sudden changes of weather.

Extremities 

– RHEUMATISM of joints and muscles, arthritis, gout; inflammation of joints with swelling and stiffness.  Worse by motion, heat and better by rest, cold, pressure.

– Knees stiff and painful. Hot swelling of feet. Joints red, swollen, hot, with stitches and tearing; worse on least movement.

– Every spot is painful on pressure. Constant motion of left arm and leg

Urine

– Red, brown, like beer; scanty, hot.

Sleep 

– On left side.

Skin 

– Jaundice after anger (Nux-v.).

– Eruptions: rash, urticaria, vesicular. Slow appearance in eruptive fevers.

– Dry, Yellow; pale, swollen, dropsical; hot and painful. Seborrhœa.

– Hair very greasy.

Sleep

– Drowsy; starting when falling asleep. Delirium; busy with business matters and what he had read.

Fever

– Pulse full, hard, tense, and quick. Chill with external coldness, dry cough, stitches. Internal heat.

– Sour sweat after slight exertion. Easy, profuse perspiration.

– Rheumatic and typhoid marked by gastro-hepatic complications.

Modalities

– Worse, warmth, any motion, morning, eating, hot weather, exertion, touch. Cannot sit up; gets faint and sick. Better, lying on painful side, pressure, rest, cold things.

Complementary

– Abrotanum, Alumina, Kali-carbonica, Lycopodium, Natrum muriaticum., Rhus-tox., Sepia, Sulph.