This case study of homeopathic studies is an excerpt from Pierre Fontaine’s book “Homeopathy, Sweet Homeopathy: Coming Home to Perfect Health”. Find out more information including how to purchase a copy
JUANITA
(4 yrs old)
MC: A recurring cough
• Reactive airway disorder
• Frequent colds
Pierre: Please tell me what is going on?
Mother: “She catches colds very easily and she has great difficulty breathing. She is getting oral steroids. She started sneezing in March (2 months ago) then in April her nose started to run. Her cold doesn’t seem to go away. She has been getting one ear infection after another. She got better after we used the nebulizer but three weeks later the sneezing and coughing started again. Her congestion seems to be worse at night. She starts to breathe faster and faster. The breathing became so fast we had to go to the emergency room.”
Could you please give me some of her histories?
“She has had 4 ear infections in the last 5 months treated with four courses of antibiotics. We can’t keep going this way. We can’t keep giving her antibiotics and wait for the next time it happens and do the same thing again.”
Please tell me how it develops.
“Usually she gets runny for a few days and then she develops a fever. Once she gets a fever she becomes very quiet. She asks for milk or water and stays quiet. Her face gets flushed and she sweats on the head. At the same time, she gets a little constipated and the stool gets very dry. After the fever starts she begins to breathe through her nose very quickly.”
Can you tell me what the breathing sounds like?
The breathing sounds “tinny” as in tin coming from her system. I can’t explain it; her abdomen goes in and out very quickly. She was diagnosed with Reactive Airway Disorder. We feel we must do something else.”
REMEDY:
Stannum
FOLLOW UP:
“She didn’t cough all night. We repeated the remedy the next day and she got completely better. One week later she got a cold. She coughed a bit during the night and then better during the day. Now she is well, she doesn’t cough and she does not have breathing problems.”
DISCUSSION
I present this case because sometimes unbeknown to them people can even tell me what the remedy needed is. In this case, the mother made a very astute observation for her child.
When courses of antibiotics are given over and over again the inner balance causing the problem is not addressed and the disorder keeps on recurring.
I always ask parents what the breathing sounds like. This was the first time I ever got an answer that was a point on. Most of the time people say it is a deep cough.
It is very unusual to have parents totally nail an observation like that. From the homeopathic point of view, it is the essence.
We have lost our sense of observation; it would be good to gain it back. Stannum is actually the homeopathic remedy of tin. From the observation of the mother, we arrived at the remedy.
Speaking as a father, I offer two recommendations as follows:
Children don’t like to be covered at night yet when I ask what the child or baby wears the answer is usually “a pajama.” That is not enough. I recommend putting on several overalls at night. We layer during the day, why not at night? As adults, we sleep snuggly under several blankets yet the child has one pajama so of course, they’re getting sick, they’re not covered enough.
Another recommendation I make is to limit milk intake during the winter. If you have a child who gets colds, coughs, and ear infections, give up the milk during the winter months and see your child thrive. This is outside the homeopathic realm but from one parent to another it will do wonders for your child’s ears. You can replace milk with any of the alternatives available, most of them rich in calcium.
