Echium vulgare

Remedy code: 3-665.355.11
A 48-year-old woman with bladder complaints, osteoarthritis, fatigue, and frustration about work: she is immigrated, small in stature with a slender and light build. She speaks quickly and restlessly, behaves with a lot of temperament, and is meticulous with information, alternating between a passive and slumped posture. Her facial expression is often questioning, with a pained look, possibly due to language barriers. She frequently arrives late because she gets lost on the way. When answering, her eyes usually search upward to the right. Recently, she had two bouts of bladder infections; antibiotics didn’t help, and she had days of fever with pain throughout her abdomen. She also experiences pain in the left bowel bend, radiating to her back, though her urine was clear. The pain and fatigue lasted for a week, and now she occasionally feels numbness in her lumbar area. An ultrasound showed calcification in her left kidney and fluid around her heart. Sometimes, she has severe cramps to the right of her sternum, occurring every few weeks. As a child, she had kidney issues and severe bladder infections. This past year has been relatively stress-free, though she had a lot of extra social commitments and concerns about her children. It causes frustration, as she feels she does a lot: her work, managing the household and organizing things. She is always focused on others and has no time for herself. She wants to move more, exercise, take daily walks, and draw. When she was ill, she realized she needed to make changes. When she does too much, her body tells her to slow down. In the past, this manifested as shingles (on her right side) or unexplained stabbing pains throughout her body. She often experiences tingling pain in her fingertips, a mild throbbing, but she can easily ignore it. Her joints aren’t strong, her ligaments are too loose, and her knees often crack. She frequently feels light-headed and has fallen in the street several times, usually to the left, tripping or losing her balance. Her blood pressure is always low (95/55), her heart rate is low, and so is her body temperature (35°C). Her neck cracks when she turns it, but it doesn’t bother her. She has had headaches in the past due to sinusitis, resembling hay fever. She would easily get congested, and had a sore throat and cough, often leading to bronchitis for which she uses inhalers. She has a strong sense of responsibility and used to work through illness, which once led to shingles. She always keeps her promises to friends and family, and if someone needs her, she does everything for them. Now she works for herself, and her job involves a lot of regulations, which she enjoys: the research, the complexity, but also the sense of freedom. As a freelancer, she feels more appreciated, though at times she works below her skill level, which frustrates her. She is also concerned with substance; when she feels she’s constantly covering for others, it wears her down as it isn’t her own choice. Things at home are going well now, but in the past, her husband was very rigid, always holding his own opinions, and it was a constant struggle for her. Since the pandemic, her sleep has changed—she wakes up every 2 or 3 hours, sees the clock, then falls back asleep. Her dreams are “very realistic.” Her energy is good, and she perks up after 9 PM. Her periods were always very heavy, and after having children, she received hormone supplements.AnalysisPhases 3 and 5 are prominent: Doing a lot, restlessness, and drive, wanting more both at work and in leisure, fit with Phase 5. Her demeanor, the undertone, fits more with caution, adaptation, balance, and equilibrium, depending on the situation, which aligns with Phase 3.
A Q-search was performed using the keyword “sinus” and Phases 3-5, which pointed to Lobelia inflata as a possibility, and a Q-search with the keyword “kidney” suggested Echium vulgare. Lamiidae fits the characteristics of Classes 6 and 5.
Gold series: The key issue is “not being able to choose for herself,” the theme of autonomy, both for herself and her partner, and sinus complaints.
Silver series: Creativity, the theme of appreciation, investigation, another culture, throat, and airways. Her way of looking, searching with her eyes, using flowery language, philosophical interest, and attention to meaning and language is also characteristic of Lamiidae, suggesting reflection on what she says and interpreting the reactions of the listener.
Stage 11: This fits the tension she wants to maintain, as well as the theme of protection, preserving, and holding on to success or results.
Prescription: Echium vulgare C200.Follow-upAfter 5 weeks. She quickly felt better, no longer getting annoyed at things, and was now able to view everything more lightly, which eliminated her frustrations. Her energy improved, and she even had to be careful not to overdo things; she needed to hold herself back. She now has energy all day without slumping, even though it was a very busy time. The tension and frustration that were always bottled up are
now gone. Work remains enjoyably, but she can now view it differently, knowing she has the freedom to choose. The feeling of freedom has returned. By the fifth week, she was on vacation and, after just a few days, felt fully rested and quickly transitioned, whereas it used to take her weeks to feel calm. She now felt completely “disconnected” and had forgotten all about work, whereas before, it felt like she was “under a blanket.” She still speaks quickly, moves a lot, and gestures decisively with her hands. A few days after taking Echium, she experienced old complaints returning—stabbing pains in her toes, hands, and knees. She also briefly had some back pain again, radiating to her legs, just like 20 years ago. She goes to bed late because “everything is still so fun,” reads books, wakes up refreshed, and needs less sleep. She has regained her lightheartedness and is very happy with herself. At work, she had a period with deadlines, which was almost impossible due to the lack of time, but she didn’t push herself beyond her limits. She’s no longer light-headed, is very organized, and stays focused during conversations. She no longer reaches for coffee or sweets. She is more inclined to do fun things again, such as watching movies.
Follow-up after 4 months: In the past month, she had a week of bladder complaints with mild fever every evening, but medication wasn’t necessary. She continues to feel good, with good energy, and her mood is no longer overstimulated. She is still looking for different work, as she dislikes “filling gaps” and wants to do something more meaningful. Sitting behind a screen all day makes her irritable. Her joints are now fine, the sinusitis has not returned, though she occasionally has a mild cold, and she sleeps through the night. Over the next year, she continued to do well.