Author:
Elaine Smith
Book:
Journal
Type:
Case
Chapter:
2017.01.03
A remedy of Burseraceae
Man, 51, asthma, emotional issue
He is a lawyer working as an administrative judge. His asthma recently returned. He has coughing, phlegm, runny nose, hoarseness, accelerated and uncomfortable breathing, with a feeling that he cannot control his breathing. It is worse when he is at work. He is gasping in air in order to be able to talk; talking is interrupted by coughing fits. It is better at home, even if he is talking a lot. A few weeks ago, he had dark phlegm from the lungs, which was cleared up with antibiotics. He is taking steroid medications which reduce the cough and phlegm.
He feels very competent at this job. His responses to the lawyers roll out of his mouth without having to think. He enjoys the “whole chess game.” However, when he is listening to a party on the stand tell his story, he thinks, “Who am I to be the one who makes this judgement?” He does not have any trouble knowing which party should prevail, but he feels a weight, a solemnity, that he must decide something that will have great impact on the parties’ lives. He is feeling an empathy that he never felt before. Things are no longer black and white, there’s more grey.
His parents came to New York City to escape poverty, ran a store, lived above it, and made sure their two children got an education. He worked sometimes with his father in the store and he modelled his approach to life on his mother, who he regarded as very strong. The store was robbed many times, and his father shot at. He had to learn how to survive in a tough neighbourhood. His father died a few years ago.
One year ago, he had to place his mother in care for dementia. He was very aggressive with the nursing home staff, believing they were not giving proper care. They closed ranks against him, and pushed back. Eventually he came to understand that the care was very good, even though some staff were incompetent. His realized he had approached the whole situation wrong.
In any situation he will do what is right, even if it means losing face, or eating crow. He is an active Catholic, though he will question church leadership. He has always been willing to do whatever it takes to care for this family. His immediate family is very close and stable. His wife tells him he is “not his old self.”
He dreams of trying to help someone with some serious problem, but he is unable to fix it.
He is nervous about being recorded. He is always impeccably dressed, very stylish, handsome.
He also in the past year had a strange aching pain that started in his upper right arm, and over 8 weeks, travelled to the back of his shoulder, down his shoulder blade to the middle back, then disappeared. He had to sleep propped up on soft pillows.
Color selection: 23C
Analysis
Plant: He has previously done well with mineral and animal remedies, but now his problem is to learn to deal with an empathy, an ability to see both sides, which he never felt before.
Silver series: lawyer, judge, loves the game of law; lung and speaking problems; well-dressed; nervous about being recorded
Phase 4: stable family; will do whatever it takes for the family; competent; responsible; morally upright
Sapindales: Catholic; judge; parents made sure of his education, to make something of himself, escaping poverty
Subphase 3: things are no longer black and white; no longer his old aggressive self; mother destabilized with dementia
Burseraceae: feels guilty when he has to rule against someone; empathy; dramatic pains in arm and back; when taking care of this mother, he comes into conflict with the culture of the nursing home.
Stage 13: confident, but pushed back; he withdraws from his old aggressive self; blamed the “incompetent” nursing home staff, but eventually lost faith in his approach
A remedy of Burseraceae: ailments from seeing the suffering of the world; caring; responsible
Result
After one dose of a remedy of Burseraceae, the nasal discharge and hoarseness immediately aggravate then everything improves in a few days. He dreams of watching someone solve other people’s problems. Ten weeks later, the power of his voice is back, he has clarity of thought, sleeping better, and when resting it is peaceful. Now he understands the grey, it is not weighing on him. He has become more contemplative, which before he found boring. He is leaving leadership in the church to others and reading about the spiritual life of great religious originators, and about spiritual things that have been perverted by religion. He still has slight hoarseness, and has to clear his throat. He takes one dose of his old remedy, which brings on “cold” symptoms, then the problem is quickly and completely resolved.
In 2000, he had remission of his asthma with a Kalium compound remedy, after he got burned out from demands of his large extended family and his job. In 2007, he had remission from a bird remedy, after he become very irritated with the demands of his immediate family. It worked again in 2010 when he became overwrought about the elections and political issues.