Barium iodatum

6.2.2 Barium iodatum, Case 1A 29 year old man has an inflammation of the glands in the axilla. It starts with a pain deep inside under his arms and then it starts to swell up. The pain is worse on motion, playing sports, lying, heat, and company, because he doesn’t know how to make himself comfortable. It is better at night. he has been operated on it once, without much result.
He also suffers from acne in his neck, back, chest and face. It is a subcutaneous swelling without a head, sometimes it has some blood or pus coming out. Better in the sun and during winter sports.
Three years ago he had stomach problems. There is a family history of acne, prostate cancer and Hodgkin.
He works in a hospital at the cardiology intensive care unit and he loves his work. But when he first came there he felt he did not know enough and was afraid to speak and act. Now he loves the stress, the necessity to be alert at all times. He can remain calm in the most critical situations. But he is also impatient, cannot wait or he will lose interest. ‘Don’t bother anymore’. ‘No use wasting time’.
He is a sociable type of person who likes to have other people around him. he feels insecure deep inside, but he ‘tries to hide it’. He often wonders whether he has acted correctly and likes to be reassured. Once he almost had a nervous breakdown because the atmosphere in his department was very unpleasant and he felt very unsupported.
He is quite clear in his communication with others, but when he can’t make himself clear he will cut himself off. He has difficulty sticking up for himself, he turns bright red and feels awful for hour afterwards. Friends are very important to him. After work he runs around trying to see everyone or to go and play sports with them all. He enjoys his students club and likes inviting friends over for a meal. But when there are more than six of them he feels ‘as if he is going to die’. It is too much to try and entertain such a crowd, the task is too heavy.
He is a nervous type of person, constantly moving his lips and his cheeks and wobbling on his chair.
He is often indecisive about matters of work, what he wants to do eventually and whether he should travel or not. He ends to get depressed in the winter, especially in November.
Fears: doctor, acne, thin.GeneralsWeather: warm, -> open window in winter; -> 10 degree C, cannot tolerate higher than 20 degrees C.
Desires: fruit, oranges, bananas, mashed potatoes, fruit salad, spices (3), mustard (3).
Aversion: sour, fish (2).
Sleep: on left side.AnalysisWhat is striking in this case is the fact that although he feels so unsure of himself, he still chooses to work in the intensive care unit. He is afraid that he won’t know enough and won’t do well enough and he needs a lot of support. This reminds us of either Barium or Calcium. The uncertainty is so strong that I felt inclined to choose Barium, especially because he wants to hide the fact. Barium carbonicum gave only temporary relief.
He feels attracted to the cardiology intensive care because of the stress, he likes to be under a lot of pressure, he is at his best in such situations. It is also related to his restlessness and his impatience. This is a strong Iodum symptom, and the sensitivity to heat confirms this choice. So does the acne and the inflammation of his axillary glands. But we should not overlook Bromium or Fluor for these same symptoms.
However, the restlessness and the acute dangers of intensive care job are more characteristic of Iodum. So is his impatience: ‘I hate time wasters’.
So we get Barium iodatum as the remedy for this case. Typical is the fact that he can’t handle (Barium) having too many people to feed (Iodum).
Other Barium symptoms: blushing, difficult to stand up for himself, much doubt, -> friends.
Other Iodum symptoms: fear of getting too thin, acne, warm, Hodgkin.ReactionOne month after Barium iodatum 1M he tells me that he has much more energy but he takes life easier. He doesn’t feel like running around so much and can quite easily stay at home for an evening. The inflamed glands became much worse to tart with, discharging some bloody pus, but after that it all calmed down. He remained well during the following year.