It is said that the initial action of Opium is to
ameliorate the pain sensation, but after some time, the same patient becomes hypersensitive
to pain and in fact experiences more pain than before. Opium exhibits some of the symptoms of
Arnica also i.e. a dry nature, the thickening of the blood (hyper-coagulable),
and the tendency to clot. The Homoeopathic form of Opium, like Arnica, works as
a blood thinner and helps in the dissolution of a clot already formed
(anticoagulant and thrombolytic). In particular, it is a must in the treatment
of clotting of blood inside the brain (cerebral
thrombosis).
In case of sudden rupture of the arteries in the brain (cerebral
haemorrhage) causing unconsciousness,
prompt administration of Arnica and Opium given together in very
high potency, works wonderfully well. In this situation, Arnica alone is not of
much use. Arnica and Opium given
together give a new lease of life to the blood.
The patient starts to gain alertness, the body starts
warming up and the coagulability of the blood becomes normalized. As already
mentioned, Opium is a strong hypnotic. The patient of Opium remains either asleep or drowsy. On the other hand,
he may sometimes be unable to sleep altogether. In Coffea also the patient loses
sleep and becomes hypersensitive. When unable to sleep, the Opium patient
becomes hypersensitive, restless and confused. If the patient loses sleep due
to Opium, then Coffea will induce sleep. If the patient loses sleep after
drinking coffee, then Nux Vomica as well as Opium will help the patient go to
sleep. People suffering from severe
constipation with the dried up intestines and who have no feeling
for opening the bowels, can be treated with Opium. Sometimes, the Opium
patients can suffer from dysentery associated with severe gripes. The stools
are very soft.
A typical patient of Opium is a complete coward. He is scared of the dark.
His thoughts are fearful. He lacks comprehension so much so that he cannot even
understand his own disease. He remains drowsy or semi-conscious. On beings
startled, he feels dizzy. Opium resembles Sulphur also. Sulphur
stimulates the natural percepivity of the patient. Sometimes, even the true
homoeopathic remedies fail to work as expected; a dose or two of Sulphur makes them
effective once again. Opium also, reactivates the suppressed and inactive body
defences. Moreover, a typical Sulphur patient also happens to be extremely lazy
and a philosopher.
In Opium, the muscles
at the upper end of the throat become weak. They cannot direct the food to the
gullet, which may then enter the nose or the windpipe and cause severe choking. The person can
even die. Opium plays a significant role in averting this
tendency. The Opium addict can be
extremely insensitive and unresponsive to his own sickness. His mind remains
preoccupied with all kinds of fears. He has to be subjected to treatment under
duress. Similarly, Opium produces
dryness in the body. However, during a fever, the patient may sweat profusely,
yet the fever does not subside. This is
peculiar for Opium. There is frequent hot sweating as during the summer rains.
It does not lower the body temperature. Rather, it makes the patient feel
hotter.
An Opium addict loves to eat. He is ever hungry but
continues to feel weak. In spite of overeating, he is thin and lean. The
patient vomits frequently after injection of morphine. With homoeopathic Opium treatment,
the patient feels better. Opium can also be a good remedy for vomiting during the pregnancy untreatable
otherwise. In Opium, the patient continues to feel hungry even when nauseated. However, soon after taking the food he
throws up. Due to a slowdown
of the digestive system, the food stagnates in the stomach, causing nausea and vomiting. Later
on, the appetite is completely lost. The patient cannot eat any more and
becomes very weak. In this particular situation, Chamomilla may be found as
effective as Opium in controlling the vomiting. Seasickness can be effectively treated with
Chamomilla or Opium used alone or in combination. In Opium, the patient feels cramps in his head, hands and feet. The hands are shaky and numb.
Tonic convulsions / spasms of the extremities are not uncommon. The limbs may
also shake. The pupils of the eyes become dilated and show no reaction to
light.
In an Opium patient, the headache begins at the nape of the neck,
which then spreads downwards to both sides of the neck.
The entire head feels numb and heavy. The patient becomes intolerant to the slightest
movement like the blinking of the eye. Therefore, he remains lying down
completely still with his eyes closed. The sudden spasm of muscles,
wrenching of the hands and feet and convulsions
of all types may be treated with Opium if other symptoms of Opium
are also present.
Opium plays a very important role in treating meningitis, which usually
affects children severly. A timely use of Opium can save the child from serious
sickness. In this condition, it is difficult to make the correct diagnosis
based on the apparent symptoms alone. A good homoeopath should be well
conversant with these remedies beforehand for their effective use.
If, out of fear a patient starts suffering from spasm of the muscles,
wrenching of the hands and feet or starts having hysteria or epilepsylike fits,
then Opium should be given in high potency. The severe form of epilepsy arising out of fear and tending
to be permanent can sometimes be cured with a single dose of Opium
in very high potency. It must be remembered that Opium will be effective in the treatment
of epilepsy arising only out of fear.
The epileptic fits associated with Opium usually occur during
sleep. They begin with a scream. The patient has nightmares about black
objects, devil, fire or massacre. A strange type of fear sets in the
mind of the patient. Sometimes, he feels as if someone is taking him
away. If besides fear, the mind
becomes affected due to sudden joyful news leaving bad aftereffects, then the patient can be treated
with Coffea besides Opium. An Opium patient is given to gossiping and telling lies
without any reason. Unfortunately, the patient does not realise this himself
but continues in this bad habit.
Lead
poisoning causes gripe and colic in the abdomen. A single dose of
Opium can immediately relieve the colic. However Opium is not of much use in
the treatment of chronic lead poisoning. It works only in the acute form of
lead poisoning.
An Opium patient is always dozing. He has no special wish
or demand. His pulse becomes slow. Generally, he is severely constipated. Sometimes, out of fear, he may
develop diarrhoea passing
dark offensive stools. The bladder becomes weak. The patient may have retention
of urine or passes only scanty amounts.
The hearing of the patient becomes unusually sharp. He can perceive noises
from a great distance. The patient snores a lot and may even feel choked. The
ailments become worse during sleep. His symptoms subside with cold drinks and
on walking about.
In women, periods may stop out of fear. The labour pains may also
stop during childbirth. The woman becomes unconscious and has convulsions.
She may suddenly become unconscious or drowsy.
Sometimes, she may even abort due to fear. Breathing becomes difficult.
There is a sort of burning sensation inside the chest. During a severe bout of
coughing, the face may become cyanosed interspersed with red spots.
In Opium, the patient is insensitive
to pain. The nerve endings become functionally dead and unable to
convey the true message of pain sensation. Thus, the wounds neither heal
properly nor hurt. Homoeopathic Opium
will rekindle the inner body response activating the natural defence system of
the body.