VERATRUM ALBUM

 
 In Veratrum Album, the patient feels extremely cold from head to toe.  It is one of the most effective treatments of cholera. Dr. Hahnemann advises its use even before the onset of a cholera epidemic. In the effectiveness against cholera, it is comparable to Camphor and Cuprum. In Veratrum Album, the stools are exuberant, rendering the patient extremely weak.

A prominent feature of Veratrum is that the patient feels extremely cold yet is drenched in cold sweats from head to toe. Similar symptoms are also found in Camphor, though the stools are scanty. In Veratrum Album, the stools are watery and exuberant, causing severe dehydration which may even lead to death.  Cramps in the legs are an essential feature of Veratrum Album, Camphor and Cuprum as well as of cholera.  A rather contradictory symptom of Veratrum Album is dryness of the gastro-intestinal tract. It is an extremely effective treatment of diarrhoea, as well as for severe constipation. Severe chronic constipation, associated with a feeling of weakness and cold sweats can well be treated with Veratrum Album. Veratrum Album can still be useful even if the weakness and cold sweats are absent. In severe constipation, Veratrum Album 30 should be used two to three times a day. It gradually softens the abdomen by alleviating the dryness of the intestines. It is recommended however that prior to the treatment with Veratrum Album, severe constipation may better be relieved with an enema or glycerine suppositories. This will soften the dry voluminous stools which are otherwise impossible to pass naturally.  Veratrum Album, like Carbo Veg, may also be tried in the treatment of cold sweats associated with severe irreversible shock and impending death.

The Veratrum Album patient happens to be irritable and is easily provoked due to the constant feeling of cold. If he is kept warm all the time, he becomes mellow, showing that the irritability is not his nature Some Veratrum Album patients are religious fanatics. They talk loudly and rapidly. At some times, they may be extremely talkative, and at others absolutely silent. During the period of silence, they become extremely depressed and have the tendency to commit suicide. A suicidal tendency is found in many other remedies. In rare instances, Veratrum Album can also be used to treat the suicidal tendency. 

Premenstrual tension and sadness in young girls may well be cured with Veratrum Album. If untreated, this condition is likely to result in life-long mental illness. There is no smile left on their faces. The physician should remember well that the feeling of extreme cold is the most important indication for the use of Veratrum Album.  There are many inconsistencies in the constitution of Veratrum Album, such as the fact that the head is not cold even though the rest of the body may be ice-cold. Sometimes, the head feels submerged in ice especially at the scalp and the nape, quite unlike Sulphur. In Sulphur, the top of the head feels burning hot. In a Veratrum Album patient, in spite of feeling extreme cold, the patient likes to drink cold water. Fruits produce gas in the stomach. Despite the feeling of nausea and vomiting, there is a feeling of scraping inside the stomach and the craving for food.