PHYTOLACCA DECANDRA

PHYTOLACCA DECANDRA

(Poke-root)

Phyt.

Aching, soreness, restlessness, and prostration are key symptoms for Phyt. It is primarily a glandular remedy, addressing glandular swellings with heat and inflammation. It strongly affects fibrous and osseous tissues, fasciae, muscle sheaths, and scar tissue. Useful for syphilitic bone pains and chronic rheumatism. Treats sore throat, quinsy, diphtheria, tetanus, and opisthotonos. Reduces weight and aids in delayed dentition.

Mind: Loss of personal delicacy and indifference to surroundings. Indifferent to life.

Head: Vertigo on rising, soreness in the brain, pain from the frontal region backward, pressure in temples and over the eyes. Scalp rheumatism and scaly eruptions, especially during rain.

Eyes: Smarting, sensation of sand under lids (trachoma), tarsal edges feel hot, fistula lachrymalis (Fl-ac.), and abundant hot lachrymation.

Nose: Coryza with mucus flow from one nostril and posterior nares.

Mouth: Teething children desire to bite, clenched teeth, everted lips, jaws set, chin drawn to sternum, red tongue feeling rough and scalded (glossitis), mouth bleeding, and blisters on the side. Tongue is mapped, indented, fissured, with a yellow patch down the center. Profuse stringy saliva.

Throat: Dark red or bluish-red, pain at the tongue root, swollen soft palate and tonsils, sensation of a lump in the throat (Bell., Lach.), and shooting pain extending to ears when swallowing. Pseudo-membranous exudation, grayish-white, thick, tenacious mucus difficult to dislodge. Cannot swallow anything hot (Lach.). Tension and pressure in the parotid gland. Ulcerated sore throat, diphtheria, and large, dropsical uvula. Quinsy, swollen tonsils and fauces with burning pain. Mumps and follicular pharyngitis.

Abdomen: Sore spot in right hypochondrium, rheumatism of abdominal muscles, colic at the navel, burning griping pains, bruised feeling in epigastrium and abdomen, constipation in the aged or those with weak heart, and rectal bleeding.

Urinary: Scanty or suppressed urine with pain in the kidney region, nephritis.

Male: Painful testicular induration (orchitis), shooting pain along the perineum to the penis.

Female: Mastitis, hard and sensitive breasts, breast tumors with enlarged axillary glands, breast cancer, mammary abscess, pain radiating from nipple during nursing, cracked nipples, and irritable breasts before and during menses. Galactorrhea (Calc.), frequent and copious menses, and right-sided ovarian neuralgia.

Respiratory: Aphonia, dyspnea (asthma), dry hacking cough, worse at night (Menth., Bell.), aching chest pains through mid-sternum with cough, rheumatism of lower intercostals.

Heart: Sensation of heart leaping into the throat (Podo.), shock of pain in cardiac region alternating with pain in the right arm (angina pectoris).

Back: Aching lumbar pain, pains streaking up and down the spine, weakness, and dull pain in kidney region. Stiff back, especially in the morning on rising and during damp weather.

Extremities: Shooting pain in right shoulder with stiffness and inability to raise the arm (see Heart), rheumatic pains worse in the morning, pains flying like electric shocks, shooting, lancinating, shifting rapidly (Puls., Kali-bi.), pain on the underside of thighs, syphilitic sciatica, aching heels relieved by elevating feet, shock-like pains in legs, reluctance to rise, puffed feet, pain in ankles and feet, neuralgia in toes (gout).

Fever: High fever alternating with chilliness and great prostration.

Skin: Itching, dry, shrunken, and pale. Papular and pustular lesions, useful in early stages of cutaneous diseases, boils with sloughing, squamous and syphilitic eruptions, glandular swelling and induration (adenitis), venereal buboes, scarlatina-like rash, warts, and moles.

Modalities: Worse with electric changes, wetness, damp cold weather, night, motion, and right side. Better with warmth, dry weather, and rest.

Relationship: Compare with Tincture of Phytolacca berry (for sore throats and obesity treatment), Bry., Rhus-t., Kali-i., Merc., Sang., Arum-t. Inimical: Merc.
Antidotes: Milk and salt, Bell., Mez.

Dose: Tincture to third potency. Externally for mastitis.