A Pediatric Case
by Gail Derin
He wanted to be naked all the time and would even go outside naked if mom didn't stop him.
He is calmer and his father says he is more reasonable. |
5/95, a 3-year-old
boy whom I will call Eric (not his real name) came with
his mom for a homeopathic consultation. I noticed right
away that he was very precocious. He was very attentive
to the new surroundings of my office, checking it out
from floor to ceiling. The mother reported that Eric was very sensitive to people and also very aggressive. Yet if another child he would hit him, he would cry, even if he wasn't hit hard (Mind, Sensitive, Children). He would strike out at other kids easily, (Mind, Striking), yet was surprised if they retaliated. This week he bit the dog twice in the ear (Mind, Biting). He also bit his mom in the shoulder. When she asked him why he did that, he said it was because he had a headache. On the other hand, he would go up to strangers and ask them why they were sad. Mom reported that he can be sweet but he is grouchy and mean if he doesn't feel well. If he is not feeling well, he will strike his 6 week old sister. Also, when he is sick he will be contrary, ask for a toy but throw it down when given to him. Lycopodium was given by another homeopath a year ago. Mom reported that it helped to some degree with the tantrums. Right before he was born, this homeopath also gave the mom Lycopodium 1M. Eric has a tendency to run high fevers around 104 degrees. He hates to have his hair washed. (I was thinking of Belladonna at this point with the striking, high fevers, and aversion to hair washing). He holds his ears around noise (Mind, Sensitive To Noise), which at times doesn't even have to be loud. Observation: At first in the office he was quiet and watched my interaction with him and his mom with little response to my questions. Within half an hour he was interrupting his mom and then me to ask about things around the office. He laid down on my couch, began kicking the pillows (Mind, Impulsive), and would ignore his mom when she asked him to stop (Children, Restless, Murphy's repertory). He grabbed a pen from his mom's purse and continually poked hard at his palm with the pen. He appeared not to pay attention to our conversation and would sing louder and louder. However, at one point he corrected his mother's story about the birth of his sister when we thought he was paying no attention to us. (I also had thoughts of Tuberculinum at this point). He often climbs into his parents' bed at night and kicks them in his sleep. He has nightmares but says he doesn't remember them. It is very hard to get him to fall asleep. He will either want the TV on or someone in his room before he can go to sleep. He is wound up at night and gets angry at bedtime and wants to stay up late. Sometimes he plays with his toys in the middle of the night or turns the TV on at that time (Night, 9 P.M. to 5 A.M. amel.). As an infant he had bad diaper rash and a rash on his scrotum. He goes in and out of being toilet trained. At times he will go to the toilet unassisted, other times he will have a bowel movement in his pants. When questioned about this, he says he doesn't want to stop playing to poop. He had a few bouts of bedwetting. This symptom comes and goes. The mom could not attribute it to any pattern, though. He bites his fingernails (Mind, Biting, Nails) and toenails. Last year it was hard to keep clothes on him. He wanted to be naked all the time and would even go outside naked if mom didn't stop him. He sleeps either on his abdomen or back. He has a few warts on his knee in a cluster (Skin, Warts). He talks a lot about the difference between his sister and him and will grab his penis frequently to show people who come to the house the difference. Family history: His father was adopted, so no family medical history is known. The mother's father has a cardiac history. Her mother has diabetes. Eric's nose runs all the time and he had earaches as an infant. He wants to rock his sister and sing to her and can be very sweet with her. At times he wants to help mom when she is cooking a meal and gets upset if he isn't allowed to help. He craves sweets and meat (Generalities Or Stomach,food And Drinks, Meat, Desires). He eats all kinds of fruits and likes pickles. When I later questioned his mom about fruits in particular, she said her favorite fruit was oranges but didn't know what kind of fruit he liked best. I prescribed Medorrhinum 30C. Follow up 7/95. Doing better with fewer tantrums. A week after the remedy he smashed a caterpillar because the neighbor's kid wanted to take it from him. He cried later over what he had done. It was new for him to show remorse over killing insects. He no longer grabbed himself and began to go to bed at 10 PM, still late for a three year old, but better than before. He slept with his parents only a few times and slept more soundly. He has not bit anyone or the dog since then. Follow up 10/95. Rash at his scrotum came and went in a few days. He was irritable during that time and did not sleep well. His nose still runs. His warts seem to be going away, but not completely. He is calmer and his father says he is more reasonable. He can reason with his son if he doesn't want him to do something. He is not as impulsive and not as quick to blame his playmate who lives down the street. Follow up 3/96. Mother reported Eric is doing well with no complaints from his teacher in preschool. The teacher comments how smart he is and that he excels with kinesthetic learning exercises and doesn't like to sit still. (But how many kids do?) His nose is not running. He had another wart come up but doesn't remember where because it went away. Nothing else significant to report when I questioned her.  |
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