Cochlearia officinalis
Scientific: Cochlearia officinalis; Nasturtium cochlearia; Crucifera cochlearia, Cochlearia pyrenaica. English: Spoonwort, Scorbute-grass, Scurvy-grass.
German: Löffelkresse, Scharbockskraut.
Dutch: lepelblad.
Introduction
The most important keynote of cochlearia is " stomach pains radiating to sides and back". This keynote is not mentioned in the repertory but it is in Boericke. Boericke describes Cochlearia armoracia and doesn’t mention officinalis. But I took it as a keynote for officinalis by mistake and it proved to be correct. it probably is a keynote for the whole cochlearia family.
Botanical description: The plant grows 20 cm. high. It has a juicy stalk with few leaves. The round, heart - or kidney shaped leaves are to be found at the bottom of the stalk. The flowers are white, sometimes pink. It prefers a site in or near brackish water.
Mind picture
The picture that emerges is of a woman who has to take care of her sick, difficult, nagging husband.
The first characteristic is a sense of duty, just like the Kaliums have. They have the feeling that it is their duty to take on this task of caring. They have pledged to stand by their partner in sickness and in health. So they can’t evade this responsibility.
The second characteristic is the fact that they actually don’t want to do it, they don’t feel like taking care of a nagging old man. In this respect they are different from the kaliums, who feel it is their duty, so they simply do it. It looks a bit like cimicifuga in the sense of feeling bound and restricted in their relationships. Cochlearia often has dreams of being bound too, of being stuck and not being able to get out. But in cimicifuga the sensation of being restricted is caused by social relations, they feel encaged by their family, neighbours etc. In cochlearia it is their own sense of duty that is restricting them.
They often feel angry and dissatisfied about their task. But they don’t really express their anger, they suffer in silence. Here we find a likeness with the Magnesiums, there is anger, but they are not allowed to express it. The liver complaints and the aggravation at 7 a.m. is also similar to the magnesiums. The difference is that the Magnesiums don’t express their anger out of fear of loosing some- one, while cochlearia feels that their duty forbids them to make a fuss or get angry.
And so they develop a kind of bitterness, they feel disappointed in life. In this respect they look like the Ammoniums, particularly ammonium sulphuricum, because the disappointment and bitterness are linked to the partner. The difference seems to be that cochlearia has the feeling that he has to take care, while this is not a main factor in the Ammoniums. The sour expression can clear- ly be seen on their face, there is little joy left.
The DD with cocculus needs to be made too, because of the element of caring for others. But cocculus does this more lovingly
and based on a feeling of love, while cochlearia does it reluctantly and with bitterness. This is partly because the partner is rather grumpy when ill. The patient is often awkward, demanding, aggressive, demented, helpless or oversexed. This makes their task of looking after their patient even less attractive, the patient is extremely ungrateful.
Cochlearia is sensitive to criticism, particularly with respect to their task of looking after husband and children. They’ll try and prevent the outside world from getting to know that it isn’t all as rosy inside the family as it looks. This reminds us of the Calciums, especially calcium sulphuricum. But in calc-s the sensitivity to criticism is the main theme, while in cochlearia it is only part of the picture.
When I was studying these cases I noticed some more similarities, which I have put together in the summary below. Some of these complaints, like the aggravation from cabbage and sprouts, are understandable because they belong to the cruciferae too. The amelioration from movement and being out in the fresh air fit with the feeling of being stuck; space and movement do improve in such cases, as we also see in Rhus toxicodendron.
Generals
Perspiration: foot, < suppression. Desires: fish, eggs, chocolate.
Aversion:
Physical: << touch. > movement.
Sleep: deep, sleepless.
Complaints
Scurvy.
Headache: < climacteric, + vomiting; as if frontal bone would
Eye: inflammation <<< injury, cataract.
Hearing: less, low sounds.
Coryza.
Mouth: tongue white, taste metallic, offensive odor.
Teeth: pain, dull, as if soft and became bent on chewing; fistula.
Throat: inflammation, mucous, difficult to scrape clear.
Voice: hoarse, lost.
Respiration: fast, asthmatic, < humid; hyperventilation.
Cough: dry, < lying, < tickling larynx.
Stomach pains radiating to both sides and back.
Stomach: burping, eructations like garlic.
Cystitis. Urine: red, albuminous << scarlatina.
Penis: glans, meatus; pain, burning, cutting; < urination, before during and after. gonorrhea; erections: troublesome.
Menses: clotted, frequent, every 2 weeks, absent.
Skin: spots brown; chloasma.