Citrullus lanatus 3-644.76.04
A 75-year-old woman. Her build is fragile, but she comes across as a wiry woman. She wears large glasses that magnify her eyes, she is self-willed. She is reserved, lives at a distance from the outside world, but is very involved in it. She has periods of feeling down and sleeping less. Last winter, she suddenly developed chest symptoms near the sternum, with anxiety complaints and intense warmth in that area. She has practiced meditation for a long time and has been using antidepressants for 40 years. It is related to her past: when she was 15, her younger sister died near their home. Her sister was also her friend, and they slept together. In the first years after her sister’s death, she would panic in hospitals or upon seeing a hearse. Later, she was married for years to an alcoholic, with many "incidents," violence, and trauma. In a new relationship, she became pregnant, triggering panic again: seeing an ambulance made her avoid going outside, fear of leaving the city. Anxiety and panic also occurred during her first relationship, with sudden warmth around her heart and sternum. This still happens in small rooms. She has a hernia on her left side and goes to the pain clinic for injections. Her knees are worn out. She uses medication to sleep because she has difficulty falling asleep.
Her head becomes full of all kinds of "nonsense," she doesn’t quite know what, and she keeps thinking about unpleasant things, waking up repeatedly. During the day, she keeps busy and spends a lot of time outdoors, which she enjoys. Her low mood also occurs in the summer; sitting indoors makes it worse. Spending time cycling outdoors helps. She has disturbing dreams, such as one where someone collapses and dies on stage in a crowded hall. Another dream involves work: she can’t manage it, and a long line of people is waiting. In the past, she would wake up and suddenly leap out of bed in a panic, thinking she was going to die. With content she tells she has never reported being sick.
Analysis
Phase 7 is prominently present, with themes of loss, grief, alcohol, trauma, and panic as a loss of control.
Initially, Q-search was conducted using the keyword "escape" and Phase 7. No matches according her story.
"Escape on waking" is a well-known rubric in the repertory, a straightforward symptom, potentially characteristic of her. However, the mentioned medications did not match.
A Q-search using the keyword "death" and filtering for Phase 7–6 was attempted. Phase 6 was considered due to the partner and the theme of her ‘retreat’ from life, feeling depressed from the perception that "life has no value anymore." This aligns with Phase 6 in case studies. This search yielded two possible matches:
Calypso and Citrullus. Citrullus is known for improvement in "open air," placed in the botanical class Cucurbitales (Phase 7 within Iron series4) and the Benincasoideae family, Subphase 6.
This method of analysis uses a "backward reasoning" approach: recognizing what matches the presented possibilities. Is there more evidence for this option in her story? This woman still dreams about work and emphasizes "always working," which seems to have been her anchor: fitting for Iron series, where being busy helps. Citrullus is placed in Stage 4, recognizable in her way of speaking, with questioning sentences and constant wondering. This overlaps with Stadium 4 and the "doubt or uncertainty" aspect. Her eyes suggested that she views the world from a distance, retreating inward repeatedly, well-known in Cerium (a Stage 4 remedy), characterized by a reserved self-awareness.
Prescription: Citrullus lanatus C200.
Follow-up
After four weeks she experienced diarrhea for a few days but wasn’t greatly bothered by it. After two days, she stopped using sleep medication, having previously always relied on oxazepam. She now falls asleep easily with meditation.
Those "thoughts" are still there but less intrusive. She went on a flight for vacation and, for the first time, managed without a calming tablet. Her antidepressant (fevarin, used for 35 years) has also been tapered off.
She drove to the appointment today, before she used to fear getting lost. Dream: She was in a very bare room with a newborn baby and thought, "Now I have to clean the windows again" (the symbolism of a baby in a dream represents the future). She still dreams about work. Her hernia has been manageable now, with little discomfort. She no longer feels low in the mornings and now simply thinks about what she will do that day.
Her smartwatch indicates deep sleep in recent weeks, something she never experienced before. In the months that followed, she woke up in panic only once, jumping out of bed, but it hasn’t happened again since. She feels better and no longer has those unpleasant emotions. Recently, she often reflects on whether she has done enough for her children ("doubt or uncertainty" aligns with Stadium 4). The thought of "Have I done enough?" is characteristic of Fabidae, Iron series.