4.13 Gallium, Case 1
A 43 year old man has come complaining of inflamed joints and psoriasis. The skin is red and scaling, worse on the outside of elbows and knees. Sun and Sauerland ameliorate. It started on his sternum when he was 17. Later on it went to his nails. The proximal joint of his middle finger and the distal joint of his little finger and his toes are the worst affected by the inflammations. Alcohol and eating aggravate the complaints. His blood pressure is too high so he stopped smoking and went on a diet. He lost 20 kilo’s and since then his blood pressure has been much better.
He was the youngest child and when he was 14 the others had left home and he was the only child there when his father got ill. His father got a heart attack and later on a brain tumour. He had just joined the military service at age 17 when his father died. he had to take over his father’s role to support his mother.
His father had always been quite strict, a bit overprotective and formal rather than emotional. He had been collecting ‘worldly rags’ to be able to pay for his children’s studies. When he got ill the business went down and he was declared bankrupt. His mother was left with a lot of debts to pay. And when it was his turn to go to college there was nothing left. None of his brothers who had been able to finish their studies offered to help their mother. So he decided he would break with his brothers and sisters and sort it out himself. ‘You can all go to hell, don’t worry about me, I’ll sort this out myself’.
He tells me he is a Capricorn, stubborn, likes to manage his own affairs, be his own boss. He talks freely, but tends to sound a bit harsh at times. He doesn’t care a hoot what others think about him or his psoriasis. He is able to give and take and feels you shouldn’t make a big fuss when something goes wrong. Material goods are not that important to him, but he does like to earn a lot of money.
When he was a child he frequently had high fevers with delirium and visions of demons coming out of the wall paper. He has had jaundice and he often gets headaches in his forehead, coming up from the neck and accompanied by nausea.
Generals
Weather: <- too hot, fresh air (2).
Perspiration: profuse, < exertion, < thinking about it.
Time: < winter, < evening.
Desires: meat, salami, garlic, old cheese, brown beans (2), spices.
Aversion: fish (3).
Food: < fish (3), alcohol, peanuts, meat.
Sleep: getting to sleep is difficult at times.
Analysis
He has some typical Gallium character traits: he is stubborn (Stage 13), wants to be his own boss, mange his own affairs. This is confirmed by his indifference to the opinions of other people and the way he speaks quite freely. He was the last in the row (Stage 13) and by that time everything was gone, there was no money to study or to learn a trade (Iron series). He retreats (Stage 13) from his brothers and sisters who have taken everything.
Reaction
One month after Gallium 1M the psoriasis seems to be less severe, the patches are not so bright red and they fade more quickly, although with ups and downs. Nine months later, after 3 more doses of Gallium 1M the psoriasis is as good as gone. He also feels good in himself.