A 63-year-old man, slightly stocky in build, with a posture reminiscent of O. Sacks. He searches within himself for the story, telling it calmly and in stages. He marks out his surroundings, cautiously but confidently. His wife made an appointment for him because of the theme of sensitivity. He leans to the right in his chair, relaxed, radiating calm, patient. His left hand often rests on his right chest. Three years ago, he developed Bell's palsy, which bothered him for a while. It was treated with acupuncture and jaw physiotherapy. He still does a lot of exercises. In the last few months, he has been suffering from stiff muscles again, when chewing, at the corner of his eye and cheek. It has all become so annoying: what should I do about it? It is getting stiffer and stiffer, he has to push the muscles up himself, the cheek. For his job, he has to talk a lot. It is hard work, he is a psychologist, and he is intensively involved in that. The paralysis started suddenly when he woke up, it came during a period of a lot of stress, and he also had a cold sore, herpetic lower lip. His parents had died a few years earlier, which caused a lot of problems with his brothers, emotional tension, and old wounds that he couldn't deal with. Shortly afterwards, he broke off contact, which he thinks had an after-effect for some time. The tension was already there before the death; he had to arrange a lot for his parents, which was emotional and upsetting. Everything in the family was shifting, family issues were coming to the surface, and he also had his hands full as a manager at work. Lately, he has been suffering a lot from stomach, abdominal, and intestinal problems. Tests are negative, ‘twists and turns’, eating extra fiber helps. Lots of gas and pain in the abdomen, lots of wind, quickly feeling bloated, and burping after getting up. Stools are dry, in pieces. At home, in the past: a business, his father was always working, had difficulty with feelings, and overworked himself. His father was also a sensitive person, he did not benefit much from that, he was never able to express it. He self is a sensitive man too, which meant ‘finding my way, without emotional support from parents’. He started to rebel against everything, everything to do with his parents, which brought him a lot. There was never a warm relationship at home; it was not a warm environment. His mother was caring, very focused on the household, and unable to stand up for herself. She complained a lot to him about his father. His brothers had other interests, were mama's boys, while he was more aware of what was going on in the family. He was always very aware of his surroundings and went his way, having little contact with his family for a while. He has a strong capacity for empathy, is sensitive to stimuli, and can quickly ‘read’ how someone is doing. As a child, he was already sensitive, which manifested itself in nervousness and anxiety, and a high pressure to perform. Anxiety has been with him from an early age, and he became interested in how it works. He is glad that he can talk about himself now (‘that was sorely needed’). He has developed a second nature: hiding his emotions, which he realised too late. He remains calm under all circumstances, which was not the case in the past. He has had high blood pressure for 25 years, and it was 180/110. That sensitivity: he has a very active mind, which works differently from others, he can be very preoccupied, he is a thinker. He seems to be able to make connections differently. He always felt different from others, he says with his arms and legs crossed. Sleeping: he often wakes up after three hours. Dreams: When he has a lot to process, he sometimes sees strange things before falling asleep, people he doesn't know. He used to have a lot of ear infections, and in the last year he has had tinnitus; his right ear is sensitive to loud noises. He also has bronchitis, spastic colon, and osteoarthritis of the thumb. Work is enjoyable because of the development and satisfaction it brings. He has suffered from sinus problems his entire life, often has colds, and coughs when he has the flu. He has had problems with this nerve for a long time (he points to a spot on his forehead, above his right eye). In the past, he had spots before his eyes (ocular migraine) during periods of stress while studying, and he had performance anxiety. For him, stress means pushing yourself to the limit. He had migraines until he was ten, which caused him to vomit. He already had performance anxiety at school; when stressed, he became ill, was unable to study, dropped out of school, and started working. That negative self-image consumed all his energy. His hobbies are gardening, walking, and cycling. He always has high muscle tension, which causes torn tendons, holding everything too tightly. The feeling of shutting down. He was a counselor, a manager in addiction care. He was always active, agile, and quick-thinking.
Analysis:
Series 5: Sensitivity and interests are sufficient to look at the Malvidae. He can ‘read’ people. Scanning the environment. Listening, while talking, and reading one's thoughts. Contemplative and philosophical. Neck area, talking – expressing oneself – improves.
Phase 7: Parents dead, breaking contact (as a theme: burdensome, provocative, resolving). The cause of the paresis was the death of parents, failure, Phase 7 7. Out of contact. Addiction (in his work). Dropping out of school, loss of self-image, leaving education. He was different, in his thinking. He is now going to phase out his work, has already said goodbye to it, and no one can take over in this way.
Santalacae: The attitude of keeping distance and seeking and holding on to inner support is familiar from Santalaceae (seen earlier). Later, he often turns out to sense things, to have a premonition, to be in the right place at the right time.
Lophophyllum leandrii: Qjure: they live in a world that others do not understand. Unique as a person, Series 5. Julian, a proving: mind alert, clear. Brilliant. Digestive disorders, occular migraine.
Stage 14: Breakdown, no way out, the situation at home, giving up contact, he could not deal with it.
Prescription: Lophophytum leandrii C30
Follow-up
He was calmer and more relaxed, he slept better, then muscle pain started in his shoulder and neck, on both sides, more than usual. He has started burping and passing gas more, and also sneezing explosively! At night he has gotten warmer, so the window now has to be open. This week, a good friend passed away. Normally, he doesn't show his emotions, but now he has been crying all week. He is more emotionally accessible; he has been locked up for a long time: ‘that's my life’. Now he can no longer ignore his feelings; it happens more automatically. He is calmer, no longer so agitated, and he can express his emotions more easily. A lot of bubbling on the left side, stomach, and intestines. Bell's palsy: muscle tension seems to be less, but it is still tight around the eye. He dreams more, he no longer lies awake for long. Coughing in the morning, some mucus, nose and airways, bowel movements is easier. Blood pressure was low during the first week. The ringing in his ears has been less for two weeks. The cold sore has gone away. An umbilical hernia that has been there for three years starts to hurt, followed by surgery. After that, he gets a throat infection, a feeling of a lump in his throat. He has lost confidence in his own body. He worries less about things. Burping and belching have stopped. The tongue is pale with red edges. It feels as if all the alarm bells are going off, as if everything is being cleared away. Flor de piedra stands for (ball throat), loss of confidence Phase 7, throat Series 5. Lophophytum leandrii is repeated. After a week, he has more energy and can go to sleep later (11 p.m. instead of 9 p.m.).
Additional information he shared later, possibly characteristic of this medicine.
From an early age, he has had a different concentration span; he was too aware of his surroundings and did not engage in everything. He has a very good long-term memory. He has difficulty conforming to others at school; he was often dissatisfied with himself, was at odds with himself, and tried to figure out how he works (Series 5 aspect). He used to be an impulsive child, extroverted, but he has learned to control himself (Stage 14 aspect). Anxiety in the past, fear of failure, and social anxiety. Fear of not being able to do something, perfectionist, is also related to upbringing. It is compensation for feeling inadequate. He is never carefree, and his body has to pay the price for that. He is unable to let go of the tension he has built up throughout his life. He was always on the move, had to move, was always awake early. He sees patterns. He also used to have colic. Because of his anxiety, he began to delve into himself, which enabled him to help and understand others better, even before he knew about psychiatry. His gallbladder was removed because of the colic, and he has had many inflammations of the Achilles tendons. His mind was always active; he automatically thinks far ahead and makes connections. Here we see more of Class 5: interest in how things work, a vision of life, philosophical (more than independence/autonomy), more acceptance and study than reflection in order to function in society or development. Phase 7 aspects: I'm no good, I can't study, I'd better go to work.