POLYCHRESTS

ARG-NIT
ARSENICUM
AURUM
BRYONIA
CALC-CARB
CAUSTICUM
CHINA
IGNATIA
KALI-CARB
LACHESIS
LILIUM-TIG
LYCOPODIUM
MERCURIUS
NAT-MUR
NUX-VOM
PHOSPHOROUS
PLATINA
PULSATILLA
RHUS-TOX
SEPIA
SILICA
STAPHYSAGRIA
SULPHUR
THUJA
VERATRUM

Lycopodium is one of the most fundamental remedies and is classed with Sulphur and Calcarea as part of the triad (Lyc - Sulph - Calc). The word which Vithoulkas uses to describe the essence of Lycopodium is "cowardice". The patient often has marked feelings of inferiority which he constantly tries to overcome. This liability is faced in two different ways.
I) <<Inferiority.>> One type of Lycopodium feels this lack in himself and becomes very shy, introverted, soft and often becomes rather a loner. This type has many fears and even phobic states such as agoraphobia or develops anxiety about health, fear to be alone at night, fears about death and survival. Often, however, the main fear is of people.
II) <<Egotism.>> The other type of Lycopodium takes a sort of counter-phobic response to this inner lack of confidence. Thus the patient becomes bombastic, egotistical, bragging, acting extroverted and assertive. Lycopodium is the main remedy under the rubric, "love of power".
<<Self-control.>> Another aspect of Lycopodium is lack of discipline. For example, Lycopodium is the remedy that most craves sweets and eats them to the extent that it is detrimental to his well-being. The same is true in the sexual sphere. The Lycopodium patient will often be promiscuous, making passes at any potentially available woman, even the receptionist. It is not that the patient has a stronger sex drive than the average person but rather that he has a superficial interest which he constantly seeks to satisfy.
<<Commitment.>> The Lycopodium patient fears forming long-term relationships. He fears the responsibility of commitment. One aspect of this lack of commitment is a fear of impotence. The patient functions normally with a new partner but later notices he lacks the original excitement and finally develops impotence. Meanwhile he can easily be aroused by other women. Finally he announces to her that he "just doesn't find her attractive." And he may try to convince himself he never really loved her.
<<Children>>. Both of the two basic types described above can be seen in Lycopodium children. Many of the children are angry, bossy, and rude to parents who are too "permissive". The parents are often perplexed to find that at school the child gets good conduct scores because this bullying attitude is not tolerated. But the more usual Lycopodium child is extremely shy. He has an inner sense of weakness and in many cases he does in fact lack the normal child's stamina. Rough physical games are frightening and exhausting and in no way attractive to him. The features are usually fine or even delicate. His head may be overly large for his body. The parents describe the child as being "cautious" or fearful of rough games, bikes, slides, or swimming. As the child develops he turns more of his energies to intellectual pursuits such as reading, hobbies, or computers.
<<Physical>>. On the physical level, the most affected organ system is the gastrointestinal tract and the liver. Lycopodium covers a wide variety of chronic conditions and is also an important remedy for acute illness. Though often considered an anti-psoric remedy, Lycopodium covers all miasms. It should also be remembered that as in all of our polycrests, many cases which need Lycopodium will show little or none of the personality described above.

Mind.
PROBLEMS OF SELF-ESTEEM AND LOW CONFIDENCE.
BULLYING, DOMINEERING, ARROGANT BEHAVIOR TO FAMILY AND THOSE WITH LESS AUTHORITY, OBSEQUIOUS TO SUPERIORS.
<<Intellectual and withdrawn. Depression.>>
<<Anxiety: about health, about conflicts, about career.>>
WEEPS FROM SENTIMENTAL EVENTS OR UPON BEING THANKED.
<<Reverses letters and words while reading and speaking.>>
STAGE FRIGHT.
Fears: Ghosts. Cancer. Alone, at night. People. Claustrophobia. Commitment and marriage. Public speaking. Agoraphobia.
Averse to company yet dreads being alone.

General.
RIGHT-SIDED PROBLEMS OR RIGHT GOING TO LEFT.
GENERAL AGGRAVATION FROM 4 TO 8 PM OR 3 TO 7 PM.
<<General aggravation in morning on waking.>>
<<General amelioration in the evening or at midnight.>>
<<Generally worse from missing a meal or from fasting.>>
<<Generally better open air>> <<(even though he may be chilly).>>
Usually chilly patients although many are warm-blooded.
Appearance: Fine features, deep furrows at jowls or brow, anxious appearance, baldness, obese or heavy only in thighs and buttocks.
Acutes.
Pharyngitis, often right-sided or begin on the right side and travel to the left, better from either warm or cold drinks. Tonsillitis.
Pneumonia, great dyspnea, prostration, frothy sputum, rattling chest uses accessory muscles, flares nostrils, forehead furrowed.
Cholecystitis.
Kidney stone colic, right side, may note a reddish sand in the urine.

Head.
Headache, worse right side, worse 4 to 8 PM, worse heat of the bed.
Cracks in the canthi of the eyes.
Eruptions of the scalp, behind the ears; acne; eczema; psoriasis.
Nasal obstruction, worse at night in bed; snuffles of newborns.
FLARING OF THE ALAE NASI IN ASTHMA OR PNEUMONIA.
Right facial neuralgia.
Right-sided otitis media.
DEEP FURROWS OF THE BROW OR JOWLS.
GREY HAIR (head or beard) in streaks or patches, mainly right side.

Throat.
Right-sided pharyngitis or begins on right side and moves to left.
Throat pain better warm drinks, but some cases better cold drinks.

Gastro-intestinal.
Craving: SWEETS. Alcohol. Warm drinks.
Aversion: Oysters. COLD DRINKS or food.
Disordered by oysters, onions, cabbage, etc.
<<Loud rumbling in the abdomen.>>
BLOATED AND DISTENDED ABDOMEN, AMELIORATED BY ERUCTATION AND FLATUS, WORSE EATING EVEN SMALL AMOUNTS OF FOOD.
<<Early satiety.>>
<<Huge appetite; ravenous; appetite increases while eating.>>
WAKES AT NIGHT TO EAT. BULIMIA.
Stomach pains better by rubbing the abdomen.
Abdomen sensitive to the weight of clothing.
Stool begins hard or constipated and then turns soft or liquid.
Hepatitis, acute or chronic cases.
Cholecystitis with pains worse from eating and deep inhalation.
Inguinal hernia.
<<Heartburn. Sour eructations>> (Rob, Sulph).

Urinary and Sexual Organs.
Painful urging for urination.
Right-sided kidney stones. Reddish sediment in the urine.
Enuresis.
Prostatitis. Prostatic hypertrophy.
Right ovarian cysts or tumors.
<<Sexual promiscuity, adultery.>> Frigidity is also common.
<<Premature ejaculation.>>
IMPOTENCE, especially with his wife.
<<Herpes>>, especially right-sided and extending down thigh.

Chest.
Asthma; chronic dry tickling cough.
Pneumonia, especially right-sided.
Palpitations, worse evening in bed, worse indigestion or over-eating.

Extremities.
Back pain better from urination.
Torticollis (Lachn, Caust, Nux-V, Strych, Rhus-T).
Sciatica, worse lying on the side, better walking.
Hip pain, worse first walking but better from motion.
Podagra, especially right-sided.
Uncovers the feet in bed.
Eczema. Psoriasis. Warts. Tinea.
CRACKS ON HEEL.
ONE HAND OR FOOT MUCH COLDER THAN THE OTHER.
<<Feet offensive.>>

Sleep.
<<Sleeps only on the right side.>>
<<Waking from hunger>>.
Waking as from a fright.
<<Extremely unrefreshed in the morning.>>

Clinical.
Allergy. Anxiety. Arthritis. Asthma. Bronchiolitis. Bronchitis. Bulimia. Cerebral accidents. Cholecystitis. Chronic fatigue syndrome. Cirrhosis. Colic. Colitis. Connective tissue disease. Crohn's disease. Cystitis. Depression. Developmental delay. Diabetes. Eczema. Gout. Headache. Hepatitis. Hernia. Herpes. Hypertension. Impotence. Irritable bowel syndrome. Kidney stones. Leukemia. Malignancy. Migraine. Neuralgia. Otitis media. Ovarian cysts.
Peptic ulcer. Pharyngitis. Pneumonia. Premature ejaculation. Pyelonephritis. Sarcoidosis. Scleroderma. Sinusitis. Systemic lupus. Tinea. Tonsillitis. Urethritis. Urinary tract infection. Uterine fibroid. Vaginitis. Warts.

Relationship.
Complementary.
Puls. Lach. Nat M. Sulph. Sep. Iod. Chel.
Comparisons.
Thuj - Low self-esteem, worse from onions, chilly, eczema, herpes, offensive feet.
Ars - Anxiety, chilly, thirsty in sips, desires warm drinks, needs some company, right-sided complaints, asthma.
Arg-N - Craves sweets, bloated, eructations, anxious, claustrophobia, generally better open air.
Sulph - Anxious and intellectual, desires sweets, extroverted and arrogant, worse fasting, offensive feet, feet uncovered, general worse from fasting, gastrointestinal complaints.
Mag-M - Liver and gastrointestinal problems, worse in morning, unrefreshed sleep.
Med. Carb-V. Graph. Nat-M. Nit-Ac.