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Dulcamara (Dulc.)

Dulcamara (Dulc.) appears in 798 rubrics in the Repertory. Of these, 18 are single-remedy rubrics in which only this remedy is listed, and 68 are small rubrics with no more than two other remedies. The emphasis lies on Discouragement, Delusions, Absent-minded, Delirium, Weeping and Stupefaction; in total number the rubrics on Children, Fear and Irritability lead. The picture is that of a person who goes through the day irritable and scattered, is most beset in the morning and at night, and often discharges his anger without cause.

Anger without Occasion

The core lies in the irritability. Several single-remedy rubrics show a person who scolds without being angry or vexed, and who curses without being angry. The small rubrics, too, list the insulting person without vexation and quarrelsomeness over trifles. Anger, on the other hand, has bodily triggers: it arises from pain in the head and from stitches in the head. The impression arises that the irritability proceeds not from the occasion but from a pressure within. This holds also for children, who are quarrelsome without emotional involvement and react irritably on waking in the morning.

Discouragement and Self-Reproach

Beside the irritability stands a depressed mood. Discouragement appears in the afternoon and at night, with indecision and with self-reproach, the person blaming herself. A rubric records the alternation of elation and discouragement. Sadness is present in the morning in bed and improves in conversation. The future also weighs on her: the person asks what is to become of her, has no self-confidence in the realization of her plans, and complains constantly.

Absent-mindedness and Dullness

The day falls apart into inattention. Absent-mindedness occurs in the evening, in the afternoon and at work, and the person stands about and never completes what she undertakes. She misunderstands what she has seen or heard; she is dull when spoken to, and after sleep. Stupefaction accompanies vomiting and diarrhea, also in children. The desire for rest comes in the afternoon, slowness in the morning. Thoughts revolve around family matters.

Restlessness and Impulses

Opposed to this is a restlessness that passes into action. The person must be busy, throwing and tearing: the rubrics list the tendency to throw away everything held in the hands and to tear things in the morning. Involuntary hand movements lead to the mouth, also while chewing and swallowing. At night she moans, tosses about and looks for thieves, robbers and burglars. A single-remedy rubric describes how she jumps out of bed in a dream.

Delusion and Delirium

Night and waking bring deceptions. The single-remedy rubric "Delusions – ghosts, spirits, figures – morning – waking, on – larger until it disappears, a ghost grows" shows the picture of a ghost that grows on waking. There is likewise the feeling that the bed is sinking away beneath her, and the notion that everything she holds in her hands flies away. The delirium occurs with fever, with pain and with heat, and the person is easily inclined to it. After hallucinations and delusions she weeps.

Fear and Mind

Fear concerns accidents, such as a fatal one. A single-remedy rubric describes uncertainty about one's own feelings. Anxiety combines with despair; worries come at midnight. The person talks much without listening, jokes about everything and wants to do something witty; fitting this are moonlight, which aggravates during the waning moon, and a tendency to find fault in the afternoon.

Summary

In the Repertory Dulcamara shows a person driven by inner irritability and lacking collectedness. Most beset in the morning and at night, he discharges himself in anger, throwing and restlessness, while discouragement and self-reproach work in the background. What occupies him bears the coloring of family and future, and deception comes when sleep ends.

A reference work for professionals; it does not replace diagnosis or treatment.