Aconite Napellus is one of the oldest Homeopathic remedies, which was proved by Dr. Samuel Hahnemann and described in his book Materia medica.
This remedy is prepared from the whole fresh plant as it comes into flower. It is given in acute inflammatory and sometimes life-threatening conditions. It is a short-acting remedy means the symptoms don’t last long. It is basically an acute remedy.
About the Plant Aconite Napellus
Aconitum napellus is a member of the Ranunculaceae family.
Its common name is buttercup.
Common names: monkshood, friar cap, mourning bride and auld wife’s huid, blue rocket, aconite.
The plant grows in damp and shady mountainous regions of Europe and Central Asia, to a height of about three or four feet. It has a spindle-shaped root that has a superficial resemblance to the root of the horseradish.
The stem grows straight with glossy dark green leaves which are deeply cleft in a palmate manner. It has clusters of dark blue flowers with purple sepals. This plant can also be grown as a garden plant.
More than 100 species are found throughout the temperate zones of the United States and Canada. The plants are also found throughout many parts of Asia, Africa, and Europe. A. napellus is the most common species in Europe and has been naturalized in the eastern United States. The characteristic helmet-shaped blue or purple flowers grow in a raceme at the top of the stalk in summer or fall. Occasionally, the flowers may be white, pink, peach, or yellow. The seed pods contain numerous tiny seeds.
Another variety is Aconitum lycontonum also has an extremely shady reputation. This plant is known as wolfsbane.
Aconite or aconitine has poisonous alkaloids which are found in the highest concentrations in the root. This root is so poisonous that it can cause poisoning when handled. In ancient times it was used externally for broken skin to ease bruising and joint pain.
Preparation of Aconite Napellus
For the preparation of this remedy whole plant, including the root is unearthed during the flowering season, chopped, and macerated in alcohol.
Key Symptoms for indicating Aconite Napellus
Some of the important symptoms of the remedy are
Fear is the key feature of this remedy which is associated with many complaints. The patient fears death but believes that he will soon die, predicts the day. He has fear of the future, of the crowd, crossing streets.
Another key feature of the remedy is restlessness and the patient has a tendency of tossing about. He has a tendency to start. Pains in this remedy are intolerable, which drive him crazy. Music is unbearable and makes him sad. Another thing is that he feels as if what had just been done was a dream. There is great anxiety, the anguish of mind, and body. There is both physical and mental restlessness. The patient does not want to be touched. All these complaints and tension are caused by exposure to dry, cold weather, a draught of cold weather and checked perspiration, very hot weather.
- Complaints triggered by shock or exposure to cold winds
- Panic attacks and fear of death
- Acute infections of sudden onset
Other specific symptoms of the remedy are as follows
There are fullness and heaviness of the head with hot bursting, burning sensation. Burning headache is characteristic of this remedy with a sensation as if the brain was agitated by boiling water. Also there Vertigo which is worse on rising and on shaking the head. Accompanied by these symptoms is a sensation as if the hair were being pulled.
Acute conjunctivitis is well treated with this remedy, where there are red inflamed eyes, profuse watering of eyes, exposure to dry, cold winds, and any kind of foreign body. There is dryness of the eyes. It is a very good remedy for trachoma with a sensation as if sand in them. It is important to remedy, for blepharitis, with lids swollen, hard, and red. It is important to remedy, photophobia, where the patient has aversion to light.
This patient is very sensitive to noises. It is a very good remedy for otalgia, which is a pain in the ears when external ears are hot, red, painful, and swollen.
It is important to remedy for coryza in which there is much sneezing, dry, or with scanty watery coryza, with a sensitivity of smell.
It is given for conditions like mumps in which the face is red, hot flushed, and swollen. Given for Trigeminal neuralgia (Pain along facial nerves) especially of the left side, with restlessness, tingling, and numbness.
It is given in conditions like glossitis, where the tongue is swollen. Teeth are sensitive to cold. An important remedy for gingivitis, in which gums are hot and inflamed.
This remedy for the Ist stage of tonsillitis where the throat is dry red and constricted with numbness, pricking burning sensation. Tonsils are swollen are dry.
This is given for vomiting, with fear, heat and profuse sweat, and increased micturition. All things taste bitter taste except water. Vomiting of bile, with mucous in it. There is burning from the stomach to the esophagus. There is an intense thirst for this remedy.
The abdomen is sensitive to touch in this remedy, this complaint is better by drinking warm soup.
It is very important to remedy for bleeding hemorrhoids, where there is pain with great itching at night and stitching pains in the anus. There is a frequent small stool with great effort to pass stool. It is given for cholera infantum, and there is watery diarrhea in children.
This remedy is frequently given for nephritis where the renal region is extremely sensitive. There is scanty, hot, and painful urine. There is great urging to pass urine, but urine is suppressed, and bloody. Given for haematuria (which is bloody urine). Anxiety is always present on beginning to urinate.
It is very important to medicine for orchitis, where testicles are swollen hard, bruised pain, with crawling and stinging in it.
Menses in this remedy is too profuse, and protracted, and is often late. Menses are suppressed from fright, cold. After pains, with fear and restlessness.
It is an important remedy for asthma with hoarse, dry croupy cough, with oppressed breathing on least motion. It is an important remedy for asthma. In children, it is given for whooping cough where the child grasps the throat every time he coughs. The larynx is sensitive. There is shortness of breath. It is also given for pleurisy where there stitches through the chest, with a dry short, hacking cough which worse at night and especially midnight. Often given for hemoptysis where the blood comes up with hawking.
A very important remedy for angina pectoris where there is a pain in the chest that goes to the left shoulder. There are palpitations with anxiety, fainting, and tingling in fingers. Pulse is fully hard and tense.
There are numbness and tingling, shooting pains and icy coldness and insensibility of hands and feet. Arms feel lame, bruised heavy numb. It is an important remedy for rheumatism where there is inflammation of joints, red shiny swelling, joints are very sensitive and this condition is worse at night.
This remedy is given in 30 of potency in cases of sleeplessness with restlessness and tossing about. It is an important remedy for insomnia in the aged.
It can be given in case of a fever with a cold marked stage. Cold sweat and icy coldness of face and cold waves pass through the body. Thirst and restlessness are always present with a remedy. Mostly it is given for fever with mental anxiety and restlessness. Sweat relieves almost all complaints.
It is given for a condition known as Purpura miliaris, where the rash appears like measles. Chilliness down the neck.
It is given for problems in labor with symptoms of Strong fear of impending death experienced by a mother during labor. There may be urine retention in either the mother or baby or in both the mother and baby, immediately after the birth of the child, especially if the mother experienced fear during labor.
The patient’s symptoms are worse by
- Lying on the affected side.
- Music
- Tobacco smoke.
- Dry cold winds.
- Warm room.
- In the evening and at Night
The patient’s symptoms are better by
In open-air
Dosage and Administration
- Aconite Napellus is available in first, third, sixth Potency, Mother tincture.
- Given in the sixth potency: For sensory affections.
- First to third potency: congestive conditions.
- Mother Tincture: neuralgia.
Dosage: Unless otherwise prescribed by the physician, at the beginning of the complaints, take 1 to 2 tablets hourly, and once the acute complaints start to subside, take 1-2 tablets thrice daily. Children are to receive 1 tablet every two hours in the acute stage, then 1 tablet thrice daily. If complaints are not relieved, consult a specialist.
Availability of medicine
Schwabe store in form of ACONITUM PENTARKAN, Hyland’s Homeopathic (Aconitum Napellus 30x; 6X), Rxhomeo (Aconite 30C), and Boiron (Aconitum Napellus, 30C Pellets).