The Worst Acute Illness and How To Deal With It

As a homeopath, I am often exposed to my clients’ acute symptoms. But I never really worry too much. Getting sick is all about susceptibility. I’ve been using homeopathy for 25 years, so my susceptibility is pretty low. Plus I eat well, exercise frequently and get plenty of sleep.

So if a client needs to come for an appointment and brings their sick child, I am just not that concerned. Except for one illness.

In my opinion, Gastroenteritis, also known as the stomach flu, is the worst acute illness. For obvious reasons, if someone has it, I ask them to stay home.

Personally, I hate throwing up, I hate feeling nauseous, and I hate the anticipation of whether that glass of water is going to come back up. All in all, it feels like torture. I’d rather have a cold or the flu.

Fortunately, homeopathy can make a bout of the stomach flu short lived.

Below are some common remedies for Vomiting and diarrhea and their indications for use. Recently, my blog featured recommendations for dosing for acute illnesses except for diarrhea and vomiting. Below the remedies is a flow chart on how to dose when you get tortured with diarrhea and vomiting.

Note: These Vomiting remedies are for symptoms of stomach flu, not motion sickness or sea sickness. As it gets closer to the time when people are taking cruises, I will post some sea sickness remedies.

Note: Also please note that there are MANY more remedies for vomiting. These are just the most common. In fact, recently I wrote in the blog about fever remedies and shared a personal experience with nausea, which included a remedy that is NOT listed below. If none of these remedies match, please contact Lotus Homeopathy for help.  651-748-1556.

Note:  If you are looking for a dosing schedule for acute illnesses other than Diarrhea and Vomiting, please read this blog post.

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Most Common Remedies Used For Vomiting

Arsenicum Album

This remedy has an undeserved reputation as being the go-to for vomiting. As you can see, it isn’t at all like Nux Vomica which also has that reputation. However, it is a number one choice for food poisoning.

• Almost always very cold.
• Restlessness, anxiety, desires company.
• Exhaustion and weakness from nausea and vomiting. Almost cannot vomit anymore due to being too weak to do so.
• Burning pains, yet chilly. (What homeopaths call a strange, rare, and peculiar symptom, or SRP.)
• Fear of vomiting. Will struggle to not vomit as the patient is fearful of it.
• Thirsty for small sips of water, but vomiting occurs almost immediately after drinking, especially cold drinks.
• Worse: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. or 11 p.m. to 3 a.m. Cold drinks. Ice cream. Alcohol. Smell of food.
• Better: Warm Drinks. Warm Blankets.

Ipecachuana (sourced from the same plant as syrup of Ipecac)

• This remedy is for very intense vomiting. When the least little movement makes you vomit, or the least amount of food.
• Lots of drooling.
• Coughing leading to vomiting (which is really more of a cough symptom).
• Fever is warm, but hands and feet are chilly. The body could be chilly with the fever, but heat is more likely. The cold hands and feet is a more peculiar symptom.
• Fever could also be intermittent where it comes and goes.
• Could also include loud burping and sour burps.
• Smell of food causes nausea. (Sepia)
• Vomiting bile because the patient has thrown up stomach contents.
• Vomiting does not ameliorate the patient.
• Vomiting during diarrhea episodes.
• Weakness from diarrhea.
• Diarrhea could be painful or painless.

 Nux Vomica

This remedy has an undeserved reputation as being the go-to for all vomiting that occurs. While it certainly is a helpful remedy for vomiting, it does have symptoms that make using it more successful.

• Very irritable with the nausea and vomiting. Does not want company. And frankly, you don’t want to be around this person either.
• Chilly with fever.
• Feels like if he could just vomit or just get the stool out he would feel better. The attempts to vomit can be ineffective. Generally, constipation accompanies the nausea and vomiting, rather than diarrhea.
• Bad cramping with the nausea and vomiting.
• Worse: Cold drinks–causes retching. Over eating. Alcohol. Tight Clothing.
• Better: Warm Drinks. Lying down.

Phosphorus

• Weakness, desires company.
• Burning pain in the stomach.
• Craves cold drinks (carbonated) but throws them up as soon as they get warm in the stomach.
• Worse: Warm Drinks. Eating warm food. Food odors.
• Better: Cold drinks, especially if they are carbonated. Sleep. Lying on the right side.

Sepia officinalis

• Food is the real trigger for Sepia. Eating, smelling, even thinking of food makes her worse.
• Horrible nausea and an empty feeling in the stomach.
• Good remedy for side effects of Chemotherapy.
• Desires to be left alone.
• Worse: Morning, especially before breakfast. Fats. Odors. Post nasal drip.
• Better: Eating. Sour food.

Veratrum Album

• Vertigo with nausea.
• Severe vomiting, often projectile vomiting, often at the same time as diarrhea.
• Excellent remedy for shivering and vomiting after anesthesia.
• Vomiting accompanied by cold perspiration on the forehead, chills, cold breath, and collapse.
• Worse: Vertigo. After sleeping. Pregnancy. Surgery.

Most Common Remedies for Diarrhea

Diarrhea often accompanies vomiting, or follows it, but not always. Sometimes it stands on its own. These remedies are for acute diarrhea, not chronic diarrhea which is often a sign of inflammatory bowel conditions.  This would require treatment by a homeopath.

Aloe Socotrina

• Acute diarrhea produced with much flatus and sputtering.
• Much gurgling and rumbling in the abdomen before stool.
• Involuntary stool, especially when passing gas.
• This is a good remedy for “Montezuma’s Revenge”, aka traveler’s diarrhea.
• The diarrhea is generally worse in the morning and may drive the patient out of bed in the morning.
• Worse: 5 to 6 AM. Overheating. Standing.
• Foods: Beer. Oysters. Unripe fruit. Acidic food.
• Better: Lying on the abdomen.
• Stool: Mushy stool sometimes mixed with flatus, mucus and jelly-like lumps of mucus.

Arsenicum Album

• Almost always very cold.
• Restlessness, anxiety, desires company.
• Food poisoning. Any food that may be slightly old can cause problems, even if no one else finds the food problematic.
• Exhaustion and weakness from nausea and vomiting. Almost cannot vomit anymore due to being too weak to do so.
• Burning pains, yet chilly. (What homeopaths call a strange, rare, and peculiar symptom.)
• Fear of vomiting. Will struggle to not vomit as the patient is fearful.
• Thirsty for small sips of water, but vomiting occurs almost immediately after drinking, especially cold drinks.
• Worse: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. or 11 p.m. to 3 a.m. Cold drinks. Ice cream. Alcohol. Smell of food.
• Better: Warm Drinks. Warm Blankets. Warm applications to the abdomen.
• Stool: Acidic and thin. Like Rice water. Mucous. Bloody.

Carbo vegetabilis

• Severe diarrhea and collapse states.
• Diarrhea and bloating or belching which ameliorates the patient.
• Worse: Cold drinks (especially when heated). Ice cream and other cold food. Eating. Being elderly is more likely to be a contributing factor to needing this remedy. Lying flat.
• Stool: Offensive, putrid smelling. Light colored or watery. Bloody.
• General: Chilly but craves open air or being fanned. (SRP)

Colocynthis

• Diarrhea with terrible cramping in abdomen. Uncontrollable desire to double up by bending forward or bringing knees to chest.
• Worse: After anger. Diarrhea that comes on when vexed. Eating. After drinking, even slight amounts.  Like Nux Vomica, you probably wouldn’t enjoy being around this person due to their irritability and anger.
• Better: Coffee.

Croton tiglium

• Forceful, profuse, explosive diarrhea, exploding out in a single gush. Accompanied by a great deal of gas.
• Abdominal rumbling and gurgling before stool.
• Swish swashing sensation in abdomen.
• Worse: Drinking, right after drinking. Eating. Summer. (Another summer diarrhea remedy)  In babies after nursing.
• Better: Sleep. Hot milk. (Not a common thing people would ask for, but if they do and it helps, consider this remedy.)
• Stool: Slimy. Transparent. Mucus.

 Phosphorus

• Weakness, desires company.
• Burning pain in the stomach.
• Very slight errors in diet can cause diarrhea.
• Craves cold drinks (often carbonated) but throws them up as soon as they get warm in the stomach.
• Diarrhea is generally painless, but exhausts the patient.
• Worse: Warm Drinks. Eating warm food. Food odors.
• Better: Cold drinks, especially if they are carbonated. Sleep. Lying on the right side. Ice Cream. Coffee.
• Stool: Bright red blood, possibly. Rice water stool. Like a fire hydrant. Watery with lumps of white mucous.

 Podophyllum peltatum

When someone needs this remedy, it is very easy to tell. Very unique symptoms.

• Watery, profuse, explosive diarrhea with much gas and sputtering. Soils the entire toilet bowl (even the butt) with the noisy stool. (I recall going into a public restroom that was disgusting, seeing a toilet like this. “Podophyllum,” I said to my kids.
• Worse: Morning, especially 4 to 5 AM. Forenoon. Evening. Heat or hot weather. Summer diarrhea is often helped with this remedy. After drinking or eating. Bathing. Motion. Fruit.
• May have painless stool but generally has cramps which cause the patient to double up. The cramps are not relieved by the bowel movement.
• Worse: Morning, especially 4 to 5 AM. Forenoon. Evening. Heat or hot weather. Summer diarrhea is often helped with this remedy. (Another Summer Diarrhea remedy.) After drinking or eating. Bathing. Motion. Fruit.
• Uneasy sensation where the patient cannot tell if he is about to vomit or have diarrhea.
• General: Faintness, weakness, empty sensation after stool.
• Local: Headache associated with diarrhea.
• Rectal prolapse from diarrhea.
• Stool: Watery. Looks like Rice water. Frothy. Pasty. Yellow. Offensive.

Sulphur

• Urgent stool in the morning, wakes patient and drives him out of bed at 5 or 6 AM.
• Offensive stool; others avoid the bathroom for several minutes after. (Most things associated with the remedy Sulphur involve an offensive odor.  Sulphur is what is produced by things that are decomposing or rotting.  Also, the smell of matches is caused by Sulphur.)
• Stool is painful; burning or soreness of anus on passing stool.
• Worse: Morning. Suppressed eruptions. Standing because it makes you have to have a bowel movement again.
• Almost always accompanied by itching or burning at the rectum.
• Stool: Smells like rotten eggs. Bloody. Frothy. Mucus. Like other Sulphur symptoms, it could be yellow.

Veratrum album

• Odorless, profuse, rice-water-looking stools often accompanied by projectile vomiting.
• Veratrum can be confused with Arsenicum as both remedies are for patients who are chilly to very cold.
• Worse: Autumn. During painful menses. Motion.
• Forehead is cold and possibly sweaty. Abdomen may also be cold during diarrhea.
• Stool: Strong smelling, irritating to the skin. Black or bloody.

Dosing for Vomiting or Diarrhea

Most often, 30c potency is adequate and it should improve the symptoms in short order. Remember, if your symptoms are caused by food poisoning, you may continue to vomit or have diarrhea. The important thing to note is whether you are feeling better. Perhaps the stomach pains are less, you are warmer, less restless, etc. Just look at the symptoms associated with the remedy you have chosen and see if they are better.

The following graphic should be helpful in determining how to dose your remedies for Diarrhea or Vomiting.