subject: Calcarea Carbonica Homeopathic Remedy [print this page] This form of calcium is derived from the inside of an oyster shell, and there is no better metaphor for the state of Calcarea carbonica which has a vulnerable soft inside protected by a self-grown shell. In its physical state Calc carb is soft, flabby, cold and damp like an oyster. A person needing Calc carb will tend to be overweight with flabby muscles and relaxed tissues: she seems boneless. She will be very chilly (though children are often hot), extremely sensitive to cold air, raw winds, draught, storm. Different parts of her can be cold, she can have cold feet and a hot head. She gets a lot of colds which go to the chest. She is also damp: she sweats in spots, in various places, head, forehead, back of neck, front of chest, feet. She has cold clammy hands and a wet fish handshake.
There is an inertia about Calc carb the person needing it will be inclined to be slow and lethargic, easily out of breath. Often this is because of glandular inactivity: the pituitary and thyroid glands malfunction. Even mild exertion easily tires her: she gets weak and exhausted mentally and physically and has to give up whatever she is doing. She gets fevers, headaches, heavy sweating after exertion.
Psychologically and emotionally the subject is also rather oyster-like. Soft and vulnerable inside, she experiences terrible anxiety and fear. She is particularly fearful of what people think about her; she is very self-conscious, hates being looked at or laughed at and has a deep fear that people will think she is insane. She is afraid of disease, insects, heights, thunderstorms, insanity, poverty, open spaces, closed spaces, people, the dark and being on her own.
Because she is unsure of herself and how she will be received she can try very hard: she is conscientious, hard-working and methodical because she doesn't really know how to cut corners. She can easily work too hard and tire herself, then she will give up, get depressed and discouraged. She is not directly aggressive but one of her main characteristics is extreme obstinacy. This is how she defends herself against those quicker and cleverer than she is. When in doubt she shuts up and doses down like an oyster, becoming completely unresponsive in order to conceal her internal anxiety.
As in most homoeopathic remedies an opposite state can be found in the picture. A state of oversensitivity can also exist. The person can be jumpy, easily startled at the least noise, exceedingly distressed at hearing of cruelty, scared at the sight of wounds, have an impulse to scream or cry without apparent reason. Her sleep can be disturbed by terrifying dreams; she often has difficulty going to sleep because of a now of anxious thoughts; she can lie awake till 2, 3, or 4 a.m. This state is seen most clearly in children, but it is the underlying state in the adult and it is her awareness of it that makes her fear insanity.
Children are chubby and round-faced with big bellies-, teeth come late and fontanelles stay open a long time; they sweat profusely around the head especially at night, wetting the pillow. They may appear lethargic and be slow to develop. Teething can bring problems. They have frequent colds and recurrent earache. Children can also be hyperactive, restless and bad-tempered with tantrums and convulsions. It is indicated in food-sensitive/allergic children. Food metabolism is slow and she puts on weight easily, but she is often hungry and desires indigestible things: raw potatoes, coal, pencils, chalk, clay. She also craves sweets, salt, eggs, ice cream, milk, cheese and bread and is sometimes averse to milk, cheese, eggs, meat, fat, coffee. Her food cravings reflect the calcium imbalance present in the system.
Other characteristic symptoms are that she feels fine when constipated, has no urging. The glands are frequently involved and the lymph nodes become hard, inflamed and sore. The remedy has a sour smell; there is sour vomiting, diarrhoea, smell of body, breath etc.
Better:
Dry weather, constipation, heat, lying down.
Worse:
Cold of all kinds, cold wet weather, cold water, cold baths, damp, draughts, physical or mental exertion, fresh air, full moon. The person who needs Calcarea carbonica. is likely to be weak and easily tired with flabby tissues. She sweats easily, is very chilly and sensitive to cold and damp. She is anxious and fearful especially about what people think of her and lacks self-confidence but she can be very conscientious, determined and obstinate. She has a slow metabolism, glands underfunction.
She may crave or hate eggs, milk, cheese. There is also sometimes a hyperactive state especially in sleep or in children when the patient is jumpy, restless and easily startled. This remedy may be indicated in allergy, anxiety, asthma, boils, colds, convulsions, digestive problems, ear infections, food sensitivity, gallstones, glandular problems, hyperactivity, menopause, mumps, muscle and joint pains, piles, teething, tonsillitis (chronic), toothache, vaginitis, varicose veins.
