• Burning and dryness of throat
• Headache is relieved by profuse flow of urine
• Trembling in all limbs
• Excitement on hearing bad news. Mentally dull, nervous patients
• Drooping of eyelids

Source: Vegetable kingdom
Synonyms: Yellow jasmine, Bigonia sempervirens
Family: Loganaceae
Prover: Dr John H. Henry in 1852 and Dr E.M. Hale, also Dr E.M. Payne Duration of Action: Upto 30 days
Miasmatic Background: Psora
Temperament: Hysterical and nervous
Thermal Relationship: Neither hot nor chilly

Introduction and History: This is a great homeopathic remedy. It is a great paralyzer and that is why it is called the ‘King of Polio.’ It is a polychrest remedy, having a broad range of action. The name Gelsemium is from the Latin word ‘gelsimion’ meaning jasmine and ‘sempervirens’ meaning evergreen. It is a right sided and an acute remedy.

Habit and Habitat: It is found in USA, Virginia, Mexico, Europe and India. It is a climber, an evergreen plant growing to a great height, ascending large trees. Its stem is smooth, leaves opposite and lanceolate, flowers large and yellow with a delicious odour. It is grown in rich and moist soil.

Constitution and Physiognomy: It is best suited to young persons and children. Especially suited to women who are hysterical, nervous, plethoric and sensitive, also anaemic girls and old people.

Ailments From: Heat of the sun or stove, mechanical injury, fright, damp weather, fear, self-abuse and alcohol, bad news, mental excitement, warmth or cold, thunderstorm.

Seat of Action (Pharmacodynamics): Nerves, brain, muscles, sexual organs, mucous membranes, blood, right side, spinal cord, eyelids, occiput, vision.

Active Principles (Chemical Constituents): The main alkaloid of Gelsemium is gelsemine puvarine and gelsiminine. It has a fixed oil and a phytosternile resin. It also contains a gelseminic acid.

Doctrine of Signature: The yellow colour of the flowers of Gelsemium can be related to jaundice as there is – yellowish-white coating on tongue, yellowish colour of the stools, deep yellow leucorrhoea, moist yellow skin, yellow face and yellow saliva.

Physiological Action

1. Gelsemium is a powerful motor depressant producing paralysis of motility and depression of sensibility by its action on spinal cord centres. It also affects the vasomotors.
2. In moderately small doses, Gelsemium causes languor, diaphoresis, enfeebling relaxation of voluntary muscles, slowing of heart rate, lowered blood pressure, drooping of eyelids and dilated pupils.
3. Poisonous doses produce, in addition to exaggerations of the above, vertigo, diplopia, staggering gait, drop jaw, laboured respiration, lowered temperature, feeble heart action, extreme muscular weakness, almost complete anaesthesia, loss of speech and profuse sweating. Death is caused by asphyxia from paralysis of the muscles of respiration. Consciousness is maintained upto the point of stupor.
4. Gelsemium acts differently on humans and on the lower animals.

Physio-pathological Changes (Pathology)

1. It acts upon the respiratory centre causing paralysis and resulting in asphyxia.
2. It acts upon the motor nervous system of the spinal cord and produces a general state of paresis – physical and mental that results in cutaneous anaesthesia.
3. It has an action on the pupils, paralysing third and sixth nerves of the eye muscles causing diplopia, ptosis, squint and drooping of the eyelids.
4. Acts upon the entire muscular system producing complete relaxation of muscles; limbs feel heavy.
5. Acts upon the vasomotor nerves and blood, producing passive congestion. It reduces the blood flow and consequently the temperature.
6. It acts upon the heart, lowers the force and drops the blood pressure along with the temperature.
7. It acts upon the motor nerves of the urinary bladder producing paralysis of the bladder causing incontinence.
8. Acts upon the nervous system in general causing tremors and functional paralysis of the organs.
9. Acts upon the mind causing stupefaction and sluggishness of mental powers.
10. Acts upon the mucous membranes causing irritation and catarrhal inflammation.

Characteristic Mental Symptoms (Psychology)

‘D’ in the mental sphere:

• Dull
• Delirium
• Dazed
• Dread
• Dampness
• Depressing emotions
• Delirium in sleep, half waking with incoherent talk
• Depression of spirits, anxiety following a somewhat cheerful, careless mood Desire to be quiet, does not wish to speak, wants to be left alone, does not want anyone near her
• Doddering (trembling)
• Depression (in vitality)

1. Dullness, dizziness and drowsiness are the most important characteristic symptoms of Gelsemium.
2. Incapacity to think or fix attention. Dullness of mental faculties, better from profuse micturition.
3. Irritable, sensitive and greatly nervous, dread of appearing in public.
4. Complaints from bad or exciting news, from some unusual order.
5. Loquacity, shooting pain through temples and nasal sinus, brilliant eyes and fever.
6. Answers questions slowly and imperfectly, cannot think properly or fix attention.
7. Apathetic regarding his illness. Great depression of spirits.
8. Strong inclination to commit suicide or to throw oneself from a height.
9. Lack of courage to die, fear of death with nervousness.
10. Very excitable stage; fear, nervousness before to appearing for an examination, though prepared very well.
11. Anticipation of any unusual order, when going for an examination, to a theatre, for a public meeting, to court, preparing for church – all these bring on diarrhoea.
12. Vertigo starts from the occiput with diplopia, loss of sight, dim vision, seems intoxicated.
13. Sensation of a band around the head, above the eyes; scalp sore to touch.
14. Fears that unless he is in constant motion, heart will cease beating.
15. Children fear falling, grasp or seize the bed.
16. Mental exertion causes a sense of helplessness from brain weakness.
17. Unconsciousness, immobility with dilated pupils, closed eyes but conscious.

Characteristic Physical Guiding Symptoms

‘D’ in the physical sphere:

• Drooping of eyelids
• Dusky red face
• Dullness
• Drowsiness
• Dizziness
• Dullness of vision
• Diplopia

Dull: Dullness of mental faculties. Dullness of pains, dull vision, dullness of spirits.

Drowsy: Drowsiness during heat of fever, desirous of keeping still, wishes to be left alone.

Dizzy: Dizziness as if intoxicated, blurred vision, double sight.

Dazed: Dazed condition of mind, besotted.

Dimness: Dimness of vision with diplopia.

Depression: Depression of vitality, great prostration and weakness, nervous exhaustion, wants to lie down and rest.

Tremor: Trembling and weakness, easily fatigued. Trembling or tremors all over the body for example, trembling of hands, tongue, legs, etc.; trembling of limbs.

Dread: Dread of falling, utter lack of courage, dread of death.

Paralysis: It is a great paralyser, complete relaxation and prostration of the whole muscular system with almost or entire motor paralysis, lack of muscular coordination.

Involuntary: Involuntary emission of semen, slightest excitement causes a discharge of semen. Exhaustion of sexual power.

Congestion: Congestion of veins and arteries with sluggish circulation, congestion of blood to head with cold extremities.

Numbness: Numbness of tongue, nose, hands, fingers, skin, ears and toes.

Soreness: Bruised and sore feeling all over the body. Sensation as if brain was bruised.

Heaviness: Great heaviness of the whole body; limbs feel heavy and tired; great heaviness of eyelids, cannot keep them open; heaviness of single parts, uterus, heart, etc.

Chill: Chill runs up and down the back like a wave from the sacrum to the occiput.

Prophylactic: It has proved to be a prophylactic medicine against influenza and cures all its complications because it is a great flu remedy.

Walking: Inability to walk, tottering and falling when closing the eyes.

Fever: Fever from heat of sun or summer, with prostration, vertigo, headache, great heaviness of the eyelids, cannot keep them open.

Characteristic Particular Symptoms

Headache: Headache starts in the occiput and spreads over the whole head; ultimately settles down over the eyes. Headache is relieved by profuse urination.

Diarrhoea: Nervous diarrhoea; diarrhoea when going for church or opera, from excitement; involuntary stool after fright.

Paralysis: Gelsemium is a very useful in paralysis because it is a great paralyser. Paralysis of the motor nerves is a prominent and universal symptom of this remedy. It is indicated only in functional paralysis. It is also indicated in paralysis after emotions of a depressing character, in hysterical women. It is one of our best remedies in post-diphtheritic and in infantile paralysis of the larynx. The onset of paralysis is gradual. It produces a general state of paresis – mental and physical. ‘Trembling’ is the characteristic symptom of this medicine. Heaviness of the whole body, lack of muscular coordination is well marked; confused muscles refuse to obey will. The paralytic condition is aggravated before a thunderstorm, from bad news, thinking of the illness, damp weather and mental excitement. Dullness, dizziness and drowsiness are the main characteristic concomitant symptoms in paralytic conditions.

Fever: It is a very good medicine for any type of fever for example, remittent or intermittent.

(i) Remittent or continuous fever: It is useful in continuous type of fevers. Fever due to heat of sun or warmth. It starts very slowly and gradually. The patient is dizzy and drowsy accompanied with dullness. The chill is partial, pulse is full flowing with great weakness. Fever is accompanied by muscular weakness and a desire for absolute rest and complete absence of thirst. Great heaviness of the head and limbs. Headache is relived by profuse urination. Trembling tongue and a stuporous condition may appear in the last stage.

(ii) Intermittent fever: It is indicated in the beginning, especially in fevers of non-malarial origin. The symptoms are partial chills, starting from the spine, running up and down the hand or from the feet extending upwards, with tremors of the whole body. Patient is thirstless and nervous before the chill. Great prostation and violent headache with muscular soreness.

The characteristic time for the chill is about the middle of the day. Then comes fever with general heat. Heat is attended with a red face, drowsiness, dizziness and dullness. Bruised felling all over the body is characteristic of this remedy. The tongue is coated white or yellow, speech is thick, bowels are constipated, the stools are yellow. The patient is very nervous and restless, tossing about continually and very sensitive to noise and light.

Heart affections: The heart is affected by Gelsemium; ongoing to sleep the patient is Suddenly aroused by a feeling that the heart will stop beating. He feels that the heart would cease to beat if he did not move about. Here the heart muscle is in a weak state, and there is a sort of instinct on the part of the person to move about, to stimulate it to act. In Digitalis, the patient fears that the heart will cease beating if he makes any motion.

Thirst: Thirstlessness is the most characteristic symptom of Gelsemium.

Dysmenorrhoea: Neuralgic or congestive dysmenorrhoea with sharp labour-like pains shooting into the back, hips and down the legs.

General Modalities

Aggravation: Summer, sun heat, thunderstorm, cold damp weather, mental excitement, when thinking of his illness, tobacco smoking, at 10 am, from bad news, sudden emotions.

Amelioration: Bending forward, open air, profuse urination, stimulants, continued motion, closing the eyelids.

Remedy Relationships

Follows well: Arg-n, Ip, Cact, Bapt.

Antidote to: Coff, Chin, Nux-m, Dig, Mag-p.

Dosage: 3x to 1M.

Repetition: Bears frequent repetition very well.

Therapeutic Value: Brain affections, Cerebrospinal meningitis, Cold, Constipation, Convulsions, Cough, Deafness, Diarrhoea, Diphtheria, Eye affections, Fevers, Headache, Heart affections, Hysteria, Impotence, Locomotor ataxia, Loss of voice, Measles, Menstrual disorders, Myalgia, Paralysis, Ptosis, Rheumatism, Sleep disorders, Toothache, Trembling, Tremors, Urinary affections, Vertigo, Writer’s cramps.