Childbirth Materia Medica Cha - G

A Specific Guide to Homoeopathy in Childbirth.
18 Remedies for use before, during and after labour

CHAMOMILLA
Key characteristics: extreme over-sensitivity and violent bad temper. May demand help one moment and reject it the next. Abusive and argumentative, especially with loved ones. Find pains unbearable. May scream frequently or say "I want to die". Feels and looks over-heated. Better: being uncovered, stripping off. Worse: evening; fresh air; company; being spoken to or stared at.

CIMICIFUGA
Very similar to Caullophyllum; contractions in lower half of uterus, painful, sharp, spasmodic. Cervix remains rigidly closed/ fails to dilate properly. The differences are: contractions move from side to side or down into the hips or thighs; gestures, speech and actions become horribly disjointed; physical symptoms often alternate with intense mental/ emotional symptoms. Full of dreadful fears / foreboding, perhaps because of a previous experience of birth, miscarriage or abortion. Sense that "I can’t carry on" is meant in the most profound sense. Chilly. Worse: cold, damp. Better: lying on left side.

GELSEMIUM
Next best choice if Caullophyllum fails to produce good strong contractions. Very useful if labour is slow andsluggish. Physical heaviness, even eye lids droop, producing a dazed, stupefied appearance which belies the mental alertness that is there. Body paralysed by exhaustion or "stage fright". Muscular weakness leads to trembling. Chilly, possibly shivers up and down the spine. Thirstless (cf. Pulsatilla). Worse: physical exertion; over excitement; receiving bad news (e.g. that cervix has dilated less than expected). Better: sweating; urination; being alone. cont...