It's Never Too Late, 5: Cough
“Homeopathic treatment is always worthwhile, even in individuals who are seriously ill and in need of care where there is no hope of complete recovery of health” (Teut and Doppler 2019).
Coughs are considered chronic when they last for 8 weeks or longer (4 weeks in children).
Nuisance? Yup. Annoying? Yup. (For the cougher and those around you.) Dangerous? Sometimes — be sure to seek the opinion of a medical professional if you are suffering from a chronic cough. Additionally, severe coughs can cause vomiting, dizziness, incontinence and even rib fractures.
What causes a chronic cough? Allergies. Postnasal drip. Asthma. Smoking. Acid reflux. Infections (colds and flus). Pneumonia (if you suspect this, please go to the doctor). Fungal infections of the lung. COPD. Some drugs can be the cause of chronic cough. The list goes on, but I dare say you get the picture. Plenty of underlying reasons for a chronic cough.
The beautiful part of homeopathy… well, there are many beautiful parts to homeopathy, actually. I digress. Back to today’s beautiful part of homeopathy. The underlying cause doesn’t matter. If we know the reason, it can sometimes be helpful, but it’s not a necessary component to find relief.
According to pulmonologist Jonathan Parson from Ohio’s Weiner Medical Center, it’s important to remember that coughing is considered to be a “protective mechanism.”
A few descriptions of coughs:
A wet cough, also known as a productive cough, brings up mucus.
Dry cough: can be tickling, annoying, hacking; this kind of cough may come in groupings.
Paroxysmal coughs: violent, draining coughs that can make it hard to breathe.
Hemoptysis: this is the coughing up of blood. * Please seek medical treatment ASAP.
Some coughs come in the middle of the night, waking the poor soul (and their spouse). Some people cough first thing in the morning. Some people cough all day long sometimes escalating to the point of vomiting.
With so many different kinds of cough, it’s no surprise there are a lot of homeopathic remedies which may help.
Today, I’m going to do a brief repertory (listing the specific type of cough and the associated remedies) followed by a short Materia Medica (a write-up of the remedies) for a couple of my favorite cough remedies. Note: this is an incomplete repertory. (Frederik Schroyens lists over 4,000 rubrics for cough!) I concentrated only on the most highly indicated and easily available remedies.
IMPORTANT NOTE: There are many possible underlying reasons for cough, some of which can be very serious. I have highlighted only a couple of these symptoms. If you are suffering from a chronic cough, have it evaluated by a medical professional.
Bursting head pain during cough: Bryonia, Natrum muriatium, Nux vomica,
Coughing worse by eating: Antimonium tart, Bryonia, Nux vomica
Cough with obstructed breathing: *BE SURE TO SEEK MEDICAL CARE IMMEDIATELY. While waiting for help to arrive, try one of the following: Antimonium tart, Arsenicum album, Cuprum metallic, Drosera, Ipecac, Nux vomica
Cough with rattling in the chest: Antimonium tart, Ipecac, Nux vomica
Cough with vomiting: Antimonium tart, Bryonia, Drosera, Nux vomica
Evening cough: Bryonia, Nux vomica
Eyes watering during cough: Bryonia, Natrum muriaticum,
Fear of coughing: Antimonium tart, Apis, Drosera
Involuntary urination with Cough: Apis, Arsenicum album, Bryonia, Causticum, Natrum muriaticum Nux vomica
Painful cough: Bryonia, Causticum, Nux vomica
Suffocating, choking cough: Antimonium tart, Cuprum, Drosera, Ipecac,
Tickling cough: Drosera, Ipecac, Nux vomica
Vertigo/dizziness with coughing: Antimonium tart, Arsenicum album, Nux vomica
On to the materia medica!
Antimonium tartaricum:
Cough followed by vomiting
Must sit up to breathe or cough
Coughs and yawns alternately
sleepiness with cough
Coughing and gasping
Cough made worse by eating, with pain in the chest and larynx
Loose, rattling cough — but very little is coughed up
Dizziness with cough
Coughing at 4 am
Whooping cough
Spasmodic cough, with much wind
Bryonia:
Pain in the chest during cough
Cough with the feeling as if the chest would fly to pieces; must support the chest while coughing
Inability to cough due to the pain
Dry, hacking cough
as if the cough is coming from the stomach
Wants to take a deep breath but can’t because it makes the cough come on
Cough with sneezing
Pain in the abdomen with cough
Convulsive, spasmodic cough
Loose cough in the morning
Vomiting of food from the cough
Incontinence during cough
Teeth pain during cough
Cuprum metallicum:
Cough in violent paroxysms, coughs self out of breath
Difficult breathing with cough *Seek medical attention
Cough better cold drinks
Cough worse deep breathing, bending backwards
Cough has a gurgling sound, better by drinking cold water
Whooping cough
Distressing cough
Painful cough
Paroxysmal cough attacks, uninterrupted, OR, consisting of few long coughs
Sudden coughs
Nausea after a cough
Drosera:
Whooping cough (principle remedy for)
Spasmodic cough resembling whooping cough
Violent, tickling cough
Frequent barking cough, worse in the evening and after midnight
Vomits if cannot get up the phlegm
vomiting of slimy matter and of food during the cough
retching, gagging with cough
Coughs and chokes
Cough worse singing or talking
Very deep and hoarse cough
Abdominal pain during the cough
Accelerated breathing during the coughing
Difficult breathing during cough *Seek medical attention
Holds the chest during cough due to pain
Distressing cough; tormenting cough
Irritable cough from the trachea
Nose bleed with cough
Incontinence during cough
Incessant cough
Very talkative after coughing
Nausea after a cough
Dulcamera:
Whooping cough
Cough, worse cold, wet weather
Winter coughs
Cough after physical exertion
Hoarse, spasmodic cough
Loose, rattling cough
Must cough a long time to expel phlegm
Prolonged cough, caused by tickling in back of the throat with much loose easy expectoration -- especially in the elderly
Ipecac:
Whooping cough
Incessant cough, and violent, with every breath
Wheezing cough
Suffocative cough
difficult breathing with cough *Seek medical attention
in the evening
Rattling cough
Tormenting cough
Cough with runny nose
Nausea during the cough
Vomiting food from the cough
Nux vomica:
Cough with the sensation as if something has torn loose in the chest
Desire to eat during cough
Tight, dry, hacking cough, at times with bloody expectoration. *Seek medical care if you are coughing up any blood
Cough brings on a bursting headache
An exhausting cough
Pain in the abdomen during cough
Suffocative cough
Breathing is difficult during a cough *Seek medical attention.
Whooping cough
Distressing cough
Dry cough in the middle of the night, sometimes lasting until daybreak
Irritable cough in the air passages
Painful cough
Tickling cough
Violent coughing in the morning before getting out of bed
Incontinence during cough
Incessant cough
Restlessness with coughing
I could literally keep writing for days about various coughs and their homeopathic remedies.
Just know that if you are suffering from a chronic cough, there’s a good chance homeopathy may help. What have you got to lose?!
Julia Coyte, CHom
Classically Practical homeopath
#wellnessawaits