Black Widow Spider Bites.
NATIONAL JOURNAL OF HOMOEOPATHY 1996 Mar / Apr Vol V No 2.
Rozina Anwar Baig.
Cases.
` Bell / Calc / Lyco.

It was a hectic day and when I reached home late in the evening, I felt a slight pain in my left inguinal region and on palpation, I felt an enlarged and tender lymph node. I didnt pay attention, as I thought it to be a simple lymph node enlargement.

The next morning, I got up with some congestion in my throat and slight fever. Also the pain in my inguinal region had increased and I couldnt walk straight.

As my father (Dr. Mirza Anwar Baig a Homoeopath) had already left for his clinic, I discussed my problems over the phone and was prescribed Belladonna 30/4 ds 4 hourly. But there was not much change. I got good sleep during the first part of night but around 4 am, I was awakened by a terrible shooting pain down my entire left leg. My leg was swollen with red streaks and burnt like fire. The entire lymphatic channel from the inguinal gland running down the thigh and then the leg were inflamed and tender. The picture looked like a typical lymphangitis. Worst of all, I now couldnt even straighten my leg. Everyone at home got worried and my father after going through my symptoms prescribed Merc-iod-rub 30 one dose 4 hourly. With that my pain and burning was better but I still couldnt straighten my leg.

In general, I felt better but as the evening approached I developed high temperature and headache and was very irritable and restless. The burning of my leg had increased and I couldnt bear any touch. At that moment I was given Belladonna 30 frequent doses at an interval of every 15 minutes. With this my fever and burning reduced but everything else was the same.

Now I thought I was on my way to recovery, but the fever returned again the next afternoon with a pulsating and pressing kind of headache. I called up my father and he prescribed me Glonoine 30/2 doses. Half an hour after Glonoine I vomited out all whatever I had consumed and my fever and headache reduced.

During this period a senior Homoeopath of Bombay Dr F M Kulay who happens to be a friend of my father, was called upon to see me. He prescribed me Belladonna 1 M to be followed by Calc-carb 200/1 dose. But it worsened my condition.

Medicines kept on changing and my condition went on deteriorating. The swelling, redness and burning had increased, there was stiffness of my ankle and knee joint. Not only was my lymphatic channel involved but the inflammation had reached my joints and it took a form of Arthritis.

During this period my mental state had also worsened. I was getting more and more depressed and loosing all hope of recovery. The thought of becoming crippled gave me the shivers, and I wanted to end my life. Due to all this I kept weeping the whole day long.

The cause of my illness couldnt be traced, whether it was Acute Thrombophlebitis, lymphangitis of Filariasis, or some insect bite.

The next morning my father recorded my symptoms which were as follows:

1. Inflammatory swelling with red streaks on skin.
2. Pain worse hanging down (3+).
3. Pain worse on touch.
4. Burning better by uncovering.
5. Thirst increased for cold water.
6. Patient warm.

These symptoms he discussed over the phone and with his Guru, a renowned Homoeopath of Bombay, Dr E G K Menon who is presently residing at Kerala.

He prescribed me a single dose be to be taken at 11 am and then no medicine at all for the next 24 hours.

Throughout the day I didnt find much change but as evening approached I started getting a pulsating pain in my left toe. This pain kept on increasing and now, I couldnt even rest my leg on the bed but had to raise it high enough to reduce my pain. The pain was so agonizing that I couldnt shut my eyes even for a second that night.

Early morning around 6 am my pain started reducing and I felt at ease and after that to my surprise, the swelling and inflammation came down remarkably in just one day. Now the swelling had settled over my foot alone. I could straighten my leg and could even hand it down and the skin over the affected area started peeling off. My father asked me not to worry, and that, it was post-inflammatory exfoliation of my affected leg and foot which is also reducing slowly.

This telephonic prescription was nothing but a single dose of Lachesis 200.

But still there was one query left as to what had caused all this. My father discussed my case with a Dermatologist friend of his (Dr S K Ketare working for the Central Government Hospital, Bombay) and he found this picture exactly similar to the bite of a poisonous spider called as Black widow Spider. (From history and description it looks like Acute Thrombo phlebitis - Issue Editor).

This insect is pitch black in colour and bigger than common spider. It always moves alone and hence the term "widow". In the allopathic system only symptomatic treatment is given, along with high doses of steroids.

This cause fitted in my case because just 2 days prior to my illness we had shifted to our new house at Mira Road with our entire luggage and probably this spider was in one of the bags. This spider usually doesnt bite until and unless disturbed and may be it was stamped upon unknowingly and bit me as its revenge.

This was not the end, three days later the diagnosis was confirmed because I spotted a spider looking exactly like the Black widow spider described by the Dermatologist, and I stamped it with my shoe and killed it.

So, this is the proving of Homoeopathy law "Poison kills Poison".