Abstract – Before the time of COVID-19, life style or expectation from the life was to earn for quality of life, to go out and to meet different peoples to make the body mentally and physically healthy. But all of the sudden there was burst out of COVID-19 cases in all the world which lead to complete lockdown of the life, from the life and to the life, but this was the time when peoples were having family time so for short duration it was assumed that staying at home could be the better option for safety purpose weather to go out but when the duration of lockdown was continued for long duration people were getting restless because of high mortality rate, and in those condition when most of the people were affected from this disease and oneself who was suffering from the disease that must have developed some own ideas regarding his life expectancy or developed his own area of thought. The most common symptoms or thought come across after this phase of life was anxiety, depression, post traumatic symptoms, suicidal thoughts, etc. in the COVID-19 phase homoeopathy had proved its action the cases of COVID-19, in all the stages, like- pre COVID as prophylaxis, During COVID as treatment, post COVID as healer.
Keywords – Post covid, anxiety, depression, post traumatic, prophylaxis.
Abbreviations: COVID – coronavirus disease, TDS – thrice a day
Introduction – In post COVID phase, one male patient reported to the clinic aged 43 years with depression after COVID from last 45 days, he was found COVID positive on 10 November 2020, along with 4 members of his family, everyone recovered within 15 days but he took more time to recover during COVID he took allopathy treatment for 32 days and also got admitted in the hospital for 6 days then gradually he found relief in all those complaint, but his family members were noticing him from last 4-5 weeks that he has developed lots of fear from many things like, he don’t want to go outside of his house on the other hand he don’t want to stay at home, fear of closed space can’t go to the washroom if the gate is locked. After taking treatment from my clinic it took around 3 weeks to relief his complaints which were hampering him the most, at the start of treatment, Hamilton anxiety rating scale was used(1) to assess the level of improvement, and by the end of this treatment scale shows marked improvement in the patient.
H/o Present Complaints
Patient was apparently well 1 year back, on November 2020 he found himself COVID positive with difficulty in breathing and suffocating feeling symptoms were getting worse day by day and the oxygen saturation level was decreasing continuously, then on 5th day oxygen saturation was 81% he got admitted to the hospital where he was under observation with maintained oxygen saturation at 96%, after 32 days he was discharged from hospital. But even after recovering from COVID -19, he feels suffocative due to dry cough whenever he was in closed space and feels anxiety too, due to fear of being alone now his family members are realizing that he developed many fears with other mental symptoms.
Mentals
- Anxiety while sleeping, cannot sleep properly due to anxiety
- Changeable mood not constant with same mood, quick changes in mood
- Fear of death with weeping disposition, constant fear of everything always fearful.
- Fear of close space cannot stay alone.
Family History
- Mother and his son both were COVID positive at the same time when he was COVID positive, they both don’t have any symptoms of post COVID.
Patient as a person:
- Thirst: thirstless no desire to drink. Small quantity of water at long interval
- Thermal reaction: Chilly+++
- Urine: weakness after passing urine, and deep respiration.
- Sleep: cannot sleep properly due to anxiety.
- Others: generalised weakness
On examination:
- Respiratory system:bilaterally, chest clear, no added sound, neuralgic pain in intercostal region especially on right side.
- Other system: nothing abnormal detected
Analysis and evaluation of symptoms:
- Anxiety while sleeping, cannot sleep properly
due to anxiety
- Changeable mood not constant with same mood, quick changes in mood
- Fear of death with weeping disposition ● Fear of close space cannot stay alone.
- Sleep: cannot sleep properly due to anxiety
- Generalised weakness < urination after
- Neuralgic pain in intercostal region
Figure:1 (2)
Prescription: 04/02/2021
Rx
Pulsatilla nigricans 0/1 TDS for 15 days.
Prescribed on the basis of present totality and repertorial analysis result.
Symptoms indicating Pulsatilla nigricans (2):
- Anxiety during sleep
- Fear of everything especially from narrow spaces
- Thermal reaction: chilly
- Constant change in mental state
- Thirstless with dryness of mouth
- Due to fear always wanted to stay with family members, feels better with someone.
For potency selection(3), as the master Hahnemann, in aphorism no. 270 footnote of Organon of medicine 5th and 6th edition , has mentioned the powerful and mildest way to administer the medicine with maximum effect and minimum aggravation; so the 50 millesimal potency is chosen for the administration of the medicine.
Table 1: Follow up:
| Date 19/02/21 | Symptoms General condition of patient same. | • | Prescription Pulsatilla nigricans 0/1 TDS For 15 days | |
| 08/03/21 | Anxiety decreased. | • | Pulsatilla nigricans 0/2 TDS For 30 Days | |
| 13/04/21 | Weakness and anxiety better. But chest pain not relieved much. | • | Pulsatilla nigricans 0/3 TDS For 30 Days | |
| 10/05/21 | Less fearful than before when alone or in closed spaces. | • | Pulsatilla nigricans 0/4 TDS For 30 Days | |
| 11/06/21 | Chest much better . Fear and anxiety much relieved | • | Pulsatilla nigricans 0/5 TDS For 30 Days | |
| 16/07/21 | General condition better. Pain in chest also relieved | • | S/L TDS For 30 Days | |
| 16/08/21 | Patient as a whole felt better. | • | S/L TDS For 30 Days | |
Scale score, pre- and post-treatment :–
Discussion and conclusion:
COVID-19 pandemic is altering human race in a manner which no one could have foreseen, it affected people in different ways depending on particular situations and unique contexts, yet within this individual uniqueness, people are collectively experiencing exhaustion, annoyance, and the feeling of not being in control over their own lives. World Health Organization (WHO) has recognized that current crisis is generating stress in population. So as the above mentioned case denotes a similar kind of situation of a patient, who had developed different kind of mental and physical problems during his post covid phase which are nearly unexplained to him. After a thorough case taking and repertorial analysis of symptoms , the top most remedy came to be Arsenic album. But to the best of our knowledge of homoeopathic materia medica, we have chosen Pulsatilla nigricans, which is the second-best remedy for the case. As Pulsatilla nigricans is covering all the major symptoms of the patient on mental as well as the physical sphere. The body built and constitution of the patient also suggests for Pulsatilla.
References :
- Hamilton M. The assessment of anxiety states by rating. Br J Med Psychol 1959; 32:50–55.
- Chaudhary, s., 2009. Radar 10. delhi: bjain.
- Hahnemann, S., Sarkar, B. and Dudgeon, R., 1976. Organon of medicine (5th and 6th edition). Calcutta: Bhattacharyya.
About Author:
Dr Shyambhavi Chaudhary1, Dr Varun Chaudhary2, Dr Shipra Singh*3
*1Associate professor, Department of Physiology including Bio-chemistry, Bakson Homoeopathy Medical College, Greater Noida, U.P. (201306); Senior Consultant at Atharv Homoeo Care, New Delhi.
*2Guest Faculty, Department of Organon of medicine, Bakson Homoeopathy Medical College, Greater Noida, U.P.
(201306) ; Senior Consultant at Panacea Homoeopathic Clinic, Gurugram.
*3Consultant at Homoeopathic Clinic, Luckinow, U.P. (229206).
