You know the complimentaries for Silica are Pulsatilla, Thuja and Fluoric Acid. It is inimical to Mercury. Just a few tidbits here. Thin kids with big heads and fine skin. If you see that combination, sometimes they have big bellies too, but they are thin. Baryta Carb has that. Calcarea can have that. Chilly, of course, although in the acutes they can be worse from heat. The question is how often in acutes? I would say rare. I have seen it in acute sinusitises. Otitis, sure. I wouldn’t give it usually a first hit of otitis as an acute, but if it was like something that was recurrent. So, the generalities are cold, offensive perspiration, especially in the feet and the head, and aggravation from suppression of perspiration. A lot of times people will go and get Boric Acid soaks and things like that for their feet. The perspiration, a lot of times I see that they don’t actually still have the perspiration on the feet. I would say it’s just as common not to have the perspiration on the feet, as it is to have the perspiration on the feet in Silica. Even in the ones that don’t have it now, a lot of them if you really drill them or if they ask their moms or whatever, you will find out that there is a history of perspiration on the feet. They won’t say specifically, "Oh, I got the headaches after my feet were stopped up," but if you look at temporally, you can make a connection within a year or two a lot of times. It is worse with changes of the moon. One of the main remedies for that. Especially new moon. During the new moon, they are worse. Worse at the full moon? Calcarea.

I haven’t so much used it in acutes of otitis but in recurrent otitises where you have a specific attack and it has been three or four times in a recurrent otitis I might try it during an acute attack of that otitis, if it seemed to be the indicated constitutional and it would work definitely in those situations. It is definitely one of the main remedies in recurrent otitises, recurrent and frequent colds, bronchitises and sinusitises. It is one of the main remedies. Frequent infections. It seems to be a remedy that is incapable of throwing off infections well. In the same way, it is a remedy that can’t assert itself easily; it can’t assert itself against bacteria any better than it does against people. So, that is why the infections in the skin produce abscesses and colds and all that kind of business. The metabolism is often defective, causing delayed development, slow bone growth, and teeth and so forth, and it is a remedy that is noted for delayed aggravation and slow recovery, so you have to give this remedy a chance to work. It is one of the remedies that I have messed up by being too impatient in wanting to see results faster and give them something else too soon. I mean an aggravation that may come at three weeks. That late. Usually not that late, but it may be that late and not unusual to see it at the end of 1½ to 2 weeks. The aggravation lasts a long time and instead of seeing a dramatic or a marked amelioration at one month, you may see them better at two months, much better at three months and really well at four or five months. My rule of thumb with Silica is instead of evaluating and changing at one month, I would evaluate and change at two months.

George says it is one of the main remedies in hair falling in intellectuals, especially in school when they are under stress, or any time that they are over thinking and getting worn out and their hair starts to fall out, think of Silica. Phosphoric Acid has hair falling, but it is not so much as in that situation of students. It is a remedy that you may confuse with Picric Acid because they overwork mentally and then they have this breakdown of the mind and go to dullness and a lot of fear about their mental state and that kind of thing. Students that can’t think or write anymore it is one of the main remedies.

Headaches that usually start in the occiput and go to the forehead like Gelsemium. There is also the tendency that the head has to be covered like Psorinum. And they will get a headache if their head isn’t covered and the headaches are usually better in a dark room.

Another type of infection that they can’t throw out well is acne, so it is a remedy you can think of in acne. It is acne that causes scarring, little pockmarks frequently.

The nose comes in for a lot of pathology. Sinusitises and especially chronic dry obstructions of the nose. It will be one of the main remedies especially in intellectual and refined people if you see that. Not so much a hay fever like you would think of for Natrum Mur, but just a chronic obstruction. Splinter sensation in the throat, so sore throats that have that sensation even quinces, angina. There is a keynote of sensation of the hair on the tongue like Kali-bi. Ask for it. People have it a lot more often than they will say. They won’t bring it up. Also, cervical glands, large hard cervical glands or other places the glands may come up.

The cravings are for eggs mostly, so it is another confusion factor with Calcarea. There can be craving or aversion to meat. Usually though, an aversion to fat, sometimes an aversion for salt. Aversion to salt I think is the main thing and of course aversion to milk is the most prominent thing. Especially babies with aversion to mother’s milk. Kent makes a big deal about that. Yes, and milk in general. Spitting up or just not tolerating mother’s milk.

Constipation with receding stools is very strong for Silica. When you ask about constipation, they will say constipation and I say sometimes does it feel sometimes almost like the stool instead of coming out when you are ready to go, it goes it back up inside? Feeling like there is mote stool left.

Now, female. Breast abscesses. Sometimes tumors in the breast, it could be a remedy for. There is a keynote of uterine hemorrhage, menorrhagia while nursing. The mother puts the baby up to nurse; it nurses and then comes the bleeding. I haven’t seen that but it is in all the books.

In the feet, one of the main confirmatories for Silica that I have found to be useful is ingrown toenails. A high percentage of Silicas will say that they have had ingrown toenails, or sometimes bunions, or other kinds of mess-ups with the feet. Big fungal toenails, for Silica or fungal infections with the nails. Of course Silica is one of the main remedies for nails, that break easily and especially nails with white spots on them. Of course, the feet are usually offensive.

1. Subjects of light complexion and fine, dry skin; paleface, lax fiber; nervous, sanguine temperament; lacking in "grit". Specially suited to scrofulous, rachitic children with large sweaty head and big abdomen; open fontanelles and sutures; weak ankles, slow learning to walk, etc.

2. Patient anxious, yielding, timid (Pulsatilla) but irritable if aroused; melancholy, lachrymose, desires consolation; lacks self-confidence but gets through by force of will. Children often obstinate and headstrong but cry when spoken to kindly (lodum). Frightful dreams; somnambulism.

3. Hypersensitiveness, mental and physical, especially to noise.

4. Chronic headaches, vertigo and cold sensations from nape of neck to vertex; headache from spine extending over head and locating over one eye especially the right (Sanguinaria); < draught, uncovering; > pressure, wrapping up, profuse urination, lying down in quiet, dark room.

5. Constipation from paralytic weakness of rectum; stool partly expelled then recedes (Thuja); before and during menses; distension of abdomen with emission of offensive flatus; dislikes fat, < milk.

6. Unhealthy skin; every injury suppurates; indurations, scars and thickenings; malformation of nails; ingrown toe nails; promotes expulsion of foreign bodies from the tissues. Bad effects of vaccination (Thuja).

7. Suppurations especially long-lasting; of glands and joints; matures abscesses (low potencies) and heals after discharge; streptococcal infections; chronic ulceration fistulae; whitlows.

8. Offensive sweats especially of the feet; ailments from suppression of sweat or any discharges; feet and hands clammy.

9. Sticking, stitching, stabbing pains, gen., < motion.

10. Lack of vital heat; icy coldness of various parts; < cold especially at approach of winter; < during new and waxing moon; all symptoms > warmth (except gastric); especially > wrapping up the head; approach of summer, humid weather.

Notes: Incompatible with Mercury.

Chronic of Pulsatilla.

Slow but deep-acting remedy: use cautiously in phthisical cases avoiding high potencies.