Arsenicum album

Arsenicum album is a potentised preparation of arsenic trioxide (As₂O₃), a white, crystalline, odourless powder that is highly toxic. Historically known for its role as a poison, it also held medicinal status in low doses in 18th- and 19th-century allopathy, used in treatment for skin conditions, asthma, and syphilis. It has strong effects on the gastrointestinal tract, respiration, and circulatory system, and is classically associated with burning pains, anxiety, and collapse.

Proved by Samuel Hahnemann, first published in Materia Medica Pura (~1811–1821). Proving involved administration of trituration and potentised forms of arsenic to healthy volunteers under Hahnemann’s supervision.

Arsenicum album captures the human terror of disorder, decay, and death. Its essence is survival through control. The patient seeks to organise life against the fear of loss, chaos, or annihilation. They are restless, both in body and in mind, pacing away their fears and clinging to routines, warmth, and reassurance. Arsenicum transforms the poisoned state into one of refined vitality through structure and order.

• Gastrointestinal tract
• Mucous membranes (especially respiratory and digestive)
• Skin
• Lungs
• Kidneys
• Circulatory system
• Right side
• Mind (fear, anxiety, restlessness)

The Arsenicum album mind is defined by deep anxiety, restlessness, and fear of death, often with obsessive concern for health and survival. Kent noted a “tremendous fear of death, with despair of recovery, and restlessness that drives the patient from place to place.” This is not a passive despair, but one marked by a strong need to act—to pace, to ask for help, to control their environment. Clarke emphasised the fastidiousness of the Ars. patient: cleanliness, order, perfection in appearance. They are often suspicious, controlling, and unable to trust easily. Consolation does not comfort; it increases their sense of instability. There is a polarity between their need for company (for safety) and their intolerance of emotional interference. Great irritability may coexist with fear, and suicidal thoughts can arise in advanced states. The mind becomes more exhausted and depressed as the disease progresses, often culminating in indifference or resignation.

Restless and disturbed by anxiety. Patient wakes in fright or with a sense of suffocation. Clarke described sleep interrupted by cough or vomiting. Dreams of fire, thieves, or dying.

Dreams of danger, death, robbery, or fire. Clarke noted vivid, anxious dreams with frequent waking and difficulty falling asleep again.

Great weakness and rapid exhaustion from slightest effort. Burning pains relieved by warmth are a cardinal feature. Restlessness is both physical and mental. Clarke wrote: “The bed feels too hard to lie on,” and Kent added that the collapse state of Ars. is among the most extreme in the Materia Medica.

Intermittent fevers with marked periodicity, great prostration, and burning thirst. Face may be red or pale; alternating heat and chill common. Kent remarked on fevers with despair, great weakness, and anxiety about death.

Chilliness despite covering; internal cold with outward heat. Heat follows with burning, then cold sweat. Clarke mentioned one-sided sweats or sweats only during sleep.

Headaches are burning or congestive in nature, frequently associated with anxiety or gastric disturbances. Kent noted frontal pain extending to the occiput, often with hot flushes and a sense of internal heat. Clarke described scalp sensitivity, with hair falling out in handfuls, especially in debilitated individuals or during chronic illness. Vertigo may arise on standing or with motion, and headaches worsen in the cold and at night.

Burning pain, redness, and swelling of the lids, especially the lower, are characteristic. Lachrymation is acrid and excoriates the cheeks. Clarke described photophobia and styes, especially in chronic inflammatory eye conditions. The eyes appear glassy or sunken in cases of collapse. Vision may become foggy or dim, especially during headaches or episodes of faintness.

Itching and burning in the ear canals, with dryness and scaliness. Kent reported stitching or tearing pains, often accompanying colds or sinus congestion. In advanced stages, there may be buzzing or roaring in the ears, especially in nervous or anaemic states.

Coryza with thin, watery, acrid discharge that excoriates the nostrils and upper lip. Sneezing is frequent and exhausting. Clarke noted the tendency toward ulceration and crusting inside the nose. Bleeding may occur in fevers or due to irritation from the acrid discharge.

Pale, anxious, drawn expression with dark circles under the eyes. The skin may appear waxy, cold, or hot and burning depending on the stage of illness. Clarke described facial neuralgia with burning pain, worse from touch and cold. Lips are dry, cracked, or bluish in collapsed states.

Mouth is dry with burning sensation, yet thirst is only for frequent small sips. Clarke emphasised ulcers and gangrenous areas in chronic conditions. Gums may be spongy, bleeding, or retracted. Metallic or bitter taste is common.

Toothache worse from cold drinks, better from warmth. Teeth feel long or sensitive, and the gums recede or become inflamed. Clarke noted offensive odour from the mouth in dental abscesses or ulceration.

Burning, constricted, and ulcerated throat with difficulty swallowing. Pain may extend to ears. Kent described throat symptoms during fevers, where even liquids are painful to swallow, despite great thirst. Swelling of the tonsils or uvula may be present with hoarseness or dryness.

Oppression, constriction, and burning pain in the chest. Dry, suffocative cough, worse at night, especially lying down. Kent noted cardiac asthma and chest pain that is sharp or tearing. Palpitations occur with anxiety and fear.

Palpitations from fear, excitement, or lying down. Clarke described feeble, irregular pulse with a sense of impending doom. Pericarditis with burning and restlessness is also seen.

Shortness of breath, worse at midnight or when lying down. Asthma with great anxiety and wheezing. Clarke noted panting respiration with chilliness and collapse.

Intense burning pain in the stomach, worse from cold food or drink. Clarke noted the classic keynote: “Thirst for cold water in small quantities, vomited immediately after.” Nausea with great prostration, anxiety, and fear of death is common. Vomiting may be dark, coffee-ground, or bile-stained.

Burning, distended, and sensitive. Pain is stitching, cutting, or burning, worse at night. Clarke noted liver area soreness, often associated with jaundice or toxic conditions. Ascites may develop in late stages.

Watery, offensive, and involuntary stools, often occurring at night. Diarrhoea is exhausting and accompanied by cold sweat. Clarke and Allen reported burning, rawness, and intense anxiety before and after stool. Haemorrhoids may bleed easily, with stinging pain.

Scanty, dark, and burning urine with frequent urging. Kent mentioned incontinence in old or exhausted patients. Albuminuria and nephritis may develop after acute illnesses, particularly with skin suppression.

Craves cold water in small sips, though often vomited. Aversion to fats, meat, and milk. Clarke mentioned desire for sour things or ice. Food disagrees easily, leading to vomiting or diarrhoea.

Suppressed or diminished sexual function, especially in chronically ill or anxious men. Clarke noted impotence from exhaustion or fear. Genitalia may be cold, shrivelled, or painful.

Menstruation is irregular, dark, and offensive. Leucorrhoea is thin, burning, and acrid. Clarke noted weakness and anxiety during menopause, and Kent reported severe exhaustion after delivery or miscarriage.

Chilliness runs along the spine, especially between the shoulders. Pain may be burning or drawing. Clarke noted weakness in the lumbar region, worse from sitting or stooping.

Limbs feel heavy, weak, and cold. Burning pains alternate with numbness or tingling. Clarke described gangrene or ulceration of extremities in cachectic patients. Restlessness drives them to constantly change position.

Skin is dry, rough, and scaly or oedematous with a burning sensation relieved by heat—a peculiar keynote. Clarke reported gangrenous ulcers, vesicles, and eczema with itching and restlessness. Herpetic eruptions, especially with acrid discharge, are common.

• Phosphorus: Burning pains, thirst, and gastrointestinal issues, but more open and emotionally expressive.
• Veratrum album: Diarrhoea and collapse with cold sweat, but more violent and cold.
• Carbo vegetabilis: Collapse state, but desires fanning and open air.
• China: Debility from fluid loss without the same level of anxiety or burning.
• Nux vomica: Also irritable and fastidious, but more aggressive and focused on control.

• Complementary: Carbo veg., Phosphorus, Secale cor.
• Antidotes: Nux vomica, Camphor
• Inimical: Lycopodium
• Follows well: Aconite, Veratrum alb.
• Precedes well: Bryonia, Nux vomica

Use for food poisoning, gastroenteritis, anxiety with restlessness, eczema, burns, and asthma, especially when symptoms are burning, acrid, and better for warmth. A top remedy for collapse states, including after haemorrhage or emotional trauma. Dose: 30C or 200C in acute cases; 6C or LM for sensitive patients; 1M+ for constitutional prescribing with strong mental-emotional profile.

Mind

• MIND – Fear of death, predicting the time
• MIND – Anxiety, driving from place to place
• MIND – Fastidious
• MIND – Restlessness, with despair

Stomach

• STOMACH – Thirst for cold water, small quantities
• STOMACH – Vomiting after cold drinks

Skin

• SKIN – Burning, relieved by heat
• SKIN – Ulcers, gangrenous

Generalities

• GENERAL – Collapse, after diarrhoea
• GENERAL – Burning, internal
• GENERAL – Weakness, after exertion

Samuel Hahnemann, Materia Medica Pura
James Tyler Kent, Lectures on Homoeopathic Materia Medica
John Henry Clarke, A Dictionary of Practical Materia Medica
William Boericke, Pocket Manual of Materia Medica
Constantine Hering, Guiding Symptoms of Our Materia Medica
Henry C. Allen, Keynotes and Characteristics