Ferrum metallicum

Prepared by triturating pure metallic iron. Iron is a fundamental element in human physiology, essential in haemoglobin and oxygen transport.

First proved by Hahnemann and published in Materia Medica Pura. Also verified clinically by Hering, Kent, and Clarke.

Ferrum metallicum embodies the paradox of strength and collapse. The iron-willed individual—conscientious, diligent, and generous—pushes past their limits until the body rebels. They flush with passion or pain, then collapse into pallor and weakness. It is a remedy of contradiction: pale yet red, strong yet frail, active yet exhausted. It revives vitality in those who have bled themselves dry, physically or emotionally, and restores balance to the circulatory and muscular systems.

• Circulatory system – blood, arteries, haemoglobin
• Muscles and connective tissue – fatigue, soreness, weakness
• Face and mucous membranes – congestion, flushing
• Gastrointestinal system – vomiting, weakness after food
• Female reproductive system – uterine bleeding, anaemia-related symptoms

Ferrum metallicum types are sensitive, conscientious, and often overexert themselves due to a strong sense of duty. Mental irritability arises from physical exhaustion. [Clarke] notes that weakness from slightest mental or physical exertion causes tearfulness, anxiety, and inner trembling. Alternating states of gaiety and gloom. Timidity, fear of failure, and easily offended. Complaints after emotional strain or silent grief. Mental activity intensifies at night, leading to insomnia.

Unrefreshing, disturbed by dreams or physical restlessness. Wakes often from congestion or palpitations. Drowsy during day, especially after meals. Insomnia from overexertion or mental activity.

Dreams of falling, flying, danger, or fire. Vivid, frightful, and exhausting. Wakes with start and feeling of being pursued. Dreams reflect fatigue, weakness, and responsibility.

Paradoxical remedy—pale but flushed, weak but restless, better from movement but exhausted by it. Anaemia is central—manifesting in flushing, palpitations, and weakness. Alternating states mark the pathology. Great debility from loss of fluids or overexertion. Better in cool air; worse from heat, noise, and motion. Suitable for tall, thin, sensitive individuals with strong ideals but weak constitutions.

Intermittent fevers with weakness and coldness. Chills alternate with flashes of heat and red face. Heat in head with cold body. Perspiration sour, oily, or offensive. Anaemic fevers. Useful in fevers after haemorrhage.

Chilly after the least exposure. Alternating coldness and heat. Flushes of heat with weakness. Sweats during sleep, especially on face and chest. Cold perspiration with fainting spells.

Congestive headaches, often with red, flushed face and throbbing carotids. Headaches come in paroxysms and are relieved by nosebleeds or profuse menstruation. Head feels full, pressive, or as if it will burst. Vertigo when rising, walking, or turning in bed. Sensation of hammering in the temples. Worse from stooping, heat, or sun. Better from cold applications and walking slowly in fresh air.

Eyes appear pale or bluish from anaemia. Flickering, black spots, or dim vision from fatigue. Burning or pressing pains after reading. Muscles of the eyes tire easily. Tendency to conjunctival bleeding or subconjunctival haemorrhages. Lachrymation in open air. Useful in asthenopic complaints from iron-deficiency or general weakness.

Ringing, buzzing, or pulsation in the ears, especially during headaches or congestive episodes. Sudden deafness during menses or from suppressed discharges. Earache in anaemic children, worse at night.

Frequent epistaxis, especially in children and anaemic women. Nosebleeds may relieve headache. Fluent coryza alternating with nasal obstruction. Tip of nose red and inflamed. Discharges thin and watery, worse at night.

Alternate paleness and flushing, a core keynote. Face turns fiery red with headache, exertion, or emotional excitement, and then turns pale with weakness. Expression exhausted, lips pale. Often flushed with throbbing carotids. Skin of the face may appear oily or waxy. Children with an “earthy” or greenish pallor around the mouth and nose.

Tongue pale, swollen, with imprints of teeth. Metallic taste in mouth. Aphthae or ulceration from anaemic states. Dryness or thick white coating in the morning. Lips pale or bluish, crack easily. Taste lost or altered during weakness.

Toothache with facial flushing and pulsation. Teeth feel elongated or sore. Gums pale and bleed easily. Pain from cold drinks or brushing.

Dryness, soreness, or sensation of lump in the throat. Chronic irritation leading to hawking of mucus. Pain when swallowing, worse in a warm room. Tendency to pharyngitis with venous congestion and pallor.

Dry, hard cough, especially at night. Haemoptysis with palpitations and flushing. Chest oppressed, tightness worse from lying flat. Must sit up to breathe. Pain in the sternum with deep inspiration. Spasmodic cough relieved by expectoration. Voice weak and hoarse. Chronic bronchial catarrh with easy bleeding.

Palpitation with face flushing and breathlessness, especially after least exertion. Pulse soft, easily compressed, and irregular. Heart feels too weak to pump. Fluttering sensation on lying down. Anaemia-induced murmurs.

Shortness of breath on slight motion. Cannot walk without gasping. Breath cold or hot alternately. Dyspnoea with faintness. Breathing better in open air. Spasmodic respiration or sighing.

A characteristic symptom: vomiting of food soon after eating, without nausea. Regurgitation of food, especially undigested. Appetite ravenous, yet weakens after eating. Distension, cramping, and belching. Desire for sour or refreshing food. Aversion to meat, milk, and eggs. Flatulence and sluggish digestion.

Cutting pains, worse after eating. Fullness and distension with gurgling. Abdominal pain relieved by passing wind or stool. Right-sided liver pain after exertion or menses. Flatulence presses upwards, causing breathlessness.

Constipation alternating with diarrhoea. Stools hard, black, or lumpy. Painless, sudden diarrhoea in the morning. Haemorrhoids bleed easily. Ineffectual urging. Weakness follows evacuation.

Frequent urging with pale, watery urine. Involuntary urination on coughing or laughing. Urine may be cloudy or contain sediment. Pain in bladder after walking. Chronic cystitis with exhaustion.

Craves sour, refreshing things—pickles, vinegar, lemons. Aversion to meat, milk, eggs. Appetite ravenous or completely lost. Complaints after slightest food. Drinking cold water relieves nausea.

Sexual desire diminished or absent. Erections feeble or short-lived. Seminal emissions during sleep leave great weakness. Enlarged prostate in elderly men. Testes feel heavy, especially after exertion.

Menorrhagia with pale face, weakness, and flushing. Menses too early, profuse, and long-lasting. Flow is bright red, gushing, and may alternate with amenorrhoea. Prolapse of uterus from lifting or exertion. Leucorrhoea like egg-white, especially after menses. Prone to anaemia, miscarriage, and haemorrhage. Face red during flow; pale before and after.

Backache with weakness, better lying down. Dull, heavy pain in lumbar region. Spine sensitive to pressure. Pain between scapulae with tiredness. Cervical pain from anaemia. Pain in sacrum from standing.

Weakness and trembling of limbs. Heaviness in arms and legs. Cold hands and feet with hot face. Cramping in calves, especially at night. Feet swollen, blue, or congested. Paralytic sensations in limbs. Veins engorged or varicose. Drops things from hands.

Pale, flabby, and easily bruised. Bleeds easily from slightest cut. Ulcers slow to heal. Eczema in anaemic children. Cold, clammy skin with warm head. Prone to chilblains and frostbite.

• China officinalis – Also suited to anaemia after loss of fluids; more sensitive to touch and has flatulence
• Phosphorus – Tall, thin, and anaemic; but more emotional, worse lying on left side, and craves cold drinks
• Calcarea carbonica – Pale and weak, but more sluggish, with cold sweats and fear
• Pulsatilla – Anaemic and gentle, but < heat and rich food; Ferrum has more restlessness and flushing
• Sepia – Flushes and weakness with female complaints, but more emotionally flat and indifferent

• Complementary: China, Phosphorus, Arsenicum
• Antidotes: Pulsatilla, Belladonna
• Follows well: China, Calcarea, Lycopodium
• Precedes well: Sulphur, Sepia

• Use in anaemic women with heavy menses and flushing
• First remedy to think of in alternate paleness and flushing
• Great for vomiting food undigested after meals
• Very useful in congestive headaches relieved by bleeding
• Helpful in children who are pale, weak, but restless

Mind

• Sadness, after exertion
• Easily offended
• Mental exertion aggravates
• Restlessness, physical and mental

Head

• Congestion, with red face
• Headaches, from noise, motion
• Vertigo, on rising or walking

Female Genitalia

• Menses, too profuse, bright red
• Leucorrhoea, after menses
• Prolapse, from exertion

Extremities

• Weakness, legs
• Cramping, calves, at night
• Cold feet, hot head

Stomach

• Vomiting, food, immediately after eating
• Eructations, with relief
• Aversion, meat, milk

Generalities

• Anaemia, from haemorrhage
• Flushing, alternating with paleness
• Motion, gentle ameliorates

Samuel Hahnemann – Materia Medica Pura: Original proving, vomiting and circulatory themes

James Kent – Lectures on Homoeopathic Materia Medica: Detailed mental and female complaints

William Boericke – Pocket Manual of Homoeopathic Materia Medica: Clinical tips and modalities

John Henry Clarke – Dictionary of Practical Materia Medica: Expanded symptomatology for circulation, digestion, and paradoxical traits

C. Hering – Guiding Symptoms: Congestive headaches, weakness, and skin conditions