Veratrum album

Veratrum album is a perennial plant native to mountainous regions of Europe. It belongs to the Melanthiaceae family and contains powerful alkaloids including veratrine, jervine, and protoveratrine. The tincture is prepared from the fresh rootstock harvested in spring before flowering or in autumn after seed ripens. In toxicology, it is known for causing violent purgation, collapse, cold sweats, and cramping.

Hahnemann first proved Veratrum album and included it in his Materia Medica Pura. Later elaborated by Hering, Allen, and Kent, especially in relation to collapse states, severe gastroenteritis, and mania.

Veratrum album embodies the polarity between extreme excitation and complete collapse. The patient can be driven by ecstatic visions, grandiosity, and religious fervour, yet fall into utter prostration, icy coldness, and near-death states. The remedy powerfully addresses violent expulsive discharges—vomiting, diarrhoea, sweat—that deplete vital force. It is a quintessential remedy for shock, cholera, collapse, and manic states that oscillate with physical exhaustion. Whether in acute or constitutional prescribing, Veratrum album brings balance where vital force has been overextended and broken down.

• Gastrointestinal tract – violent diarrhoea, vomiting, cramping
• Circulation – collapse, shock, coldness, low vitality
• Nervous system – convulsions, mania, alternating excitation and prostration
• Muscles – cramping, spasms, twitching
• Skin – cold sweat, especially on forehead
• Mind – religious mania, despair, loquacity alternating with silence
• Head – neuralgia, cold sensation
• Female organs – menstrual disturbances, collapse during labour
• Extremities – cramps, restless limbs, icy coldness
• Heart – feeble pulse, palpitations with weakness
• Left side – left-sided complaints more marked

Profound mental derangement underlies the Veratrum album state. The patient may exhibit maniacal behaviour, often of a religious nature, quoting scripture, prophesying, or crying for divine mercy [Kent]. There is delirium with shrieking, tearing at clothes, attempting to escape, or shouting without provocation. States alternate between loquacity and muteness, elation and despair, often in rapid cycles. Intense anxiety is prominent, especially about health or impending death. In collapse, the patient may become indifferent, unresponsive, or weep silently. There is a strong desire to pray, even among those previously irreligious [Clarke]. In some cases, suicidal despair occurs during exhaustion phases. Delusions of grandeur, alternating with feelings of utter worthlessness, are characteristic.

Sleeplessness from pain or anxiety. Sleep disturbed by cramps, vomiting, or diarrhoea. Dreams of religious subjects, death, disaster. Sleep heavy after vomiting. Drowsy during collapse, yet mind active.

Disturbing dreams of death, falling, or drowning. Religious imagery. Nightmares during fever. Dreams of prophesying or divine intervention.

Sudden, intense collapse with coldness, blueness, and profuse sweat. Spasms, twitching, and vomiting. < cold, > warmth. Sensation of sinking, as if dying. Suited to severe, rapid-onset cases: cholera, gastroenteritis, collapse in childbirth, shock, and religious mania. Great restlessness, alternating with complete prostration. Useful for acute, dramatic emergencies with marked physical symptoms and unstable mental states.

Coldness predominates. Chilly, with blue extremities. Internal burning despite external coldness. Febrile state with vomiting, collapse, and sweat. Pulse rapid and weak. Fever may follow suppressed eruptions or discharges.

Cold sweats, profuse, with icy skin. Sweat particularly on forehead. Chills with cramps. Heat rare, mostly in head or chest. Alternation of coldness and sweat. Internal heat with outward coldness.

Headaches are often neuralgic, with cold sweat on the forehead. There may be a sensation of icy coldness within the skull [Boericke]. Vertigo accompanies collapse, especially when standing or turning. Face pale, sunken, with pinched features. Scalp may be sensitive to touch or crawling sensations may be felt. Head pain accompanied by faintness or vomiting. Cold perspiration on the forehead is a keynote, especially in gastroenteric crises. Face is waxy, bluish or corpse-like in extreme cases.

Staring, sunken, and glassy eyes. Pupils may be dilated or contracted, unevenly reactive. Photophobia in neuralgic headaches. Eyelids twitch during fever. Vision may be dim, blurred, or double. Patients may complain of seeing sparks or flames. During mania, eyes glisten wildly with excitement. Lachrymation with spasms of facial muscles.

Ears cold to the touch, sometimes blue. Hearing acutely sensitive or entirely absent during collapse. Ringing in the ears precedes fainting. Ears may feel stuffed or buzzing. Twitching of ear muscles during chills.

Nose pinched, sharp, and cold during collapse. Profuse, acrid coryza with headache in some cases. Epistaxis in menstrual suppression. Nose may twitch or appear motionless in profound prostration. Sensation of icy cold air passing through nostrils is characteristic.

Deathly pale, blue or ashen grey. Face sunken, eyes hollow, lips livid. Cold sweat on face, particularly forehead. In mania, facial expression wild, contorted. Twitching of facial muscles. Distorted grimaces during convulsions or vomiting. In acute choleraic states, the hippocratic face appears early [Hering].

Tongue cold, flabby, and pale or blue. Mouth dry, but thirst insatiable for cold drinks, which are vomited immediately. Frothing at the mouth during convulsions. Bitter taste, or no taste at all. Lips cracked, cold, bluish. Speech hesitant, mumbled, or broken during collapse. Grinding of teeth in children. Foul breath may accompany diarrhoea.

Grinding of teeth, especially in children with diarrhoea and collapse. Teeth chatter from chill. Gums pale or bluish, bleed easily. Sensation of teeth being loose or elongated.

Dryness and constriction in pharynx. Inability to swallow without pain. Burning or scraping in oesophagus. Throat feels icy or raw. Choking sensation during spasms or with rising nausea. Cold drinks aggravate throat irritation.

Breathing laboured, sighing, gasping. Oppression in chest during faintness. Coldness internally. Palpitation with weakness. Pneumonia with collapse, cold sweat, and diarrhoea. Sharp pains radiating to neck and arms. Left-sided pleuritic pain with vomiting. Voice feeble or gone during collapse. Cough dry, painful, or spasmodic.

Pulse rapid, feeble, intermittent, or imperceptible. Collapse of circulation, with blue face, icy skin, and thready pulse. Palpitations < lying flat. Precordial anxiety. Heart weak after diarrhoea or vomiting. Feeling as though heart would stop. Dyspnoea with cardiac weakness. Coldness about heart region.

Rapid, shallow, and sighing. Gasping for breath in fainting spells. Breathing irregular during convulsions. Suffocative attacks, < motion. Breath cold. Shortness of breath after stool. Cyanosis may be present.

Violent, forcible vomiting, often simultaneous with diarrhoea. Vomitus is watery, bilious, greenish, or frothy. Intense thirst for cold drinks, which are vomited immediately. Nausea constant and overwhelming, with desire to lie still. Cramping in the epigastrium, < slightest motion. Gastric agony drives patient to despair. Eructations painful, sour, or absent. Empty sinking feeling in stomach. Colicky pains with cold sweat are a keynote [Boericke].

Violent colic with twisting, cramping pains. Cold abdomen, sensitive to touch. Distension with gurgling and rumbling. Cutting pain around the navel. Abdomen retracted in collapse. Sensation of icy coldness inside abdomen. Peristaltic activity exaggerated or completely lost in extreme exhaustion. Offensive flatus during diarrhoea.

Profuse, gushing diarrhoea, often simultaneous with vomiting. Stools are watery, rice-water, greenish, or mixed with mucus. Accompanied by coldness, weakness, and fainting. Diarrhoea may be painless or with agonising cramps. Urgency extreme, patient must run. Tenesmus rare. Rectum may prolapse in exhausted children. Involuntary stool during collapse. Haemorrhoids cold, painful, or bluish.

Suppressed or scanty urine. Incontinence during collapse. Urine pale, watery, or offensive. Retention after fright or chill. Urethra may spasm during diarrhoea or menses. Cold urine causes shivering. Pain at end of urination in some cases.

Intense thirst, especially for cold drinks, which are vomited. Aversion to warm drinks. Desire for sour or salty foods. < cold food or ice cream. Nausea after eating. Starving appetite before diarrhoea.

Coldness and shrivelling of genitals. Loss of libido. Ejaculation painful or suppressed. Seminal emissions during fainting spells or collapse. Erections absent during exhaustion. Emissions < diarrhoea.

Menses suppressed during acute conditions. Menstrual flow cold, dark, and offensive. Collapse during labour; cold sweat, blue lips, fainting. Lochia suppressed, leading to fever and prostration. Uterine haemorrhage with icy cold extremities. Milk may be suppressed after fright or weakness. Amenorrhoea with mania or gastric symptoms.

Coldness down spine. Pain in small of back during cramps. Spine sensitive in meningitis or collapse states. Stiffness during fever. Burning or icy sensation in dorsal region.

Icy coldness of hands and feet. Cramping in calves, soles, thighs, especially during diarrhoea. Restlessness in limbs, compelled to move constantly. Twitching and spasms. Fingers blue, numb. Nails pale or cyanotic. Paralysis after diarrhoea or shock. Weakness extreme; cannot hold objects. Hands tremble during prostration.

Skin cold, pale, bluish, or collapsed. Cold sweat, especially on forehead and chest. Skin dry or clammy. Gooseflesh. Tingling or numbness precedes spasms. Burns slowly in sun. In eruptions, suppression may trigger collapse. Cyanosis in severe gastroenteritis. Skin loose, hangs in folds in emaciated states.

• Camphora – Cold collapse, but more dry and asphyxiated; less cramping
• Carbo vegetabilis – Similar collapse and coldness, but craving for air, not vomiting
• Arsenicum album – Burning, restlessness, vomiting and diarrhoea, but more anxiety and periodicity
• Secale cornutum – Collapse with dry heat, vs. Veratrum’s icy cold sweat
• Cuprum metallicum – Cramps and collapse, but more tonic spasms, less vomiting

• Complementary: Cuprum, Arsenicum, Camphora
• Antidotes: Camphora, Aconite
• Follows well: Acon., Arsen., Cupr.
• Precedes well: Carbo veg., Sulph., Lyc.
• Inimical: Phosphorus (in acute collapse)

• One of the top remedies for cholera, violent gastroenteritis, food poisoning
• Use in collapse during childbirth, with cold sweat, weakness, and blue lips
• Consider in religious mania, especially alternating with prostration
• Useful in acute neurological crises with cramping and twitching
• Low to moderate potencies (6C–30C) for acute collapse; higher potencies cautiously in constitutional work
• Cold sweat on forehead is a strong keynote in almost all indications

Mind

• Mania, religious
• Delirium, alternating with prostration
• Praying constantly
• Restlessness with collapse

Gastrointestinal

• Vomiting and diarrhoea, simultaneous
• Thirst for cold drinks, vomited
• Cramping, agonising

Skin

• Cold sweat, forehead
• Icy coldness of body
• Blue, livid skin

Female

• Collapse during labour
• Lochia suppressed
• Menses, cold and offensive

Generalities

• Collapse, sudden
• Coldness, extreme
• Spasms, cramps, twitching

• Samuel Hahnemann – Materia Medica Pura: Provided initial provings and core symptom structure
• C. Hering – Guiding Symptoms: Described collapse states, cold sweat, and gastric symptoms
• William Boericke – Pocket Manual: Offered practical modalities, gastroenteric crises
• James Kent – Lectures on Homeopathic Materia Medica: Gave mental symptoms and profound insight into religious mania and despair
• John Henry Clarke – Dictionary of Practical Materia Medica: Added expanded rubrics, mental states, and differential indications