A teenager broke into her house in Montana with a rifle one night while she was in bed, and attempted rape. She fought and disarmed him, but was deeply shaken by the assault. She felt the world wasn't safe after that. She still woke between 2 and 4 A.M. and had trouble getting back to sleep.

When she pressed charges, Judy was shunned in her small town , causing her to move to the city. She had always lived her life by her family's standards and didn't know what she was capable of doing until she moved away.

Judy desired bread (2), potatoes (2) and chocolate(1).

Now analyze the case and decide what remedy fits Judy's symptoms the best. Turn to page ____ for follow-up and discussion.

The remedy for Judy's case was not immediately obvious. Strong consideration was given to Arsenicum, Alumina and Syphilinum. It was clear that Judy needed a remedy with a strong focus on obsessive compulsive behaviors. Syphilinum is a remedy which has a strong fear of contagion and germs, which often leads to compulsive handwashing. Arsenicum is very fastidious, has strong anxiety about health and has insomnia after midnight. Alumina has loss of personal identity and fears and impulses to hurt themselves or others upon seeing a knife or blood, as well as a desire for starch and potatoes. The remedy that we chose, however, was Iodum.

It was the presenting complaint of thyroid problems that first drew our attention to the remedy Iodum. Iodum is the element iodine. As a necessary element in the diet for the prevention of goitre and hypothyroidism, iodine is needed for the manufacture of the thyroid hormone, thyroxine. It forms an integral part of the precursor for this hormone, triiodothyronine. Thyroid hormone is necessary for the regulation of metabolism throughout the body. A deficiency of thyroxine (hypothyroidism) slows metabolism, causing weight gain, hair loss and dryness, while an excess causes hyperthyroidism, with increased metabolism, heat, anxiety, protrusion of the eyeballs, restlessness. palpitations and hunger.

These symptoms of hyperthyroidism are the very symptoms typically found in the homeopathic picture of Iodum, and the remedy has very successfully treated many cases of Grave's disease, and other forms of hyperthyroidism. It may also be used, however, in hypothyroid or euthyroid states if other characteristic symptoms are present, showing the polarity which often exists in remedies..

James Tyler Kent describes the Iodum mental state as characterized by "... excitement, anxiety, impulses, melancholy; he wants to do something, wants to hurry; he has impulses to kill. The impulse to do violence is sudden." The impulse to run is very strong for Iodum patients, as well as the sudden impulse to kill. Iodum may suddenly feel the urge to kill someone, or even himself, without really knowing why. There is a driven quality to Iodum, as though the person has too much energy, and the energy is expressed as impulsive behavior.

According to proving symptoms collected by Rajan Sankaran, reported in his book The Substance of Homeopathy, Iodum has an inner feeling of sudden intense danger which needs urgent action to deal with it. There is also a "...feeling like that of being starved by one's own parents, with a tremendous sense of betrayal, shock and disappointment." This is a feeling of being betrayed, let down or hurt by those on whom you depend, demanding urgent, even violent action in response.