Cimicifuga appears in 10 of the 13 classic books on Similia. Each was written to do a different job — here is what each adds on this remedy, with the opening of its entry.
- Allen HC — The keynotes that separate this remedy from its nearest neighbours.
“Black Cohosh (Ranunculaceae.) Puerperal mania; thinks she is going crazy (compare, Syph.); tries to injure herself. Mania following disappearance of neuralgia. Sensation as if a heavy, black cloud had settled all over her and enveloped her head so that all is darkness and confusion. Illusion of a mouse running under…”
- Allen TF — The raw proving record — symptoms as the provers reported them, unedited.
“Cimicifuga racemosa, Ell. Synonyms , Actæa racemosa, Linn; Macrotys actæoides, Raf.; Botroflus serpentaria, Raf. (Med. Flora). Nat. order , Ranunculaceæ. Common names , Blacksnake root, Bugbane, Rattleweed. Preparation , Tincture of the root. Authorities.”
- Boericke — The quick clinical read — keynotes, modalities and the conditions it is actually prescribed in.
“Black Snake-root (CIMICIFUGA - ACTAEA RACEMOSA - MACROTYS) Has a wide action upon the cerebrospinal and muscular system, as well as upon the uterus and ovaries. Especially useful in rheumatic, nervous subjects with ovarian irritation, uterine cramps and heavy limbs. Its muscular and crampy pains, primarily of neurotic…”
- Boger (Syn) — Generals and modalities in a short analytical portrait rather than a symptom list.
“Mind. Occiput. Vertex. Nape. NERVES AND MUSCLES: Cerebro-spinal. Eyesballs. Ovario- uterine. Heart. FEMALES. Joints. Left side; ovary, chest, etc. Front of thighs. Menstruation; suppressed. During labor. Emotions. Alcohol. Night. Air: Damp. Cold. Wind. Drafts. Change of weather. Heat and cold. Sitting. Puberty and…”
- Clarke — The widest entry — sources, provings, clinical uses, relationships and antidotes in one place.
“Cimicifuga racemosa. Actæa monogynia. C. serpentaria. Macrotys racemosa. Botroflus serpentaria. Black snake root. Black Cohosh. (Canada, Georgia, Western States of America.) N. O. Ranunculaceæ. Tincture of the root. Trituration of the resinoid, Macrotyn. Abortion, tendency to / Angina pectoris / Appetite, disordered /…”
- Hering — Graded symptoms, each weighted by how often provers and practice confirmed it.
“[The observation that a drug may produce different symptoms on the different sexes is of the utmost importance for the scientific development of our Materia Medica. Professors Hill and Douglas state in their valuable report of provings with Actea racemosa, in the New York Quarterly , Vol. VII., 1859, p. 450 : "It…”
- Kent — The mental and general picture — who the patient is, before what the remedy cures.
“Actea Racemosa (Black Cohosh) This remedy has been only meagerly proved, yet there are a few useful points in it. From its proving we can perceive that it is similar to diseased states in the human family, and especially in women, namely, hysterical and rheumatic conditions. The patient is always chilly, easily…”
- Lippe (Red) — Keynotes with the most-trusted ones marked as red-line symptoms.
“Common names: squaw root; black cohosh; cimicifuga. GLOOMY, SAD, SLEEPLESS; THINKS SHE WILL GO INSANE (N.). Puerperal mania; tries to injure herself. Weeping mood; melancholia. Mania following disappearance of neuralgia (A.). In all her mental symptoms there is a want of natural coherence (G.). SENSATION AS IF A…”
- Nash — The comparisons — the remedy set beside the ones it is most often confused with.
“Nervous symptoms, twitchings, spasms, convulsions, neuralgias; chills without shaking < at menstrual period. Muscular rheumatism; stiff neck, drawing head back; can’t turn the head; rheumatism of the belly of muscles, by preference. Headaches pressing outward; or upward, as if top of head would fly off, or into eyes…”
