Rheumatoid arthritis rendered this old man bed-ridden but homeopathy set him free.

After he recovered from an attack of cerebral malaria, Ratan Bajaj (name changed) started developing rheumatoid arthritis. His elbows, knees, small joints of the hands and feet, all started getting stiff and painful.

The joint pain gradually worsened for this 55-year-old retired man and he was unable to walk, sit on the pan or even sleep properly. His whole body would ache and the intensity of pain was getting worse day by day. His complaints were aggravated from exposure to cold and damp weather whereas warmth would make him feel at ease. Although he had taken homeopathy for his complaints for some time, it had failed to offer him significant relief. Ratan had lost almost 14 kgs of weight in one and a half years on account of his illness.

General features like appetite, thirst and urination were normal. He had a liking for rice flakes and tea and was averse to cabbage. His perspiration was offensive. Bowel movement was unsatisfactory most of the times. Due to pain and stress from the disease, his sleep was disturbed. He would manage to sleep only for about three or four hours and would often dream about riding scooters, moving about happily, going to his work place, walking in the market, etc.

He stayed with his wife and three sons. Two of his sons were employed and his third son was studying. Ratan was previously working at a refractory plant and had retired four years ago. At his workplace, he always shared excellent relationship with seniors as well as subordinates.

His childhood had been difficult due to financial problems and he had toiled hard to get past this. After the birth of his sons, he had to struggle more to provide them with proper education.

Ratan described himself as a god-fearing person who never lied and always led a pious life without giving in to any vices. His condition made him very anxious and caused a lot of mental agony. Often, he would express his hopelessness by sobbing. He wondered if he would ever be able to lead a normal life again without being dependent on anyone else. Being sensitive, he was easily affected by praise as well as criticism. He was intolerant of any kind of quarrel at home and would get angry if anything happened.

Ratan had suffered from hydrocele in the past, which was treated with ayurvedic medicines. In addition, he also had typhoid, for which he had taken conventional medication. His father had prostate enlargement; besides this, there was no history of any other illness in his family.

The treating physician at Dr Batra'sâ„¢ prescribed him his constitutional remedy, which he started taking regularly. Three months later, he reported feeling much better with the medicines, so much that he would now require painkillers only once or twice in a week, unlike daily as before. No longer bed-ridden, he had started walking within the house and his weight had also improved. The joint swelling was still persistent, although better than before. Another few months later, he could conveniently walk around. The pain in the joints was lesser than before. He gradually gained the weight he had lost earlier due to rheumatoid arthritis and his haemoglobin level also improved. An occasional dose of painkillers would still be required but he was no longer dependent on them. He was content with the fact that he could now move about without depending on anyone else for his basic daily activities.