The summer school holidays are long. The first couple of weeks there is a lot of excitement- a busy term 4, then Christmas and new years, and by now, coming up 3rd week of January, some kids are bored, missing the routine of school, and there can be fighting with siblings, or just relentless whining and whinging going on. (If the moaning started as soon as the holidays, I apologise for leaving it so late to post this for you!)
First I turned to my Repertory, which is like a big index for symptoms listing the different homeopathic remedies for the each symptom (which we call rubrics). There were a few good ones, including my favourite Mind: Torments those around him, everyone with his complaints. Other Mind rubrics included Complaining; Lamenting, bemoaning, wailing; Moaning, groaning; Whimpering; Ennui, boredom; Ideas, deficiency of; and in Speech and voice: whining voice.
Below are some of the remedies I found and a couple of others I have had personal experience with and can recommend:
Firstly Saccharum – this was a big one for my household before and after Christmas. So kind of that Bunnings Santa to give my child a candy cane, but the whining, and complaining as a result was not great. Saccharum also have a strong desire for sweet or simple carbohydrate foods, and will be picky. They may have a lot of hunger in between meals but then refuse to eat anything substantial during a meal. If they have been eating too much sugar it is a good remedy to start with.
Calc Phos children are bored, generally dissatisfied with everything and sigh loudly to show this. They are irritable and whine and complain about every suggestion. This is also a remedy to think of if there are any growing pains, and for children who have put a lot of effort into school and become weak and tired. If they are teething this remedy would also be indicated.
Nux Vomica came up highly in repertorisation. These kids are used to a high pace of activities, and can be really competitive, so the time relaxing seems dull. They are irritable and can be malicious. They are sensitive to noise and light and don’t want to be touched.
Cina children are generally irritable- they may throw things at you when not getting their way. Cina is also one of our best worming remedies, so if they have any signs of worms- restless sleep, pulling at their bottom or undies, or symptoms like nose picking then give it a try.
Chamomilla kids are irritable and capricious. They will whine and want something, but if given it they will quickly lose interest or will refuse it. They are impatient and really intolerant of anyone interrupting them. If you ask them to do anything they will refuse and will be snappy and restless.
Arsenicum Album kids are irritable, blaming others if anything goes wrong. They can be anxious which they control by being perfectionists. This means though that if things don’t match the picture in their head they will complain, loudly and often about absolutely everything- their family won’t be able to do anything right. They can also be low on energy, but still restless, and may be prone to tummy upsets, nausea or diarrhoea.
Sulphur children can be critical and find problems with everything – including picking fights with siblings. When they do lose their temper they explode like a volcano. They generally feel like everything is unfair, and they can be messy and lazy. Sulphur children have a large appetite, and they can be the smelly child – whether it is discharges, perspiration or farting.
Lycopodium children are dictatorial and demanding, bossing around siblings and even parents if they can get away with it. If they don’t get an instant reaction, they are irritable, and can be very critical, telling siblings off for doing everything wrong. Underneath everything Lycopodium can be anxious, with a lot of fears and insecurities. Physically they have a strong craving for sweets, and will be more irritable when hungry.
If you recognise one (or more) of your children in these brief remedy pictures, I hope it will bring some peace to the rest of your holidays. I suggest giving a dose of 30c, possibly repeating daily for a few days and taking note of any changes. If things improve then you stop and they later return you can repeat the dose. If it doesn’t help, then don’t keep giving the remedy, instead if may be time to make an appointment with myself or another Homeopath for further support.