Presentation
A 24-year-old presented three months after the sudden bereavement of losing her father, with two coin-shaped bald patches on the scalp — one at the vertex, one at the right temporal region. The bereavement had come without warning and had sat largely un-grieved for the first weeks. Dermatology had confirmed alopecia areata, started topical steroid lotion and intralesional steroid injections. The patches had neither grown nor filled in significantly over the two months following the start of dermatology treatment. The patient was reluctant to continue intralesional injections indefinitely.
Case-taking — what the first consultation opened up
The patient described her grief as "not fitting into my life yet" — she had returned to work two weeks after the funeral, had not cried in front of family or friends, and had cried once alone at night in the preceding month. Sleep was poor. Appetite was down. Salt craving was marked. She felt consolation irritated her; she wanted to be left alone. Scalp patches themselves: smooth, round, no erythema, no scaling. Family history: maternal thyroid condition.
Remedy rationale
The matching constitutional picture — acute major grief, closed emotional register, aversion to consolation, salt craving, grief that had not reached expression — was a classical Natrum Muriaticum picture. The grief itself, in homeopathic terms, was the maintaining cause of the alopecia pattern. Dermatology continued the topical regimen; intralesional injections were paused by patient preference, dermatology-aware.
Potency and repetition are deliberately not stated here. Classical homeopathy matches remedy, potency and repetition to each case; a remedy name without that matching is a reference, not a prescription.
Follow-up arc
At six weeks fresh patch spread had not occurred (a specific improvement — her previous worry had been of more patches). At twelve weeks the vertex patch showed fine white hair growth returning (white hairs typically regrow first in alopecia areata). At six months the vertex patch had partially filled in; the temporal patch was slower but had stopped expanding. The emotional picture had opened in parallel — she had cried openly with her mother on three occasions in the preceding month, slept better, had regained appetite.
Outcome
At twelve months, both patches had partially re-pigmented and filled in; neither was cosmetically unobtrusive but neither was spreading. No new patches had appeared. The patient had integrated the grief in a way that felt more sustainable to her — the homoeopath's read was that this was the deeper outcome. Dermatology continued annual review.
What did not happen — the honest frame
Full re-pigmentation of the temporal patch did not occur in the twelve-month window. Alopecia areata is a recurrent pattern — the risk of future patches remained, and this was explicit from the start. The homoeopath did not promise a one-and-done cure; the goal was halting spread, supporting re-growth, and addressing the maintaining emotional ground.
Discussion and learning points
A textbook Natrum Muriaticum alopecia areata case anchored by acute major grief as the maintaining cause. The lesson for the practitioner: when the maintaining cause is as prominent as the physical pattern, addressing it in the case-taking (and allowing the patient to meet the remedy halfway in grief work) is often what unlocks the response.
Compliance notes
- Patient identifying details (name, exact age, specific city) anonymised.
- No prescription detail (potency, dosing schedule) stated — classical homeopathy prescribes individually.
- Allopathic treatment described was continued throughout; dose changes stayed with the treating specialist.
- Outcomes described are one patient\'s experience, not a promise about yours — classical homeopathy is individualised, so no two cases run the same arc.
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