– VERMEULEN Frans,
Ther.
The now, the here, through which all future plunges into the past.
[James Joyce]
Signs
Latrodectus curacaviensis.
CLASSIFICATION The genus Latrodectus is placed in the family Theridiidae or Cobweb Weavers, also known as Comb-footed spiders. The black widow is represented by a number of species of Latrodectus from around the world, all of which are to some degree venomous and most of which are black.
SPECIES See LATRODECTUS MACTANS.

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CURACAVIENSIS Latrodectus curacaviensis is found in Central America and the south-eastern parts of the U.S. Named after the island of Curacao, where it occurs in abundance, it has several local names, such as viúva negra [black widow], flamenguinha, and, in Venezuela, arana naranja, orange spider. The latter name refers to the colour orange covering the major part of its abdomen; in contrast to most other widow spiders which have only some red spots on the abdomen, sometimes in the shape of an hourglass. Newly hatched spiderlings are predominantly white or yellowish-white, gradually acquiring more black and varying amounts of orange and white with each moult. [This is true for all widow spiders.] As with all widow spiders too, its venom is essentially neurotoxic, causing such symptoms as intense pain, muscle contractions, rigidity of abdominal muscles, tetany-like convulsions, trismus, tachycardia, elevated blood pressure, and sweating. [see Latrodectus mactans.] The following case of latrodectism, caused by Latrodectus curacaviensis, is recorded in Manaus, Brazil, on July 2, 1995. An 11 year old boy presented with disorientation, muscular spasms, fever, oedema, shivering and intense sweating, with a spotted papular rash appearing on the fifth day. He improved with treatment of neostigmine, preceded by atropin, calcium gluconate, cimetidin, diazepam and hydrocortisone, sufficiently to be discharged on the 13th day. Only the female Latrodectus is venomous; males and juveniles are harmless. Both Western and Eastern black widows spin webs that lack shape and form. Their webs are erratic in appearance, although the silk is stronger than that of almost all other arachnids, enabling this spider to entangle preys many times its size. Widow spiders usually make their webs rather close to the ground, e.g. on the underside of ledges, rocks, plant, and debris. They are unlikely to be found as high as in orange trees. Cold weather and drought may drive them into buildings.
JUNGIAN PSYCHOLOGY According to Jungian psychology, the spider is a very ambivalent symbol since it represents such opposite issues as ‘great mother’, ‘luck bringer’, ‘death and disease’, ‘fate spinner’, ‘time spinner’, and ‘witch’. The spider spins the time thread of the Fates, connecting past, present and future, weaving in synchronously fateful incidents, with love, death and life changing events. The great spinner is connected with the moon and its dark side the abyss of the soul; this is the energy that entangles us in fantasy and binds us in deception. The positive spider energy weaves the fabric of life, while the negative side mirrors the rejection of body, matter, unconscious, etc. The spider / weaver stands at the border of the eternal and time. She carries the inspiration of god into reality and fruition. She brings the eternal archetype into the here and now of indiviuation.
PROVINGS •• [1] Hering – unknown number of provers, 1832; method: one dose of 30c.
“The spider proved under the name Theridion by Hering is a native of Curacao, called by von Hasselt ‘orange-spider’, and ‘well known to the people as very poisonous.’ Dr. Ozanam points out that the theridions are ordinarily innocuous, and Hering admits that his ‘theridion curassavicum’ is very similar in many respects to the aranea tredecimgutatta, by which name Fabricius has designated the latrodectus malmignattus of Volterra and other places. [Official name is now Latrodectus mactans tredecimguttatus; malmignatte is the popular name in southern Europe.] It is probably, therefore, a member of the genus ‘latrodectus’ instead of the genus ‘theridion’, and its pathogenesis may be studied in connection with the records of the bite of the malmignatte.” [Hughes]
Affinity
NERVES. Spine. Bones. Left side; head, chest. * Left side.
Modalities
Worse: NOISE. Touch. CLOSING EYES. Least motion. Riding, Jar. Stooping. Rising. Motion. Going up or downstairs. Exertion. Walking. Night. Cold. Coition. Lying down.
Better: Rest. Warmth. Warm water [> nausea and retching].
Main symptoms
M OVERSENSITIVITY to NOISE.
[noise = nausea, vertigo, chills, pains all over; strikes painful spots; seems to penetrate body].
Noise makes aggressive.
• “A boy of 4 1/2 years was first seen in 1951 on account of attacks of ‘petit mal’, occurring twice or thrice a week. He had been treated at another hospital from the age of two years with phenobarbitone without apparent benefit. Homoeopathic treatment was commenced and the phenobarbitone discontinued. Tuberculinum bov. and Dysentery co. seemed to help to some extent. Then he developed frequent severe colds and the enuresis became troublesome. Eventually his tonsils and adenoids were removed with benefit to his general health, but the fits though less frequent still persisted on an average twice or thrice a month. The history was retaken and it was discovered that these fits or fainting attacks, as his mother called them, were invariably brought on by noise. Noise caused nausea and vertigo – worse on closing the eyes – followed by fainting. Theridion 200 was given in August, 1955, and during the next eleven months he had one attack. The enuresis persisted but occurred only occasionally. During the next three months he had two attacks of fainting. Theridion 200, 1M, 10M, on three consecutive days was prescribed and he has had one attack in the past two years. He still dislikes noise. The enuresis has ceased.”1
M Startled by the least thing.
Fruitless activity [“headless”].
Tremendous NERVOUSNESS.
M TIME passes too QUICKLY.
M Confusion.
Sensation as if head were separated from body.
• “It feels as thick in her head as if it were another, strange head, or as if she had something else upon it.” [Allen]
• “For fourteen days feeling as if vertex did not belong to her; it felt as if separated from rest of head, as if could lift it off; felt she would like to remove it.” [Hering]
• “Besides the need for a partner, a peculiar feature of Theridion is that she seems to completely ‘dissolve’ her identity into that of the partner – thinking and seeing as her partner does, living completely through the eyes and mind of this other person. Hence, in the event of her partner leaving her, she feels a tremendous emptiness, and it takes time for her to know her real self again. Theridion has the delusion that her head belongs to another.” [Sankaran]
M Knitting.
[Considered a typical obsession of spider remedies.]
• “She loves knitting. She offered to a charity to knit them five hundred teddy bears to help raise money. However, she says that the real reason she wanted to do it was that she just wanted to be able to knit. She can knit for many hours a day. It is not what she is knitting that matters but simply the fact that she is actually doing it. It is the same with her reading. It is not what she is reading that matters – she just wants to be occupied.”2
G Extreme sensitiveness of puberty, during pregnancy and climaxis. [Allen]
G CHILLY.
G Craving for sour fruits and drinks; for ORANGES and bananas.
G < CLOSING EYES [= vertigo, nausea].
G Most complaints are ACCOMPANIED by VERTIGO.
G Seasickness.
G Bones seem broken [rickets, caries, necrosis of bones].
P Headache.
Heavy dull pressure behind the eyes; when beginning to move.
< Lying down; least motion of head; NOISE.
P Migraine.
Throbbing pain over left eye.
< Heat of sun; NOISE.
P Flickering.
Before headache.
• “Sensitiveness to light; when she is in the light she experiences a ‘dark sparkling’ before her eyes; everything appears double, and through this ‘fluttering’ nausea is created, accompanied by cold hands; long afterwards she dare not stoop.” [Hering]
[1] Foubister, Theridion; in Out of Case Books – 4; BHJ, Jan. 1959. [2] Hardy, Fruitless activity: A case of Theridion; HL 2/98.
Rubrics
Mind
Anxiety from noise [1]. Busy, fruitlessly [1], must keep busy from restlessness [1/1]. Confusion, as to his identity, sense of duality [1], < laughing [1/1], < noise [1]. Death, sensation as if dying [2]. Delusions, head belongs to another [1]. Distances are exaggerated [1]. Vanishing of thoughts on closing eyes [1/1]. Time passes too quickly, appears shorter [2].
Vertigo
On closing eyes [3], with nausea [2; Lach.]. From noise [2].
Head
Heat < laughing [1/1]. Pain, occiput, from heat of sun [2].
Vision
Diplopia, when looking at light [1/1]. Flickering, when closing eyes [1], before headache [1].
Hearing
Acute, to noises, causing nausea [2; Cocc.].
Teeth
Clenched firmly at night [2].
Stomach
Nausea, after cold drinks, not after warm drinks [1; Lyc.].
Bladder
Frequent urination at night, seldom during the day [2; Bor.].
Back
Pain, when leaning back against chair [2], < noise [3].
Limbs
Pain, sensation as if broken [1].
Dreams
Horses, riding [1]. Journeys on horseback [1]. Teeth breaking off [1].
Perspiration
Cold, with vertigo [1; Ail.; Merc-c.].
Food
Aversion: [1]: Meat.
Desire: [1]: Alcohol; bananas; bitter drinks; brandy; dry rice; oranges; smoking; sour; tobacco; whisky; wine; wine, claret.
Worse: [1]: Bitter drinks; sour fruit.
Better: [1]: Warm drinks.

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