Pulsatilla
Pulsatilla nigricans — Wind flower, Pasque flower
The "weathervane" remedy — for mild, yielding, weepy patients with changeable symptoms.
Overview
Pulsatilla is called the "weathervane remedy" because both the symptoms and the person change constantly. The Pulsatilla patient is gentle, yielding, weepy, and craves sympathy and consolation — they feel better when someone pets them or holds them. They are thirstless even with a dry mouth, chilly but intolerant of stuffy rooms, and their complaints wander from one joint to another, from one side to the other.
Pulsatilla is especially suited to mild-natured women and children. It is a major remedy for delayed or irregular menstruation, thick yellow-green discharges (from nose, eyes, or vagina), and for children who cling to their mother, cry easily, and want to be carried.
Key Uses of Pulsatilla
- ✓Cold with thick yellow-green nasal discharge
- ✓Delayed, scanty, or late menstruation
- ✓Cough dry at night, loose in the morning
- ✓Earache in children with weepy mood
- ✓Conjunctivitis with yellow discharge
- ✓Indigestion from fatty food, pork, pastries
- ✓Styes (often recurring)
- ✓Varicose veins in pregnancy
- ✓Teething in clingy, weepy children
Typical Symptom Picture
- •Weepy, wants consolation and sympathy
- •Thirstless even with dry mouth
- •Chilly but worse in warm, stuffy rooms
- •Better in open air, slow walking
- •Thick, bland, yellow-green discharges
- •Changeable symptoms — shifting location
- •Stomach upset from fatty or rich food
Better from
- • Open air
- • Slow motion
- • Cold applications
- • Consolation
- • Crying
Worse from
- • Warm, stuffy rooms
- • Fatty food
- • Evening
- • Lying on left side
- • Puberty, pregnancy, menopause
Dosage & Potency
Dosage: Pulsatilla 30C, 3 pellets 2–3 times a day for acute colds or ear infections. For menstrual complaints: 200C taken for 1–3 days around the expected period, under practitioner guidance.
Potency notes: 30C for acute presentations. 200C to 1M for deeper constitutional prescribing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Pulsatilla only for women?
No — while Pulsatilla is famously effective for female complaints (menstruation, pregnancy, menopause), it is equally useful for men and children who share the characteristic mild, yielding temperament and thick yellow-green discharges. The remedy is chosen based on the symptom picture, not gender.
Can Pulsatilla help turn a breech baby?
Traditional homeopathic practice has used Pulsatilla 200C (sometimes 1M) in late pregnancy to encourage a breech baby to turn. This is done only under the guidance of a qualified homeopath in collaboration with the obstetrician. It is never a substitute for medical care.
Related Guides
Last updated 2026-04-16. This guide is educational and not a substitute for medical advice. For persistent or serious symptoms, consult a qualified homeopath or physician.