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| Hpathy Ezine - June, 2004 | ||||
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A Flurry of Explanations -- Elaine Lewis |
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There's been a lot of discussion on the hpathy.com discussion board lately about how to know when the case has been taken completely. One questioner asked, "Is it just 'sensation, location, modality' and then you're done?" We'll, you're getting close! In the March issue, I wrote an article called "A Flurry of Questions" in which I enumerated what you need to ask someone in the throes of an acute illness. It might be good to print that out and always have it near by. Building on that article, let's talk about what some of these questions mean. 1. Onset. If an illness came on suddenly, you may be down to just two remedies--Aconite and Belladonna (and Baptisia if the patient seems toxic); that's the importance of this question--from 3,000 remedies, you're down to three! 2. Etiology. This is the big one, and the one that's often over-looked. In case-taking, we need what are called "complete symptoms" and a complete symptom has the following: onset, etiology, if known; sensation, location, modalities (things that make the symptom better or worse) and if there's a discharge--the color, odor and consistency. The etiology means the cause or precipitating factor. Very often it's the weather or temperature. You have to ask your patient, "What's the weather like where you are?" You'd be surprised how often this is the key to the case. I can think of two of my cases where I knew the remedy as soon as I asked about the weather. One was an arthritis sufferer who said that he got so much worse just before a storm and all during the storm and finally recovered only after the storm. He needed Rhus tox. and Calc-carb. Then there was a psoriasis patient who told me that the rain made her so much worse, it was a disaster for her. She dreaded the rain. She needed Rhus tox too. Other times, the weather is more than just an aggravating factor, it actually causes the ailment, the way cold windy weather can be sufficient cause for an Aconite prescription regardless of the symptoms. Besides weather, other common etiologies include: Never Well Since the flu or other infectious ailment (and the remedy is usually Gelsemium. Go to Generals: convalescence; or in Murphy's Repertory, Diseases: convalescence and you'll see there are various subrubrics to choose from which basically mean, Never Well Since this ailment.) Humiliation, bad news, grief, loss, disappointment, injury, surgery, sleep loss, over-work--these are all common etiologies to look for when taking a case. Some of you are going to say, "Why should we base a remedy on the precipitating factor or cause and not on the totality of symptoms the way we were taught?" That's a very good question, who ever asked it. When you have a shock, the vibration will hit and do damage to your weakest organ or system. If I receive bad news, my sciatica will act up. If you receive bad news, your allergies might act up. So, what should we treat, the allergies? The sciatica? Or is it the SUSCEPTIBILITY to the shock we received, the weakness that made us susceptible, the "leak", if you will, the "weak link" that let this vibration in, that needs fixing? If we prescribe on just the totality of symptoms, we'll find a sciatica remedy, or an allergy remedy. If we prescribe on the etiology (the cause), we prescribe on the weak link and repair it and futher shocks don't get in. I think the goal must be to seal the leak, so the weak organ or system isn't constantly irritated, and that's what prescribing on the etiology is all about. I'll give you an example: my very first case was a man, a successful
financier from London, with an enlarged prostate, it may also have
been infected, and was causing quite a bit of trouble including
discomfort and frequent urination. He had been prescribed antibiotics
to no avail. He was anxiety-ridden because of this problem, and
it was ruining his life. I tried the totality of symptoms approach
first and suggested he take Sabal 6C three times a day (that's homeopathic
Saw Palmetto) and it didn't work. "So much for the easy way!"
I said. "Now, tell me when this all started and what was going
on at that time." These are key questions in the homeopathic
interview: when did it start and what was going on. He said he had
gotten a promotion at work, but he didn't feel prepared for it,
he didn't feel adequately trained, plus, he was still having to
do his old job because he hadn't been replaced. So, he was being
taken advantage of, he felt, by his employer, plus embarrassing
himself (his words) dealing with clients, as he didn't feel competent
in his new position. So, I used the following rubrics from Murphy's
Repertory: The remedy that covered all the rubrics was Lycopodium. So, Lyc. 6C three times a day in water with succussions (shaking the bottle) before each dose. At the end of the first week he reported feeling less anxious eventhough the symptoms were still there. At the end of two weeks, the symptoms were starting to abate. Eventually, we went up to 9C, then 12C and finally 30C and by then he was just taking the remedy as needed AND...he quit his job and got a better one! And now, here's the interesting thing I learned later: His grandfather died of Prostate cancer! So, here's our analysis: this man had inherited a weak prostate, so when a stress came (the new position he felt unprepared for) it bounced off all his other organs, and landed on the prostate; so what's the problem here, what has to be cured? Is it a weak prostate, or the Lycopodium Cowardice? What is the real illness? It's the Lycopodium cowardice--that's how the vibration got in! So, this is the significance of the etiology. Keep in mind that you're not always going to find it, but, at least remember to ask. 3. Sensations. Go to your repertory to the Generals or Generalities chapter and then scroll down to Pains. You'll see there are remedies listed for the following rubrics: Pains appear suddenly/gradually, disappear suddenly/gradually; the direction of pains--upward, downward, inward, etc.; the extension of pains; radiating of pains; pains along the nerves, and other information regarding pains. Look now under "Symptoms" in the same chapter, or the Disease chapter if you have Murphy's Repertory, and you'll see the following rubrics: Symptoms change constantly/rapidly; many symptoms, symptoms alternate, and so on. Here are some examples of sensations you can find in the Generals chapter: constriction, dryness, air sensation (that it is blowing on him), cobweb sensation, emptiness, faintness, heat, knots, lightness, plug, water (as if water were dashed on him), worms--as if crawling under the skin. If there is a sensation on a single part, go to that chapter of the repertory and you'll probably find it. For instance, Head: bubbling sensation; Head: crackling sensation; Head: empty sensation; Head: expanded sensation, feels inflated; and so on. |
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