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Homeopathy:
"All substances are poisons,
there is none which is not a poison. The right dose differentiates
a poison and a remedy."
-Swiss physician and alchemist,
Theophrastus Paracelsus
Homeopathy definition
- provings on healthy subjects
- whole symptom picture of the individual
- matching remedy picture to the individual
via Law of Similars
Arnt-Schultz Law
- small doses stimulate (secondary reaction
of vital force)
- medium doses irritate (direct primary
effect)
- large doses destroy
Kohler's 4 principles of medicinal action
- substitution
- compensation
- suppression
- regulation (relates to homeopathy)
Temporal classification of prescribing
Rules of classical homeopathy
- single remedy
- law of similars
- minimum dose
Acute disease definition
- rapid course, resolving in healing or
death
- (chronic disease tend to persist and may
be insidious)
Reason for using single remedy
- no provings for combination (unpredictability)
- don't know which remedy acted or whether
it was a synergistic effect
Hering's Rule: direction of healing
- inside out
- most important organ to least
- top down
- reverse order of appearance
- is reversed by suppression
Center of Gravity definition
- the level on which the individual's vital
force is primarily focused:
- mental
- emotional
- physical
Hierarchy of Symptoms
- mental
- emotional
- physical
- general
- sensorial
- functional
- ultimate (lesional tissue changes)
Vithoulkas' definition of health
- physical: freedom from pain; achieve comfort
- emotional: freedom from passions (uncontrolled
emotion); achieve calmness, peace
- mental: freedom from selfishness, desire,
anxiety; achieve clarity,
- creativity in contributing to happiness
of self and others
Categories of disease causes
- physical
- heat
- cold
- damp
- sun
- mechanical trauma
- nutritional
- environmental toxins
- personal toxic habits
- poisonings
- microbes
- emotional trauma
- negative emotions
- hatred
- jealousy
- anger
- greed
- frustration due to blocked energy:
- spiritual
- sexual
- survival
disease is
- the vital force untuned
- an expression of the vital force
- a stimulus for growth and change
- imbalance
- a symptom
- self-healing
- the energy field which allows us to function
- strength at conception
- health of parents at conception
- mother's mental, emotional, physical
state during pregnancy and birth
Factors used to evaluate vital force
- family history
- severe illness
- early death
- insanity
- medical history
- stresses
- drugs
- vaccinations
- life stresses
- center of gravity of the presenting case
- strength and clarity of symptoms
Relationship of vital force and energy level
of patient can differ due to flu, stress,
etc.
Layers definition
- Levels of susceptibility, sensitivity
or characteristics
Causes
- stress,
- trauma,
- grief,
- loss,
- jealousy,
- drugs,
- bad news,
- vaccination,
- severe infection,
- suppressed skin symptoms,
- overexertion,
- inherited
When to suspect a new layer
- marked change in symptoms and characteristics
What happens in a layer under major stress
- go deeper in pathology in the layer, or
- go to a new layer
Miasms definition
- an infectious type heritable layer
Are miasms a layer? yes
What type? infectious; heritable
Systems to remove a layer:
- Homeopathy
- spiritual experience/healing
- shock
- TCM
- Syntonics
Differential:
- General symptoms: affect the whole person
("I . . .")
- Particular symptoms: refer to a part ("My
. . .")
Categories of general symptoms
- all mental symptoms
- physical general symptoms
- constitutional type, tendencies and pathology
applying to the whole person
- ailments from emotions; suppressions
- restlessness, prostration, weakness, trembling,
chill, fever
- general aggravations and ameliorations;
weather; temperature
- sleep
- sex
- menses or other discharges
- food desires and aversions
- sensations in several parts of body
- objective symptoms
Definitions of symptom types:
- Common
- Characteristic
- keynotes: unusual; help to indicate
similimum
- Repertory appropriate
- useful rubric in repertorisation,
often containing about 15 to 30 remedies
- Pathognomonic
- characteristic of a disease; diagnostic
- Confirmatory
- symptoms typical of a suspected remedy
elicited to confirm the remedy (usually characteristic symptoms)
- Eliminating
- strong physical generals used to contraindicate
certain remedies (warm vs. chilly, e.g.)
- Complete (major areas to make it up)
- location; extension
- sensation; intensity
- modalities
- concomitant
- etiology
The most important factor in eliciting a
good case:
- Ask "What else?" and attend
with an attitude of receptive concentration
Classes of patients & the problems with
each
- closed: don't volunteer much information,
especially beyond physical symptoms
- open: give too much information and need
to be guided to stay on track
- hypochondriacal: exaggerate symptoms and
give too much detailed medical history
- homeopaths: read materia medica and get
swayed in their thinking
- important people: try to give orders and
are uncooperative
- intellectuals: rationalize symptoms and
interpret everything they experience
- knowledgeable about homeopathy: ideal,
knowing what is most important to the process
List of physical observations of patient
- speech and voice
- state of mind (anxious, secretive, depressed,
shy)
- color, complexion
- dress (neatness, cleanliness)
Dilemma of giving advice during homeopathic
consultation
- Want to begin advising patient therapeutically
but may lose vital information
Determining polarities (e.g. chilly or warm):
rule in/out with specific questions
- suggest range of possible answers
- Do you prefer water ice cold, room
temperature, or hot drinks?
- Do you feel chilly or warm generally?
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