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Dear subscriber,
one of the purposes of the recent prize case was to illustrate the possible use of the Object Repertory in solving the same nad also to evaluate whether such a novel thing is even needed.
While we believe the results of the case, beside other things, sufficiently demonstrated the necessity of better tools for homeopathic practice, let us first have a small recapitulation of available methods, before presenting a new one.
Currently, we have two major approaches to the remedy selection:
- Materia medica study.
- Repertorization.
Materia medica study is the primary source of prescribing information, that's why it was used to prove the remedy selection in the official solution. It is the most reliable approach, but also the most tedious and time-intensive, even utilizing a computer software allowing a swift search with an advanced support of synonyms.
Repertorization, if computerized, is a very quick and efficient method, which, however, has some serious drawbacks and unless very characteristic symptoms are selected for the case, the results of the repertorization cannot usually be relied upon for selecting a single remedy with any degree of confidence.
The usual methods of evaluating the rubrics selected for repertorization by means of summing up weights of the rubrics, grades of the remedies and a few other factors, are simple to do, but, unfortunately, have very little mathematical or statistical plausibility and their use leads to great distortions in the results, in cases when the rubrics are not judiciously selected. The repertorization algorithms vary, but we dare to guess, 95% or more homeopaths have little to no idea how PRECISELY they work, so this judicious selection of rubrics might prove difficult for them.
Beside these points, the general PRINCIPLES of ANY repertory suffer from several major problems, as described here.
The proposed Object Repertory approach is the third one, offering unique advantages, as can be seen in the summary table below.
With this in mind, we can now proceed to present the remedy-finding process with the use of Object Repertory.
Eds.
Question for André Saine
Q: When writing about Pulsatilla, Hahnemann claims the remedy is “especially adapted for slow, phlegmatic temperaments; on the other hand, it is but little suitable for persons who form their resolutions with rapidity, and are quick in their movements, even though they may appear to be good tempered.” I would like to know how important do you find temperament when considering a prescription like Pulsatilla (or any other remedy)? For example, I have employed Pulsatilla in a woman with a quick, choleric, irritable temperament who, however, had such a tremendous amelioration from open air (or open window) that I simply had to consider Pulsatilla and other than her temperament, symptoms seemed to match (and she improved a lot after the remedy). Do you find such cases the exception that confirm the rule or are they more common and temperament is not as important as emphasized in the books?
A: Temperaments are really important for accurate prescribing, as Hahnemann said so well in paragraphs 211 and 213, that the psychic picture is often the decisive factor in any case of acute or chronic disease. When Hahnemann describes the genius of a remedy... Read the full answer »
Do you have a question of your own? You can submit it here.
Recommended article – von Boenninghausen's objectified approach
As a large part of this newsletter and related articles are devoted to Object Repertory approach, the choice of recommended article was also influenced by this topic. While the article titled Motion and Rest concerns aggravations caused by varieties of motion and rest, the actual method how venerable Baron von Boenninghausen structures his article, is of extreme interest with regards to the underlying principles of Object Repertory.
Please note how he takes a single concept, motion, and proceeds to dissect it into various levels of specialization (What KIND of motion? Walking, running, rising, turning in bed, riding, driving, change of position etc.) based on distinct views providing different aspects of the same concept. He makes us see it from various angles, such as the originator of motion, the time factor of the motion, the kind of motion, the intensity of motion, the direction of motion etc. and it is not difficult to see his mind working in an Object-Repertory-like manner. We are sure he would have been a great fan of this project :-) Read the article here. »
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