Homeopathy Papers

Child Centric Case Witnessing Process

Written by Dinesh Chauhan

Dr. Dinesh Chauhan describes the Case Witnessing Process in treating children.

The child’s energy pattern is pure, wholesome, unique and individualized both in health and in disease. The energy within the child reveals itself through the child’s actions, sensations, feelings, imaginations, dreams, games, drawings etc. Any alteration in this unique pattern results in the alteration of its expression. The diseased altered pattern manifests itself at the physical plane in the form of signs and symptoms, at the mental plane in the form of altered feelings and perceptions and at the holistic plane in the form of altered vital sensation.

Homoeopaths are often consumed with the difficulties of understanding this unique diseased pattern of the child through the case taking process-

  • Oh god! This child is not saying anything. Now what am I going to prescribe to him?

  • The mother does not remember any of her pregnancy history. How can I now search out the most accurate simillimum for the child?

  • Is it possible to explore a paediatric case at the holistic level, where the mind and body speak the same language?

Homoeopaths often succumb to such difficulties and develop a group of favourite remedies; as soon as the child enters the consulting room, a fixed grid is formed.

Pleasant and communicative child with skin affected, give Sulphur

Irritable child who always wants to be carried, give Cina

Fearful child, violent, give Belladona

The individualistic unique energy of a child cannot be constrained to such grids. The sole objective of a physician while receiving the case of a child is to understand his individualistic expressions at the holistic level. To understand children at the holistic level, there are 5 components that are important,

  1. Child’s history obtained through case witnessing process

  2. Physician’s observations about the child

  3. Physician’s examination findings of the child (especially in pre-verbal child)

  4. Mothers history during pregnancy

  5. Parent’s observations about the child

I. Child’s history obtained through case witnessing process:

Children may speak less, but express most of their individuality through their actions. Hence, while witnessing the child, 90% of case witnessing is observing every pattern, move, gesture, expression and action of the child, 9% is listening to what the child says and 1% is listening to what the mother says.

Three steps of Case Witnessing Process to explore children’s inner core:

(The case witnessing process and its three steps as discussed in the article – The Case Witnessing Process and Its Three Steps and their aims are more or less the same in following children cases. In addition, in children’s cases, during the Active step of case witnessing, more close intervention occurs to explore subconscious areas such as Fears, Dreams, Drawings, etc., to get an uninhibited entry into the child’s inner altered pattern).

  1. PASSIVE CASE WITNESSING PROCESS (PCWP):

The homoeopath allows the natural flow of the case and passively listens to the fragmented individualistic expressions of the child. Most of the child’s individuality is expressed through his non verbal energy. In the passive process, the homoeopath alertly pays attention to each and every move and action of the child along with the words he speaks. The areas that children readily speak about is most often their likes, dislikes, dreams, fears, imaginative stories, incidences occurring with their teachers, friends, parents and siblings, interests and hobbies and what they want to become when they grow up, etc. That which the child knowingly or unknowingly repeats in each and every area becomes the focus of the case.

  1. ACTIVE CASE WITNESSING PROCESS (ACWP):

Here, the homeopath actively guides the child to go deeper from the focus obtained in the passive phase of the case. If the focus is not obtained in the passive process, the homoeopath actively asks the child about different areas, especially the subconscious areas. Since children are intimately in touch with their subconscious, when the potential raw points of the subconscious, like fears, dreams, art, etc. are tapped into, the whole pattern unfolds itself with relative ease. (Readers can refer to the book- A Wander with A Little Wonder: Child-Centric Case Witnessing for a detailed description.).

Once the focus is obtained, the focus is confirmed in one more subconscious areas. In the active phase, the homoeopath is taking the child deeper, towards his altered pattern. Hence to encounter defenses is not rare. Children do throw subtle defenses, however they are easy to break, owing to the innocence and naïvete of the child. Once the focus is confirmed and the defenses breached, the child and the physician are now ready for the journey ahead.

  1. ACTIVE-ACTIVE CASE WITNESSING PROCESS (AACWP):

The active-active is the grand finale. Here the homoeopath zooms in on the focus and does not allow the child to drift away into conscious areas. All the isolated, scattered expressions that spilled out during the passive and active stages are connected in one phenomenon. The main objective is to get the entire altered pattern of the child.

II. Physician’s observations about the child

As known, children most often express their inner being through non verbal language. Hence along with the whole case witnessing process, it is essential that the homoeopathic physician vigilantly observes the non verbal language, actions, gestures, movements and behavioural expressions of the child.

It is the non-verbal expressions that are more significant as compared to the words, especially in children. The physician’s unbiased, non prejudiced observations about the non verbal language of the child help to understand the unique individuality of the child.

III. Physician’s examination findings of the child :

It is of great importance to thoroughly examine the child. Characteristic examination findings by a homeopath for a child, which are out of place with respect to the diagnosis and physical illness of the child, are the PQRS expressions of the child which cannot be missed.

Example: kissing tonsils, characteristic temperature distribution during fever, affection of a particular side/ part/ organ of the body, etc., etc.

IV. Mothers history during pregnancy:

Even though a child is a part of the parents and inherits the genetic pattern of the parents, it is an individual from the very beginning.

It is a general belief that the mother’s state gets transferred to the child and often we see homeopaths prescribe for the child, their mother’s remedy ‘til a certain age. I am in a disagreement with this common belief; homoeopathy is based on the concept of individualization, and that is equally true for a child as young as the foetus. I believe that even though a foetus is the union of sperm and ovum, it has its own unique identity. Two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen both in gaseous state combine together to form water- a (completely unique) liquid substance!

During pregnancy, the mother’s body plays host to the unique energy growing within her womb. The foetus, a unique energy, expresses itself through the mother’s body. That is the reason why the same mother carries different states during her different pregnancies. Thus, during pregnancy, the mother’s changed state is nothing but the child’s pattern expressing itself through the mother. Thus, exploring the mother’s altered state during her pregnancy helps a great deal to follow her child’s altered pattern.

How do you explore the mother’s pregnancy history to understand her child’s unique energy pattern?

Ask the mother about the following changes during nine months of her pregnancy:

  • Change in her feelings, delusions and perceptions

  • Change in her cravings and aversions

  • Change in her dreams, nightmares and fears

  • Desire to watch a particular television show, read a particular book

  • Any sudden intensification of any of her feelings

  • Any unusual bodily sensation experienced

The most peculiar expressions in every area are the expressions of the child’s inner being. The consideration of the mother’s history during pregnancy is diagnostic (to understand the altered pattern of a child) in case of a non-verbal child and confirmatory in case of a child capable of expressing his/ her individuality.

V. Parent’s observations about the child:

The child spends most of its time with the parents or guardian or teachers. The pure observations made by them have a lot to say about the unique individuality of the child.

Pure observations about the child’s behaviour, activity, changes in him during illness or during acute episodes of illness, expressions during anger or tantrums, the child’s dreams, fears, etc., described in the child’s own language are the best source of information that we can expect from his parents /guardian/ teachers. We as homeopaths need to be sure that the parents do not add their own interpretation/analysis/emotions to describe their children, because that often proves misleading.

The individualistic expression which comes up in all the five areas or at least in more than 2 areas, surely help us to find the simillimum as per the unique individuality of the child. It negates the need to form any favourite grid of remedies and also helps to get a child’s history while staying unbiased. The most accurate simillimum chosen on such holistic, unprejudiced understanding of a child helps him improve at the physical level and mental level and balances his vital energy at the holistic level.

Innocent smiles, howling whines,

They express their being, through scribbling lines

By day dreaming they capture, all that they identify with

The imaginations are all worthwhile, as against the usual myth

Fears unlimited, reflect their sub conscious

Stories breaking the defences are, definitely not noxious

Aspirations all they have, shall take them to the pinnacle of glory,

It mirrors their inner being, even if they sound airy

Kadambari

Editor: Dr. Urvi Chauhan

Compiled by: Dr. Kadambari

About the author

Dinesh Chauhan

Dr. Dinesh Chauhan practices Classical homoeopathy in Mumbai, India. Case Witnessing Process is a scientific and human-centric case taking approach developed by him over a decade of research and seeing patient after patient at Swasthya Homeopathic Healing. Distinguished as a lecturer in many countries, he has the ability to captivate listener’s attention as he masterfully makes homoeopathic theory come to life. He heads the non-profit ABJF foundation with his wife Dr. Urvi Chauhan where Indian Homoeopaths are taught free. He is the author of three books A Journey into the Human Core; A Wander with a Little Wonder - Child centric Case witnessing, and The Scientifically Intuitive Case Witnessing Process – A Journey of Three Steps. Website: www.homeohome.com, www.casewitnessing.com Email: [email protected], [email protected]

2 Comments

  • DEAR DR.
    I VERY MUCH AGREE WITH YOU THAT IN THE CASE OF A CHILD WE HAVE TO WITNESS EACH ACTION ,BEHAVIOUR. HABITS, LIKES AND DISLIKES VERY CLOSELY AND VERY MINUTELY. BUT THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE HELP OF HIS PARENTS. THE CHILD CANNOT EXPLAIN WHAT IS HIS SUFFERING . SO THE PARENTS ARE OF GREAT NEED AND HELP TO THE DOCTOR FOR FINDING A M0ST SIMILLIMUM REMEDY FOR CURE. WHETHER METHOD OF TREATMENT IS CLASSICAL OR MODERN ONE BUT THE DISEASE SYMPTOMS ARE MOST IMPORTANT AND TO BE TAKEN NOTE OF THAT WILL HELP THE DR FIRST FINDING SEVERAL REMEDIES COVERING THE DISEASE BEFORE FINDING THE CORRECT REMEDY BY METHODS OF ELIMINATION
    THANKS
    DR SHEKHAR

  • Dear Dr Shekhar,

    I agree that the information given by the parents related to the child’s symptoms is very important. Hence it should be a part of the prescription too.
    However, it is prior to witness the child’s verbal and non verbal language and consider it. The child expresses their being through their verbal and mainly non verbal language, fears, dreams, art work. The suffering of the child expressed by his/her own self is of utmost importance.

    The PQRS obtained from all the areas, the child’s history and the parent’s history along with physician’s observations, MHDP etc., when taken into consideration, helps to form the totality at the holistic level.

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