Generalities Section of Kent Repertory

What Are Generalities?

The Generalities section is found at the end of Kent’s Repertory.  Along with the Mind section, this is one of the most important sections of the Repertory.  Generalities are symptoms that are true of the whole person rather than of a particular part of the body.  They are symptoms of which we can say “I” instead of “My.”  I may be a chilly person (found in Generalities, p. 1366), but my left leg is what hurts (a particular symptom found in Extremities, p. 1043).  Symptoms of the whole are usually more important than symptoms of a particular part.  Take a few minutes to read through the Generalities section, p.p. 1341-1423.

Time Modalities

The Generalities section begins with time aggravations.  “Morning” refers to six to nine a.m., “Forenoon” from ten a.m. until noon. Afternoon is one p.m. to five p.m., “Evening” six p.m. to nine p.m., and “Night” nine p.m. until five a.m.  Certain remedies are well known for specific time aggravations, although there are many other remedies listed in the Repertory for these time aggravations.  These include:

7 a.m. (Eupatorium perfoliatum)

9 a.m. (Chamomilla)

10 a.m. (Natrum muriaticum)

11 a.m. (Sulphur)

Noon (Argentum metallicum)

2 p.m. (Pulsatilla nigrans)

3 p.m. (Belladonna)

3-5 p.m. or 4-6 p.m. (Sepia)

4 p.m. or 4-8 p.m. (Lycopodium clavatum)

Better evening (Aurum metallicum and Medorrhinum)

Twilight (Pulsatilla nigrans and Phosphorous)

9 p.m. (Bryonia alba)

Sunset to sunrise (Syphilinum)

11 p.m. (Cactus grandiflora)

Better at midnight (Lycopodium clavatum)

1 a.m. (Arsenicum album)

2-4 a.m. (Kali carbonicum)

3 a.m. (Kali nitricum)

4 a.m. (Nux vomica and Carcinosin) [Note that Carcinosin is not in Kent's Repertory]

5 a.m. (Podophyllum and Kali iodatum)

There is a another rubric called “Periodicity.” This means any symptoms that tend to recur in a periodic way, whether it be daily, weekly, monthly, or annually.  There is also a separate listing for “Breakfast, after” (1346).

Temperature

Chilliness is best found in the rubric “Heat, Lack of Vital” (1366).  Other related rubrics are “Cold, Becoming” (1349), “Cold in General Aggravates” (1348), “Uncovering Aggravates” (1410), and “Undressing Aggravates” (1410).  There is a Chill section of the Repertory. This relates more to infections with chills and fevers rather to feeling cold.

Heat intolerance is best found in the rubric “Heated, On Becoming” (1367).  Other related rubrics are “Warm Aggravates” (1412), “Weakness, Worse Heat” (1417), “Sun Aggravates” (1404), and “Summer Aggravates” (1404).  There is also a Fever section of the Repertory which again is more related to infections.  Hot flushes (I.e., menopausal hot flushes) are found under “Heat, Flushes of.”

Weather

There are a variety of weather aggravations.  There is a section for “Air” (1343), which contains “Open Air, Ameliorates” and “Open Air, Aggravates.”  Also, you will find here “Air, Seashore Aggravates” and “Air, Seashore Ameliorates.”  This is the best rubric for people who are better or worse at the seashore.  Other weather rubrics include:

Autumn (1345)

Change of Temperature (1347)

Change of Weather (1347)

Clear Weather (1348)

Cloudy Weather (1348)

Cold Dry Weather (1349)

Cold Wet Weather (1350)

Dry Weather (1357)

Foggy Weather (1362)

Moonlight (1374)

Snowy Air (1402)

Spring (1403)

Storm Approach (1403)

Summer (1404)

Sun (1404)

Vaults=Basements [Cold and damp] (1411)

Warm Wet Weather (1413)

Wet Weather (1421)

Wind (1422)

Windy Stormy Weather (1422)

Winter (1422)

Modalities

There are separate sections for “Air” (1343) and “Wind” (1422).  “Drafts” are found under the Air section, along with “Desire For” and “Aversion To” Open Air.

Desire and aversion for alcohol are found in the Stomach section.  Those who are generally worse from alcohol can be found in the rubric “Alcoholic Stimulants” (1344).  Related rubrics include “Intoxication” (1369), “Reveling From Night” (1397) and “Wine” (1422).

There are a number of rubrics in the Repertory pertaining to clothing.  Perhaps the most useful is “Clothing, Intolerance of” (1348).  This idea can also be found in the section “External Throat, Clothing Aggravates” (471) and in the section “Abdomen, Clothing Sensitive To” (541).  Related rubrics are “Undressing Aggravates” (1410) and “Uncovering Aggravates” (1410).

There are a variety of body functions listed in the Generalities section.  These include:

Loss of Fluids (1371)

Menses (1373)

Perspiration (1391)

Sleep (1401)

Vomiting (1411)

Waking (1411)

Again, note that these rubrics refer to general aggravations at the time of these activities.

There are separate listings for body types. These include:

Dwarfism (1357)

Lean (1370)

Nursing children (1376)

Obesity (1376)

Old people (1376)

Stoop Shouldered (1403)

A small but useful rubric is “Contradictory and Alternating States” (1351).  This refers to conditions that rapidly change from one polarity to another in a confusing and unpredictable manner.  An example would be a young man who complains of intense coldness in his hands alternating with severe heat.  The condition changes so rapidly that at times he complains of both simultaneously.

“Faintness” (1358) is a useful rubric in the Generalities section.  This should be distinguished from “Vertigo”, which has its own section.  Faintness is more non specific and non localizing.  It is often described as a complaint of lightheadedness, dizziness, giddiness, floating, swaying, or disorientation.  Generally it is not associated with any specific accompanying signs. Vertigo is the illusion of movement or rotation of the environment about someone.  It can also be the illusion of rotation, tilting, or oscillation of the environment.  It is often associated with nausea or vomiting and balance problems.

There are a variety of rubrics relating to food.  These include:

Eating (1357)

Fasting [this is a useful rubric to describe hypoglycemia] (1361)

Food (1362)

Hunger From (1367)

Starving (1403)

Tobacco Aggravates (1407)

The Food section refers to feeling generally worse from eating certain foods.  Food desires and aversions are found in the Stomach section.

Motions of the body include:

Chorea [dance-like writhing movements] (1347)

Convulsions [seizures] (1351)

Convulsive Movements (1356)

Jerking (1369)

Quivering (1397)

Shuddering Nervous (1400)

Trembling (1407)

Twitching (1409)

There is also a separate rubric for Parkinson’s Disease (“Paralysis agitans”).

Long-term effects of exposure to various toxins and poisons are found in the Generalities section.  Larger sections for these problems can be found in Boericke’s Pocket Manual of Homeopathic Materia Medica with Repertory and Murphy’s Homeopathic Medical Repertory.  These include:

Arsenical (1345)

China (1347)

Coal Gas (1348)

Copper (1356)

Iron (1369)

Lead (1370)

Mercury (1374)

Quinine (1397)

Silica (1401)

Smoke (1402)

Sulphur (1404)

Aggravations related to position include:

Change of Position (1347)

Kneeling (1370)

Lying (1371)

Rising (1397)

Sitting (1401)

Standing (1403)

Stretching (1403)

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Todd Rowe

Dr.Todd Rowe MD, MD(H),CCH,DHt is a licensed homeopathic physician in Arizona. He teaches extensively and has written several books on classical homeopathic education including Homeopathic Methodology and the Homeopathic Journey. He is the past-president of the National Center for Homeopathy and serves on the Board of Directors for the Council for Homeopathic Education. He is the President of the American Medical College of Homeopathy and the Society for the Establishment of Research in Classical Homeopathy.