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| Hpathy Ezine - March, 2009 | ||||
Mind Section of Kent Repertory-- Todd Rowe |
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| General Layout The Mind section is one of the largest and perhaps is the most important section of the Repertory. Hahnemann states in the Organon Aphorism #211:
The Mind section contains all of the mental and emotional symptoms. Take a few minutes to leaf through the Mind section on p.p. 1-95 and familiarize yourself with the layout. In the past, homeopathic cases were frequently solved by focusing on physical symptoms. As suppression has increased in relation to allopathic drugging, immunizations, and other suppressive therapies, symptoms have been suppressed deeper and deeper into the organism. This has resulted in the increasing importance of mental and emotional symptoms in helping to find the right remedy.
Cross-Referencing Cross-referencing is a useful way of making it easier to get around the Repertory. For example, alcoholism is listed under the rubric "Dipsomania." If you have trouble remembering this, you can write in your repertory the rubric "Alcoholism, See Dipsomania, p. 36" on p. 1. Other times you may want to write in related rubrics. For example, you can find the concept of "Guilt" under "Anxiety of Conscience" on p. 6 and under "Remorse" on p. 71. If you look at these rubrics, you will find that they contain different remedies. You can cross-reference these rubrics by writing the page number of the other rubric next to each one. This will remind you that there are other remedies to consider for a particular concept than simply the ones in the rubric. Related Concepts It is helpful to try to differentiate the subtle differences between related concepts in the Mind section. For example, if you consider the ideas of jealousy and envy, you may at first use these interchangeably. However, if you look at the remedies in the respective rubrics, you will find that they are different. When you are taking a case, when should you use the rubric jealousy and when should you use envy? Jealousy is usually about a particular person and often has a sexual connotation. A man may be jealous of the way that his wife looks at another man. Envy is more about possessions or things. We may envy another person's car or new computer. Another related concept is greed which can be found under "Avarice." There are many concepts related to sadness. These include: Brooding (10) Despair (35) Discontented (36) Discouraged (36) Grief (50) Inconsolable (54) Loathing Life (62) Morose (68) Sadness (75) Sighing (80) Suicidal disposition (85) Weary of Life (92) Weeping (92) Sadness is more of an inner state of experience, and can be used as synonymous with depression. Grief relates to a particular loss or separation that occurs from the outside. Grief would be appropriate after the sudden death of a loved one. "Inconsolable" is often related to the concept of Grief. There is also a useful rubric, "Love, Ailments From Disappointed" which really means ailments from disappointed love. There is a gradation of intensity of experience from "Brooding" to "Discouraged" to "Despair" to "Weary of Life" to "Loathing Life" to "Suicidal Ideation." "Brooding" also has the quality of a particular thought pattern associated with the emotion. "Morose" has more of a quality of chronicity and a refusal to see anything positive in life, and is often coupled with irritability. A good example of Morose would be the character Eeyore in the book Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne. Eeyore is always gloomy, complaining, and never happy. Concepts related to anger include: Anger (2) Censorious (10) Contradict Disposition To (16) Contrary (16) Cursing (17) Delirium, Raging (19) Destructiveness (36) Fight, Wants To (48) Hatred (51) Indignation (55) Irritability (57) Malicious (63) Misanthropy (66) Quarrelsome (70) Rage (70) Reproaches Others (71) Tears Things (87) Unfriendly humor (91) Violent (91) Wildness (95) "Irritability" relates more to an inner endogenous experience, whereas "Anger" has more of an external focus. We are usually angry "about" something but "feel" irritable. There is a gradation of intensity of experience from "Unfriendly Humor" to "Irritability" to "Quarrelsome" to "Malicious" to "Hatred" to "Rage" to "Violence". "Misanthropy" is a hatred of mankind. "Indignation" usually has a righteous quality to it and stems from a hurt to one’s ego. "Resentment" is more of an anger that is turned inward and is chronically smoldering. "Censorious" refers to being critical of others. Anxiety is well represented in the Repertory. Related concepts include: Mind, Anguish (3) Mind, Anxiety (4) Mind, Cares full of (10) Mind, Fear (42) Mind, Frightened Easily (49) Generalities, Anxiety (1345) Mind, Monomania (67) Sleep, Dreams Anxious (1236) Sleep, Dreams Nightmares (1242) Mind, Starting (82) Mind, Superstitious (85) Mind, Thoughts Tormenting (88) "Anxiety" is an inner experience of emotion. "Fear" has an external focus. I may feel anxious, but I am fearful of taking an exam. "Anxiety about Health" (7) is an important rubric in the repertory and refers to people who are overly concerned about their health, a common problem in our culture. Related concepts here are "Anxiety, Hypochondriacal" and "Fear of Impending Disease." "Monomania" refers to an exaggerated focus and interest in one particular area or idea to the exclusion of all else. A compulsive person who must wash his hands fifty times daily would fit this rubric. "Anguish" is a deeper state of anxiety that has a component of acute pain and suffering attached to it. With anguish there is also a feeling of helplessness. Guilt finds its expression in two rubrics in the repertory. These are "Remorse" and "Anxiety of Conscience." "Remorse" is a deeper and more painful state than "Anxiety of Conscience", similar to the difference between "Anguish" and "Anxiety." There are many rubrics relating to confusion. These include: Concentration Difficult (13) Confusion (13) Dullness (37) Forgetful (48) Memory Weakness of (64) Mistakes (66) Prostration of the Mind (69) Senses Dullness Of (78) Stupefaction (84) Torpor (89) Unconsciousness (89) A gradation of intensity of these symptoms might be "Forgetfulness", "Concentration Difficult", "Dullness", "Prostration of the Mind", "Torpor", "Stupefaction", and "Unconsciousness." "Confusion" is usually about having too many thoughts, whereas "Dullness" is about having too few thoughts. The section "Mistakes" refers to people who make mistakes in communicating, I.e., writing, spelling, and speaking, or in perception, I.e., in regard to time or localities. Workaholism is a common problem in our culture. This can be found in the following rubrics: Activity Desires (1) Busy (10) Hurry (52) Industriousness (56) Irritability, Idle, while (59) Occupation Ameliorates (69) Work, Desire for Mental (95) "Occupation Ameliorates" refers to someone who feels much better when they work. The opposite idea is found in "Indolence, Business Aversion To"; "Indifference to Business Affairs"; "Irresolution with Indifference"; "Time, Fritters Away His" and "Work, Aversion to Mental." The repertory lacks adequate rubrics for psychic experiences. The rubric "Magnetized, Desires to Be" is useful for people who tend to seek out these kind of experiences. Also you can look at "Prophesying", "Clairvoyance", "Dreams, Clairvoyant" (1237), "Dreams, Prophetic", "Dreams, Visionary", and "Death, Presentiment Of." The rubrics "Dream, As if in a…" and "Unreal, Everything Seems" are related. The former is more of an internal state and the latter is more external. There are a variety of rubrics pertaining to sexuality. These also can be found under the Female and Male sections of the repertory. Related concepts include: Fancies, Lascivious (42) Lasciviousness (61) Lewdness (62) Libertinism (62) Naked, Wants To Be (68) Nymphomania (68) Pleasure, Voluptuous Ideas, Only, In (69) Sexual Excess, Mental Symptoms From (79) Shameless (79) Thoughts Intrude and Crowd Around Each Other, Sexual (87) "Nymphomania" is about uncontrollable sexual desire in women. Some repertories (not Kent’s) contain the rubric "Satyriasis" which is the same feeling in men. "Lewdness" and "Lasciviousness" are about an internal lustful state, whereas "Libertinism" is more about unrestrained sexual behavior. "Shamelessness" is a more general state and encompasses behaviors other than sexual behavior. Male sexuality is poorly represented in the Repertory. "Selfishness" and "Egotism" are related. "Selfishness" is more about how one treats others, whereas "Egotism" is more about the attitude that one has about oneself. "Weeping", "Complaining", and "Lamenting" are related. "Lamenting" is a deeper state and has a sound component associated with it (keening, wailing, or moaning). "Introspection"; "Meditation"; "Sits Quietly"; "Brooding"; "Talk, Indisposed to"; "Quiet Disposition"; "Secretive" and "Absorbed" are all related concepts. The opposite idea can be found in "Hurried", "Impetuous", "Rashness", "Impatience", and "Time Passes Too Slowly." Important Rubrics There are a number of rubrics that come up frequently in prescribing. "Loquacity" refers to much talking or being garrulous. "Fastidious" refers to being overly neat. Related concepts include "Conscientious About Trifles", "Carefulness" and "Rest, Cannot When Things are Not in Their Proper Place." "Forsaken" is a feeling that comes up frequently. This comes up when someone feels abandoned or bereft. Paranoia can be found under the rubric "Suspiciousness." Shyness is found under "Timidity." Anorexia can be found under "Eat, Refuses to." An important part of the Mind section is found under "Sensitivity." In this section you will find "Sensitivity to Noise", "Sensitivity to Light", and "Sensitivity to Music." Sighing is found in the Mind section and not in the Respiratory section. Stubbornness is found under "Obstinacy." The desire to be alone is found under "Company, Aversion To." Speech is found in the Mind section, although many of the rubrics related to speech are also found in the Mouth section. Confusing Terms Some of the language in the Repertory is archaic and confusing. A homeopathic dictionary can be quite helpful in sorting out this terminology (see A Dictionary of Homeopathic Medical Terminology, by Jay Yasgur). "Mania a potu" refers to delirium tremens or d.t.’s. This is a state related to alcohol withdrawal. Dipsomania is a term that is synonymous with alcoholism. Aphasia refers to impairment or losing the ability to communicate through speech or written language. Ennui is defined as boredom or weariness and discontent. Hydrophobia is a fear of water. Somnambulism is sleep-walking. Kleptomania is the compulsion to repeatedly steal. Delusion Section/Dream Section The largest rubric in the Mind section is "Delusions." "Delusions" refers to beliefs or feelings that are fixed and false. For many years this section was little used and reserved only for individuals who were more severely mentally ill. Rajan Sankaran has recently opened up this section to more liberal interpretation and much greater usage. He feels that for some individuals there are core delusions from which all of their symptoms spring, and that if we can understand these core delusions, we deepen our understanding of that individual. In the Spirit of Homeopathy, he states: Delusions are feeling which are not fully based on facts, but they are feelings nevertheless. The difference between delusions and feelings is that delusions are exaggerated, more fixed and often expressed in terms of images. Delusions can provide living images, which give important clues to the heart of a homeopathic case and a homeopathic remedy. Sankaran has similarly focused on the usage of the Dream section. This rubric lies in the Sleep section in Kent’s repertory, although in many of the more modern repertories it has been placed in the Mind section. He sees dreams as being very close to delusions, representing the core states or essence of an individual (see Lesson Seven). Dreams represent uncompensated material (our true underlying feelings) untainted by our defenses and our need to appear to the outside world other than who we truly are. Here is an example: A forty-five-year-old woman complains that people can see into her innermost soul. She states she has spent much of her life trying to hide from others to protect herself but could not escape from this. The rubric that I used in this case was "Delusions, Glass, That She is Made Of" (26). This is a core delusion of the remedy Thuja occidentalis, which acted curatively. Another example is a young man who is extremely proud and haughty. He talks about looking down on others all the time, and how they are beneath him. The rubric was "Delusions, Small, Things Appear" (p. 32). The remedy was Platina metalicum, which again worked curatively. Studying Materia Medica Through the Repertory A useful way of studying materia medica is to study all of the rubrics in the repertory that are associated with a particular remedy. There have been several books published which do this for the Mind section of the repertory (The Complete Materia Medica of the Mind, by Heli Retzek; New Comprehensive Materia Medica of the Mind, by H.L. Chitkara). Studying the materia medica in this way gives a mental/emotional picture for each remedy. ---------------------------------------------- Dr.Todd Rowe 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 director of the American Medical College of Homeopathy and the Society for the Establishment of Research in Classical Homeopathy.
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