Wake up, Mom, it’s time for the Quiz!
Not now Shana, I’m hibernating for the winter.
Mom, you’re not a squirrel!
Are you sure? Look at this picture of me!
Mom, you’re the one on the left!
I thought I was the one on the right!
I have important anniversaries to announce. It may interest you to know that 40 years ago this month, Andy Gibb released his last album, “After Dark”.
Apparently it performed poorly and Andy ended up getting dropped from RSO records by label founder Robert Stigwood. (Bee Gees’ manager.)
You’ve got to be kidding! Andy Gibb was dropped because of one supposedly “bad” album?
I’m sure his drug use had something to do with it.
Oh. Drug use. Well, that’s different. Never mind! And by the way, “After Dark” was a great song!
Here it is now. I don’t know how many people know about this song, but they should!
The other album celebrating an anniversary is none other than “Sweet Baby James” by James Taylor. It turned 50.
Gee, it’s almost as old as I am!
Nice try, Mom! We both know you bought this album in 1970!
We do? I did?
This is the album that pretty much jump-started James Taylor’s career. The title track was one of the singles but apparently it didn’t chart.
You’re kidding!
Can you believe that?!
You know, you learn so much here at the Hpathy Quiz!
Probably it didn’t chart because “Fire And Rain” was on it.
Oh! “Fire and Rain” …! Well, that’s different. Never mind!
And now, for the moment you’ve all been waiting for….
The Hpathy Quiz!!!!!
Who’s in it this time?
Caralyn’s son, “J”. You remember Caralyn, right? Her family members have been in so many of our quizzes, remember her father had gout? Plus, she was in “Give My Regards To Arsenicum” article–if you haven’t read it, please do so right away; it’s hilarious!
So she came to me because her son J appeared to have some sort of virus. I said, “He has to fill out the Acute Case Questionnaire!” Which is on my website, because what the acute case questionnaire gives you is:
A COMPLETE CASE!
Name: “J”
Age: 22
Male or Female: Male
Weight: 175 lbs
Height: 6’2″
Date:12/4/19
Email Address: J…[email protected]
- Describe the complaint:
Right neck gland is swollen. Hurts when I move my tongue to the left or right (more so the right).
I wake up worse in the morning, nose is a little stuffy, eyes are crusty.
- Etiology–
Could be because I bite my nails.
- Sensation–describe the pain:
Sharp pain in my upper mouth when I try to pop my ears and a sharp pain when I move my tongue to the right or left side of my mouth on the right gland.
- Appearance– anything remarkable about how you look?
no nothing abnormal
- Location–where on the body is your complaint located?
right gland, throat
- Modalities–
I feel as if the more I am “active” it stops hurting as much. For example if I am chewing, I will not notice the pain as much because I am constantly swallowing and my glands are moving. Whereas in the morning when waking up from sleep, everything is dormant so moving it hurts a bit more.
- Concomitants
I have been tired lately. Stuffy nose on the right nostril. A tad achy?
- Discharges–color, odor, consistency and sensation.
Maybe because my nose is dry the mucus comes out a bit red, but its slightly light green or clear
- Generals–these are all the symptoms that begin with the word “I”:
(no answer)
- The mentals: Is the complaint changing you mentally and emotionally?
Both, with fatigue comes a lack of willingness to want to do things so it gets in the way of both
- What have you been saying?
Literally, “I’m fine leave me alone”. Parents are always asking me how I am and that is my go-to response. I don’t really know what else to say.
- What are you doing?
sleeping a lot, not really doing much lately. I would like to be more active its just a lack of wanting to do it.
- Describe your thirst and appetite–
My appetite has been very good. I have been more hungry than anything. Lately I have been craving a cold drink. I have been drinking cartons of orange juice the past two days.
- Fever?
No.
- Sweating?
no.
- Odors?
no.
- What is most striking, peculiar or identifying about your condition?
How tired I am. My eyes feel very heavy.
- Is there a diagnosis?
not that I know of
- Describe your energy–
sleepy.
- What does your tongue look like? (color/coating/pattern, crack/s, shape, etc.)
Healthy. Not white, not dehydrated. Just pink.
- If you have a cough, please tell what it sounds like.
nothing more than just clearing my throat.
- If you haven’t already said if you’re hotter or colder than usual?
Nothing out of the usual
_________
Caralyn, I’m going to recommend _______________200C, one dose.
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Elaine, sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner. Yes, everything resolved in one day, right after the ____________. He took 200c dry (not in water). So far still so good ?
Caralyn, what about the orange juice craving?
That went away too.
__________________________
So, OK everybody, that’s it! If you know the remedy, write to me at [email protected], the answer will be in next month’s ezine. Bye for now!
_____________
Votes:
Medorrhinum-2
Gelsemium
Phosphorus
Arnica
Lycopodium
Hi Elaine and Shana!
Hi Maria!!!!
I just got an e-mail notification that the H-pathy February journal is online!
First I read the quiz. What struck me is the orange juice and the desire for cold drinks. Then I saw the biting nails and I thought, could it be Medorrhinum?
Maria, you are a genius! That was literally what my thinking was, word-for-word! Especially the nail-biting, a keynote of Medorrhinum; and the fact that he said the etiology was nail-biting? I was, like, OMG! Why would he say that? It makes no sense! Why would someone say they got sick because of nail biting??? Talk about “strange, rare and peculiar”! That is really off the charts! How are you going to ignore that? And then he says he’s been drinking CARTONS of orange juice! Cartons, Maria. Cartons! And as you said, desire for cold drinks. And you really can’t confirm any other remedy! So, I’ve never given Medorrhinum for an acute before, but, we’ve got 3 keynotes of Medorrhinum here, what can I say?
But it is not in the rubrics such as:
Throat, pain, right
Throat, pain, swallowing amel.
Throat, pain, motion of tongue agg.
Do people learn nothing from me???? These are local symptoms, if they were all we had, we’d have to repertorize them, but they’re not. Maria, none of that matters, we’ve got the top of the “hierarchy”: strange/rare/peculiar, keynotes of remedies, generals (thirst for cold drinks)… Motion of tongue aggravates? I’m not sure that counts. If moving the tongue aggravates the swollen gland, then there would have to be pain by necessity. And remember, if it makes sense, it’s not a symptom.
And how could the etiology be the biting of nails? It doesn’t make sense.
Exactly!!!!! That’s why it’s peculiar! You remember what Hahnemann said: The most striking, strange, rare and peculiar symptoms must, above all else, match the remedy you choose—not every symptom, just the characteristic symptoms: striking/strange/rare/peculiar. In this context, does it matter that we can’t find Medorrhinum under “Throat: pain, right”? No. It’s not “characteristic”. Anyone with a cold can have this symptom.
Well the mentals fit to Medorrhinum, because he is rude to his parents and secretive – he doesn’t tell them anything.
I didn’t even think of that! All the more reason to vote for Medorrhinum!
So I will vote for Medorrhinum, though I might be wrong but I see keynotes that I can’t ignore.
My thinking exactly!
Then I read your Tidbits article:
https://hpathy.com/homeopathy-papers/tidbits-68-mr-thuja/
and there it was, all about Medorrhinum and Thuja!
I know, what a coincidence!
Great article! So in case I am wrong I will try again.
You’re not wrong, so don’t try again!
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Is anybody else here today? Hey everybody, Vamsi’s in the house!!!!
Hi Elaine,
Hope you are well. Its quiz time again…
Here J seems to have symptoms which seem to demand “MERCURIUS” (glands swollen, pain in the ears and mucus secretions). But there seems to be a peculiar symptom of “Craving of cold drinks and drinking lots of orange juice”. I feel this dominates the case, as the peculiars come first.
Hence “Craving for orange juice” would go for “Medorrhinum”. (Bold in Murphy’s repertory)
Elaine, if I am wrong please let me know, I will try once again.
You’re not wrong, so don’t try again!
Thanks a lot Elaine…your articles really help us to crack the quiz…thanks a lot for those wonderful articles of yours.
Waiting for a book of your articles published….
Gee wouldn’t that be nice! Dr. B offered to put my articles in a book. But he said I had to take all the different colors out (other than black), all the pictures unless I owned them… I said, “You mean if I want to say that so-and-so died, I’d have to remove his picture?” Yes. I got so discouraged, I just stopped thinking about it. But thanks anyway!
Elaine, yes, that sounds tough to do. But, but….you should have gone ahead and done it, because there are so many of us who would surely be benefited with your conscientious efforts. I feel you should really give a second thought about it. Please do so…..You want any editing to be done , I would surely help you out. Free Services from Vamsi 🙂
Elaine, another point … just happened to read your Tidbits article. It was a wonderful and meaningful comparison of those two remedies—Medorrhinum and Thuja.
I see you have revealed the answer for this month’s quiz. Its all in there!!!!
Another point also which also goes with Medorrhinum, the etiology of the case ( Biting nails ). Mr J seems to bite his nails, and he had quoted the same in the Etiology of his case. Just wanted to let you know.
You’re right Vamsi, he did mention nail-biting, we can’t ignore it. It certainly helps confirm Medorrhinum.
Cheers
Vamsi.
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Hi Elaine!
Oh look! It’s a new student! Welcome!
At first, thank you for your monthly quiz; for me, as a Dutch homeopathy student, it’s a (challenging) opportunity to test my knowledge and try to solve the case!
Good for you!
My guess:
The remedy for Caralyn’s son “J” is GELSEMIUM.
Aversion to company (leave me alone)
I knew someone would pick Gelsemium! But wait; we have to know “why” when we hear a symptom. Why does Gelsemium want to be alone? It’s because Gelsemium has an overwhelming desire to sleep! Now, Nux vomica, on the other hand, wants to be alone because he’s super-sensitive and everything and everybody gets on his nerves! He wants quiet and darkness. Nat-mur wants to be alone because she doesn’t like being fussed over, it makes her very uncomfortable. The truth is, we are not sure why “J” wants his parents to leave him alone. You know, it could just be that “J” is a college boy whose parents are treating him like a baby and he wants them out of his dorm room! You know how mothers are when their children are sick, always hovering, fussing, asking “How are you now?” The point is, we don’t know enough about why J told his parents to leave him alone; but, you know what we do know about Gelsemium? They are thirstless! And our patient is quite thirsty for cold drinks, very thirsty, as a matter of fact; so, we would be reluctant to give Gelsemium as our first choice.
His eyes feel very heavy.
Unfortunately, there are over 100 remedies in that rubric; so, we can’t hang our hat on just that.
Also his fatigue, nose-problems and, main complaint, swollen glands matching Gelsemium. Could not match the etiology (nail biting) though…….so I might be wrong as the etiology is an important part of solving the case.
Actually, the “etiology” was an important clue in this case, even though it made absolutely no sense; but, do you know what remedy is associated with nail-biting? And also has a craving for orange juice? Medorrhinum!
The fact that you gave “common” and “local” symptoms as much weight as “characteristic symptoms” (keynotes of remedies, strange-rare-peculiar, etc.), tells me you would do well to read: “Repertory Round-Up, part 4”, where I discuss what symptoms to pay attention to in a case and which ones to ignore; it should help you with solving cases in the future:
https://hpathy.com/homeopathy-papers/tidbits-50-repertory-round-part-4/
Greetings from the Netherlands!
Hanneke
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Oh look, it’s the gang from Slovakia!
Hello Elaine and Shana
Hello Miroslav and Jitka!
here are our further attempts to guess a remedy of your patient’s case.
Miroslav says: Phosphorus
I think it’s Phosphorus (a great appetite and craves cold drinks),
Although I was also thinking about Phosphoric acid because of fatigue, but obviously he wouldn´t have had so good an appetite.
Jitka says: Arnica
It seemed to me that the most important symptom was: “I’m fine, leave me alone.” I found that in Murphy’s there is a rubric: Mind: He’s fine, he says when he feels very bad: there about 10 remedies, but only ARNICA and OPIUM and then the apis are more important. I chose Arnica, although it sounds somewhat strange to me, I searched for another rubrics which could fit to this case:
Mind: He’s fine, he says when he feels very bad: ARN
Glands, pain: ARN
Generals: Movement, affected parts of the body, improves: Arn.
Food: Cold drinks, water, longing for Arn.
Here’s the thing, Jitka. These are all good guesses, but the problem is, you can’t confirm any of them. Take Phosphorus for example: yes, Phosphorus has increased appetite and thirst with a fever, a good choice; but, Phosphorus doesn’t tell people to go away, Phosphorus wants company and is better for it. Arnica says “I’m fine!”—after a concussion (head injury)! They’re disoriented, confused and dull. Also, they don’t want to be touched or approached, so they say, “I’m fine!” The truth is, we’re not sure why J is saying to his parents, “I’m fine, leave me alone!” He could be a constitutional Nat-mur. Nat-mur’s don’t like fuss, they don’t want to be fussed over and pampered, it makes them uncomfortable.
I honestly thought this quiz would be too easy. Which remedy craves orange juice?
Elaine, we both corrected our responses: The remedy for J is Medorrhinum.
Yes!
Miroslav wrote: In the repertory there is in the rubric: Food; oranges, craves for: the most prominent remedy is Medorrhinum.
Right!
Jitka: Already before the first guess I found the rubric: Food, oranges, craves for: there is only one big remedy, Medorrhinum; but it seemed to me even less likely than Arnica, so I rated the state of the mind: “I´m fine…..” for the most important symptom of this case.
But we don’t know why he’s saying it! He could be a Nat-mur who doesn’t like being fussed over! Arnica says, “I’m fine” after a head injury. They’re confused and dazed and they say many dumb things. The craving for orange juice is the most striking thing in the case; plus, Medorrhinum craves cold drinks AND… remember the nail-biting? That goes for Medorrhinum too.
********************
I think I see Wayne from Australia off in the distance…
Hi Elaine,
I think the remedy is Lycopodium.
My rubrics are:
Company, general; aversion, to
Cold; drinks water desires
Swelling; glands
Heaviness; sensation eyelids
Dryness; inside nose
Mucus discharges, general; greenish
Sides, of body, general; right side
Motion, general parts of affected; amel
Glands, general
Motion, of tongue; side to side
The patient has a canine hunger.
Many of the rubrics above have too many entries to really be really defining.
I think the fact that there is a swollen gland on the right side and there is a hunger, that Lycopodium would help the case. There are other Lycopodium characteristics which are not present.
Well Wayne, Lycopodium isn’t a bad guess. He does have right-sided complaints. But here’s the thing about this case: you can’t really confirm any remedy! We see hints of numerous remedies here. We see the sleepiness and heaviness of Gelsemium, but Gelsemium is thirstless and this patient is very thirsty. We see the thirst for cold drinks of Phosphorus, but this patient wants to be left alone–more like Nat-mur than the better-for-company Phosphorus. We see the improvement on continued motion of Rhus tox, but he wants cold drinks instead of hot; there’s no mention of being better for warmth. No matter what remedy you think of, you can’t confirm it! What does that usually signal?
Give Sulphur?
Is that in reference to Hahnemann starting all his cases with Sulphur? I think I read that he stopped doing that at some point. No, I was referring to a Nosode. You know you need a nosode when you see so many remedy pictures in a case all at once with no way of confirming any of them. I gave Medorrhinum because of the orange juice craving, thirst for cold drinks and nail-biting.
Thanks for voting!
It’s time to give a shout-out to our two winners: Maria and Vamsi. Come on down! Wait a minute, what did I do with the red carpet? Rats! I can’t find it. You’ll have to make do with this lovely gold star instead. Congratulations!
See you again next time!
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Elaine Lewis, D.Hom., C.Hom.
Elaine takes online cases and animal cases too!
Write to her at [email protected]
Visit her website: https://ElaineLewis.hpathy.com
