Homeopathy Papers

The Mineral Kingdom: Exploring The Sixth Row

periodic table
Written by Pratik Desai

Dr. Pratik Desai discusses the 6th row of the periodic table and presents a case to illustrate.

Editing:  Ruchita Shah and Armeen Jasavala, the other song

As a continuation of the series of articles from the other song: International Academy of Advanced Homeopathy, here, we will explore the Sixth Row of the Mineral Kingdom (The Gold Series) along with an illustrative case example from Dr. Rajan Sankaran.

Introduction to Row 6

In Row 6, the issue is about taking up responsibility and leadership; the need for power and the ability to withstand the high pressure of this responsible position. The attack at this level too is of a very high degree; their perception is that people are going to finish them because of their leadership.

Remedies: Cesium, Barium, Lanthanum, Hafinium, Tantalum, Tungsten, Rhenium, Osmium, Iridium, Platinum, Aurum, Mercurius, Thallium, Plumbum/Lead, Bismuth, Polonium, Astatine, Radon

Understanding of Row 6:

Responsibility

In Row 6 the issue is about taking up responsibility, the need for power and the need to withstand high pressure. The feeling is, ’I have an identity (Row 3), I can protect myself (Row 4), I am creative (Row 5), but now I have to take leadership and responsibility.’

The elements of this Row are heavy metals and are much tougher than the elements of Row 4 and 5. They are extremely hard and dense and can withstand extreme amounts of pressure.

(Density: how full an area is: the concentration of people or things within an area in relation to its size.)

As the elements of the Row progress from the left to the right side, the amount of pressure on them to take on responsibility and leadership increases and also their capacity to do that. Where there is a complete lack on the left hand side, then in the middle they are successful and towards the right hand side they start losing it and ultimately have completely lost it.

Sphere of Action

Vital systems affected: cardiovascular, central nervous system

In this row we commonly see:

  • Premature stress
  • Children taking or showing responsibility precociously
  • Too much leadership at a young age
  • Premature development
  • Premature physical problems
  • Premature positive or negative developments, pathologically or emotionally

Comparison with Rows 4 and 5:

Row 4 Row 5 Row 6
Here they perceive attack to their position of security and protection, like on their job, house, wealth, etc. Here they perceive attack on their ability to perform and be creative.

 

Here they perceive attack on their position of leadership and power and that they will be finished.

 

Key words expressing the issue of taking responsibility of the self and surroundings and the issue of power:

Accountability

Am I capable?

Answerable

Authority

Backing

Become independent Bedridden

Disability

Disabled

Dominance

Don’t depend

Dutiful

Empower

Force

I had a leg missing Impotence

Incapable

Incapacitate

Independent

Inferiority

Invalid

On my own

On your feet

Power

Powerless

Reliant Responsibility

Right and wrong

 

Expressions In Patients:   

Cesium, Barium:

  • Lack the power to stand on own and take responsibility and dependent for the same.

Lanthanum, Hafinium, Tantalum, Tungsten:

  • Starts to develop the power to take responsibility.

Rhenium, Osmium, Iridium, Platina, Aurum, Mercury:

  • Has the power to take responsibility, to be the leader and to maintain the position.

Thallium, Piumbum, Bismuth, Polonium, Astatine:

  • Starts losing the power to take responsibilities.

A Case Example

A 16-year-old female consulted Dr. Pratik Desai at the other song clinic with the main complaint of darkening of the skin (hyperpigmentation) around her neck and armpits. She also suffered from hypothyroidism with her TSH levels being 4.81 (when the reference range should be only 0.4- 4.5).

The following is an excerpt from the case transcript. It has been edited for brevity and grammatically altered for better comprehension (D-Doctor, P-Patient).

D: Tell me please, what is happening?

P:  I like to play a lot of sports and now due to the board exam pressure, I am unable to manage my time. I had a board exam every six month so it was very stressful.

D: Tell more about “it was very stressful”?

P: There is a lot of study pressure and I don’t have time to manage.  So I went to the doctor and he suggested I exercise and go for a walk. So, I usually do 5 rounds of walking and I exercise in the morning for one hour.

D: Tell me about the problem with your darkened skin? How is it a problem for you?

P: The problem is that I cannot wear sleeveless clothes. I have to wear a shrug over it and whatever I wear has become limited.

D: What else?

P:  I have a habit of not speaking a lot.

D: No problem I am also like you!

P: (laughs) My teachers said this about me until last year. This year I feel I should talk, but I usually do not. I am an introvert; even my mother says I do not share anything. She says I am putting on weight because I am holding everything within me.

D: What else?

P: I am scared of speaking in front of a huge crowd. We have to do a lot of presentations in college. Individually I can manage but when I am in a group presentation, I am not good.

D: What else?

P: I read lot of fiction books, so most of the time I am in that zone. I cannot concentrate for a long time. I study for 2 hours and then I lose my concentration. I take breaks frequently. I have attended a lot of camps and national parks, maybe around 5-6. Usually, I share lot of stuff with my best friends and my parents. I also joined a different school board, so I do not know about this new syllabus. I am planning to give other exams but I don’t know, I am not updated on it. I have no idea so I am bit tense about it because the rest of my friends have already joined some classes and I have not.

Also, about my career planning, I have decided to go into the biology stream but I am not exactly sure what to do. Right now I am thinking of microbiology but then my mother suggested dentistry.

D: So what is the problem there?

P:  I think that because of all this stress my skin is darkening, and also I don’t speak up. Even in college I am a silent person. I can speak in front of my friends but in the presence of teachers or while doing presentations I get nervous. I also wanted to tell you that I am a fast eater and I finish my food very fast. I feel because of that I am gaining weight.

D: What else?

P: I like English as a subject too, so I was thinking to choose between arts and science but my teacher suggested to stick to science. In school, there is a lot of competition. There is only one other girl (other than me) who gets the highest marks in the class. Usually we do not talk to each other, but we do exchange notes. I find her rude so I do not like her.

D: Rude meaning?

P: She is sarcastic and speaks whatever comes to her mind, she will not think about the other person getting offended.

D: Sarcastic meaning?

P: She tends to insult others. She is helpful but still I do not like her.

D: What was the pressure for you?

P: There is a lot of homework and we also have to do research on our own, so I do not get enough time to do that. Sometimes I get incorrect answers and that makes me unhappy. Usually, teachers talk about me in front of the entire class, I feel embarrassed and very awkward and embarrassed.

D: Tell more about this awkward and embarrassed feeling? What does the teacher do?

P: She just talks about me in front of class and I do not like being pin-pointed. Yesterday I did not write the answer correctly, so she was telling me how to write the answer. She said in front of the class that I was not studying hard and I did not like that.

D: So what was the feeling there?

P:  I do not like people talking bad things about me. I feel embarrassed. I am ashamed to face my class. It is as if I have done something wrong. Then they go and point out my mistakes. I do not like people talking about my mistakes. I feel ashamed.

D: Describe this feeling of being ashamed little bit more?

P: My friends crack some jokes that I do not understand sometimes. I always ask them for a second time so they make fun of me and laugh at me. I do not like this but I mostly laugh it off and do not think about it.

D: So what is the feeling at that time?

P: I do not like if they are laughing at me. I generally ignore them and do not speak, so it all piles up. Usually I get nervous and back off, I do not speak at all. I just sit quietly. This usually happens when I am with my family. When I say something I say it angrily and then me and my mom end up fighting. Then, I don’t speak for days. No one talks to each other and eventually after a week my mom approaches me. I do not apologize.

D: Why do you not apologize?

P: I want to apologize but I do not feel confident in doing it. I am not exactly a confident person. We had an inter-college debate competition, and I could not say anything. I gave my views, but did not actively participate in the debate. I was nervous. What if I said something wrong. The other kids were much higher in level than me. I couldn’t speak in front of them.

D: They were higher means?

P: They know what exactly to speak and I end up in stammering and speaking something out of the way.

D: What was the feeling inside of you at that particular moment of time?

P: I wanted to speak. I raised my hand to speak at one point but I did not get the chance. After that, my friend was telling me to say something but I did not have the courage to speak. It was my first debate competition and I had no idea what to do and the rest of the kids were so well prepared. I was not prepared, participants from our college were two boys and two girls, and there was a guy who was very good at speaking in English so he used to say whatever he wanted. He was very confident and I felt left out. I was forced to take part. I feel nervous, what if I made a mistake?

D: What was your feeling when others were speaking and you were quiet?

P: Initially I was very nervous to talk and then I wanted to speak but did not get the chance so after that I just gave up. I should  have spoken at least once but at the same time I did not want to commit a mistake. If I made a mistake then people would look down upon me and they would feel that I am not capable of doing things

D: Looked down upon meaning?

P: They will start ignoring me.

D: Not capable enough meaning?

P: I am not capable enough for their attention. I am not worthy of their attention.

D: Describe this feeling of not worthy of their attention?

P: When I am at a new place I feel that everyone is judging me so l always like to stay behind and not go and talk to anyone (Hand Gesture).

D: Tell about your dreams?

P: I have had dreams of a ghost torturing my family. The ghost is beating them and trying to kill them. My dreams are mostly related to my family. I felt helpless and I could not do anything to stop the ghost.

D: Any fears?

P: I have a big fear of heights. When I look down, I feel as if the entire building will fall. I am scared of horror movies but still I watch. I am also scared to be the one to initiate discussion. I need confirmation and recheck again and again before I say something.

I also asked the parents about her and her father told us about her quality where she postpones things. She tends to brush things under the carpet, especially in difficult situations.

Case Analysis and Understanding

In this case, we can see that there are two aspects of her individuality. On one side she is very nervous, timid, has a fear of facing crowd/people or stage and of heights. She feels embarrassed and has a big fear of making a mistake or that she will do something wrong. She is sensitive to being laughed at or mocked and is very sensitive to criticism. She lacks the courage to speak up. If we repertorize the above characteristics, we get the remedy Baryta carb.

On the other side, we see that she is very independent in terms of her studying. She can take her own decisions and the pressure of studying on her own. Also, she can do presentations individually perfectly fine. She is very assertive and will not apologize, even to her mother. Her mother will initiate the apology but she will not budge. She likes attention as well.

These characteristics indicate that she has developed and grown to stage where she has to do things on her own and she has the ability to take the pressure on her own. This points us to Row 6 in the Periodic Table. Here, the main themes are of being independent, taking responsibility and decisions for oneself. The patient is also very clear what she wants to do in her career (microbiology) and has the ability to take on the pressure, leadership and power.

On the side of her that is not so confident, she feels hesitant, unsure and not prepared. This side was expressed clearly when she was asked to take part in the group debate and found herself unprepared compared to the others. Also, in her classroom, she knows the answer but is hesitant to raise her hand because she fears making a mistake. She is not sure what she will say in the moment. Lastly, her father told us about her quality where she postpones things. She tends to brush things under the carpet, especially in difficult situations. This specific quality indicates Column 5 in the Periodic Table. In this case, the patient’s foundation is not strong. She is afraid to take the step on her own; she is unsure and hesitant and thus, always comes back to a safe position.

At the cross point of Row 6 and Column 5, we find the remedy Tantalum metallicum. The patient received this medicine in 1M (one dose).

Follow-up after one month:

One month later, the patient reported that the dark pigmentation was less over the neck area and had stopped darkening further in the axilla. Her academic performance was also better. The amount has sleep has reduced but her energy levels are better. Her anxiety has also reduced and she is more focused. Now, she also talks with people and she is very happy about the changes overall.

Follow-up after 6 months:

Her TSH reported a drop to 2.71 (earlier 4.84). The patient feels that she has become more interactive with family and does what her mother instructs her to do. Her fear has reduced. She now takes initiative and responsibilities. She feels very confident and happy. Her hyperpigmentation has reduced significantly.

She received placebo following this and she continues to do well.

About the author

Pratik Desai

Dr. Pratik Desai has been an in-house consultant and faculty at ‘The Other Song’ clinic and international academy since its establishment in January 2011. He is a mentor for the university courses conducted by MUHS (Maharashtra University of Health and Science) at ‘the other song’. He has also shared his clinical experience and successful cases in various homoeopathic journals such as Homeopathic Heritage, Interhomeopathy, Links, NJH among many others.

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