Page 6 - Spring 12

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Staphisagria; it can clear any kind of obstructive urethritis, strictures, strands, small stones, blood.
• Pulsatilla and Lycopodium are there mainly by the constitution; Lycopodium is often indi- cated in elderly gentlemen, strong point is lack of libido and a significant amount of erectile dysfunction.
• Solidago for bloody urine
• Conium and Thuja are also very important
remedies for cancer of the prostate
Case 1 prostate cancer in a 63 yr old man
Surgery for cancer of the prostate 2 years before, then a secondary was found in the brain. There were 2 clinching symptoms:
1 Intolerable headache – so restless that he would be rolling his head into the pillow
2 Incontinence of urine, worse sitting and better standing, even before prostate cancer, after surgery, even after cure of all prostate symptoms.
Incontinence of urine in a sitting position is a strong symptom of Zincum, and they are bet- ter by standing, and also whenever metastasis to the brain takes place from any organ, think of 2 organ related remedies, one is Zincum the other is Plumbum.
Here the intolerable headache is a symp- tom of Zincum.
Weeks 1,3,5,7: Zincum sulph 200c
plussing dose. Week 2,4,6,8: Carcinosin 200c plussing dose
The result in 1 month was thrilling, both his headache and incontinence were better by more than 50%, continued one more month and brain MRI showed a distinct reduction in the size of the deposit, went on with same remedies for 2 more months at the end of 4 months the entire deposit in the brain had cleared and the patient was 90% free of symptoms. He kept giving the patient the plussing doses for a year then a single dose on alternate months.
When there is a metastasis, Dr Ramakrishnan always thinks of the area where it has metastasised to. If it has gone to the brain, Zincum sulph is very good; also Plumbum iodatum is very specific for metasta- sis to the brain.
One more case...
58 yr male prostate cancer, secondaries in the presacral nodes (hard glands) and deposits in the liver, picked up by CT scan, PSA 33,
Patient had deep lines in his face, intellec- tual with a caustic wit and every day felt sleepy around 5pm. He started him on Lycopodium 200c and Scirrhinum 200c alternate weeks for 8 weeks, plussing method as above, and at 8 weeks there was no change in the scan but the PSA dropped to 7.5, which is significant. Weeks 9 – 16 same regime then showed 80% reduc-
tion in presacral nodes, PSA down to 4.2, deposits in liver unchanged. Then went on to Lycopodium 1M daily plussing dose, and scir- rhinum 200 and went on up to 18 weeks, PSA still 4.2 and after 7 months pushed scirrhinum up to 1M as well, and alternating for 3 months, at which stage CT scan showed deposits to be almost entirely gone, PSA down to 3.2 there- after for 18 months patient received Lycopodium 1M and Scirrhinum 1M alternating semi monthly, split dose method. He is today active, symptom free and comfortable. The results of 6 monthly CT scans and PSA showed every- thing has remained the same as month 9 tests.
So here the lycopodium is more of the con- stitutional remedy – if that is clear, you can remain on the constitutional remedy, and you don’t have to go on the organ related remedy.
NAMASTE
Dr Ramakrishnan delivered his talks in a delightful way with sincerity, humility and humour and I would heartily recommend attending a course he is teaching with the Welsh School of Homeopathy, starting April next year where he will cover other aspects of practical homeopathic prescribing.
I have a fuller transcript of the talk if anyone wants more details. Please contact me via this mag.
It was with interest that I read the case of Boris the cat, pre- sented by Wendy Dixon in the Autumn 2011 mag.
My enthusiasm for the repertory is not a secret. For the sake of the exercise and discussion, I would like to approach Boris’ case from the more classical/repertorial point of view. Although the modern analysis through teachings of Scholten and Sankaran are interesting and have certainly improved much of homeopathy, it just strikes me from looking at the discussion presented with the case that there may be an analysis of Boris more from our (homeopaths) point of view and less so from the patient’s point of view. The distinction between these two is marginal but in my opinion essential for progressing in homeopathy. I use this case because to me it is an example of a path of evolution many have chosen. It is an interesting path but should not be taken without also improving one’s reportorial technique.
A good homeopathic prescription should always reflect the patient’s ‘being ill’ and not what we think there is (the weight given to situational homeopathy). This is of course more difficult in veterinary medicine. By using the repertory we can look for suggestions of remedies we did not think about or did not expect and which sometimes fill in the bits of the anamnesis we could not understand or repertorise or we did not see.
The reason for this letter is about finding the right balance between reasoning a case and taking it at face value (symptoms). Reasoning the patient (or the disease) has led to modern medicine, just using what is there (cure like with like) to find the remedy is homeopathy. We do need techniques that require some reasoning for remedy selecting but it is important to always ask ourselves: ‘What is the patient trying to ‘say’ here’. And this not only in words but also in signs and symptoms.
For today’s exercise I start by asking the question: what does the case tell me? This cat appears not to be blessed with the grace of most cats
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(he is ugly, clumsy, shy, undecided, does not believe he is a cat, sleeps with his nose against the wall, not interested in cats and birds...). In response he appears to put his energy in being clean, in order, in the world of children, being cuddled, drinking. I can’t say this is quite coherent. Curiously he improves from being praised (only then goes in the litter tray). ‘He does not believe he is lovely’, why would an owner say this? These last two observations show a dynamic we have to find in an appro- priate remedy but I am not clear how to repertorise this. So I use what is more or less sure.
We know he is clumsy and there is also a kind of incoherence: Mind, Irresolution & Awkward (mind and extremities together). By adding some physical signs: hard stool, ulcers on skin and swelling of scrotum, a num- ber of remedies are proposed.
My attention is drawn to Asa foetida for the following reason: Marc Brunson proposes that the issues of this remedy are in giving and receiv- ing; the plant makes a beautiful flower, which stinks. There is a sort of fatality; the patient lives with the idea that whatever nice things he/she receives, it will turn out to be not nice. Nat sulf will be much more pes- simistic: the patient is convinced it will always be against him. Asa foetida is a bit fatalistic but not necessary really depressed. The Asa foetida patient may say ‘Look at me, doctor, I have not been blessed in life’ and just gets on with it.
Of course, I will never know if I am right here but I am absolutely con- vinced that we need to continuously have a discussion around these issues and constantly keep checking ourselves. Other comments will be most welcome of course.
This small article says much about the message I like to bring.
Edward De Beukelaer