How to Quickly Evaluate a Remedy

When you are receiving a case and have a list of well-selected rubrics that has led to a list of remedies that are being considered for the case, how do you quickly learn about so many remedies that may have come up in the repertization?

It can be overwhelming to have 50 remedies to consider and you might only know a little about 20 of them. How do you quickly learn about the remaining 30 remedies that should be considered? This is where Materia Medica knowledge helps a lot. But honestly, you will never quit learning about remedies. There is simply too much to remember about thousands of remedies. So being able to evaluate a remedy to consider and put in your basket of possible remedy choices is a good skill to have.

First and foremost is knowing what is asking to be healed in the case. Without this, you do not have a case. This will determine the rubrics that are most important and influence your entire case. When you have chosen rubrics that best reflect what is asking to be healed, then you can open yourself to looking at the remedies that may be useful.

Having a good Materia Medica or even two or three of them is necessary. Each author organizes the Materia Medica slightly differently. Having a good source of information is necessary to begin your investigations. Keynotes about remedies are often a good place to start. This will be the biggest, most definitive source of a remedy. It will be the broadest view with the most vital information. It will not be your most complete source for information but will give the highlights about a remedy.

Some of my favorite books are Nash’s Therapeutics Keynotes, Clark's Characteristics Keynotes, Boger’s Synoptic Keynotes, and Allen’s Keynotes. Each of these will give an overview of the remedies and the most indicated symptoms.

When reading Materia Medica, it is important to read the introduction about the remedy and its indications. In most Materia Medica's, the first section will give a brief overview of the remedy. After the sections and indications, the notes at the end will usually bring further light to the remedy and how it has been used in the past.

When reading about a remedy, keep in mind the major effects it has and the sensations it produces. For instance, if your case has burning pains and is focused in the stomach, pay attention to the sensations the remedy will produce when reading about the remedies. If the remedy is most indicated for the heart and produces squeezing pains, it may not be the best-selected remedy. But if burning pains are talked about and gastrointestinal issues are the main focus of the remedy, then you have a remedy you may want to investigate further.

If there is a mind rubric that is undeniable and an important part of the case, then looking at those remedies that cover that mind symptom is a good elimination. It will reduce the number of remedies you have to investigate. But a word of caution; you must be 100% sure of the rubric and it must be very vital to what is asking to be healed. Otherwise, if it is a common symptom or not extremely strange, rare, or peculiar, it may be that you have eliminated remedies that should possibly be considered for the case.

If you are using a computer program to repertize, it may have what kingdom the remedy is from at the top, indicated by a color-coded box. This is often the first level of differentiation in remedy selection. Some cases present themselves very well and it is not difficult to know whether the person needs an animal, plant, or mineral remedy. This is not always easy for every client, but by paying attention to the words they use to describe their sufferings and the general feeling of the case, it can be useful to make this determination. This will narrow your search for remedies greatly.

The more complex a case is the harder it will be to quickly evaluate a remedy. This is when having a very clear idea about what is asking to be healed in the case is necessary. The less clear you are, the harder it will be to find the perfect remedy. Having clarity about the mental state or whether the physical suffering is what is most important in the case will also be helpful.

Get familiar with the Materia Medica you have and how it is organized. Read through the beginning of all remedies you are considering. Before long, you will be able to quickly evaluate a remedy and know whether you need to investigate further of not.  This will also help you learn more from every case you work on.

Keep the conversation going! I would love to hear your questions and thoughts below!