Thank you for taking the time and trouble. I will combine your comments and
my answers in one reply to make more sense (hopefully perhaps).
==================
Shannon Said:
I think, Soroush, that if you *didn't* talk about this issue with your
sterile patient -- regardless of how "happy" they were or were not with it,
and regardless of whether or not they brought up the topic -- you would be
very, very remiss!!!! Don't you agree?
---------------------------------------
Soroush : MOST DEFINITELY!! But please also see below.
=================
Joy said:
Soroush, surely you would be discussing, either directly or indirectly, the
client's sexual and reproductive state. If not then the case isn't really
complete. 'Happy', 'content', 'ok with' etc, whatever language you want to
use, I think you know that I meant an accepted state that was not playing a
part in the presenting complaint.
I think you need to stretch your mind as to how one might find out they are
sterile, medical history, previous partners, curiosity, donors, etc.
====================
Please do not forget how the question was worded - That the patient was
'happy' with their sterility.
You see if you are REALLY 'happy' with some thing, then you are 'at ease'
with it and therefore do not have a 'dis-ease'.
I still doubt if any one can be REALLY HAPPY with being Sterile. They may
find it convenient and OK for the time being but perhaps this feeling is not
for all the time.
That is why I questioned what being 'happy' meant.
You both asked about my case taking.
My case taking is dynamic. I go with the flow of what the patient says. If
I sense that they need to get something off their chest, well I give them
the opportunity to do that. I try and find out what is the centre of the
case and what makes this particular patient tick. I try and make sure the
recorded symptoms are full and modalities / concomitants etc are correctly
logged. (I also give a summary of these to the patient at the end and on a
few occasions it has suddenly opened the patient with a lot more info coming
out.)
After asking general questions about upsets, grief, fears and anxieties and
thoughts that often go through the patient's mind and other sensations, I
seem to have a gut feeling if & when the patient is not fully levelling with
me and I try not let them go until I have got to the bottom of things. In
fact in one case when the patient contacted to see when they could pick up
their remedy I told her my feelings. She made another appointment and wow
the case opened up nicely pointing to her similimum and at the end of it I
was not surprised that she was reluctant to tell me the harrowing details.
But with her doing most of the talking we had to go through the very painful
troubling experiences to crack the case.
One of the things I have found works well is asking the following question
almost at the end of the interview:
What was it that you had decided not to tell me before you came to see me?
This can of course lead to the interview going on for another hour or so as
we approach the centre of the case or an area which may be a maintaining or
initiating cause.
Another thing that I have learnt to respect is that if during the interview
/ consultation some thing about the patient intrigues me - I always ask
about it.
I remember in the second term of second year at college we were allowed to
be just observers at the college clinic. Officially we were not supposed to
ask any questions from the patient!
A patient Aged mid 30s came in and her presenting symptoms were severe PMT.
I made copious notes and at the end of the interview the final year student
who was conducting the interview asked if any one had any questions. A
couple of colleagues asked further questions about the case. Although very
inexperienced I was not sure if we had rcvd all the information we needed to
prescribe for this case.
I had detected a slight accent in the way this lady spoke and I could not
place it. I could not tell where she was from.
So when the opportunity presented itself, I told her that I could not place
her accent, could she pls tell us where she came from. She said she was
German.
So I said oh you must have been in England for a long time as I could not
really detect a German accent.
She said she had been in UK since she had been about 16-17.
So I asked "What brought you to England?" After a bit of a silence she said
that she had had a row and major bust-up with her mother and had decided to
get away from her and the further away the better and as quickly as
possible. So she had gotten herself to UK and eventually settled and married
and had a good job and a son.
My final year colleague then took over and a few more questions and the case
that had remained closed was cracked open. She was prescribed Nat-m.
Interestingly enough she came back a month later looking completely
different and well and said that she had come to just say thank you! She
was better on all fronts.
A homoeopath's job is never easy. It is more like a detective's work. Given
the opportunity we must not leave any stone unturned.
I think this is the value of Minutus, where we can share our ideas together
and help each other improve our homoeopathy in all of its aspects - whether
it is MM, patient/case management or points of Philosophy and practise.
From time to time we receive a guidance in form of a rebuke from colleagues
- that is good too providing it is justifiable.
By the length of this you should observe that I just LOVE homoeopathy and
Minutus and why I fight hard to make sure that what we are taught here is
founded on solid ground and not a theory that will last only a short while
and mis-lead a few people.
With lots of blessings for us all.
Soroush
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