Merits of discussion
Posted: Sat Feb 16, 2002 6:23 am
From: "Sheila Parks"
Subject: unprejudiced observer
since homeopathy treats the whole person and the emotional/mental symptoms
are thought to be of great importance by some, i thought the discussion was
right on target and that there needs to be more of it, not less.
furthermore, not knowing our own biases is dangerous in the world and in
homeopathy. i had just finished writing to a friend that hopefully people on
the list had learned some valuable things from the discussion. i laughed to
then come across a similar message on the list saying the same thing, but
this person, being on the opposits side of the argument, obviously was
hoping that the list had learned other things. someone in homeopathy had
just recently told me i needed to get rid of my feminist filter. i asked a
very good friend if i had a feminist filter and she said, yes, thank god.
those who do not have a feminist filter, need to get rid of their dominant
culture filter. one of the definitions of feminism that i like is that it
is the radical notion that women are people too. men have been trying to
silence women for a long time. a good example is when they blamed eve for
the garden of eden and blamed the snake and made the snake, a symbol of big
reverence in ancient goddess worship, into a very bad symbol. look at what
homeopathy says about snakes. i will never be silenced. sheila
Hi Everyone,
I have been reflecting on how worthwhile our recent discussion has been,
incest, adoption, abortion, feminine wisdom, teen pregnancy, sexual
abuse....I have learned a lot from hearing differing perspectives. It is
essential for practitioners to heed the directive, "Physician, Heal
Thyself." Understanding ourselves and our emotional snags is a real help in
developing our skill as practitioners, because we can only help someone else
heal as far as we've healed ourselves. The best schools of homeopathy
emphasize the growth of the practitioner, just as undergoing therapy oneself
is necessary to qualify as a therapist.
I am cautious about compartmentalizing homeopathy too much, as in saying,
"That's not relevant to homeopathy! Let's stop talking about that!" On the
chance that a discussion may be very valuable for some, I'd rather just
scroll past it if I'm not interested, rather than lay down the law and say a
particular topic shouldn't be discussed. Those who want to focus more
precisely on the intellectual/academic/theoretical/practical aspects of
homeopathy could simply introduce a topic they're interested in and spark
another discussion more of interest to them.
To get closer to the unattainable ideal of "unprejudiced observer," one
really needs to have explored and purged one's unconscious mind, working
through one's own shadow areas. That's the only way not to be triggered by
all the intense range of suffering that comes up in consultations. We can
then meet our clients' gaze and have them feel that we can bear whatever
they have to tell us. When I told one homeopath about the sexual abuse I
had experienced, his immediate comment was, "You have to forgive your
father." I knew from having these catch-words tossed at me repeatedly, that
the real meaning was, "End of discussion--I'm not comfortable with this
topic."
I had a client last week who was wracked with guilt over her love-affair
with her father when she was 18 years old, after being reunited with him.
(He had left the family when she was very young.) She needed to hear me say
that "I have heard everything." that I was not shocked or disgusted, and my
whole intention would be focused on trying to understand her innermost being
in order to find the remedy.
There is always the danger of being caught up in someone's "story", rather
than truly perceiving their core "state", which is what will lead to the
correct remedy choice. Rather than getting side-tracked by the incest in
this woman's past, I felt I had to go deeper. The underlying fear I
discovered was of being captured and imprisoned by someone who would torture
her maliciously for no reason, and another distinct thread of feeling
"half-alive." These ideas repeated themselves over and over, and, along
with other symptoms, seemed to confirm Positronium. (See the proving at
homeopathyschool.com.) Anyway, my point is that understanding the full
range of human suffering is only a preparation to searching out the
simillimum; part of this process requires another part of the brain to be
activated, inducing almost an altered state. At least that is my experience
when I have made the most accurate prescriptions.
With gratitude to our synergistic group,
Charlotte Gilruth
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Subject: unprejudiced observer
since homeopathy treats the whole person and the emotional/mental symptoms
are thought to be of great importance by some, i thought the discussion was
right on target and that there needs to be more of it, not less.
furthermore, not knowing our own biases is dangerous in the world and in
homeopathy. i had just finished writing to a friend that hopefully people on
the list had learned some valuable things from the discussion. i laughed to
then come across a similar message on the list saying the same thing, but
this person, being on the opposits side of the argument, obviously was
hoping that the list had learned other things. someone in homeopathy had
just recently told me i needed to get rid of my feminist filter. i asked a
very good friend if i had a feminist filter and she said, yes, thank god.
those who do not have a feminist filter, need to get rid of their dominant
culture filter. one of the definitions of feminism that i like is that it
is the radical notion that women are people too. men have been trying to
silence women for a long time. a good example is when they blamed eve for
the garden of eden and blamed the snake and made the snake, a symbol of big
reverence in ancient goddess worship, into a very bad symbol. look at what
homeopathy says about snakes. i will never be silenced. sheila
Hi Everyone,
I have been reflecting on how worthwhile our recent discussion has been,
incest, adoption, abortion, feminine wisdom, teen pregnancy, sexual
abuse....I have learned a lot from hearing differing perspectives. It is
essential for practitioners to heed the directive, "Physician, Heal
Thyself." Understanding ourselves and our emotional snags is a real help in
developing our skill as practitioners, because we can only help someone else
heal as far as we've healed ourselves. The best schools of homeopathy
emphasize the growth of the practitioner, just as undergoing therapy oneself
is necessary to qualify as a therapist.
I am cautious about compartmentalizing homeopathy too much, as in saying,
"That's not relevant to homeopathy! Let's stop talking about that!" On the
chance that a discussion may be very valuable for some, I'd rather just
scroll past it if I'm not interested, rather than lay down the law and say a
particular topic shouldn't be discussed. Those who want to focus more
precisely on the intellectual/academic/theoretical/practical aspects of
homeopathy could simply introduce a topic they're interested in and spark
another discussion more of interest to them.
To get closer to the unattainable ideal of "unprejudiced observer," one
really needs to have explored and purged one's unconscious mind, working
through one's own shadow areas. That's the only way not to be triggered by
all the intense range of suffering that comes up in consultations. We can
then meet our clients' gaze and have them feel that we can bear whatever
they have to tell us. When I told one homeopath about the sexual abuse I
had experienced, his immediate comment was, "You have to forgive your
father." I knew from having these catch-words tossed at me repeatedly, that
the real meaning was, "End of discussion--I'm not comfortable with this
topic."
I had a client last week who was wracked with guilt over her love-affair
with her father when she was 18 years old, after being reunited with him.
(He had left the family when she was very young.) She needed to hear me say
that "I have heard everything." that I was not shocked or disgusted, and my
whole intention would be focused on trying to understand her innermost being
in order to find the remedy.
There is always the danger of being caught up in someone's "story", rather
than truly perceiving their core "state", which is what will lead to the
correct remedy choice. Rather than getting side-tracked by the incest in
this woman's past, I felt I had to go deeper. The underlying fear I
discovered was of being captured and imprisoned by someone who would torture
her maliciously for no reason, and another distinct thread of feeling
"half-alive." These ideas repeated themselves over and over, and, along
with other symptoms, seemed to confirm Positronium. (See the proving at
homeopathyschool.com.) Anyway, my point is that understanding the full
range of human suffering is only a preparation to searching out the
simillimum; part of this process requires another part of the brain to be
activated, inducing almost an altered state. At least that is my experience
when I have made the most accurate prescriptions.
With gratitude to our synergistic group,
Charlotte Gilruth
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]