Taking the Case

K.J. began by saying that his problems started with his neck. Once he had led a very active and competitive life, but now, after "giving things up because of the problems" over a period of eight years, he felt useless and fearful: "I am 43 years old, something is very wrong here. I can't throw, swim, run, I can't fix things." Truer words were never spoken, but I needed to find out what exactly those things were that needed "fixing."

K.J. continued, "My whole identity is wrapped up in my body. If I can't succeed physically, I can't succeed emotionally. Something is eating away at me." In the course of the interview, I took 14 pages of notes, of which about nine were all physical symptoms. But it became very clear that this case had its roots on a deeper emotional, mental, and spiritual plane.

To get at the heart of this, I had to find the thread that would link all of the component parts into the totality of symptoms. Throughout the case-taking, in relating his personal and emotional story, K.J. spoke of the tragedy of his father's death when he was 16. He had also lost his closest friend to cancer; up to the very end, while supporting his friend, they both were in complete denial of the situation. He told of his difficult childhood with a domineering mother and a mostly absent father. His brother, whom he idolized very much, fell from grace after getting involved in legal trouble and had to spend some time in jail.

In his relationships K.J. had encountered plenty of disappointment, grief, and regrets. He spoke of a lack of stability and a sense of "un-fulfillment" as permeating his early adult years. All this manifested as broken relationships, dropping out of college, and experiencing a "kind of floating around." Fears, anger, rage, abandonment, betrayal, and a sense of aloneness came through clearly in the interview. "I didn't know what to do with myself," he told me. Even though K.J. thought of himself as a writer, he had stopped writing after his second marriage, after he had just finished a piece about his father.

K.J. couldn't get over things. His father's sudden and untimely death, the loss of his first girlfriend, the death of his best friend, and his brother's fall from grace all had a firm grip on him. His mother's relentless and domineering behavior was another piece of the matrix which enveloped and encased him. He sought solace in the strong family ties that his first wife had, but soon had to admit that his commitment was not genuine. Everywhere he was surrounded by the failures of his life.

Eventually K.J. married again, this time to a woman he truly loved. However, his pathology was already too advanced and he began to develop physical symptoms of joint pains and frequent injuries, spinal problems, arthritis, herpes zoster, gout, Bell's Palsy, and the like. K.J.'s world was falling apart, now also on the physical level.

Finding the Essence of the Case

At this point I had filled 14 pages of notes and was faced with the task of finding the essence of this case. In difficult cases with much pathology I feel it is particularly important to find the common thread, no matter on what plane it resides. There were several key phrases that stood out in my copious notes, the most prominent ones focused on his physis, for example: "My whole identity is wrapped up in my body;" "My whole emotional outlook is wrapped up in my body;" "If I can't succeed physically, I can't succeed emotionally." I saw K.J.'s strongest identification as his emphasis on the physical body and its obviously deteriorating state giving him a sense of failure. Additionally, this was accompanied by a very strong Fear of failure, which was one of the most important rubrics I used. This theme of failure was primary in K.J.'s life and served as the key to resolving the rest of the case.

Another essential component was the unresolved griefs that he had experienced throughout his life: The death of his father at age 16, the loss of his first sweetheart, the death of his best friend through cancer, and the loss of the idol image of his big brother are the most important ones. While the repertory lists many "grief" remedies, I opted for the smaller rubric Ailments from prolonged and unresolved grief, on the basis that K.J. had made it quite clear that he had not gotten over any of these emotional traumas.

Additionally, K.J. made several comments relating to his Anxiety about health, and his strong Fear of cancer, which he expressed on several occasions throughout the interview; he was terrified of getting cancer himself. Perhaps this was why he went along with his friend's denial of the disease.

There are numerous other rubrics in this case that confirm Carcinosin as the indicated remedy (see the listing of rubrics in which Carcinosin appears in the Synthetic Repertory by H. Barthel and W. Klunker). Among the long list of confirmatory symptoms are a history of domination by others, love of the ocean, love of nature, desire for chocolate and garlic, and amelioration by thunderstorms.

I think that while Carcinosin is an under-prescribed remedy, it will prove to be one of the great polychrests of this time in our western technological civilization. Its essence is one that is endemic to the lack of fulfillment on all levels in one's life, something that is all too pervasive in today's society. Tethered to that component reside fears of failure and about health, a great love of nature and sense of profound awe at her wonders and powers.

Because of the deeply seated aspect of grief found in Carcinosin, it is easily overlooked in favor of more frequently used remedies like Natrum muriaticum and Staphisagria. It also shares many of the attributes found in Sepia cases and should be considered when those remedies fail to produce the desired results.

The Treatment

From K.J.'s first appearance in my office, it was quite obvious to me that his vital force was extremely weak and fragile. As the interview progressed, his demeanor and language confirmed this impression. The fact that his body was degenerating and falling ill with one ailment after the other, many of them observed only in much older people (e.g. arthritis, gout, Bell's Palsy, and especially herpes zoster), was further evidence of his failing constitution.

My treatment plan for K.J. was to start with an LM/1 of Carcinosin administered according to Hahnemann's guidelines (see Sidebar), which he gives in the sixth edition of the Organon, in footnote 134 to Aphorism 248. I have observed in such weakened conditions numerous beneficial consequences of the use of LM potencies because of the flexibility and adaptability to the patient's response. It is precisely this flexibility in succussion of the remedy, number of administrations per day, and number of dilutions after succussion that allows this posology to shine in cases such as this.

I saw K.J. for his first follow-up visit two and one-half months later, on November 2,1994. He said he felt 75 percent better and had a much more positive attitude. The pain and aching of the joints was gone and the muscle spasms he had complained about were much reduced. He started riding his bike and going to the gym again. He suffered much less from depression and short temper than before. He had become more patient, and his relationship with his children had improved.

On January 11 of 1995, K.J. felt "infinitely better." He had no more feelings of dread, and the old events from the past were now resolved. He began to see more opportunities for himself in the future.

From then on I saw K.J. about two to three times per year. In March K.J. went through a healing crisis, from which he emerged with increased energy and well being. He even organized, and participated in, a bicycle marathon on Long Island. In November of 1995 I suggested he stop the remedy (he had progressed to the LM/14 by that time). He started to complain of a slight sagging in energy and more tiredness on the physical level. I continued Carcinosin again after this short break, and currently K.J. is taking the LM/14. This spring I am planning another exploratory break in his homeopathic medication.