William Boericke - Guidelines

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A Scheme that Homeopaths Use
About William Boericke, MD
The Lay of the Land

Access Dr William Boericke's Homoeopathic Materia Medica on another page.

A Scheme that Homeopaths Use

Homeopathic remedies are talked of in books that are called materia medicas. It is Latin, and in this context stands for "preparations resorted to for treating diseases".
In such works homeopaths write of diseases and symptoms that they think match various homeopathic preparations especially. There may be added information of (non-homeopathic) concoctions too, but we leave that aside here. A remedy is associated with symptoms, which are presented under headings. The order of the headings is rather fixed, although at times two of the headings are combined for one entry. For a single remedy symptoms are filled in. Some or many entries may be blank, depending on the amount and quality of findings (provings) that are recorded thus. The scheme is from the originator of homeopathy, Samuel Hahnemann.
In his Homoeopathic Materia Medica Dr. William Boericke uses a simplified Hahnemannian scheme, which may serves just as well, or even better. Note as well that the original term "extremities" may be changed to the far better "limbs", which is easier and quicker to grasp in our days, and which means just the same. - Tormod Kinnes

Clinical

Characteristics

Relations

Causation

Symptoms

1. Mind
2. Head
3. Eyes
4. Ears
5. Nose
6. Face
7. Teeth
8. Mouth
9. Throat
10. Appetite
11. Stomach
12. Abdomen
13. Stool and Anus
14. Urinary Organs
15. Male Sexual Organs
16. Female Sexual Organs
17. Respiratory Organs
18. Chest
19. Heart
20. Neck and Back
21. Limbs
22. Upper Limbs
23. Lower Limbs
24. Generalities
25. Skin
26. Sleep
27. Fever

About William Boericke (1849-1929)

Dr. William Boericke (1849-1929) compiled a textbook of homeopathic remedies, his Homoeopathic Materia Medica in the early 1900s. Since then "Many a homeopathic professional has depended on this work for daily practice." Between 1880 and 1920 Dr. Boericke "was the physician of choice in San Francisco. Patients came from all over the world to be treated by him homeopathically" - till one Spring day in 1929 the hard working doctor died.
Dr. Boericke was born in Austria, where he studied at the Vienna Medical School for a year, and then emigrated to the Unites States. First his family settled in Ohio. He graduated from the Philadelphia Medical College in 1876. Then, in 1870, he moved to San Francisco. In 1880 he also graduated from Hahnemann Medical College in Philadelphia. In San Francisco he practiced as a homeopath for over fifty years.
Boericke became the first professor of Homoeopathic Materia Medica and Therapeutic at the University of California, San Francisco, and held the post for thirty years. In 1901 he authored Boericke's Materia Medica. It is a concise guide to hundreds of remedies, and some of them appear nowhere else. A considerable number of homeopaths use this book in their daily practice.

Notes to Boericke's Homoeopathic Materia Medica

A Materia medica consists of remedies resorted to for treating diseases.
Symptoms associated with a homeopathic remedy are the results of praxis, clinical use, so-called provings, and scientifical testing procedures have only resently been tried on some ailments. Sound, ample, and clear documentation that remedies work, may not be seen (yet). It is common practice to abbreviate the many Latin names of homeopathic remedies. On a previous page you find a list of the ones Boericke uses.

The Lay of the Land

There is good reason to bear in mind that the relationships between remedies and various diseases that Dr. Boericke and other homeopaths claim exist, lack scientific proofs. Also, there is no hard evidence that legitimates that some homeopathic remedies counteract one another as antidotes, inimical, and so on - contrary to such claims.
It seems to be a good rule of the thumb to leave physiological uses of the many chemicals and compounds that homeopathic remedies are derived from, to updated chemists or medical doctors unless the substances are legal and non-poisonous and not capable of doing harm. Many such substances are poisonous.
Further, be aware tha current rules of the thumb for prescribing homeopathic remedies are simpler, more unison, more standardised. But there are many opinions and different practices among homeopaths as to dosing the remedies. Boericke speaks from one system, Adolf Voegeli from another, and so on. But draw benefit as you can, according to "When in doubt, win the trick (Edmund Hoyle)" - Hence, ignore Boericke's suggestions of dosages unless you are an experienced chemist, medical doctor, and know what you are doing, for the homeopathy of Boericke often borders on and reaches into phytotherapy (use of herbs and their tinctures) and chemistry, and may be a bit dangerous. Chemistry was cruder a hundred years ago than it should be today, alas.
In some countries such as in Norden, remedies are legally sold in parmacies only if they are 6d (ca. 6c) or higher - and there is a court verdict in Norway that for such dilutions (1 : 1 000 000) there is no physiologically actice substance left in the homeopathic remedy.
After telling that Dr. Boericke's descriptions of homeopathic remedies from the early 1900s lack scientific validation, it also needs to be said that his descriptions are hardly disproved either - definitely not all of them. And therefore it is scientifically improper to dismiss all remedy descriptions too, as conclusive evidence for doing so is also missing. Besides, it may be worth underscoring that homeopathy has survived for 200 years and is still going strong in some countries, despite severe antagonists thoughout. That homeopathy has survived could stem from something in it that works apart from the placebo effect. We find it fit to leave that possibility open. But do as you wish.

Symptoms

Drug symtoms and guiding symptoms of the remedies

The lists of problems and troubles and so on listed under a homeopathic remedy are the guiding symptoms for such a remedy. There are sources of error in such a picture - but suffice to say that the things that are listed are troubles or repercussions (etc.) that the homeopathic remedy is said to be able to cancel (offset, remove, combat, etc.) somehow, more or less etc.
There are rules of the thumb for assessing or choosing the most appropriate remedy or remedies from the guiding symptoms. It could be good to know about such rules, because symptoms count differently: Mind symptoms, very peculiar symptoms and oddities, and strong symptoms are to be studied first of all. Most fit homeopaths try to select homeopathic remedies from such cues. That's about it
Homeopathy is the "art of matching symptoms in clients with symptoms attached to many remedies. One is to check the main or relevant symptoms a sick persons has. Corresponding arrays of more or less "matching symptoms" of remedies make up the Materia Medica. Such listings are crucial for homeopaths that want to estimate which homeopathic remedies should be resorted to in any given case.
How far can you trust the remedy information that Dr. Boericke brings? It could be a long way in some cases (excepting the "relationships with antidotes and so on). But most of the remedies have not been accurately verified by science - not yet, at any rate.
The "corresponding symptoms" of each homeopathic remedy may be correct, even if unverified by science or the press - But for the sake of fairness let it be told that there is no hard evidence that "guiding symptoms" of homeopathic remedies, are near the mark. A remedy's description could be true, largely true, somewhat true, misleading, not correct - and there is no hard evidence of either of it, as a rule.
There are current disagreements among many homeopaths as to which guiding symptoms weigh the most. Thus faith or trust is a factor here.
Maybe new symptoms have been added to some of the remedies as the years have gone by, many new remedies have been introduced too, and perhaps some weigh or grade symptoms a bit differently. One should be aware of that.
Further, neither Boericke's book nor any other homeopath's book contains all the remedies that are used today, and some thousand times more are possible to make, for most plants, plant parts, animals, animal parts, and chemical compounds are not tested at all homeopathically.
It could do well to take into account the things above before you get sucked into the technicality of homeopathy.

Literature

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