"Darin's anxious (2), insecure (2). He's fearful, but determined. He wanted to learn to ride his bicycle without training wheels from the very start. He's afraid of the dark (2), sleeping alone (3), and scary dreams (2)." (Darin was squirming in his chair.)

We asked Darin's mother about her pregnancy. "The entire pregnancy was very stressful. It was not planned. His father was not someone I wanted to be with. I worked at night. I was so exhausted that I would go home and cry. I was very unhappy throughout the pregnancy. I felt frustrated and vulnerable. I was no longer independent. I had to rely on someone who was not responsible. I was living with my oldest son at the time."

We had a particular remedy in mind and asked Darin's mother if homesickness was much of an issue for her. "It's a big issue for me right now and has been for a long time. I have wanted to move to Arizona to be with my parents. I need that security of family around me. When I was pregnant with Darin, I wanted to go down to be with my parents, but it wasn't possible."

We asked her whether Darin was more like her or his dad. (We find this to be a very useful question in order to learn more about children and to see which remedies or miasms run through families. It is quite common for more than one member of a family to need a particular remedy and sometimes the entire family needs just one remedy.) "Darin's more like his dad.

His dad doesn't like to be by himself or to do things alone. His dad's always on the move. He procrastinates a lot. They're both very accident prone (3) without actually being clumsy.

Darin's forever suffering from multiple bruises, ever since he started walking. He's reckless (2). He doesn't pay attention to where he's walking (2)."

Darin finally spoke: "I don't like when you talk about me." He said nothing else but continued to pout in a rather demonstrative manner.

Darin slept well and generally on his back. He was warm and became very hot in bed (3). He sweated on his head every night (2). He loved sweets (3) and bubble gum (3) and liked fish (2). He had never liked starchy food (2). His thirst was moderate.

The only physical complaints were bumpy rashes on his hips and occasional headaches.

His face was always pale, his ears red, and he had chronic puffiness under his eyes.

Now study this case and turn to page _____ for the analysis and follow-up. As with all cases, be sure to pay particular attention to what makes this child unique rather than the characteristic symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder.

This case reminded us of a similar child whose video case was presented to us by Dr. Sujit Chatterjee during our month-long course in Bombay. It was that understanding which led us to ask the mother about the issue of homesickness.

What is unique about Darin. His difficulty concentrating? His refusal to do what his mother asked? His unwillingness to settle down at night? Or pestering his brother? You will find all of these characteristics in many children diagnosed with A.D.D. What really stands out about Darin? We considered most unusual his oppositional nature (if his mother said 'black', he'd say 'white'), his strong response to being reprimanded or talked about, and the theme of homesickness in both Darin and in his mother during the pregnancy and even presently.

We used the following rubrics from the "Mind" section of the Complete Repertory : "discontented", "fear of being censured", "homesickness", "absent-minded", "brooding", "disobedience", "obstinate", "offended easily", and "restlessness; busy". We also referred to the "Mind" section of Phatak's Materia Medica of Homeopathic Remedies : "Homesick... Peevish, irritable, angry, easily offended. Clumsy. Awkward; runs into everything. Refractory esp. children... at slightest cause gets angry. Always on the lookout for insults. If she wants a certain thing, she will opppose, if proposed by someone else." It is interesting to note that Darin was very similar to his father in his temperament and even his clumsiness, but that he got his tendency to homesickness from his mother. The remedy? We prescribed Capsicum (red pepper) 1M.