4 Classification of diseasesClassificationThe first step in any science is to classify phenomena, to categorise them. Only when a science has made a good classification can it go further. A good example is the
Periodic system. Historically, there were a multitude of substances. Discovering which of these chemical substances were elemental was a big step that was only made possible by using electricity to break substances down into elements. The properties of the elements were then used to classify them, leading to the
Periodic system as designed by Mendeleev. With the discovery of the atomic number, the number of protons in the atomic nucleus, the essence of the
Periodic system became clear. Since then, nothing significant has changed in the
Periodic system. Such a development is also necessary for the classification of diseases.
OrgansThe first way is to classify diseases according to the organ in which they occur. This is the central method of medicine in our culture. We can see this in the specialisations: they go by organs. The problem is that diseases are not limited to organs. Asthma can alternate with eczema. Throat infections can lead to rheumatic conditions, heart infections and kidney disease. Autoimmune diseases can spread from the intestines to joints, skin and heart.
Cancer can send metastases to all sorts of organs. Many infections can shift from one organ to another. Tuberculosis is usually a process in the lungs, but can easily spread to joints and other organs. The diseases do not seem to be organ-bound. I will come back to this in the section on "
Cure".
ProcessWe can classify diseases according to the process that takes place: infection, inflammation, degeneration, cancer, too high (hyper) or too low (hypo) function. The problem is that diseases tend to evolve from a superficial to a deep process, from inflammation to degeneration or cancer. This classification is somewhat parallel to the classification by cause. Diseases can be caused by infections, trauma, radiation, poisoning and deficiencies.
Today's medicine bases the diagnosis on a combination of organ and process. Stomatitis is an inflammation of the mouth, the stoma. An arthrosis is a degeneration, ose, of a joint, arthros. An ovarian carcinoma is a cancer of the ovary or ovaries.
AcuteAnother classification of diseases is based on the duration of the disease: acute or chronic. Flu is an acute disease, rheumatism is a chronic disease. The problem is that an acute disease can easily turn into a chronic one. An acute intestinal infection can lead to arthritis. A throat infection can lead to heart disease. On the one hand, migraine can be understood as an acute disease when a migraine occurs, on the other hand it is a chronic disease with flare-ups.
CurableOne can classify diseases as curable or incurable. However, this is highly unsatisfactory because the classification then depends on what medicine considers curable or incurable. For example, cancer is generally considered incurable, but there have been many "miraculous" cures of cancer.
PersonalitiesIf personalities are the cause of diseases, it is logical to classify the diseases according to the personalities. However, there are many types of personalities: friendly and unfriendly, secure and insecure, brave and fearful, hard-working and lazy, extroverted and introverted, hard and soft, and so on. We can divide and classify the personalities. There are many ways to do this. But the classes given by the
Periodic system are the simplest and have proved to be the most thorough and profound picture.
Periodic systemIn the
Periodic system, the elements are arranged in rows and columns. There are 7
Series and they are connected with the goals of the personalities.
I call the rows
Series because this expresses that there is a development in each row. The columns are connected to how far the personality is in reaching the goal of that
Series. There are usually 18 columns, but in the first row there are only 2 and in the second and third there are 8 columns. The 18 columns are connected to the way the personalities act. They are called
Stages because they express how far one has come and how one is acting.
The 8 columns are connected with the feeling of belonging. They are called
Phases. The special thing is that the classification of the
Periodic system is given by nature. It is a grouping of all the elements, the atoms, into rows and columns according to their properties. The ultimate basis of the classification is the atomic number and quantum mechanics.
ClassificationSo we can classify personalities according to the following criteria:
1. 7
Series: goals; what does the personality strive for?
2. 8
Phases: positions in regard to the goal.
3. 18
Stages: modes of action, the standard behaviour to reach the goal. 4. 5
Kingdoms: minerals, bacteria, plants, animals, humans.
These four classifications will be dealt with in the next four chapters.
Periodic system as a basisAt first glance it is surprising that the
Periodic system could be the basis for diseases. It is especially surprising if one thinks materialistically. For how can elements, atoms have psychological properties? However, this has become clear in recent decades. It manifests itself in "aggressive" elements like caesium and fluorine or "noble" metals like platinum and gold.
We also see this in diseases: Arsenic poisoning makes people very anxious and restless. In the vision of a living universe, everything has a material and a non-material side, like the two sides of the same coin. At first it is also surprising that the classes of the
Periodic system are also applicable to bacteria, plants, animals and humans. However, all living things are materially constructed from the same elements of the
Periodic system. Philosophically, the
Periodic system is the first step in creation. It can therefore be seen as the basic principle that will also be the basic principle in later developments, in the form of the new, more complex forms of life.
Further thoughts on classification can be found in the Appendix 1, chapter “
Classifications”.