How not to use PhaseRep

(1) Never repertorize before getting a good history.
As I mentioned elsewhere on this site, a good history is the basic prerequisite to any repertorization. This becomes especially important with an Objective repertory.

(2) Don't be casual in rubric selection!
Rubrics selected must be definite, persistent, peculiar and marked in the patient. You need to be sure of your rubrics, and that depends on the history you take, and your understanding of the case. Kent compared this to hunting a deer. He says the marksman does not fire the minute he has the deer in his sights. He waits for it to settle down, and then takes aim. If your prescription changes with your moods, god help your patients! Indeed, the rubrics you take should not even simply reflect the patient's current mood - which might change in another 15 minutes.
You need to select those symptoms / rubrics which reflect the innermost feelings, the state of being, which persists and is marked. An Ars-alb patient or Nux-vom patient can definitely be sad. However, is that the most prominent part of their nature... the deep sadness - or is it insecurity or disappointed ambition? In Ignatia or Nat-m, the sadness is the most striking aspect. When you take a good history, you can be sure of what is to be taken into the repertorial totality.

(3) Do not simply prescribe whatever comes out on top in the repertorization.
The repertory is only a tool. I cannot stress this enough. You are looking for a hint - a striking similarity! So if the output is not satisfactory, reconsider the rubrics you have chosen - drop those which are less certain and work the case out with PhaseRep again! You will see a new set of drugs. Look at them and see if anything seems to match the case at hand.

(4) Don't look only at the top drugs.
Unlike conventional repertories which have three to four hundred drugs for fear, PhaseRep has only drugs which have this symptom to a striking degree, such as Acon, Opium, Gels. As a result, any drug which comes up in repertorization is worth looking at.

(5) Don't use one repertory or one method exclusively.
Use whatever it takes to find the remedy that matches the case very well in its totality. You may be reminded of Nux-vom by "frequent ineffectual urge to pass stool". So long as Nux-v fits the rest of the case, you have done well! So also, if you find Spigelia because of the miasm and plant family relationship - very good --> so long as Spigelia really fits the case. The patient must have confirmatory symptoms of Spigelia. Indeed, that is part of PhaseRep's confirmatory testing - which greatly reduces the possibility of going astray.

(6) Don't give up with one or two trials.
PhaseRep is a program that has been developed over many years. I have personally found it very useful - and have received feedback from people across the world thanking me for the program and mentioning that they were able to solve some of their cases. It is a new and radical concept, and will take some getting used to. Give it a fair and good trial before judging its merit.

In summary, it is important to understand the philosophy of the repertory or any method before using it. To benefit from this program, you will need to work with it for some time. It is simple to use, yet very powerful. You could try working out cases which have not been improving since long, and see if PhaseRep gives you some useful hints.