Compassionate Inquiry Informed Homeopathy

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Compassionate Inquiry (CI) evolved from Dr Gabor Maté’s treatment of patients for addiction and mental illness. He intuitively developed the somatic and trauma-informed therapeutic approach when it became clear to him that we do not respond to current circumstances in the present, but from a past memory state due to historic trauma. He refers to it as being a prisoner from the past and I visualise it as being stuck in a set pattern which means we follow a familiar (if unwelcome) groove in the way we interpret our experiences.

In neurological terms, trauma in early years disrupts the development of the prefrontal cortex, meaning that our emotional responses, decision making and impulse control are impaired. Our response to stress (or perceived stress) is heightened, faster and tends to follow a set pattern. This in turn has an impact on our body and can result in long-term physical symptoms.

For example, if we have grown up with poverty we may live with a tendency to hoard or be unable to enjoy the abundance of the present. Patterns are not just expressed in behavior patterns – they can also result in physical symptoms. In simple terms we can imagine stress stored in the shoulders or neck but there are also links between mental and emotional unrest and many chronic illnesses including cancer, arthritis, diabetes, heart disease and so on. The book, ‘When the Body Says No‘ by Dr Gabor Maté explains how this happens. Other books such as ‘The Body Keeps the Score’ by Bessel van der Kolk, ‘You Can Heal Your Life’ by Louise Hay and ‘Metaphysical Anatomy’ by Evette Rose all demonstrate the link between our internal state and the symptoms we produce.

The process is grounded in body memories – the record the body keeps, even while our minds have suppressed or misinterpreted what has happened. This enables us to identify our formative experiences, the beliefs we developed about the world and ourselves and the coping strategies we developed. By revisiting the original trauma in a safe, emotionally regulated environment, we can disperse the suppressed feelings around it and find new ways of experiencing the world. By interrupting established response patterns, new ways of being are able to emerge.

Combining CI with homeopathy offers a powerful way of identifying and resolving past trauma as the remedies support the transitions which are opened up by the CI process.

I have found it most helpful for:

• Persistent anxiety
• Addictive behavior
• Issues around food
• Uncovering emotional roots of physical issues
• Navigating stressful situations and understanding conflict
• Health anxiety
• Repeated patterns (eg: relationships, work)
• Depression
• Anger issues