Words: Dr Renita HERRMANN
We often hear stories about a traumatic event in a person’s life. It may be an emotional, or mental shock, like the death of a loved one, seeing a violent act, or physical mishap, such as car accident. It may not be evident to the person, yet one can retain the imprint of the accident, or incident, for decades, if not for life. The homeopath is trained to see such effects of trauma, and use them to choose the correct homeopathic remedy to release the pain.
Let’s look at an example. Four people are travelling in a car, and have an accident. The driver, the first person we see, leaps out of the car, yelling and blaming the other individual. His face is set and dark, and his body is pumping with adrenaline. He races back and forth, yelling and complaining, not taking the time to assess the damage to himself, passengers, or anyone else. The second person, in the front passenger seat, is sitting motionless, not moving at all. She’s not speaking, her eyes are fixed in front of her, and she appears to be in a stupor. She doesn’t seem to be injured physically, but she is obviously affected by the accident. The third person, in the back seat, is slowly getting out of the car. He was thrown against the back seat of the driver, and was carrying a glass casserole, which has shattered. The contents are covering the person, and he is steaming from the hot content. There is blood on both hands, and he seems to be in shock. The fourth person, a young girl, is crying quietly in the back seat, not showing any signs of injury, but is being consoled by a bystander, whom she leans on as if he’s a friend.
This story relates to different trauma remedies; each person in the car has a different reaction to the same event, but each in their own individual way.
The beauty of homeopathy is it takes into account not general symptoms, but each person’s individualistic response during trauma. It does not follow a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach, because there are several things, including subtleties, to think of in the aftermath of physical and emotional trauma.
A Case In Point
A woman escapes from domestic violence and settles in a new area. She seems fine for two years, but starts having panic attacks. They occur when she is in an enclosed area, but not common claustrophobic situations, or surroundings. Her sleep becomes more and more disrupted, and soon she has panic attacks every day. She cries easily, and has constant digestive issues. Although the attacks stopped two years earlier, she’s remained in an acute state of fear. As her body slowly adjusted to her new living situation, it was able to show it was still suffering from the effects of living in constant fear. A dose of the appropriate homeopathic remedy can take away each of her symptoms.
Growing up, teenagers often get into trouble adjusting to their new bodies. Broken limbs and fractures are not uncommon. These may take a sequence of remedies, each one removing a block; first, the trauma, then the pain, followed by the proper alignment, or fusing of the bone.
Many adults, likewise, have trauma in their past. This may, or may, not be recognised, because it is difficult to see the forest for the trees. Things like childbirth, or surgery, can change a person profoundly, and a trauma remedy can make all the difference. A trauma can leave a lasting effect on your entire future, emotionally and mentally, not just physically. Our bodies have ways of holding onto set patterns, and such patterns should be healthy. Whether you have an old injury, or a recent wound, seek out homeopathic treatment to release that energy to help yourself to good health.
Post-Birth Trauma
I’ve, while working with mothers and children in homeopathy, come across a large group of people that have experienced birth trauma, either as the mother, or child. Often what affects one will affect the other. In her book, Origins, Annie Murphy Paul, a science writer, describes monitoring of the pregnant mothers’ physical bodies at rest [via headphones and eye covers] and their child’s effect on their mothers when they startle the babies externally with noise.
The mothers’ body shows the spike in biological markers to the foetus’ response. So not only do we affect our unborn, but they, in turn, affect us. When I read the book, I immediately remembered all those mornings after masters’ swim class, driving in the car, belting out my rendition of all Phil Collins’ numbers. Thank goodness he has no memory of it, but I’m sure I’ve scarred him somehow. It must have been his revenge, all those evenings with his extremities rambling over my extended belly months later. Pregnancy should be a happy time, a time for the mother to be cared for and loved; it becomes evident that as society stresses the pregnant woman, the child does not grow to its full potential. Paul tells us that those exposed to stressors, such as starvation in early days of pregnancy are more prone to heart disease, whereas in later pregnancy, diabetes is the disease seen.
When a mother brings a child into my office with a specific set of symptoms, I may see that the child’s rubrics [symptoms]; they are presented by the child’s ‘vital force,’ or prana, call for a trauma remedy. Sometimes, I’ll see two within the first 3-4 remedies represented. Once I remember calling the mother back, and questioning her further, “Are you sure there wasn’t some birth trauma, or may be in utero [in the womb]?” The mother finally admits the father never wanted the child, and wouldn’t speak to the mother for six months. The traumatised mother shared the ‘wound’ with her baby. The choice of a remedy is not a subjective decision, rather the symptoms exhibited by this new life is ‘its’ way to show there is an imbalance. If this imbalance is not corrected, it will possibly grow worse. But, it will assuredly affect the child, and when a mild problem is not treated, it may grow to a more serious representation.
Stresses are normal for the human population; they encourage adaptation to our surroundings. But, at a certain point, they drag down the ‘vital force,’ and the child cannot stretch free of what holds its ‘vital force’ down. We all want to see children that are happy and healthy, because chronic illness may result from birth trauma, and not just in children. I’ve seen mothers benefit from a high dose of the homeopathic remedy, Arnica montana, after almost ten years.
In such intimate circumstances, one would imagine that even if you had just delivered your child, you would still be traumatised by the sight of your newborn’s blue pallor from a cord around its tender neck. Thus, both mother and child would suffer the trauma, but with different results; the mother may need Arnica montana, or Aconite napellus, and the child may need Opium, or Phosphorus.
Annie Murphy Paul’s message is clear — to take better care of pregnant women. I’m all for it. Consult your homeopath today to clear away such physical, mental, and emotional trauma, if any, to have your bundle of joy, or grown-up child, reach and achieve their full potential.
