Gabor Mate

GM is not a holistic healer, though. He's a former longtime GP, who then worked in a palliative care unit at a hospice and in an addiction treatment centre -- he's interested in the biopsychosocial side of illness, where disease and social and psychological aspects of ill health meet, with a particular interest in trauma from his own background (Hungarian Jew born during WW2, family killed in the camps, father in a labour camp, mother had to hand him off to a stranger when he was an infant to keep him safe while she went into hiding).

I think he lost credibility with some people when he got interested in ayahuasca as an addiction treatment and the Canadian government shut down a study.

I know nothing about his interaction with Prince Harry, but I realise that is because I doubt Harry is more than some kind of tiresome royal optical illusion, and not actually real. If he were real, with the childhood and upbringing he had, quite apart from his mother's death, it would hardly be surprised if he were pretty psychologically unwell.

My dd with adhd has had no trauma. This just blames parents for neurological conditions.

I don't think that's what people are disagreeing with, though.

You cannot separate 'physical' and 'mental' illness, or 'physical' illness and 'emotional' trauma. Had there not been a Dark Ages need to appease the Church, then this mind-body dualism would not exist.

It's as nonsensical as having a split between 'liver illness' and the rest of the body.

Every thought and emotion you have is mediated by neurotransmitters and hormones - the brain is a huge excretory organ. So to believe that these do not affect your body is unscientific.

So for example, inflammatory bowel diseases are known to be related to alterations on the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis - and that is stress-mediator involvement right there.

When it comes to 'trauma' - rmemebr that children can be traumatised by things that an adult would not find traumatic, and indeed will often accept as perfectly normal. Neglectful parenting, physical punishment etc.

Not to mention possible epigenetic inheritance of trauma, which whilst not 100 per cent proven has an increasing body of evidence around it, particularly in mammals.

The biggest tragedy of this historical mind-body dualism is that people feel that to suggest an emotional/mind component to disease is to make it 'all in the mind' and thus somehow 'lesser'.

This is the last remaining 'mental health' taboo and stigma - that 'physical illness' exists with no 'mental health' component and that to suggest otherwise is an insult. Thus stigmatising using useful therapies

I agree.
There is so much more beyond the medical model.

I'd never heard of him (or not registered it if I had) before this, but suggesting that chronic illness stems from emotional trauma sounds like absolute nonsense to me. I believe we can subconsciously talk ourselves into experiencing certain symptoms, yes, and excessive stress and heartache can certainly take a physical toll on our bodies, but most people with diseases and chronic conditions haven't experienced horrific, soul-scarring trauma, and there are biological, genetic explanations that make far more logical sense than suggesting that it's linked to the psyche.

Those of us who experience these health issues or care for someone else who does will obviously find this suggestion offensive.

Be interested in his theory of how my DH has a predominantly female related autoimmune condition where only 1 in every 1000 sufferers will be male. He must have some pretty potential suppressed female anger going on there. No wonder he protests so much about washing up! 🤣

No one is arguing that.

But claiming genetic diseases are caused by trauma etc is quite ffrankly dangerous.

I really enjoyed Gabor's work. He is brilliant in many areas and has a vast amount of experience in trauma.
I don't agree with everything he says. Just like I don't agree with everything other authors have said regarding health and illness.
Some of the information is valuable.

Utter bollocks.

It was my genetics.

The holistic healer in the video I posted is hilarious.

This...

I wonder what he thinks autoimmune disease is caused by in men? I have autoimmune disease (am female).

What exactly is 'the healing world' and does it include anyone with actual medical qualifications?

Yes absolutely. The danger is when people attribute all diseases/conditions to trauma/psychological suffering etc. At best it can be unhelpful and at worst downright dangerous and harmful physically and psychologically.

Wow. This is right up there with the “therapist” who told me my vaginal prolapse was caused by my not wanting to have sex with DH 🤦‍♀️ Nothing to do with two massive babies, a traumatic forceps delivery and inconsistent pelvic floor exercise 🤷‍♀️. I also have an autoimmune disease so I guess that’s also due to trauma and undealt with emotions 🤔 Oh & DS1’s autism was due to my inability to breastfeed…

WRT to the OP, I heard a lengthy interview with him last year (I think it was on James O’Brien’s podcast) and was sufficiently interested in what he expressed to buy his book. He was talking specifically about how a mother who experiences trauma can struggle to connect with her child & gave the example of his own mother. I’m not articulating his POV well here but it made sense to me as a clinical psychologist. I haven’t got around to reading it yet so I can’t really comment further. However, as with all things, context is everything and I suspect he’s one of those people who attracts attention from others via sound bites, without those people reading further or wider into his work or the work of others in the field.

You sound angry!

I think you're absolutely right.
That's why we use a placebo in randomised control trials. The mind is a powerful thing

I find this true of him and also so many people in the self help world. They have some phenomenally wise things to say and then suddenly we are in the land of batshit crazy. I think it's fine to take the wisdom and leave the bonkers belief to one side.

High levels of anxiety and stress absolutely impact physical health.

I thought it was pretty well recognised that mental/emotional/psychological pain/suffering/trauma takes its toll on your physical health. I don't see how that's 'quack' stuff at all, I've medic friends that absolutely agree so I never doubted it?

Well the 'healing world' sounds like a whole load of shit full of gullible idiots.