A style of therapy taught by Dr. Gabor Mate which introduces people to the internal world of subconscious beliefs, felt-sensations in the body, and childhood influences on their relationships with themselves, others, and worldviews. This technique offers a strong sense of attunement, safety and trust, and blends beautifully with Internal Family Systems parts work.

The multiplicity of our personality means that many parts are at odds and polarized with each other, causing internal and external discord - almost always in the name of protecting a younger child within.

This might present as an addiction that numbs against suppressed pain, or an uncontrollable emotion like rage or depression taking over the system, or even a highly functional internal manager that keeps you too busy to avoid looking within.

These protective parts need to be understood through compassionate listening so we may access our hurt inner children and be the loving adult they needed at the time of their wounding. Even for those with non-Traumatic childhoods, our personalities are shaped by the many times we felt fear, sadness or hurt growing up, and there is much we can do to bring the psychological system into harmony.

The final leg in the healing of internal pain and wounding, somatic therapy aims to access energy trapped within the body in order to move it out fully and finally release it (ie. to sob, to yell or scream, to run away, to kick and punch). Talk therapy, especially with somatic components like Compassionate Inquiry and Internal Family Systems, helps us discover and bring understanding to traumatic wounds, but it is only once we allow the body the action(s) it needed in the moment of hurt does the healing reach completion.