About Reverse Therapy
» This page has been viewed 1579 times

What is Reverse Therapy?

Reverse therapy is a Bodymind healing process which teaches people how to 'listen' to symptoms and take corrective action to restore emotional harmony. It is based on the realisation that some illnesses - Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/M.E. included - are actually glandular disorders which are triggered by Bodymind through the Hypothalamus when Bodymind picks up that the individual is at risk of emotional harm from the environment. Reverse therapy investigates the link between symptoms and unhealthy situations and works out what Bodymind is prompting the person to do about those situations. This part of our work is called 'working with the symptom-message'. Reverse therapy also teaches clients how to raise Body awareness so that symptoms can be noticed and acted upon more quickly and easily. Side by side with this process clients are taught to distinguish between Headmind demands and Bodymind needs, noticing where Headmind tends to block the natural expression of emotion, and then relearning how to express emotions constructively, but also honestly. Throughout, clients are offered support and encouragement while they experiment with tasks designed to restore harmony between Headmind and Bodymind, and Bodymind with the Environment.

Reverse Therapy is based on the very latest innovations in the related fields of Psychobiology (the study of interactions between 'mind' and body'), Psychoneuroimmunology (which investigates brain, behaviour and Immune System reactions) and Bodymind Healing - a holistic approach to 'dis-ease' which investigates why the organism has been forced to produce symptoms in order to address an imbalance in the individual's life circumstances. Dr John Eaton has put the main principles and techniques together since 1996, when he first became interested in Bodymind work with symptomatic conditions.

What is Bodymind?

Bodymind is the natural intelligence of the body. It exercises a protective function using a complex network of cells, glands and messenger molecules to communicate both to itself and to the person. People can notice when their body is in communication with them by paying attention to changes in the muscles, heart, gut, skin, nerves, mouth, and so on. These changes in the energy of the body are called 'e-motions', or energy-in-motion. Examples of e-motion include anger, disgust and joy, as well as much more subtle e-motions that go without a name. E-motions like fear and sadness are used by Bodymind to deliver an opinion about a situation, and to guide the person towards doing something about it (for example, healthy anger guides us towards standing up for our rights). Symptoms are also examples of e-motions and may represent the body's last-ditch attempt to warn the person that he or she is seriously under threat. In every case, Bodymind uses e-motions to restore a balance between the person and the environment. If e-motions result quickly in actions to restore the harmful situation, then the body returns to equilibrium.

Bodymind's main purpose is to promote health. It does this by monitoring the efficiency of the different systems under its control, maintaining a balance between external demands and internal resources, and using emotions and symptoms as feedback to warn the person when he or she is under threat. Bodymind also actively seeks the maximum of pleasure, satisfaction and personal fulfilment – and symptoms can arise when these are lacking, such as often happens, paradoxically, in states of illness – Bodymind sends further symptoms to warn us not to give up activities that can get us back on the road to recovery!

How does Reverse Therapy work?

At the heart of Reverse therapy lie three core processes that complement each other. The first is to investigate the history of the symptoms, focusing particularly on what was going on in the client's life when symptoms first appeared, and also on more recent situations in which symptoms were re-triggered. As this investigation unfolds, clients are taught how to attune to Bodymind communication using simple body-focusing techniques – what Reverse therapists call ‘going into your Body' rather than ‘staying in your Head'. In this way, clients develop intuitions about the emotions that Bodymind is encouraging them to express. And that, in turn, leads to the discovery of the ‘symptom message' – the specific, corrective actions Bodymind is calling for in order to abolish the state of ‘dis-ease' and restore emotional balance to the client's life. From thereon clients experiment with different actions designed to abolish the body's need to send symptoms as warning signals, using a Journal to track success in reducing symptoms.

Is Reverse therapy a psychotherapy?

As stated, Reverse therapy is a Bodymind healing process. Although it is a talking cure Reverse therapy is not a psychotherapy. Most forms of Psychotherapy focus on getting rid of symptoms but Reverse Therapy doesn't do that. It works with symptoms rather than against them. Reverse Therapists do not work with thoughts and beliefs. Nor do we work with dreams or memories from the past. We consider this material to be predominantly 'Headstuff'. Nor do we use hypnosis or suggestion for the simple reason that we do not believe there is an Unconscious Mind. The formation of emotions, intuitions, traumatic memories, instinctive reactions and desires is actually carried out by Bodymind. Reverse therapy is an educational process that enables clients to re-connect to Bodymind and live in harmony with it.

What is the Reverse therapy view of M.E./Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia?

We regard these conditions as expressions of the same underlying disorder, along with so-called 'Post-Viral Fatigue Syndrome'. We do not agree that a virus causes any of these illnesses. Instead we consider that viral problems result when the Immune system has broken down due to over-exertion/exhaustion. Reverse therapists regard these conditions as glandular disorders caused by overwork by the Hypothalamic/Limbic system areas in the brain. Bodymind uses these brain mechanisms when it perceives the person is at risk of harm in certain situations, simultaneously placing the body on 'red alert' and using symptoms to warn the person about the problem. The individual - unless he/she enters Reverse therapy - is not aware of these neuro-chemical reactions and is unable to control them. Reverse therapy helps the client understand how and why symptoms are being produced so that remedial action be taken to re-connect to body e-motions, deal with the problem and restore equilibrium (meaning a balance between one's own emotional needs and demands from the environment).

Finding a Practitioner/Centre

Click here to view Reverse Therapy practitioners listed in our directory.

« Return to List of Therapies

Website designed and maintained by

This page loaded in 0.1546 seconds. Web hosting space provided by Krystal Hosting.

Featured Therapist

Mindmatters practices Hypnotherapy in Suffolk / Norfolk border. Click here to find out more.

Registered Members

Registered members can submit or edit their directory entries by logging into their member account using the options above.

New Members

If you wish to add your own details to this website, simply register using our easy online form and then purchase advertising credits.

» Register Today!
» More Information

About Reverse Therapy» This page has been viewed 1579 times