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An often-overlooked support in healing heartbreak

A lot of time has passed, so I don’t remember exactly when, but somewhere in my mid to late thirties, some of the people I was working with in the Boston area wanted to connect me with their homeopathic physician. After reaching out to Dr. Cherry, we scheduled an appointment. I went over to his office and did a session for him. Afterwards, I shared some of the challenges I was facing, and Dr. Cherry prepared a homeopathic remedy for me. It may have had some effect, but at the time I wasn’t all that aware of anything shifting.

A few weeks later, I met with Dr. Cherry again and he prepared another remedy. This time, the remedy turned out to be very powerful. I could feel it unearthing feelings of sadness, grief, loss and other unsettling emotions that had been held within my body for years, if not decades.

The way I came to understand this was through the idea of resonance. If the grief in my system was carrying a certain “pitch,” the remedy seemed to meet it at that same pitch. When something resonates at the same frequency, it can amplify what’s already there. In my experience, that resonance helped loosen the emotional backlog, bringing it into conscious awareness so it could finally move through and be metabolized.

There is something many practitioners informally refer to as a “thaw” effect. When old grief, sadness, or long-held emotional pain begins to surface, it can feel heavy or stagnant, since it has been sitting in the body for a long time. When that backlog starts to move, whether through a remedy, deep tissue bodywork, or other therapeutic interventions, the surfacing of these emotions can feel intense because it may involve years of accumulated feeling emerging in a relatively short period.

Often there is no clear narrative or present-day trigger. That absence is one of the hallmarks of a somatic release. The emotional material is arising from within the body itself, rather than being activated by a current life event that would normally explain such a strong reaction.

At the time, I wasn’t fully grasping the significance of what was happening or taking full advantage of the opportunity. Looking back, I regret that I didn’t pursue it more seriously. I had already been through a great deal and was still resistant to fully experiencing the emotions that were surfacing. My focus was also quite scattered at the time I worked with Dr. Cherry.

It’s fairly common for people to discontinue a treatment when it stirs up a flood of feeling like this. When stored grief and other distressing emotions surface without any present-day context, it can feel more like drowning than healing. Without someone to help them understand what’s happening, many assume something has gone wrong. In reality, what feels like a disturbance is often the very pathway through which the deeply wounded parts of the self begin to heal and transform. The immediate impulse for many is to pull back in a misguided attempt at self-protection, especially when the experience feels unfamiliar or overwhelming.

It’s also important, when we’re triggered in this way, to reach out to the practitioner or to respond when they follow up. Speaking about what’s happening helps us receive reassurance and the understanding needed to continue moving through the process.

Since the time I received the homeopathic remedy from Dr. Cherry, I’ve learned to be more fully present by consistently breathing softly and deeply while immersing my awareness in any feelings and bodily sensations that arise. I also make a concerted effort to follow through with whatever therapeutic interventions help me access and process what I’m carrying in my body. I’ve come to recognize the importance of doing whatever it takes to remain present and thoroughly digest whatever is surfacing. When we fail to do so, these wounds never fully heal.

In hindsight, there have been many instances over the years when I spent long stretches in intensive meditation practice and a great deal of emotion surfaced, and other times when I did water fasts, deep tissue bodywork, colonics, sessions with gifted healers, and the vision quest, when many of the emotions held in my body were able to make their way to the surface. These were the times when I felt more fluid, when I was able to work through and resolve issues, the times when I made my biggest breakthroughs.

When we’ve struggled with attachment issues or experienced repeated losses, grief, sadness, fear, and anger often remain trapped in the body. That’s a big part of what maintains the holding patterns so many of us remain stuck in. To heal, these emotions need to surface so we can thoroughly digest both our lived experiences and our emotional responses to them.

Many of us become numbed or desensitized. When that happens, the emotions we’ve grown numb to remain stored in the body indefinitely. Sometimes supports like a homeopathic remedy can help dislodge what’s been held, making it easier to process past experiences and the emotions tied to them.

There is a very real connection between digesting trapped emotion and becoming more functional in daily life. As those stored layers of grief and stress are processed, the system no longer has to spend so much energy holding them down. In trauma therapy this is sometimes described as “completing the stress response,” but in simple terms, it’s the body finally finishing what it couldn’t process at the time the hurt occurred.

Becoming more open and receptive to love isn’t just a poetic idea, it reflects a biological shift. When the body is carrying old grief, there is often a subtle contraction or guarding in the system. Many people live in that state for years without realizing it. As that guarding softens, the nervous system can settle. The part of the system responsible for social connection, what some clinicians call the social engagement system, begins to function more fully. People often find they can recognize warmth, safety, and sincerity in others more easily than before, whereas in the past those cues may have been missed or filtered out. At the same time, greater embodiment sharpens discernment. We recognize red flags earlier and are less inclined to ignore what our bodies already know.

In my experience and from what I’ve heard from others, homeopathic practitioners with solid training, real competency, and a willingness to understand the whole person are not always easy to find.

Part of the reason is that training and regulation vary widely. In some countries, such as India and parts of Europe, there are formal schools, degree programs, and licensing systems. In the U.S., there is less standardization and oversight. Some practitioners are medically trained and later study homeopathy, while others come from lay backgrounds with very different levels of preparation. Because of this variation, the quality and depth of training can differ quite a bit.

From a mainstream scientific standpoint, the evidence for homeopathy remains mixed and controversial. Many studies suggest effects comparable to placebo, while some individuals report meaningful subjective benefit. Because of this, conventional medicine generally does not view homeopathy as a primary treatment for disease. Still, some people find it to be a useful complementary support, particularly for emotional or stress-related patterns.

In my own experience, the second remedy I was given acted as a powerful catalyst, bringing to the surface emotions that had been held in my body. Having these emotions brought into awareness is important, because when grief and attachment pain remain inside us, they continue shaping our reactions and relational patterns. Healing requires that these emotions come into awareness so they can be felt and digested. For some people, homeopathy may serve as an additional support that helps free what has been held.

Homeopathy was developed in the late 18th century by German physician Samuel Hahnemann and is based on the principle of “like cures like.” Remedies are chosen individually, and practitioners often consider emotional patterns alongside physical symptoms.

Some homeopaths have learned through clinical experience that certain remedies can bring unresolved grief, heartbreak, shock, or abandonment pain to the surface, facilitating the processing of those emotions. Whatever the mechanism, many people, myself included, find these remedies especially helpful for gaining access to, diffusing the intensity of, and processing what we’re holding emotionally.

In addition to the remedies prepared for me by Dr. Cherry, a friend, a lay person who had done a great deal of independent study, tested a few remedies on me as well. The last of these, along with supplements and medicinal herbs, was very helpful in clearing a pernicious, recurring, and painful urinary tract infection that was not very responsive to antibiotics. I’ve also found certain over-the-counter remedies to be especially effective, including Hyland’s formulas for occasional restless legs and for coughs and colds, as well as Boiron’s Oscillococcinum (aa·suh·low·kaak·suh·nuhm), a homeopathic remedy taken at the first signs of flu.

That said, I don’t view homeopathy as a magic bullet. If someone chooses to explore it, whether for heartache or physical health issues, I encourage them to work with a skilled practitioner and to combine it with meditation, inner work, attention to diet and lifestyle, and, when appropriate, therapy or other supportive modalities.

Whether addressing heartbreak, chronic stress, or physical health concerns, healing is a multifaceted process. There are many doorways into this process, and no single path fits everyone. I encourage you to keep an open mind and explore what genuinely supports your healing.

Heartbreak, grief, and emotional pain leave their imprint on the body, on its organs and systems, and on our psyche. When we find skillful ways to help this backlog of residue move through us, we become more available to life, connection, and love. However you approach that process, what matters most is your willingness to stay present and engaged in your own healing.

©Copyright 2026 Ben Oofana. All Rights Reserved.