Health Constellations: Revealing the Hidden Roots of Illness

Have you ever had a health issue that just wouldn’t shift, no matter how many doctors you saw, diets you tried, or supplements you bought? Perhaps it was digestive troubles, overwhelming fatigue, or hormonal chaos that made life unpredictable. In my clinic, I often meet people who feel like they’ve “tried everything” but still haven’t found answers.

This is where Health Constellations can offer a fresh perspective.

The intuitive teacher Caroline Myss often says that illness shows up in our energy long before it shows up in our body. And in my experience, she’s right. The way we think, the emotions we suppress, the stories we carry, and even the relationships we hold onto—all of it shapes how we feel physically.

What Are Health Constellations?

Health Constellations are an extension of Family Constellations therapy, a systemic method developed by German psychotherapist Bert Hellinger in the late 1980s. While Family Constellations focus on patterns passed down through our family systems, Health Constellations bring the same approach to the realm of physical illness.

The body is seen not just as a collection of organs and systems, but as a messenger—sometimes carrying unspoken pain, grief, or trauma from the past. These burdens may not originate in our own lifetime but can echo down through generations, showing up as symptoms or illness in the present.

As trauma expert Bessel van der Kolk puts it, “The body keeps the score.” Health Constellations allow us to explore what that score is really telling us.

How a Health Constellation Works

Health Constellations can be done in a group or one-to-one setting.

• In a group, you share the issue or symptom you’d like to explore—say, migraines, gut issues, or hormonal struggles. Other participants may be invited to represent different elements of your system: family members, parts of your body, or even the illness itself. Once placed in the space, these representatives often begin to sense and express emotions or postures that reflect the hidden dynamics at play.
• In a one-to-one session, we might use objects or markers instead of people, but the principle is the same. The “field” brings to light what has been hidden, whether that’s grief, unspoken conflict, or unresolved trauma.

As a facilitator, I guide the process gently, helping the client see and feel these dynamics. Sometimes, it only takes a healing sentence—a simple acknowledgement of what was unseen—for the system to release its grip and for the client to feel lighter.

What Can It Help With?

Clients often turn to Health Constellations when conventional approaches haven’t explained or resolved their symptoms. It can be supportive for:

• Chronic or unexplained illness – when lab results show “nothing wrong” yet symptoms persist.
• Hormonal imbalances – including PMDD, endometriosis, thyroid issues, or menstrual disorders.
• Digestive conditions – IBS, SIBO, bloating, or inflammatory gut problems.
• Fatigue and autoimmunity – when energy crashes or the immune system is overactive.
• Emotional-physical overlap – anxiety, depression, grief, or panic attacks that come with physical symptoms.

Instead of asking “What’s wrong with me?” Health Constellations often invite a new question: “What is my body trying to show me, or what am I carrying for my family system?”  

Beyond the Family System: Rapid Core Healing

Not every health challenge comes from ancestral patterns. Many illnesses are intensified by personal traumas—childhood neglect, abusive relationships, sudden loss, or experiences that left deep imprints in the nervous system.

This is where Rapid Core Healing (RCH) comes in. RCH is an extension of Constellations work that focuses on personal trauma rather than family entanglements. It allows us to address the moments in life when we felt unsafe, unworthy, or overwhelmed—and resolve them at their root.

Here’s how it works:

• We identify the root of a painful reaction, whether it’s panic, feelings of unworthiness, or the rage and despair that often appear in PMDD.
• Through a guided process, the client reconnects with the part of themselves that was wounded, offering the compassion, protection, or resolution that was missing at the time.
• The nervous system experiences completion. The trauma imprint softens and dissolves.

Together, Health Constellations and Rapid Core Healing create a complete spectrum of healing: systemic burdens passed down through generations, and personal traumas that shape our individual story.  I use Health Constellations, Family Constellations and Rapid Core Healing with great success with my PMDD clients at www.pmddnaturopath.com

Why This Matters

For women with PMDD, for those living with unexplained fatigue, or for anyone whose health puzzle seems unsolvable, this work can be life-changing. PMDD, for instance, is not “just hormones”—it’s the way the body and nervous system respond to hormonal changes, often magnified by trauma, both inherited and personal.

By bringing systemic patterns into the light through Constellations, and resolving personal trauma through Rapid Core Healing, many clients find themselves stepping out of cycles they once thought they’d never escape.

What to Expect

You don’t have to relive every painful detail of the past for this work to help. In fact, very little needs to be said. Clients often describe the process as surprising, even mysterious—yet profoundly relieving. The weight lifts, clarity returns, and a sense of peace settles in.

Healing the Invisible Threads

Health Constellations and Rapid Core Healing are not about blame or “fixing” what’s wrong. They’re about compassion—seeing that our struggles are often part of a larger story, and that by honouring that story, we can reclaim our health and freedom.

As Bert Hellinger once said, “When we honour the past, we find peace in the present.” And when the body is finally heard—when its messages are acknowledged and understood—healing becomes not only possible, but deeply transformative.

Photo by SHVETS production