Dr Gwenyth Francis
M.B., B.S. (Hons), M.Psych.Med., Dip. CSP., FAC.Psych.Med.

Teaching focus: Psychosomatics and Human Wellbeing

Dr Gwenyth Francis graduated with honours in medicine in 1969 and now practices medicine in a holistic way, caring for the physical and mental health of individuals and families. She feels that medicine with its psychiatry and use of medications does not have all the answers and is convinced that there is a very significant connection between mental wellbeing and adequate functioning in life, life fulfilment and physical health.
Dr Francis has explored the histories of people suffering illnesses such as chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, anxiety, depression and personality disorders and has discovered that a large percentage of these people had stories of considerable trauma, loss and/or abuse in their developmental years.
As research continues to reveal the intricacies of neuro-psychiatry and the developmental neuro-anatomy of personality formation, it is apparent that a lot of adult illness are created by, or at least seriously influenced by trauma in the developmental years of childhood. In fact, there are those who believe that the illnesses of childhood abuse will be shown to be disorders of the immune system, such as allergies, auto-immune diseases, certain pain syndromes and chronic fatigue syndrome.