Philosophy

Often barriers are created by our thoughts and beliefs. I started my explorations in the domain of the Mind – understanding principles of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Rational Emotive Behavioural Therapy. I believe an understanding of our minds is essential to being able to free us from false beliefs and expectations that we put upon ourselves and others.

Mindfulness is the antidote to being caught up in the webs that our minds can spin. Mindfulness allows us to become a witness or an observer of our own behaviours and thoughts. Meditation is one way to cultivate a stronger mindful awareness and recognise that we are so much more than our thoughts or our emotions.

Our thoughts and beliefs live side by side with our Emotions. If we believe that we are not worthy, not good enough then its easy to see how these beliefs then result in feelings of sadness, despair, low energy and apathy. Conversely when we believe that we are intrinsically lovable and claim our full humanity, then we are likely to feel at ease, light and happy.

One of the most challenging emotions to work with is shame as this is tied up with a belief about being bad or defective in some way; when we are filled with shame, we believe that we will be judged by others and cast out of connection. The antidote to working with shame is courage, vulnerability and compassion; in fact courage, vulnerability and compassion can be considered to be the essential cornerstone for dealing with any blockage that we may have.

Self-compassion is the ability to hold ourselves with kindness and acceptance, especially those parts of ourselves that we judge and have a hard time accepting. Often these aspects of ourselves get buried into our shadow selves, and we tend to project them onto other people and get irritated when we notice qualities we don’t accept about ourselves within someone else.

Our relationships with others form both our greatest joys and often our hardest challenges. One of the most effective tools for navigating this tricky terrain is the Non-Violent Communication (NVC) created by Marshall Rosenberg. The basic premise that underlies NVC is that all emotions- those that we like and those that we don’t, arise as a result of our needs either getting fulfilled or not. Learning this simple fact is a life changer.

I lived a long time believing that if I just “figured it all out” then maybe happiness would be mine. This was the time that my mind needed to be expanded beyond the cognitive, beyond the rational and into a deeper and more mysterious world where I discovered that we’re all influenced and connected by so much more than our own individual cognitive realities.

It was during this time that I became familiar with the world of Family Constellations. This is a methodology or framework that is underpinned by an understanding that each of us is the product of our family and generational ancestors- that maybe some of what we feel and believe has been handed down to us through generational lines. No-one is exactly able to explain the mechanisms that exist in how family constellations work- and yet work they do. Once we are able to recognise these influences, then we are able to release them and be freer to live our own unique destiny.

A fundamental piece of the puzzle in freeing ourselves lies within our body. Our bodies carry within them the imprints of all of our unprocessed emotions, griefs and traumas. This information is released when we pay attention to our body and the latent wisdom it holds. One methodology that I have found to be incredibly powerful is Trauma Release Exercise (TRE) this simple series of exercises helps to unlock the bodies innate ability to release stress and trauma from its nervous system.

Another beautiful way to access the body is through the power of dance and music. Biodanza is a form of dance that is deeply rooted in connection and heart energy. Biodanza invites us to reconnect with the essential joyful and free child spirit that lives within us all through inspiring music and simple exercises.

DanceMandela is a form of dance meditation that connects us to all of the layers of our being- the body, emotions and spirit. It is a profoundly powerful way to come to know and include every aspect of our being. The dance is lightly guided to encourage an individual’s own intuition and deeper wisdom to come through.

Our spirit is our true essential nature. It is in every aspect of ourselves and so can be accessed through all of the doorways described above; there is however a very direct doorway, and that is through Inner Dance. Inner Dance is a very simple yet powerful way to connect into our deepest being- through carefully selected music, and gentle facilitation people are able to connect deeply within.