First, I’m glad that your huge investment in your health and well-being has paid off. Bodywork is something of a closed book to me but, having spent the past year working through severe childhood trauma with a therapist, I can testify that it was money well-spent. However, I’m still reeling from the physical and emotional onslaught of the last few years, which have included burnout, breakdown, three major surgeries, breast cancer and its sequels….oh, and Covid. I’m getting there but my energy levels are hugely depleted. I’m 65 and on long-term oestrogen suppressent therapy to prevent cancer recurrence, so it’s like menopause on stilts. Are you UK-based? How does one go about finding a safe and qualified bodywork therapist? Any advice would be much appreciated. Also, since you ask, the things I have found most helpful with regulating my emotions (like you it was never done in childhood and my mother was a poster-child for emotional dysregulation) - are gardening, meditation and creativity.
Hi Miranda. Thanks for reaching out and apologies for the delay is response. I’m away atm. I can so relate to much of what you share here - the childhood, the therapy, the burnout, the breakdown, the serious illness and the physical and emotional onslaught on the back of it all.
I am indeed uk based. I live in East Yorkshire (technically north Lincs but only just). I know a bodywork therapist in the north east (one I used to see), one in Loughborough (who I now travel to) and a few others through my training. So I maybe able to find out for you or point you in a direction you can explore.
Gardening, mediation and creativity sound wonderfully healing. I am a huge fan of meditation. And as you can see here, I write so much and found it very therapeutic.
I live in South Manchester. I’ve come across someone locally who claims to be practising the Meraki Method and she works a lot with creative people who wants to loosen up. I like her personality and approach (as they come over online) but the lack of any professional qualifications troubles me a bit. Is there any registration body that could advise? Thanks so much for taking the time to reply.
Yes, she does offer a free 45 minute preliminary call so I think I’m going to give it a try. I do set quite a lot of store by how safe and held I feel, and I like this lady’s approach and her willingness to look at blockages to creativity as part of the package. I’ll let you know how it goes. On the whole, nobody has questioned my decision to pay for private psychotherapy. I took a rec from a trusted friend and never looked back, though the cost was eye-watering. I’d tried the NHS but the long waiting times and the fact that they never see you for long enough to really get to the roots of a problem made it unworkable. I was close to a breakdown at the time and needed answers fast.
I’m beginning to emerge from my shell and begin to talk more openly about my experiences with both physical and mental health. I find Substack a very good forum for that kind of thinig. It takes a while to get over the anxiety that your nearest and dearest will feel uncomfortable with honesty in any public forum, but we’ve worked through most of those issues now. It gives me a great sense of companionship and validation to read about the experiences of people like yourself. If you haven’t already checked them out, I thinnk you’d find Burning Woman and Medicine Woman by Lucy Pearce an interesting read.
Thanks for these recommendations, I’ll check them out. It feels like you’re in a really good place from a support perspective, understanding and knowing what you want and what you need to get you there🙌🏼
Haven’t heard of that before. In my own personal case, I’ve learned to let my body lead the way. So for me, the moment some bodywork was done on me at the end of a yoga class one day, it was like my body responded “this. I need this”.
My approach has been to identify my needs (support and someone to give me their time as one example), what I want (wellness), and to align all my decisions, choices and actions with that.
This kind of deep healing work/treatment/therapy is not necessarily recognised by a registration body I don’t think.
I did a healing trauma workshop through mind body breakthrough and whilst there is tons of neuroscience for it, mountains of evidence about trauma in our bodies and the need for us to release it etc, it’s not something with much education or understanding behind it.
I was slated for my choices by some people around me back when I began this journey. No one ever expressed any concern for my welfare when I spent up to £400 a month falling down drunk every weekend for 20 years. But the moment I chose a healing path, spent half that on yoga, bodywork etc my decisions were scrutinised. Even my bodywork therapist questioned for why he was helping me (at my age no less😒).
For me, it’s more about the alignment with needs, wants and body. A person could have all the qualifications in the world and not be able to hold space for me and guide me along all that’s come up for me in my treatments.
You hit the nail right on the head in your earlier message when you spoke of finding a safe and qualified therapist. It’s about them providing a safe space where you can be brave and feel safe to heal. On the flip side, qualified doesn’t always mean just the pieces of paper and training.
I don’t see it much talked about in therapy but a big part of the picture is finding a therapist who is suited to you. That relationship and trust and safety is of paramount importance.
Could you book in a preliminary call with this person? Have a chat with them, get a feel for them and discuss your needs and how they may be able to support those needs? To give you a bit more of a feel for their offering.
Awesome! I’ll see what else I can come up with then as surely so much I can be sharing when it come to practical help and guidance on how I did it. Anything specific you’d like to see more practical help and guidance on?
First, I’m glad that your huge investment in your health and well-being has paid off. Bodywork is something of a closed book to me but, having spent the past year working through severe childhood trauma with a therapist, I can testify that it was money well-spent. However, I’m still reeling from the physical and emotional onslaught of the last few years, which have included burnout, breakdown, three major surgeries, breast cancer and its sequels….oh, and Covid. I’m getting there but my energy levels are hugely depleted. I’m 65 and on long-term oestrogen suppressent therapy to prevent cancer recurrence, so it’s like menopause on stilts. Are you UK-based? How does one go about finding a safe and qualified bodywork therapist? Any advice would be much appreciated. Also, since you ask, the things I have found most helpful with regulating my emotions (like you it was never done in childhood and my mother was a poster-child for emotional dysregulation) - are gardening, meditation and creativity.
Hi Miranda. Thanks for reaching out and apologies for the delay is response. I’m away atm. I can so relate to much of what you share here - the childhood, the therapy, the burnout, the breakdown, the serious illness and the physical and emotional onslaught on the back of it all.
I am indeed uk based. I live in East Yorkshire (technically north Lincs but only just). I know a bodywork therapist in the north east (one I used to see), one in Loughborough (who I now travel to) and a few others through my training. So I maybe able to find out for you or point you in a direction you can explore.
Gardening, mediation and creativity sound wonderfully healing. I am a huge fan of meditation. And as you can see here, I write so much and found it very therapeutic.
Where abouts do you live?
I live in South Manchester. I’ve come across someone locally who claims to be practising the Meraki Method and she works a lot with creative people who wants to loosen up. I like her personality and approach (as they come over online) but the lack of any professional qualifications troubles me a bit. Is there any registration body that could advise? Thanks so much for taking the time to reply.
Yes, she does offer a free 45 minute preliminary call so I think I’m going to give it a try. I do set quite a lot of store by how safe and held I feel, and I like this lady’s approach and her willingness to look at blockages to creativity as part of the package. I’ll let you know how it goes. On the whole, nobody has questioned my decision to pay for private psychotherapy. I took a rec from a trusted friend and never looked back, though the cost was eye-watering. I’d tried the NHS but the long waiting times and the fact that they never see you for long enough to really get to the roots of a problem made it unworkable. I was close to a breakdown at the time and needed answers fast.
I’m beginning to emerge from my shell and begin to talk more openly about my experiences with both physical and mental health. I find Substack a very good forum for that kind of thinig. It takes a while to get over the anxiety that your nearest and dearest will feel uncomfortable with honesty in any public forum, but we’ve worked through most of those issues now. It gives me a great sense of companionship and validation to read about the experiences of people like yourself. If you haven’t already checked them out, I thinnk you’d find Burning Woman and Medicine Woman by Lucy Pearce an interesting read.
Thanks for these recommendations, I’ll check them out. It feels like you’re in a really good place from a support perspective, understanding and knowing what you want and what you need to get you there🙌🏼
Haven’t heard of that before. In my own personal case, I’ve learned to let my body lead the way. So for me, the moment some bodywork was done on me at the end of a yoga class one day, it was like my body responded “this. I need this”.
My approach has been to identify my needs (support and someone to give me their time as one example), what I want (wellness), and to align all my decisions, choices and actions with that.
This kind of deep healing work/treatment/therapy is not necessarily recognised by a registration body I don’t think.
I did a healing trauma workshop through mind body breakthrough and whilst there is tons of neuroscience for it, mountains of evidence about trauma in our bodies and the need for us to release it etc, it’s not something with much education or understanding behind it.
I was slated for my choices by some people around me back when I began this journey. No one ever expressed any concern for my welfare when I spent up to £400 a month falling down drunk every weekend for 20 years. But the moment I chose a healing path, spent half that on yoga, bodywork etc my decisions were scrutinised. Even my bodywork therapist questioned for why he was helping me (at my age no less😒).
For me, it’s more about the alignment with needs, wants and body. A person could have all the qualifications in the world and not be able to hold space for me and guide me along all that’s come up for me in my treatments.
You hit the nail right on the head in your earlier message when you spoke of finding a safe and qualified therapist. It’s about them providing a safe space where you can be brave and feel safe to heal. On the flip side, qualified doesn’t always mean just the pieces of paper and training.
I don’t see it much talked about in therapy but a big part of the picture is finding a therapist who is suited to you. That relationship and trust and safety is of paramount importance.
Could you book in a preliminary call with this person? Have a chat with them, get a feel for them and discuss your needs and how they may be able to support those needs? To give you a bit more of a feel for their offering.
This is cracking! I really like the way you’ve structured it and we do need this! Practical help and clear guidance on how you did it 💚
Awesome! I’ll see what else I can come up with then as surely so much I can be sharing when it come to practical help and guidance on how I did it. Anything specific you’d like to see more practical help and guidance on?