I'm delighted to welcome Angela Cairns to the blog this week. A writer, physiotherapist, relaxation coach, and energy therapist, Angela brings a wonderful insight into how creativity and healing go hand-in-hand.
Firstly, a big thank you to Julie for inviting me to write a guest blog on her wonderful site Creative Soul Tarot.
I’m a writer, physiotherapist, relaxation coach and energy therapist, so Julie’s imaginative Creative Soul work is a good fit for my holistic view on life.
It was no accident I chose physio, a medical science, but one which has a foot in the complementary camp. Many physio skills like massage, reflexology and acupuncture tend towards the holistic. I learnt about the physical body with a scientific background which was a great foundation to then learn the more intuitive disciplines of healing and acupuncture. In psychometric tests I am 54% intuitive/creative, 48% logical/mathematical so integrating a mixture of both comes naturally to me. People’s suffering is not only housed in their body, it can also have roots in mind or soul and I believe it is impossible to address someone’s wellbeing without looking at the input of all three. Certainly nothing makes us ill quicker than living outside our personal integrity.
In my journey to holism, writing relaxation stories came first, using people’s imagination to guide them to a place where they could breathe easy and allow their muscles to relax. But also let their mind calm and the tap of stress chemicals flooding the body switch off. When we relax, we sleep, digest, concentrate and heal better. The more we practice relaxation/meditation, the better we get, and I like to dedicate some time to breathing techniques and relaxation rituals on most days. As a writer, recorded stories that relax and inspire me, soundtracked, to make the experience immersive are my favourite. If you'd like an example, here's a link to an album on Amazon Play.
And the below link will take you to free relaxation training from my YouTube channel Essex Physiotherapy Clinic.
From relaxation coaching it is a short hop to investigation of the amazing nervous system and how we can influence it for the better. Positive touch, smell, taste, all encourage the production of feel-good chemicals. Touch therapies in a calm, warm, environment, using wonderful natural aromas beat harsh light and chemical smells any day. Enjoying a varied healthy diet with the indulgences we enjoy (In my case, the odd chocolate and cake.) also helps us to feel better.
Our culture, beliefs and experiences also have a huge impact on and guide the nervous system. Growing trusted relationships, enjoying mentoring, talking and reflection help us to feel well. For me, card readings act as inspiration. They get my brain working, prompt me to pause from the hampster wheel and reflect about how life is, whether personal, creative, work, or health domains. They encourage me to look at my dreams and goals and think about the road ahead.
I read Julie’s weekly readings for creatives avidly. I’m a wordsmith so I also use a wonderful deck of inspirational cards www.theinspireddeck.co.uk each one has a word and its inspired artwork. I draw them at random singly or in sets of three or five with a question in mind or the guidance I’m seeking. Invariably the relevance bowls me over, the word confirms, inspires, makes me laugh or makes me realise I’m heading back into one of the negative spirals we all beat ourselves up in. if you enjoy inspirational ideas, I pop up a drawn card each month for the feature - One Month Word on my Instagram site. The idea came from working on a planner which asked - ‘sum up your aspirations for the year in one word’. After much thought I knew my word for that year was ‘communication.’ I’ve since had an ‘education’ and a’ self-care’ year.
Now the thorny issue of healing. Is it real? Does it work?
I believe it does. When I work with someone, I look to balance their energy body as well as their physical body. Sometimes people describe a comforting warmth, sometimes a silvery chill, but always a great sense of peace and well-being as I work via touch or in the energy space around their body.
What am I doing?
I am working via prayer with the intention to nurture well-being.
Does healing mean the same as a cure?
Not necessarily, healing supports the body, mind, and soul of the recipient on their personal journey. Healing encourages change and enlightenment.
Do you have to believe in healing for it to work?
No, my dogs love it and many people who don’t believe in healing at all are amazed at how much they feel.
We all have energy fields around us. We radiate heat and light, there are electromagnetic events happening inside the body all the time. When I use ultrasound or laser as a therapy in my clinic, the effect is to change the electromagnetic environment in the treatment area to stimulate tissue repair. Perhaps, when I’m working with healing, by using my personal electromagnetic field I am doing something similar? Maybe there is a research project in there for someone.
With two healer friends, we spent a morning with an aura photographer a couple of years ago. He took photos of us before we started, and while we were giving healing. You will see in the photos that my aura colours change dramatically, but also that when I am healing, I have three small white orbs sitting over the crown of my head. They aren’t a light artefact because we checked, and they were only present each time I was working with healing.
So why did I start writing? I’ve always loved writing and from all my years working with clients, amazing people of everyday courage, kindness, and humour, plus an odd curmudgeonly one thrown in… Inspired by them, I had in mind a story about a wounded healer, the community she works with and the joy and pain of beginning again. The Ellie Rose series is not autobiographical, but it draws on all my experiences and beliefs. Book one, Touch, and prequel novella, Paradise, are available now as eBook and paperback on Amazon and in Kindle Unlimited, also in large print. Books two and three in the series are complete and will be published this year.
My newsletter is full of great offers for avid readers, free short stories and you receive my novella, Paradise, as a free eBook when you sign up. www.angelacairnsauthor.co.uk/sign-up
I’m currently finishing my first historical novel set in 1911 in one of the hottest summers on record. A time of huge political turbulence, with women’s suffrage, strikes and Irish home rule. Apprentice seamstress Lily Matthews is in love with musician Aiden Donnelly, but they are dogged by religious prejudice and social reform which threatens to keep them apart. It has been a fascinating novel to research and write. Some of the fun has been remembering tales my grandmother told me. She grew up in those times as she was born in1896, and I’ve used her photo archives for fashion hints and seeing first hand how Portsmouth and London looked. Look out for Moonlight on the Water later this year.
Thank you so much for spending a moment with me, I’ve enjoyed chatting to you.
All good wishes for your peace and well-being.
Angela
Website; www.angelacairnsauthor.co.uk