Now I was born in the North of Scotland in Summer and in autumn of my second year I travelled with my parents on an overland trip through Europe to Greece, across to Egypt, down into Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia to finally arrive in Zimbabwe 10 months later. My brother was born there and we lived there on 2 different farms which my father managed, during this time I went to boarding school for 2 years as a weekly boarder, which brought its own problems, naturally. One of these being the onset of my hay fever, feather, cat and horse allergies. Then as my father was unable to buy a farm we left during the Zimbabwean summer and went to New Zealand for 6 months but it was not the right place so we moved back to Scotland for the Scottish summer.

I had completed my first cycle like the Swallows. 

 

When we returned to Scotland where my dad, after a few years, eventually managed to buy a croft (a small farm) and he set up an organic farm on the Black Isle becoming the first farmer in the UK to produce organic seed potatoes, his speciality. Unfortunately he passed away 3 years later at the age of 38 when I was 13 years old. He was an open minded person with innovative ideas and dared to try anything. He could fix or build anything.

My mother has the amazing ability to adapt to any situation or work and she throws the best parties, as well as being the life and soul of every party. Fortunately she was able to continue the business for a further 5 years after my dad passed away, as they had a precise 5 year plan, and then she took her own direction.

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This taught me a lot about having a mission/plan, as it can hold you together when life seems to fall apart.

 

When I got accepted into University to study Agriculture I realised I was not ready so I decided to take a year out. I left in autumn (like the swallows) to see family in Zimbabwe for 3 months also visiting and working on one of my dad's old farms. I then went on to New Zealand for 6 months and did in a variety of different jobs one of which was on my uncle's beef farm. I then finished off in Australia visiting more family. I came back home the following summer in time for my birthday, feeling ready for the next step (just like the swallows).

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I felt that research was what I wanted to do but soon found out that only the top 10% got through and I was far from that, failing in half the subjects which were not agriculture based. So I decided to quit and do an art portfolio course at college and got into Design at Napier University in Edinburgh.

While I was in Aberdeen I was able to join the OTC for 2 years, learning military survival and leadership skills, this gave me confidence and a feeling of belonging that I had failed to feel before.

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In Edinburgh I met my husband and near the end of his 2 years we got together before he moved back to France, when I finished a year later I joined him. Not speaking French I eventually managed to get a waitressing job in an American hotel. While there I got talking to the Engineers who came in for meetings and they insisted that I should be working in their industry, I explained HR was not interested in me and they convinced me to contact their boss and through them I managed to enter the oil and gas industry. While I was there I learnt a lot about people as I ended up working in 3 different departments over the 10 years I was there. The company had almost doubled in size and near the end I saw a lot of people falling prey to burnout and stress. I wanted to help and when I could I'd remind them to write, draw or doodle as I felt art would help. 

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During that time I had gotten married, we had bought a house, then for the next 11 years we renovated it ourselves. During this time we had 3 children with very different births 2 of which were complicated (one pre-eclampsia which meant emergency cesarean, one physically forced pushed out of me and the last natural and gentle). In between I also had a miscarriage. When my youngest child was born she had a chronic stuffy nose for most of the 6 months and nothing worked untill I began with a homeopath who eventually found the right remedy and it was almost instant and I've never looked back, especially with childhood illnesses. When my daughter was 2 years old I found out I had several food intolerances and had to go on a strict diet and heal my liver through natural remedies my homeopathic doctor prescribed me to prevent becoming allergic or worse. During this time I would get severe throat infections where I could hardly swallow, homeopathic medicine again was the only effective way out.

 

Life took its toll

 

The company had changed, my large group of close friends had all moved away and I had to adapt to my new situation. The drive to work felt longer and more stressing as the children grew since we lived in the mountains over an hour away. This was difficult and I slowly lost my joy for life and all became pointless. I would hide and cry, feeling there was no one to turn to and feeling ashamed I could not cope with my life. Yet I refused to quit, I couldn't at least not for the children, I could see no way out, so I finally took the courage to reach out and I found an English speaking counsellor, but then she also left after a few months. That was when I decided to try and see my friends French voice therapist and French olfactif therapist. This was the best decision I could have made. My voice therapist helped me to find my own voice and courage to speak up. My olfactif therapist helped my energy levels to return and have a deeper understanding of myself. 

 

From there I was able to change direction and decided to study Art therapy, I began with a French course, but during that year I realized I needed something with more depth. I sat with the idea of part time study however, this would not work for me, I came to realise I would have to make the most difficult decision in my life, and I moved our family to England so that I could pursue my studies in Health and Wellbeing to run groups (first year of the art therapy training). My husband followed me, believed in me and through his encouragement I continued on to complete the full training in Transpersonal Arts for therapy to become a Transpersonal Arts Counsellor/therapist.

Through the training, ongoing personal therapy, placement, supervision, essays, case study and dissertation I have learnt a lot about myself and the potential art has to heal.

While I was there I worked with a homeopath/naturopath and healed my hay fever allergies. Later I continued to work with deepening my understanding of the meaning behind the allergies, the sneezing, sore throats and illnesses, this helped me (on most occasions) to recover faster.

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At the end of my training my husbands contract came to an end and he had to find another job, because of Brexit this became challenging so he ended up finding a job back in France. This meant moving the family back to France but this time not to the south but to the north. In a new place, having studied in English now came the challenge of putting all my knowledge into French.  Then came Covid, which slowed down being able to set myself up, but gave me the time to set up, to think and to allow life to slow down so I could breathe again. I was alone, I had to find my inner strength and courage to set up my own business in a language I struggled with, especially administration wise. But I did it, it took time, corrections, adaptations. Then came the next challenge of how do you get yourself known, which actually means how do you sell yourself. Now selling yourself means you need to believe in yourself. This has been challenging and most of all was that therapy was not what was always wanted, which became a frustration, especially since I had more people asking to have English lessons. Which meant to do this I would have to overcome another fear, the fear of impostor, I was not an English teacher, I was not a teacher full stop. Then as time went by and I slowly began to help out and teach I began to realise I was a teacher/guide/motivator. I had been doing it for years with my 3 children. I had taught them to read and write in English and had only spoken to them in English. So in some ways I had been a teacher for 11 years when I had to start my first English speaking session with 2 lovely little girls, then after with a teenager, then an adult, then I began with groups. I tried to mix in art therapy techniques when I felt anxiety was the block, or bringing in play, cooking, imagination and from this my own form of alternative teaching method began. I found my art therapy studies came in handy as the 7 life processes helped me to see what was required to begin and to move forward. The first being breathing, which is the first step someone actually decides to do it. Then comes warming, which is best through curiosity and interest, I found through laughter and fun people relax and are more likely to try. This was the beginning of understanding the most important steps to advance on my journey, which is forever evolving. I found that through allowing chose and never imposing the majority of people did more and suggested doing more.

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I have come to realise that healing is a never ending process and one which we constantly need to work on as life does not stop once we have healed, on the contrary I found it becomes challenging in different ways. However the inner strength acquired helps to overcome and push through these challenges.

 

I have accumulated the knowledge and experience to assist you on your journey.

I would be honoured to be your guide / shoulder to assist you on this inner journey of self-healing and discovery.