Society had and still has many conflicting pressures about ‘who’ I should be.

I was in part time employment from the age of 11 and full time from 15.

I worked hard at school, college and universities. I worked in clearing and merchant banking, design and education. These roles were prestigious and had some purpose.

Conversely, they were materialistic, unethical, controlling, consuming and draining. To bolster myself I physically trained to the extreme and partied like a crazy person.

Ultimately, life left me feeling unfulfilled, exhausted, conflicted, uncentred and unenlightened.

I grew up with parents from the 1930’s and grandparents from the 1800’s. An era that did not believe in sex before marriage and when married no one was supposed to talk about it, let alone enjoy it!

Women were everything to everyone, putting all their needs, wants and desires second to all. News and media seemed unaware women were part of society.

Thank God for Kate Aidee (War Correspondent). As a young girl I dreamed of being in the army, destroying all the baddies with my machine gun and travelling.

Entertainment in the 70’s and 80’s was filled with women whose’s only purpose was for the pleasure of men, James Bond, Carry On, Benny Hill etc…

I had several nice boyfriends, two failed marriages, and yet again felt unfulfilled.

How can you communicate for what you need, if you have no idea what it is?

As a child I always loved nature, especially the sea. I feel at peace in nature, centred and connected. Many of my enlightening realisations happened reflecting nature.

I also loved to learn, but I am dyslexic. School was both a joy and a challenge. My outlet was art, wood work and metal work, at which I excelled, and PE. These pastimes allowed me to feel centred in mindful engagement.

Expressing myself through my natural creativity, was taken from me aged 13. School decided I was ‘too able’ for such things and needed to do computers. The trauma for me, the class and my poor teacher was immense.

My escape was our yoga and guided meditation sessions with my PE teacher Mrs Jennet. Centred I observed, I felt calmer, clearer and altogether more enlightened. Thanks to Mrs Jennet I could leave behind my semi automatic weapon.

Disillusionment with work and and relationships lead me to the Brahama Kumaris. Between times though, I fell back into my old patterns of being pushed around by others’ expectations and my unruly reactions. I embarked on a voyage of discovery to meet, communicate and observe others, strengths that bring joy in my life. On these journeys I lived, studied and practiced with Thich Nhat Hanh, Swami Veda, Swami Bharati and the Dali Lama on numerous occasions. My greatest support comes from the Plum Village (Thich Nhat Hanh) sangha, especially our Metta (loving kindness) sangha.

Studying yoga, meditation and philosophy made me aware of Chinese and Indian therapies that accompanied them. I used diet, essential oils, and a variety of methods I had learnt to centre and engage with the world in an enlightened manner. As a learner I also love teaching and sharing. I have a particular skill for individualisation, seeing others qualities and needs. This is how I teach or treat, to address the individual.

My first encounter with breast cancer and looking for ways to support Autism lead me to look into all I had learnt more deeply. I discovered dōTERRA’s essential oils. I was so impressed with them that I decided to study Aromatherapy, Indian Head Massage and Reflexology. Now I could support myself, my family, friends and clients in a holistic way combining both practices and therapies to bring balance, like Chinese medicine and Indian Ayurveda.