Welcome to my new Website and blog! Thank you for visiting.

By way of introduction I thought it might be good to give you a bit of a rundown of what I’m about, why I’m here and what to expect going forward.

First up …

What is this “Holistic Bodywork” thing??

Let’s break this down.

Bodywork is a term that describes any therapeutic intervention that involves movement or hands-on tissue manipulation. And Holistic refers to the whole person rather than individual parts.

So Holistic Bodywork is hands-on manual and movement therapy that treats each part as a part of the whole, rather than isolated mechanical components.

Modalities such as Massage Therapy (my qualification), Osteopathy, Chiropractic, Physiotherapy, etc are all forms of bodywork. Some are more holistic than others but I think the degree of holism comes down to the individual practitioner rather than the modality itself.

My particular approach to Holistic Bodywork is rooted in one basic concept: Treating symptoms becomes unnecessary when you improve the internal environment that creates a need for the symptoms to exist. Put another way, whatever symptoms you have are there because that’s the best your system can do due to limiting factors preventing better expression of the Self. When we focus treatment towards resolving these limiting factors, the system has to do less work to function, so healthier function naturally flows. As this natural function develops the need for symptoms goes away.

You heal on all levels, not just get a reduction in symptoms.

So is what you do basically Massage?

My Massage Therapy qualification is what allows me to practice professionally. It's what allows me to carry insurance and offer private health rebates, and it’s also what has opened the door to all the additional learning I’ve done to arrive where I am.

There are a few reasons why I've chosen the label of Holistic Bodywork over Remedial Massage. In no particular order here they are:

1. Because clients remained clothed and oils generally aren't used, calling what I do Remedial Massage would give an impression and expectation that doesn't match what's actually provided

2. A massage is generally focused on tight muscles, myofascia and biomechanics. Those things are still addressed in Holistic Bodywork, alongside energetic and emotional health, cranial and visceral dysfunctions, and movement optimisation

3. Holistic Bodywork shifts the emphasis away from addressing symptoms towards improving the internal environment that is causing the symptoms to exist.

So even though using a label like Remedial Massage would be more familiar, Holistic Bodywork is the more accurate description of what I do.

So what will I get out of your blog?

The main thing I am to achieve through this blog is education. I firmly believe that the more one understands themselves and how their body works, the more empowered they are to take steps to improve their overall health and well-being.

I plan to write a mix of posts covering a range of health topics, including some anatomy. I’ll give my perspective through a fusion of scientific understanding and energetic/spiritual awareness. It's entirely up to you what you get from any of these posts.

My aim in this field is to be a bridge between the more rigid, scientific perspective and the more fluid esoteric perspective. I believe that if there was more open, respectful discussion between these fields that common ground could be found. And I think that has the potential to improve outcomes for everyone.

Lastly, I’ll be writing to inform and educate, not feed an algorithm. So the best chance I have to get this content to the people who need it is by you, my loyal readers and clients, sharing it around. I would really appreciate some help to reach more people without resorting to clickbait!

So what have you got coming up for us?

The first few topics that I have in mind are (in no particular order):

• Fascia, what it is, what it does and how to take care of it

• Pain, what it is, where it comes from and what it really means

• Movement, how it works, what happens when it goes wrong and what to do about it

These are all very big topics that require a significant amount of detail in order to do them justice, therefore I may decide to split each of them up into smaller parts rather than big long articles. I’ll do my best to keep all the important detail at the same time as keeping the language simple and digestible. Just keep in mind the purpose here is education, which means there will be some challenges. I’m always happy to answer questions and help people arrive at understanding.

I'd love to be able to give a timeline for when I'll be posting, but because I want to communicate the ideas clearly and comprehensively, it might occasionally take me a while to put them together. Let's hope for once a month, but apologies in advance if there's occasionally a few months where you don't hear from me.

That's enough for now. Let's get on with things and start exploring the amazing experience of being human!