If you are in a helping profession chances are that you have felt burned out or without energy at some stage of your career and you know how important it is to look after yourself. So many who are in service to others just give so much of themselves that there is hardly anything left for themselves or their own families…

So I am writing to you today with a two-fold message 1) about the importance of looking after yourself and a valuable message I learned  and 2) want to tell you more about a proven method that can help you restore balance and recharge your energy levels.

So I’ve been working in the field of helping or serving others for a good number of years, and you know.. even before I made it a profession, I found myself always the one that colleagues and friends came to for help, to talk to or share their hearts etc. So it pretty much has always been part of my life – giving energy and time to others.

It wasn’t until I started working as a psychotherapist that I realised how important self care is. Giving my time, energy and full attention to clients is an absolute joy! But…. you knew there was a but didn’t you? 🙂 In order to be fully available to my clients and offer them the best support I possibly can, I cannot run on empty… I need to refuel my tank and recharge every so often. And this brings me to a supervision session where I received an important metaphor for my own self care.

I had a big client load at the time and things were pretty hectic in my personal life. During this session, we looked at what was going on for me and why I felt like withdrawing from the world and crawl into a cave when I felt that my life demanded that I step up and be available and keep going. My supervisor used the analogy of when a tradesman has a business he needs a van to get to places where he needs to carry out his work. However, it does not matter how good he is at his job, if his van is in poor condition or breaks down, he cannot get to the places where he can carry out his work. The same goes for our bodies, psyche and mental health. When I do not look after my “van” I cannot do the things that I love to do and are really good at! So, we continued to look at things that helps me to stay connected to my body, recharges my batteries, refuels me and keep my “van” in good condition. How often do I need to go for a “tune-up” and what is needed to keep my “van” on the road… Okay I will stop now… I’m sure you get the picture! 🙂

And this brings me to the second part of why I am writing to you today. One of the ways I personally love to recharge is through music and sound. Drumming, Singing, listening to the sounds in nature and of course going to a sound healing session or a “sound bath”. Apart from one of my strongest modalities being auditory, I love how healing sounds can bring me back into harmony with my true nature. I love it so much that I did some training in using Tibetan Singing Bowls for Sound Healing and this is what I want to share with you today. I LOVE to offer this service to my clients. Seeing the sparkle back in someone’s eyes after a sound healing session is a familiar and remarkable experience.

Click on the bowl to read more about the benefits of Tibetan Singing Bowl Therapy

On a biological level the healing sounds from Tibetan Singing Bowls affect a great deal of physical change, through changing the vibration within the body and the organs of the  body,  but sound healing has far-reaching implications that occur on an emotional, spiritual and physical level. Dr. Mitchell Gaynor who is an expert in the whole area of using sound and sound healing with his cancer patients, says “one reason sound heals on a physical level is because it so deeply touches and transforms us on the emotional and spiritual planes.”

Personally I have found sound healing a wonderful way to stay connected and recharged, but I also found it extremely helpful to let go of excess energies and clearing that “heavy” feeling, when I had a very busy week. And it will be my joy to share the gift of sound with you!

If you are drawn to sound or sound healing or if you are looking for ways to improve the way that you self-care, I am inviting you to try a sound healing session as part of your repertoire to help support you on your self-care journey.

You can make an appointment for a sound healing session in Killaloe or if you work in an organisation and would like to organise a sound healing session for a group who give a lot of themselves, and need some recharging, you can contact me on 086 166 2157 or info@joannemacmillan.ie