A decade after the illness that had changed the course of my life, now a practising clinical hypnotherapist and yoga teacher in my own right, I was felled by another health crisis. One quiet Sunday evening in April 2022 I tripped over my own trousers and fell, breaking both my wrists. The DEXA scan that followed brought a further blow: a diagnosis of osteoporosis at 56. Already reeling from the recent loss of my beloved dog after 15 years, it felt as if – despite all my hard work – my body was letting me down again.
Once I’d stopped crying (which took a while), I began researching. What I learned supported my initial, instinctive feeling that I wanted to take a more holistic approach to my long-term bone health than the NHS-approved treatment pathway. I did, however, make a significant U-turn regarding HRT, something I’d rejected when I went through menopause at 46 – at the same time as I was dealing with CFS, and long before anyone was talking about it.
My research also helped me realise that the Scaravelli-inspired yoga that I loved was not providing enough weight bearing exercise for my bones – and it led me to a functional movement programme called Bones for Life® that felt like the logical next step. Within months I’d signed up for teacher training and begun sharing my story with anyone who’d listen.
Meanwhile, as a clinical hypnotherapist trained in medical hypnosis, breaking my wrists had given me an incredible opportunity to practise what I’d been cautiously preaching about the mind-body connection when it comes to healing. My own experience of managing the fear, pain and potential trauma of the accident (I was alone at home when it happened), and the relative ease with which I navigated surgery and recovery as a result, made me even more passionate about helping other people access the healing power of their own imagination.
