Hi, my name is Lucinda. My journey into holistic healthcare began in 1996 after reading a book about Taoist monks resolving mental health issues through diet alone. I then embarked on a variety of healing related courses. In 2001 I moved to Australia to spend three years, full-time studing Health Science (Naturopathy), with a focus on Herbal and Nutritional Medicine. Australia is renowned in the UK for it’s high quality of Natuopathic education and training.
Over the years I have survived malaria in Africa and carbon monoxide poisoning from a gas boiler, and resolved blood poisoning in Thailand through fasting. I have managed to avoid the life-long use of thyroid medication, reduced my need for antibiotic intervention and have avoided a potentially disfiguring operation. Much of this was achieved through self-medication of natural remedies.
Having won the battle with depressions and anxiety, my journey has taught me much, which I wish to share in order to help others to recover, whether it be from physical, mental or emotional trauma.
In 2012 I began supporting and teaching children and young people with special educational needs and mental health challenges, such as trauma, anxiety and depression. I have gained much insight from this and therefore I am very passionate about working with young people, particularly those who find that their current mental, emotional or physical health status is a barrier to their education.
I am also passionate about environmental issues such as biodiversity and soil security for the sake of all beings, which form part of the ethical philosophy of Woods Way Wellness, along with the Six Naturopathic Principles.
I am qualified in British Sign Language to Level 2 and as such I am able to offer the Deaf community a more private and personalised consultation process.
I advocate the practice of gratitude, writing, yoga, Qi Gong and mindfulness meditation as a means to restore balance, increase resilience and prevent mental and physical decline.
My vision for the future of Woods Way Wellness is to be part of a multi-disciplined community of health professionals who aspire to the same philosophical aims. These encompass evidenced based practice, embracing diversity by drawing from the wisdom of different cultures and their philosophies and a continued commitment to developing a low carbon, ethical and sustainable business.
As a teacher, education is at the heart of everything I do and thus forms a very important part of my practice. I aim for my clients to be able move forward from their treatment with the tools required to maintain their own health, with minimal or no synthetic medical intervention. I wholeheartedly believe that everyone has the right to the knowledge and understanding of the body’s innate ability to heal itself and return to homeostasis (balance).
I have great hope that one day subjects such as Food as Medicine, Sustainability and Permaculture will become part of the National Curriculum in schools. I see these topics as essential learning for the sake of the future health and sustainability of humanity.
Natural Medicine is an extremely important part of the evolving world if we want to tip the balance back by addressing the causes of chronic disease. I feel it is important to remind myself that it not just today, or tomorrow’s world that my efforts are affecting, but the world that of our children, grandchildren and all its living creature, big and small.
Curiosity in my early twenties led me to study subjects such as Taoism, macrobiotic diets and natural health. I completed my Reiki I course in 1996, followed by Reiki II in Japan a year later. From here I started to explore beyond the boundaries of what conventional medicine had to offer.
In 2001 I moved to Melbourne, Australia to begin a full time, three year long course that was to change the way that I look at health and medical research. It incorporated much learning, resulting in examinations in bio-chemistry, organic chemistry, clinical medicine with a focus on disease processes, nutritional medicine and herbal medicine, research and technology, pharmacology and integrated pharmacology. The latter is essential training which looks at how synthetic drugs interact with herbal medicines and individual plant constituents.
Some traditional therapies, such as acupuncture, are now available on the NHS. In a report in 2019 the World Health Organisation (WHO) has acknowledged the role of such traditions in “keeping populations healthy”.
In an ideal world, Naturopaths, Herbalists and Nutritionists will work alongside GP’s in order to deliver a more holistic and less invasive form of preventative medicine. This is already happening of course, and is set to rise as new research and consumer demand for safe and natural alternatives increase. I believe that this integrative approach is the future of modern medicine.
Since returning to the UK I have encountered many challenges, some of which are touched on above. However, I am proud to say that life’s curve balls have not prevented me from continuing to learn. I have developed my massage skills and qualifications, completed my Reiki III Masters and Teaching course and developed skills in auricular acupuncture.
In this time I have also gained a First Class Arts Honours Degree, learnt British Sign Language and become a teacher of young people with various barriers to education. My most recent achievement has been to learn how to build this website, a steep learning curve indeed. I hope you will find this website informative and watch out for my blog!
As a keen writer and researcher with an interest in health and education, I look forward to bringing you my monthly blog. I aim to share with you the latest research and innovations as well as traditional wisdom from many different cultures.
Love, light and laughter, Lucinda
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