✨ Summer Sounds, Silence & Soulful Practices

01/05/2025 by

Today, as Beltane’s fire quickens the land and the old rhythms of fertility, vitality, and creative life awaken once more, we too can lean into this rising tide of energy. Not in a frantic, hurried way, but with quiet presence — aligning to both the aliveness around us and the deep well of stillness always waiting within.

The Medicine of Summer’s Soundscape

Summer’s natural symphony is not just a backdrop — it’s a healing field. The gentle whisper of leaves, the wild, airy calls of red kites, and swallows skimming the dusk skies remind us that the Earth is always singing.

When we allow ourselves to truly listen, these sounds become invitations. They root us in the moment. They ease the nervous system. They awaken a sense of connection to something vast and ancient.

A simple practice:

Step outside barefoot, close your eyes, and listen. Notice the sounds furthest away. Notice those close by. Then listen for the sound of your own breath. Here, amidst the hum and hush, is a doorway to peace.

Beltane’s Fire and the Quickening of the Soul

Today, Beltane — traditionally celebrated as May arrives. It marks the moment when the earth’s energy surges upward. Blossoms burst open. Life quickens. In old ways, fires were lit to honour fertility, vitality, and the creative spark that lives in us all.

This is a beautiful time to tend to your own inner fire. To feel where your vitality wants to flow. To create not from pressure, but from natural alignment with the season’s rhythm.

It might be a song, a poem, a long-forgotten project reborn, or simply tending to your wellbeing in ways that rekindle your spirit.

The Silence Within the Sound

Amidst summer’s activity lies a profound stillness. It hums beneath the birdsong, within the spaces between crickets’ calls. In ancient traditions, it’s in these liminal spaces — between sound and silence — where we find ourselves most open to the sacred.

This inner silence isn’t absence. It’s presence. A rich, velvety quietude that allows us to hear the quieter voice within — the one that remembers peace, that knows we are always held.

Filed Under: Yoga Tagged With:

🌿 Healing Mentorship 🌿 A journey home to yourself — calm, courage, clarity.

29/04/2025 by

The Foundation: Safety & Relaxation

The foundation for lasting healing is feeling safe, grounded, and able to relax. From this place, transformation becomes possible.

Step 1: Feeling Safe

In our first session, we’ll gently explore where you are and introduce three simple, practical tools you can use anytime, anywhere to calm your nervous system and restore a felt sense of safety.

Step 2: Daily Self-Care Practice

I recommend a mindful, slow movement practice — such as qigong or yoga therapy — to cultivate self-awareness and compassion.❤️ Qigong or yoga – 10 minutes

❤️ Self-reflection or journaling – 10 minutes

❤️ Barefoot standing meditation outdoors – 2 minutes

❤️ Nourishing, conscious meals and water — an act of self-love

Step 3: Are You Ready to…

🌱 See life — past, present, and future — through new eyes?

🌱 Listen deeply and truly hear?

🌱 Question old beliefs and habits?

Consider:
✨ What if everything that has happened was meant to happen?
✨ What if you’ve been unconsciously feeding the drama?
✨ What if your behaviours are part of what’s keeping you stuck?

Step 4: Am I the Right Mentor for You?

As your healing mentor, I will:

✨ Support and gently challenge you

✨ Hold up a mirror for honest reflection

✨ Guide, celebrate, and nudge you beyond your comfort zone

Be prepared for:👀 Emotions to surface

👀 Old patterns to be revealed

👀 Resistance and self-sabotage to appear

👀 Everything to begin shifting

Step 5: Healing Requires Commitment

A single session offers only a glimpse. True, lasting change asks for presence, patience, and consistency.

Mentorship Packages

Bronze:
6 x 1-hour sessions — £540 (within 12 weeks)
(Regular price £570)

Gold:
12 x 1-hour sessions — £1026 (within 24 weeks)
(Regular price £1,140)

Each session includes 30 minutes of non-contact preparation time. Please allow 30 minutes after each session for rest and integration, and ideally, keep the remainder of your day spacious and gentle.

Follow-on sessions: £65 per hour

There may also be opportunities to join a healing and sharing circle for deeper community work.

If your heart stirs reading this — if something inside you whispers “yes” — I would be honoured to walk beside you.
Suzan

Filed Under: Yoga

Heart of Hearts

23/04/2025 by

Introduction: A Call Back to the Old Ways

In these times of restless change and uncertainty, it’s easy to be pulled away from the quiet call of the soul by the noise of the world. And yet beneath it all, Gaia — the earth consciousness — is inviting you to turn inward, to stay present, and to seek new ways of being rooted through the old, enduring wisdom that has always lived beneath our feet and within our bones.

Listening for the Deeper Rhythm

When did you last pause long enough to sense a deeper rhythm within you — not just the steady beat of your physical heart, but something subtler, older, humming in tune with the land itself? This is the Elemental Heart, a quiet, living centre of being that reaches beyond anatomy into the shimmering fabric of the Earth.

The Elemental Heart: A Bridge Between Worlds

You’ll find this heart not solely in your chest, but seated within the dynamic relationship between heart and pelvis — a vital axis running through your being like the trunk of the World Tree. Around the solar plexus it gathers, forming an energetic chamber that moves in all directions: forward and back, above and below, and far out into the wide, wild world beyond your skin.

It isn’t the physical heart alone, nor simply the heart chakra we are more familiar with. It is a three-dimensional, four-element heart chakra, a crystalline sphere of life force where the primal energies of creation meet and mingle within you. A meeting place of Earth’s grounding, Water’s fluid grace, Fire’s illuminating spark, and Air’s sacred breath.

An Ancient Understanding of the Body

Long ago, the body was not seen as a two-dimensional diagram of parts, but as a living, breathing sphere of influence, with centres of life-force moving in all directions. The Elemental Heart is one such centre — a luminous hearthfire connecting your physical self to your subtle bodies, and to the unseen world of elemental presences that companion us still. It acts as a gentle mediator between the upper realms of thought and spirit, and the grounding pull of Earth through your pelvis and lower belly. It’s here, in this quiet middle space, that you may sense the conversation between your bones and the land, your breath and the sky, your blood and the flowing streams.

The Four Elements in Balance

In the four-element chakra system — where each centre is aligned with Earth, Water, Fire, Air, and the ever-present quintessence of Spirit — the Elemental Heart sits as a crossroads. It gathers the wisdom of Earth and the knowing of Water with the will of Fire and the clarity of Air. Though not a chakra in the conventional sense, the Elemental Heart is a heart of hearts — a sacred hearth where these elemental forces meet and find their living expression within the human form.

A Simple Practice of Remembering

If you feel called, I invite you now to sit quietly for a moment. Let your awareness gather in the space between your heart and pelvis. Feel the energy there, spherical and alive, not confined to your body but moving through it — linking you to the greater body of Earth herself. It’s a simple act, but one that stirs the ancient memory of belonging in a world that so often forgets its own soul.

A Living Connection

This Elemental Heart reminds us that we are not — and have never been — separate from the land, the weather, or the turning seasons. We are part of this breathing, shimmering world, woven of earth and breath and sky.

As Marko Pogačnik so beautifully describes in his book Universe of the Human Body, this elemental weaving is not theory but lived experience. A sacred remembering. A quiet call back to the old ways, written in bone and breath.

A Blessing for the Elemental Heart

May the quiet rhythm of your Elemental Heart be a lantern in restless times.
May the earth steady you, the waters soften you,
the fire enliven you, and the air lift your spirit.

And may you remember yourself as a sacred meeting place —
where worlds touch, and the old songs still hum beneath your bones.

Would you care to walk there, together?

Filed Under: Healing, Stress, Yoga Therapy Tagged With: ,

Hands of the Mother: Elemental Wisdom in You

01/04/2025 by

There’s a new reality rising, quietly stirring beneath our feet and within our bones. Gaia calls us to remember — not only our connection to the earth but to the wider web of life and cosmos itself. Through this remembrance, we become conscious co-creators of wellbeing, for both ourselves and the greater whole.

Gaia, Sophia, and the Living Web

Gaia is far more than the nurturing Mother Earth of folklore. She is a cosmic intelligence, her creative current weaving through every stone, leaf, and star. Her resonance stretches beyond our world, into the universe. In the ancient esoteric traditions, Gaia’s cosmic counterpart is Sophia, the wisdom bearer — two facets of the same sacred coin. Sophia offers the inspiration of the heavens, while Gaia manifests it within the living body of Earth.

Balancing this, Gaia also moves in harmony with her male counterpart, Pan — spirit of the wild, keeper of the land’s untamed soul. Where Gaia pulses from the core of the earth, initiating life and awareness, Pan moves from without, tending and evolving the tapestry of life, ensuring its living threads remain bound to their sacred origin.

The Elementals and the Personal Body

The human body is a reflection of the earthly cosmos, which in turn mirrors the universe, and the universe echoes the greater cosmos. Within each of us moves a personal elemental being — an intimate, unseen presence manifesting Gaia’s creative blueprint in our physical, energetic, and spiritual layers.

These elementals work within the invisible, causal realms, bringing form and vitality into being. Our personal elemental constantly tends to us, weaving the subtle threads of body, mind, and spirit. Yet trauma, old survival patterns, and stagnant energy can distort the natural flow. Over time, this unsettles our equilibrium, affecting health and harmony. Through mindful, earth-honouring practices — such as Gaia Touch — we can ease these tensions and return to balance.

Gaia’s Creative Hand — The Map in Your Palm

One of the most beautiful teachings from Marko Pogačnik’s Universe of the Human Body is Gaia’s Creative Hand: a simple yet profound map held within your own palm. Each finger carries the wisdom of an element, and each joint reveals how that element takes form in the manifest world when combined with the thumb — the fifth element, which embodies spirit, identity, and the causal forces of the earth.

  • Index finger — water elementals, guardians of the biosphere
  • Middle finger — fire elementals, sustaining life processes
  • Ring finger — earth elementals, shaping embodiment
  • Little finger — air elementals, guiding consciousness and thought
  • Thumb — keeper of identity and unity of all earth’s beings
  • Palm — the archetypal matrix of life itself

The Four Element Chakras — A Feminine Circle of Power

This elemental wisdom also echoes in the Four Element Chakras, a feminine, circular counterpart to the traditional vertical chakra system. Instead of moving in a strict upward line, these energy centres form concentric circles, reflecting the cyclical, interconnected nature of life. Each ring represents the forces of earth, water, fire, and air, with the fifth element — spirit — moving through them all. It’s an embodied map of both personal and planetary consciousness.

A Simple Practice: Spinning the Thread of Peace

To close, here’s a gentle, meditative mudra practice from Gaia Touch, a way of invoking peace within yourself and radiating it into your environment:

Peace Mudra
  • Touch your left thumb to your left index finger, and your right thumb to your right index finger.
  • Hold your hands one above the other at the centre of your chest.
  • Slowly move the upper hand downward to your lower belly, and the lower hand upward to your forehead, keeping them aligned.
  • As your hands pass one another, the fingers gently release and then return to the thumb once passed.
  • Continue for several breaths, then repeat with the other fingers in turn.
  • Let yourself rest in the silence between movements.
Filed Under: Healing

Spring is in the Air

05/03/2025 by

I see blue skies, pine trees and the golf course glistening with dew. Two magpies catch my attention. A host of unseen birds chatter loudly. It’s a sign of spring. Winter will not last forever.

Our ancestors lived according to the rhythms of nature. Candlelight and fires were the only light. Inclement weather and reduced daylight signalled the time for sleeping longer, curling up and resting. As a species we retain this connection to nature. We are not designed to run at full speed 24/7 365!

Nature brings times of plenty, scarcity, activity, and rest. Before industrialised agriculture food supplies would dwindle towards the end of winter. Reducing food intake/fasting triggers autophagy – processing old and damaged cells. The resulting reduced energy has least impact during this time of stillness.

Wintering is a form of meditation – being rather than doing – noticing and returning to stillness.

It’s a challenging part of the yogic path, easy to avoid yet ultimately it sets us free.

I am great at thinking of all possibilities, planning and organising but it impedes certainty and action. My successes come from acting on a deep knowing. And so… I’ve been the most still and silent ever this winter. Initially the pull ‘to do’ something, be productive was predominant. At times it was uncomfortable and heavy. As the weeks passed it felt more comfortable and I welcomed times of aloneness.

One day the time was right. The answers came quickly. I knew, beyond doubt, my next step.

My secret? Was to get out of my own way, value my intuition and give it space.

The beginning of February is the time of Imbolc in the Celtic Wheel of the Year – also known as St. Brigid’s Day. The earth feels different. Something is in the air. I have naturally been waking earlier and venturing out for longer but I’m not quite ready to leap into full speed ahead.
ancient ones new a lot!

If you too are ready to start the year now today is a perfect time. Each day, each breath is a new beginning. And just one step in a different direction creates a completely different view.

I’m here if you need support.

Filed Under: Anxiety, Fatigue, Healing, Yoga, Yoga Therapy

Awaken your Consciousness

17/02/2025 by

The sound of your birth name transmits a frequency which begins the game of life! It magnetises situations and experiences to enable you to work through your karma, maximise your talents, fulfil your goals and ultimately your soul’s purpose. Pardon the pun… It’s not as easy as it sounds!! Work is involved… luckily, we have a lifetime, and sound is a great ally.

Sound (frequency) and intention create our reality. It’s a highly effective healing tool which positively impacts all levels from physical, emotional, spiritual. The beauty of the soul channelled through my voice is unlike anything I have previously experienced. I am in awe of its power and beauty.

Sound and the Voice can literally retune at a molecular level.

“In the early ‘80s, Fabien Maman conducted biology experiments at the University of Jussieu in Paris, showing the impacts of acoustic sound on human cells and their energy fields. What he found was that through a series of acoustic sounds, cancer cells would explode and healthy ones would become energized and empowered.”
From Star to Cell: The Way of the Soul — excerpts from article by Terres Unsoeld, Vision Magazine, Feb. 2005

Inspired by the work of French physicist Joel Sternheimer, Maman

“…found that if there was a problem in an organic structure, the molecules of that structure did not vibrate, but if they heard the string of notes they recognized as their tune, they began to vibrate again.”

The College of Sound Healing (where I trained) commissioned Scientific Research into the sound healing method they teach.

Sound for healing and diagnosis is innate and instinctive to us all. We hear how someone is by the tone of their voice, use soothing sounds to settle babies. Ultrasound uses high frequency sound to produce internal images. It’s been used in obstetrics since the mid 1900’s. Sound frequency is used to treat kidney stones by the NHS.

In yoga we use humming (bhramari pranayama) to calm, reset and relax. Sound vibrates the vagus nerve quickly and effectively returning the nervous system to a regulated, rest and digest state. Humming increases Nitric Oxide (NO) production by 15-fold. NO has a strong anti-bacterial and anti-viral effect

Naad Yoga is the science of inner transformation through tone and sound. Sanskrit is one of the ancient languages said to emanate from source. The Mantras use specific sound syllables that create healing vibrations. and give access to different levels of consciousness. Each time we chant a mantra we connect to the accumulated energy of all those who have chanted before.

OM symbol

Chanting or toning OM/AUM connects us with source, the unknowable. There are 4 equal parts – ah, ooo, mmm and silence – representing the beginning, middle, end and the field of potential and possibility. If you are used to a long mmm and no silence experiment with adding this 4th phase. The silence is the place where integration happens.

Chanting works through the movement of the tongue in the mouth. Here it  

Activates 84 meridians! (64 meridians in the hard palate and 20 in the soft palate).

Directs prana to wherever it is needed in the body.

Calms your mind and emotions

Stimulates the secretion of chemical messengers which stimulates signals to the brain –
the hypothalamus, pituitary and pineal gland have the potential to awaken your consciousness.

It’s a great workout for the facial muscles too!

Explore incorporating sound in your day – in the shower, before meditating, with movement. Humming or oming are a great starting point. A simple chant you may be familiar with is

Om shanti, shanti, shanti,
Peace and peace and peace.


Peace for self, family/ friends, the world etc.

Imagine we all chant this 3 times every day. The frequency of peace will envelop the globe.

Like any healing it is important to remember to ground and bubble your energy at the end of a session.

If you want to explore further contact Suzan.

Trauma Informed Healing for body, mind and emotions Heart Circle
Filed Under: Yoga

Hope

08/02/2025 by

Beyond the choppy waters on Earth there is a calling from the cosmos, the world of invisible energy and spirit. There’s an awakening and remembering that we are more than this body and a pawn in the game of life. We are birthing a new world and everything is possible. The stronger the call from the infinite ocean of life the greater the contradiction and chaos in the world. Nothing is new, yet everything is supercharged, as if on steroids, in your face, loud, contradictory and unavoidable! For many the future seems bleak. But there is hope. There is always hope.


Woven into our being a tangle of karmic, transgenerational and systemic patterns form the basis of our unconscious habits, limiting beliefs, and reactive behaviours. Neither right or wrong, good or bad, punishment or reward. These frequencies inform and guide our life experiences and subsequent world view. They cloud our true Self with fears, aversions, attachments and false understanding of our true spiritual nature and interbeing. We see the world through, dirty, distorted lens – avidya.


The Yoga journey is one of self-realisation. It’s a path of exploration, discovery and uncovering of the Self that lies beneath these clouds.

Einstein is often quoted as having said something along the lines of – you cannot solve a problem from the same consciousness as that which created it.

The overwhelming and seemingly impossible task is just that when viewed from our wounded, 3rd dimensional Self. A higher frequency and consciousness give a different perspective and agency to be part of the change.

The more we remember the interconnection of all life, the easier it is to see beyond the illusion of separation, right/wrong, them/us and explore what lies beyond actions and words.

Self-empathy is where it begins. It is only when we have mastered this for our Self that we can relate to the feelings and needs of others and in-time understand that most if not all of us are acting from this place of woundedness. There’s a long line of suffering behind us all. Part of the awakening is the opportunity to heal unfinished business and patterns through the ancestral lines.
A clear intention and consistent action are needed (abhyasa) and proactive willingness to discover our true self – feel our feelings and emotions, identify our unfulfilled needs and unravel the layers of protection afforded (vairagya).

This is an ongoing process and requires practice and persistence and a willingness to see beyond the known without attachment to any specific outcome. It’s a path of spiritual growth.


It doesn’t matter where you start. There may be clues in the body, breath, voice, vitality, thoughts and emotions. Whatever is present for you is a very good place to begin. The path is often windy, and we encounter blocks and take detours which is ok. Your route is unique to you. There is no deadline.

There is a special place in the mandala of life that only you can fill.

A guide or mentor, being part of a group of those on a similar path are invaluable, but the hard work is your responsibility. I can’t promise you will become a spiritual master or reach the 5th dimension, but you will feel better each step of the way. Oh, and the world will be a better place!

Thank you for walking your path and doing your work, it is very much appreciated.
Love,
Suzan

Filed Under: Yoga

Imbolc — The Quiet Stirring of Light

01/02/2025 by

There is a moment in the turning of the year when, though winter still holds the land, a hush of expectancy stirs beneath the earth. The first snowdrops bow their pale heads. Lambs begin to appear in the fields. The quality of light subtly shifts — a promise whispered on the cold air. This is Imbolc.

Traditionally honoured at the beginning of February, Imbolc marks the ancient festival of the first stirrings of spring. It is a time of quiet, of tending to the embers of our inner fire, and listening for the voice of what wishes to emerge.

A Time of Subtle Quickening

At Imbolc, nature teaches us about patience and promise. Though much remains hidden, life is quickening beneath the soil. Roots stretch quietly. Buds prepare to unfurl. The earth, though still resting, begins to turn toward light.

Within us too, there are tender stirrings. The spark of a new idea. The gentle call to begin again. The sense of something about to be born. Imbolc invites us to honour these quiet beginnings without rushing them.

A Simple Practice:

Take a walk at dusk or dawn. Notice the subtle changes — the birdsong returning, the faint perfume of damp earth. Pause at a tree or patch of ground. Close your eyes. Breathe. Ask yourself: what in me is beginning to wake? Then simply listen.

The Light Within

Imbolc was often celebrated with candlelight — small flames kindled in honour of the returning sun and the inner light that guides us through the darker months. It’s a beautiful time to reflect on what inner wisdom has been quietly growing in winter’s stillness.

As we light our own metaphorical candles, we make gentle space for hope, creativity, and vitality to slowly return.

Wishing you quiet joy in these tender days of emerging light.

Filed Under: Healing

Sleep

08/01/2025 by

Whatever the challenge nature shows the way. We are part of the earth, inseparable. As we align with her heartbeat of the earth the body sighs from within. She’s the ultimate mother. Mimicking her rhythm of the light and dark resets our circadian rhythm.

Here are my top 5 tips for restoring and maintaining a healthy sleep pattern.

  1. Go outside into daylight as soon after you wake as possible. The body regulates its sleep rhythms via sun. Even if it is raining and grey you will benefit from a few minutes outside. Sunlight signals the body to produce melatonin andis great in the day, especially midday. Artificial lighting and SAD lights are ok during the day. In the evening they delay or reduce melatonin production negatively impacting sleep.
  2. Avoid artificial light after dusk. Instead use soft light, think firelight, candles, soft glow rather than led bulbs.
  3. Process active thoughts and emotions before bed – movement, music, journalling etc.
  4. Gentle movement and breathing – 5 to 10 minutes mindful moving will unravel physical tension, add 5-10 breaths with a slow gentle inhale and long exhalation to relax and down-regulate your nervous system.
  5. Create a pre-bed relaxing time – consider.

    Warm bath, with epsom salts or relaxing essential oils
    Foot massage with sesame oil
    Herbal tea – chamomile/valerian
    Listen to music with a slow tempo (60 to 80 beats per minute) without words
    Palming to relax tired eyes – rub the hands and place palms over eyes resting on the orbit so there’s no pressure on eyes

Avoid for 2 to 3 hours before going to bed

Screens
Eating
Stimulating activities including conversations, books, going over upsetting events.

There’s a lot going on right now, extremes of weather and solar activity, conflict, fear and the unknown. Despite the best sleep hygiene, you may occasionally experience disturbed sleep. Gentle breathing or humming may lull you back to sleep. If you get up in the night keep light low and avoid anything stimulating.

Filed Under: Anxiety, Fatigue, Pain, Stress, Yoga Therapy

Feeling anxious, blue or overwhelmed?

01/01/2025 by

A quick and simple way to feel more calm and positive.
Simple yoga breathing techniques can transformation your emotions very quickly. Soon you will feel grounded, calm and able to think more clearly.

Start by befriending your breath. How is your breath right now? Are you breathing? That’s not as crazy as it may seem :). When a lot of thinking is involved or stressful situations arise, we may hold our breath without realising.
 As few as 3 conscious breaths will change your state of mind. Watch/feel/sense your breath. You may notice:

Movement or no movement in your body.
Sounds
Sensations
How would you describe it’s length and quality?

If you can manage 3 breaths or a couple of minutes several times a day you will soon have a powerful tool to support your well-being.

I’ve felt well but my breath had a different opinion! I continued to take things gently until my breath became for stable. Otherwise I may have pushed through extending my recovery time and feeling miserable! Conscious breathing:Calms a busy mind.
Grounds scattered, discombobulated energy
Returns you back to the present.
Supports clear, rational thinking as the nervous system self-regulates.

Simplicity is the key. There’s no need for mudras, techniques, or long holds to feel better. In fact complex techniques, long ratio and holds can overstimulate and exacerbate our dysregulation. 

We take time in our online yoga classes to befriend our breath with slow, mindful movement and seated breathing techniques/ ‘pranayama’.

Our friendly, gently yoga courses start January, April and September. You are welcome to join part way through. 

Email  Suzan for details.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/suzanjoywells/Facebook page

Filed Under: Yoga
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