Therapist • Trainer • Speaker
Stepping into the Future: 2012 National RAoA Conference
I was delighted and honoured to be invited as a keynote speaker at the 2012 RAoA National Conference in Tasmania. It was an opportunity to meet up with old friends having previously lived in Australia and showcase what I had been doing up to the present time.
It also spurred me on to updating my website www.helenperkins.com and writing up all the new material I had developed for Intuition and Sound Reflexology II. Then of course I had this mad idea to shoot a short film which was subsequently placed on my website and www.youtube.com This was fun to do and with professional support the script, filming, editing and production were completed before the conference date.
Armed with new leaflets, I flew over to the small island just off mainland Australia, a week before the conference to have time both to orientate myself in the southern hemisphere and explore this unique land. About the same size as Ireland and with many English sounding towns - even a Melton Mowbray which is local to me in the UK - the history and its beginnings were awe inspiring. From a convict colony to a free settler’s dream, Tasmania is self-sufficient for its half a million population. It’s a country with beautiful coastlines, mountains, national parks and was well worth the trip.
The conference was held at the Country Club outside of Launceston and after registration on Friday afternoon we enjoyed a welcome cocktail party in the evening. Always an exciting start to the weekend, I believe, when everyone gets the chance to be introduced to each other to make new acquaintances and renew existing ones; then early to bed for the following two days’ lectures and workshops.
After the Saturday morning opening ceremony of singing bowls and gongs the keynote speaker was Beryl Crane with her presentation: 'Stepping into the Future.' An extremely experienced British reflexologist and worldwide lecturer, she gave an overview of her practice using auricular reflexology and the value of Chinese Traditional Medicine. She has visited China many times and it was fascinating to hear her stories. Auricular reflexology is applied to the ears and is quickly effective. She gave examples of problem solving using reflex points to help acute conditions such as shoulder pain and had members of the audience on stage to demonstrate particular 'source and acu combination points.' She also talked about using reflexology as we age and how longevity is now part of our society. Mrs Crane is indeed a testament of good health and vitality as she approaches her later years and we all send her our blessings.
As I was not presenting until the next day, I was free to attend lectures and had enrolled on the long workshop by Glenda Hodge, another high achiever in the experience of life. Her lecture was interesting, informative and thought-provoking on how the chakras reveal flow and blockages in energy in everyday living. She had her own individual approach to the nature of the chakras looking first at the role of the base chakra situated at the heel of the foot up to the crown chakra at the top of the toes. We, the audience, followed Glenda on a journey through the chakras as a member of the family or tribe that was attributed to the first chakra and onwards up to our relationship with others, patterns in life and situations we find ourselves in and further with something higher than ourselves or a higher part of our self. We were certainly left with personal thoughts and ideas.
On Saturday night came the traditional gala dinner, themed 'Time of my Life', an opportunity to get dressed up and network with more delegates ahead of my session at 9.30am next day.
My presentation 'Reflex Resonance Technique' ™ went well and I was delighted that everyone seemed ‘to get me’ or understand the technique as I asked from the podium. I started with my short film to offer an introduction to the technique, then, my first foray into the world of using sound with case studies. I had added visuals in the form of photos and power point slides to aid understanding of the principles and study question: 'Where does the sound go?' and finally the conclusion, which was the written script of the film. I ended with a demonstration having asked a person from the audience to help with the demo and lie back in a chair. I explained how I become a detective with my hands as I search over the reflexes using my intuition which I detect as a heightened awareness. Having found a spot that I sensed needed balance - I interpreted the vibration of it and matched with my voice. I made three sounds which filled the auditorium as it was so quiet. The 'client' agreed that the sound did go to the area of the body that corresponded with the chosen reflex and many people in the audience said that they too had felt the sound in their own body. I was delighted by the many questions at the end and the interest in the technique.
After lunch I ran a 90-minute workshop using the new material from Intuition and Sound Reflexology II. This was based on the consultation process looking at the energetic part or vitality of a person, and in relation to vibration, frequency and resonance in the tissues and reflexes. I also ran a training day on the Monday, as a post-conference workshop.
The conference culminated in a forum of people chosen from different reflexology backgrounds to give their vision of the future and where they felt reflexology was heading. There were a variety of suggestions and thoughts and it will be interesting to review this again in time. After the closing ceremony, everyone hugged each other and promised to keep in touch. There was a lot of interest in my training days from various states and I do hope that I will be invited to come over again very soon.