2026 hasn't arrived quietly. It's come wrapped in snow (lots of it!!) making it impossible to get back to 'normal' routines and with a very clear message to slow down!

Right now, so many of us are snowed in. Roads and paths are buried, schools are closed and shop shelves are thinning as supplies struggle to reach us. Plans are cancelled. Routines are disrupted. The usual pace of life has ground to a halt, whether we like it or not.

We are forced to pause, quite literally.

It feels uncomfortable and challenging. We're so used to pushing forward, powering through, filling every moment with movement and noise. Stillness can feel unsettling when it’s not chosen but the Universe has decided to take charge and resistance is useless. We have to slow down.

And something wonderful has happened in the middle of all of it all...

As supplies run low, people are stepping up, neighbours are checking in on each other and food is being shared. Messages on Social Media can be read offering help, warmth and reassurance. Farmers have been driving their tractors and clearing roads, not for praise or for profit but because community matters. In the quiet and stillness, we are reminded that we're all interconnected. 

In the absence of convenience, kindness shows itself everywhere.

This enforced pause creates space, space we rarely allow ourselves. Space to notice the hush that snow brings. Space to sit without rushing. Space to rest bodies and minds that have been running on empty for far too long. With fewer distractions, many of us are turning inward, listening to what we actually need.
This isn’t laziness. It isn’t wasted time. It's necessary.

When we don’t choose rest, the Universe sometimes chooses it for us. It's happened to me before and I now appreciate these times. This snowy beginning to 2026 feels like a collective deep breath, a reminder that life isn’t meant to be lived at full speed all the time.

This is a moment for real self-care. The kind that looks like slowing your thoughts, nourishing your body, checking in on your mental health and letting go of the pressure to be endlessly productive. The kind that recognises rest as essential, not something to be earned.

There is something symbolic about starting the year like this. A landscape wiped clean. A forced reset. A reminder that we are part of something bigger than our schedules and expectations.

Maybe 2026 isn’t asking us to rush into resolutions and goal setting.  Maybe it’s asking us to begin gently, to move forward with intention instead of urgency and to remember that we are human beings, not machines.

The snow will melt. Roads will reopen. Supplies will return. Life will speed up again. It always does.

But right now, in this moment, we are here. Slowed. Grounded. Connected.

And perhaps this pause is exactly how 2026 is meant to begin.

One of the things I love most about Reiki is how naturally it has been weaving throughout everything I do for nearly 20 years. Whether I’m holding space for a client in the yurt, guiding a group in Living Mindfully, tapping through emotions with EFT or easing tension with EMMETT or Reiki for an animal, the five Reiki Principles quietly sit at the heart of it all.

They’re simple. Grounding. Human. They invite us to live in a way that feels spacious and honest. And in the stillness of the yurt, surrounded by nature, they become even more alive.

Here’s how they gently shape a good life:
1. Just for today, I will not worry: When clients step into the yurt, we always begin with breathwork. This principle mirrors that first grounding breath: a reminder to return to the here and now. Worry dissolves just a little when you’re held in a calm space, feet on the earth, breath deepening. In sessions,whether EFT, Reiki or mindfulness, this is often where the real shift begins.
2. Just for today, I will not anger: Anger isn’t something to push away. In the yurt, we honour it. We tap through it. We listen to what it’s protecting. Through Reiki’s gentle presence and EFT’s emotional release, anger softens into clarity, making space for compassion, for self and others.
3. Just for today, I will give thanks for my many blessings: Gratitude is woven into every session: the warmth of the yurt stove, the rhythm of breath and the trust a client or animal places in the process. Gratitude helps bodies and nervous systems settle, allowing techniques like EMMETT, Reiki or mindfulness to work more deeply and effortlessly. 

4. Just for today, I will do my work honestly: Honesty is the foundation of the therapeutic space. In one-to-one sessions, group work or animal healing, I show up authentically, meeting each being exactly where they are. When I blend modalities, it’s never forced. It’s intuitive. Honest. Guided by what the moment calls for, whether that’s touch, energy, tapping or quiet presence.
5. Just for today, I will be kind to every living thing: This is the heartbeat of my practice. Kindness towards clients navigating life’s challenges. Kindness towards animals who may be carrying old stories in their bodies. Kindness towards the self, especially the parts that feel unseen or unheard. From grounding meditations to inner-child connections, kindness is the thread that ties everything together.
Why these principles matter in the yurt: The Five Reiki Principles aren’t just intentions, they’re companions. They guide every breathwork opening, every integrated session, every closing meditation. They help create a space of safety, presence and deep listening, whether the one receiving is a person, a dog or a young foal. In the quiet of the yurt, surrounded by nature, these principles become a way of living…and a gentle invitation to lead a life rooted in peace, compassion and mindful connection. 

My aim in life is to live and work with the 5 Reiki Principles woven through all I do. 

There’s a familiar phrase in the world of healing and mindfulness, “peeling back the layers of the onion.”
It’s a simple image but it captures something profound about the human experience. As we begin to explore our inner world, our patterns, our emotions, our stories, we often do so one layer at a time. Each layer we uncover brings understanding, relief and sometimes discomfort too. We might believe we’ve reached the core, only to find another layer waiting underneath.

Over time, I’ve come to realise that we never really finish peeling the onion. Personally, I found that realisation challenging but I have come to appreciate the process and embrace the learning. Even in the past few weeks I have peeled another layer but more of that another time, when the time is right

Each stage of life, each new experience, each relationship or challenge, invites us to meet ourselves again with fresh eyes and a deeper heart. The work of self-awareness isn’t about arriving at an endpoint where everything feels complete or resolved. It’s about learning to stay curious and compassionate, no matter what layer we find ourselves in.

In my own work, in 1-2-1 and Living Mindfully sessions, I see again and again that healing isn’t linear. Sometimes an old wound reappears, not because we’ve gone backwards, but because we’re ready to meet it from a wiser, softer place.  

The very fact that it’s surfaced again means something within us is ready for deeper understanding.

Rather than striving to “get to the end,” we can learn to honour the process, to meet each layer with gentleness and patience. Even the tears that come along the way are part of the softening, part of the letting go.

A Gentle Reflection: You might like to pause for a few quiet moments and explore this simple reflection:

1. Take a few slow breaths, allowing your body to settle and your attention to rest in the present moment.
2. Bring to mind an area of your life or an emotion that feels tender or uncertain right now.
3. Gently notice what arises without needing to change or fix it.
4. Ask yourself:
   “What might this layer be showing me?”
   “How can I meet this with kindness?”
5. Breathe again, and thank yourself for your willingness to be present.

Each breath, each act of awareness, is another step toward wholeness, not because you’ve peeled away every layer, but because you’ve learned to hold each one with love.  ​

Out in the fields, there’s a quiet, repetitive job that farmers and agricultural workers have done for generations, it’s called roguing. Specifically in barley fields, roguing means walking through rows of young plants and carefully removing any rogue plants that don’t belong. On our farm, it's wild oats. It’s slow work. It demands attention, patience and a certain commitment to care. I love an analogy and it came to me, as I walked slowly up and down the fields roguing barley, that it's a lot like tending to our mental health.  Yes, it takes place outside, surrounded by nature and involves exercise but it's there a lot more to it than that.  

What is roguing really? Roguing is a form of mindful farming. The rogue plants aren’t always easy to spot. Some look almost identical to the healthy crop (we have 'real' oats on the farm too). It takes a trained eye to notice what doesn’t belong, the subtle differences in shape, height or colour and because these rogues can affect the whole crop, removing them is essential for a healthy, pure harvest.  The wild oats will multiply tenfold by next harvest if they aren't removed.

Now think about your mind. Your thoughts, emotions, habits. They’re like the crop. Some serve you, some don’t and some quietly grow unnoticed, blending in until they start to crowd out the good.

Just like rogue barley, unhelpful thoughts and patterns can take root in our minds without us even realising. They can look like:

• Self-criticism that sounds like motivation
• Old coping mechanisms that no longer serve us
• Suppressed emotions that slowly affect our energy and mood
• Trauma responses disguised as “just how I am”

At first glance, they may seem harmless, even helpful. But left unchecked, they affect the whole field of our wellbeing.

The Practice of Noticing: Roguing barley isn’t rushed. It’s done slowly, carefully and with attention to detail. Mental health care asks for the same. When we pause, through breathwork, mindfulness, journaling, therapy or talking with someone we trust, we start to notice what’s growing within us.

We begin to spot the rogue thoughts:
“I’m not good enough.”
“I should be doing more.”
“I always mess things up.”

When we notice, we have a choice. We don’t have to believe every thought we think. We can gently acknowledge it, question it and sometimes, like the farmer in the field, remove it or at least loosen its roots.

Protecting the Crop: In roguing, the aim is to protect the integrity of the barley crop. In tending to our mental health, we’re protecting our inner landscape, not to make it perfect but to keep it resilient, balanced and able to grow well.

There’s also something beautiful in the fact that roguing is done by hand. One plant at a time. It reminds us that caring for ourselves isn’t about quick fixes. It’s slow, intentional and deeply human.

The Season for Tending: Roguing doesn’t happen all year round. There’s a season for it, when the barley is still young and it’s easier to make changes before the crop is set. In life, there are also natural seasons when things rise to the surface and we feel more able to tend to our inner world. Maybe it’s after a time of stress or during a retreat or even prompted by a conversation. Whenever that season comes, it’s okay to begin gently, with curiosity rather than judgment.

In the Field of the Mind: So next time you see a barley field or pass by rows of green stretching across the land, take a moment to think of the hands moving gently through it, choosing what stays and what goes.

That same care, that same mindful presence, is available to us every day, as we walk through the fields of our own minds.  After all, mental health isn’t about having a perfect crop, it’s about tending with love.

I’ve made the decision to take a step back from Social Media for a while, to pause, to breathe and to reconnect in a deeper way with myself, my work, and the world around me.

As someone who holds space for others in their healing and wellbeing journeys, I often speak about the importance of listening to our inner rhythms, noticing when we’re feeling overwhelmed, distracted or disconnected. Over the past few weeks, I’ve felt a gentle nudge (and then a much stronger one!) reminding me that I too need time to rest and realign.

Social media is a wonderful tool. It’s helped me connect with so many of you, share glimpses of the work I do in the yurt and celebrate the magic of mindful living. However, it can also be noisy, fast-paced and subtly draining. Right now, I’m craving slowness. I’m craving presence. I’m craving more time in the stillness of nature, in quiet reflection and in the gentle energy of one-to-one genuine connection.

This doesn’t mean I’m disappearing. I’ll still be here, offering sessions, running my Living Mindfully groups (we're not meeting in July but back to regular sessions starting 7th August) and holding space for all the wonderful humans and animals I work with. I’ll simply be sharing less online for a little while.

If you need to reach out, book a session or stay connected, please do!  It’s always a joy to hear from you. When the time feels right, I may return to social media with fresh eyes and a replenished spirit.

Until then, I’ll be walking barefoot in the grass, sitting with the trees and breathing deeply beneath the canvas of my yurt. Thank you for your understanding, and for walking this mindful path alongside me.

With my very best wishes,
​
Gillian x

In the quiet, nurturing space of my yurt, surrounded by nature and stillness, I often witness something profound: the gentle unfolding of someone reconnecting with their Inner Child. It’s a sacred part of my work, offering space for healing both the big, life altering traumas (Trauma with a capital T) and the more subtle, cumulative wounds (trauma with a small t) that can quietly shape our beliefs, behaviours and sense of safety in the world.
​
When we speak of Trauma with a capital T, we’re referring to experiences that overwhelm our system’s capacity to cope. These might include events like abuse, accidents, sudden loss or medical emergencies. These moments often register in our body and nervous system with a strong imprint, sometimes long after the event itself has passed.

But not all trauma is loud. 

Trauma with a small t refers to the more everyday, chronic or less overt experiences that can still be deeply impactful. These might include emotional neglect, feeling persistently unseen or unheard, being shamed as a child or growing up in an environment that was unpredictable or emotionally unsafe. Over time, these “smaller” experiences can compound and shape how we see ourselves and relate to others. They may whisper instead of scream but they still leave a mark.

Within all of us lives our Inner Child, a part that remembers what it was like to feel wonder, playfulness, and joy but also fear, loneliness and confusion. In trauma healing, especially the kind I support, this Inner Child becomes an essential guide.

Sometimes the adult self is ready to talk, to process and to heal but a younger part may still be frozen in fear, still believing it is not safe or not enough.

By mindfully and compassionately reconnecting with the Inner Child, we create a bridge between past and present. We invite that part of us to feel seen, heard and safe, often for the first time.

How I Work With Trauma and the Inner Child: Every session begins with mindfulness and breathwork to help clients arrive, not just in the physical space but in their body, in the moment. This gentle landing creates the safety needed to explore tender areas.

From there, I draw upon a variety of techniques, depending on the person’s needs in that moment:

• EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) helps to gently process stuck emotional energy, often allowing clients to name and shift old beliefs connected to trauma or their Inner Child.
• Reiki offers calm and regulation for the nervous system, especially when words feel too much or aren’t enough.
• Mindfulness and guided visualisation allow clients to “meet” their Inner Child in a supported way, offering loving presence, compassion and sometimes even re-parenting moments.
• EMMETT technique supports body based release when trauma is held physically, often easing tension or discomfort that has been stored for years.

Sometimes, all that is needed is to sit with the sadness of a five year old who didn’t feel safe or to celebrate the delight of a part that finally feels free to laugh. These moments are quiet but powerful.

Whether your trauma is big or small, sharp or quiet, you are not broken. Your response was your body and mind doing their best to protect you. And now, healing is possible, not through force but through kindness, patience and presence.
​
Working with trauma and the Inner Child is not about “fixing” something wrong; it’s about returning to yourself. And in that returning, remembering that you are worthy of love, safety, and joy.

I am at peace with my past and am now enjoying getting used to not living on high alert all the time. It warms my heart as I write this.  I didn't realise just how living on high alert has affected my everyday life over so many years.  In fact, it still doesn't feel completely 'normal' to not have that 'on edge' feeling but I'm getting there! 

I began this blog nearly two months ago and the last blog to be published was written at the end of October 2024.  A lot has been going on and the past few months have taken time to process.  My mother passed away in December, not long after her 89th birthday and while I was visiting my eldest daughter and her family in the USA.  That brought up a turmoil of emotions, some very unexpected. There was delight at spending time with my American grandkids but then the contrast of mum taking ill in the last week of my time over there. She passed away as I landed in Amsterdam. The festive season became a roller coaster of emotions, ending mid-January with a celebration of mum's life.  All my kids came home for that which meant a lot. Before I knew it, I was then immediately in the middle of final preparations for our wedding which was a few weeks ago. See photo above! It's been a bit of a whirlwind!

An unexpected thing happened in the weeks following mum's passing.  Instead of the type of grief that we would expect, I initially relived all sorts of trauma that I had experienced growing up. I didn't have a straightforward upbringing and it felt like I was right back there, like it was yesterday, instead of 50 years ago.  It was a strange feeling going through it as myself, but also as someone who now supports clients who have also come through different kinds of trauma and grief. It highlighted how we can never ever anticipate how someone is going to react or respond during these times.  Very few people know me well enough to know what happened, so even members of my own family didn't understand, even misinterpreting my outward response to the situation as meaning I wasn't experiencing 'grief' at all. Something that will possibly resonate with some of you. 

I don't usually get too personal but I want to share this in case it helps someone else. 

I quickly decided to not have any wellbeing clients in January and was very grateful to be in the position that I could do that. I knew that I had to work on me before I could support others again.  In that time, I had quiet time in the yurt, tried to keep the diary as clear as possible, listened to music, Tapped quite a lot and generally focused on selfcare.  Since then, I have slowly come back to having clients and in the last couple of weeks feel like I'm ready to get back into a more regular routine again, so here I am writing this blog! 

I had a couple of significant EFT sessions with colleagues that helped during this time, which is why I could begin this blog with 'I am at peace with my past...'. I feel good. I feel ready to embrace this new chapter of my life and am grateful for all the love and support I have around me. Feeling good means that I am also more able to support others. It's so important look after ourselves.  No one can pour from an empty cup.  So, today, do something just for you.  Something that will make you feel good.  It doesn't have to be anything dramatic, a wee walk, a bubble bath, a cup of hot chocolate, whatever you know will lift your spirits.  As you do that, notice how it makes you feel and remember that feeling. 

 Earlier this year, I took time for some selfcare and self development.  When you support others, it is even more important to look after yourself.  It's been a long time since I invested properly in myself and I am so glad I did. Fast forward about 6 months, so much of what I dreamed of and hoped for has come to fruitition. It didn't happen by sitting and waiting, it took action, self-belief and trust that it would all come together. 

I have dreamed about having a yurt for nearly 20 years.  I have talked about 'yurt envy' for a long time!!  I was introduced to a yurt when I first became part of Wo'Moon Circle, very nearly 20 years ago (our 20 year celebration is next year!) and since setting up my wellbeing business, I have hoped to create a special space for clients to come, to feel nurtured, supported and be surrounded by nature.  Up until a few months ago, I could only see the reasons why I couldn't have a yurt but my mindset changed and here we are!

It has been a fascinating journey, planning, then helping to put the yurt up with Paul Spencer, from Highland Yurts.  Paul went to Mongolia in 2007 to learn how to build yurts, or gers, as they are known over there.  He has built all the yurts that I know of in the North East of Scotland and has clients across the UK. He is an extremely skilled craftsman and shared the history and traditions of yurts with us, as he worked. 

The Yurt has a wood burning stove, a car park, is accessible and I am delighted to say that I will be welcoming clients to 'The Yurt at Logie Newton Farm' from October 2024 onwards.  I will continue to work from the Therapy Barn, Thainstone Business Centre, Inverurie once a month but the bulk of my online and in person appointments will be at The Yurt.  I look forward to seeing you there! 

About 20 years ago, I was invited to a Women's Circle.  It was a very tricky time in my life and I was in need of friendship, a non-judgemental space and some love. It was a lonely, scary time.  That event was the beginning of a journey that continues to this day.  In that special space, I began to find my feet again and I am now part of the Core Circle of that same Circle, welcoming women to our gatherings regularly throughout the year, providing that safe, non-judgemental space I needed all those years ago. 

That first Circle met in a yurt, so I link yurts with a feeling of being looked after, a safe, non-judgemental space where people can begin to heal.  For many years, I have dreamed of having my own yurt but couldn't see how it could ever happen. Earlier this year, I took some time for a bit of selfcare and development. During this time, any doubts I had about my path in life began to melt away and an inner confidence began to grow.  I contacted the 'Yurt Man' at Highland Yurts and asked if I could visit. We went up to Strathdon and on my way home began to plan how I could make it happen. 

What had changed? Only my self belief... 

I had already been drawn to 'The Dam' at the farm, an old dam that had dried up long ago and was now completely overgrown. I had been imagining how I could create a place for people to come and benefit from nature. With the possible addition of the yurt, my dreams began to blossom, explode might be a better word! My partner/best friend spent hours and hours clearing the area and with a bit of help we are nearly there.  The yurt is arriving in a few weeks time and by then I will have sown wildflower, woodland flower and grass seeds, planted a couple of small trees and parking spaces will have been created. 

The Yurt or 'The Sanctuary at Logie Newton' will be where I plan to work from, offering 1-2-1 sessions for all my clients, as well as small group sessions.  I will continue to work a few hours from the Therapy Barn at the Thainstone Business Centre, Inverurie but the focus of my work with humans will be at 'The Sanctuary at Logie Newton'.  I can't wait to welcome you there! 

PS Yes, the Women's Circle (Wo'Moon Circle) will also be back meeting in a yurt!