Mum and Daughter Hope To Help Families
Western Gazette - 31 May 2007
Offering affordable complementary health care in Somerset has been a dream come true for mother and daughter team Angela and Maddy Casey.
Ever since Angela saw how complementary therapy benefited her disabled son she has been working towards helping families in similar situations.
Now with the setting up of a 12-month pilot project that offers the Bowen Therapy, an holistic system of therapy administered through lightly touching the skin, to children and young adults up to the age of 19 that dream is now realised.
Both Angela and Maddy are so committed to the ideal of affordable complementary health care that they have set up the Blue Wren Project, which is what is known as a community interest company, using its profits and assets for public good.
The project was established last year and is based in Glastonbury with the aim of helping people who feel they are not able to access the type of support that complementary health can give.
Angela, aged 61, and Maddy, 32, are both trained therapists in the Bowen Technique and have set up a Saturday Bowen Clinic in Glastonbury.
The clinic, which has attracted Lottery funding, is held at St Mary's Catholic Church and is aimed at young people who have health problems, disabilities or other problems that affect their lives and the lives of their families.
They believe the therapy can help with the management of many childhood problems such as cerebral palsy, ADHD and Autistic Spectrum Disorder, as well as helping with all kinds of everyday health and behavioural problems.
The clinic has also been the realisation of a dream held by Angela for many years to help families which she always felt could benefit from complementary therapy.
She said: "I have a son with cerebral palsy with autistic features and I have seen the difference it has made to him. By setting this clinic up we have realised my dream of helping families in similar situations.
"My son has seen the benefit from complementary treatment and I felt there were many families out there with the same difficulties and the same lack of money. I thought it would be fantastic to get therapy available to them and that is what we have done."
The Bowen Therapy is a non-invasive, holistic therapy that consists of a sequence of gentle moves over muscles and soft tissue and is applied through clothing.
Both mother and daughter are constantly surprised at the benefits they see the therapy bring to families.
Angela said: "The therapy sets out to help people. It does not set out to be diagnostic and it helps people not specific conditions. It brings people into balance and harmony and gives them a sense of wellbeing."
As well as the Bowen Saturday Clinic, the Blue Wren Project also sets out to help older people and those with disability or care requirements, ill health addictions or social problems.
One of their projects sees regular sessions at sheltered housing projects and they also support Turning Point with a clinic for drug users.
Angela became a qualified therapist after working as a Portage home visitor and working with pre-school children with health and social problems.
She said: "One of my clients was a little girl who would not stop crying and would not sleep. One day I decided to use lavender oil and do some massage and she slept.
"I felt a connection with the girl and that feeling of connection was such a good one I decided to change course and train as a therapist."
Although Angela mainly practices Bowen Technique she is also qualified in other fields such as massage, aromatherapy, reflexology, healing and stress management.
Maddy has been qualified as a Bowen therapist for two years and is now extending her training to offer the same therapy for dogs.
She said: "I trained because of the remarkable effect on my young brother. I thought it important to have another therapist in the family and have really enjoyed the training."
Both mother and daughter are delighted that the Blue Wren Project is finally off the ground after two years of hard work and research.
Maddy said: "It is really enjoyable to see the clinic booked up and people turning up every Saturday."
The project is to become even more family orientated in the future as Maddy's twin brother, Jasper, is training in Bowen.
To book for the Saturday Bowen Clinic call 01458 831726 or e-mail info@ bluewren.co.uk