James Wood spent a pleasant two hours with the Ross Cancer Support Group on January 16th. He spoke about creating health and wellbeing through the medium of pottery. He practices Integrated Healing and Classical Homoeopathy and also has a pottery studio at The Builders Yard, Ledbury.

Mr Wood spoke about his early life and his community youth work in a very deprived and divided isolated youth community in the Newcastle area. By the time he moved on, he achieved much in getting the community to work in a united way, settling their differences and attracting support and development from outside agencies.

He also studied, and is well qualified in, Classical Homoeopathy as well as Integrated Healing, having studied in many places, travelling the world. It is about stimulating the body’s own healing mechanism to regain balance, health and well being. Through Integrated Healing balance is achieved by stimulating energetic points enabling the body’s own energy system to retune itself. He explained that by re-writing the “software” of the mind you can change the printout of your life. By changing beliefs you can change behaviour and consequently, performance.

He explained that as an alternative to, what he described as, all this “head stuff” he took up pottery as medium of expressing what goes on inside as we grow and develop. Pottery, like people, he said develop from the inside. If we are not centred, as the potter centres the clay on the wheel, we collapse, or become lop-sided and affected by external influences.

Mr Wood used various forms of pottery to demonstrate what happens, and related it to our own experiences. He talked about how we need to examine our own beliefs, what we absorb, what we reject, what is important to us and how to become outcome driven. We are in control of our attitudes, and should avoid comparing ourselves to others, but consider how we relate to others and they in turn relate to you, as they themselves have choices. When we feel ‘stuck’ we need to examine what is in and develop a new picture to achieve growth. He gave the group some exercises to demonstrate the power of the mind and how we perceive things and how this perception can be influenced by external influences. For example, these can range from beliefs and values with which we were brought up, to friends and family and, especially these days, the media in all its forms.

Friends and family can be particularly difficult because they are often well meaning but not happy when we change. He finished by discussing the group members’ own concerns and fears.

Mr Wood is returning in April to continue this discussion.

Jill Stern, who is an essence practitioner, is visiting the group on Tuesday, February 20th to talk about how to use essences for emotional wellbeing. Some members might be familiar with Rescue Remedy, a Bach essence that is very helpful in dealing with emergencies, accidents, and stressful situations.  There are many other essences which can help with stress, anxiety, sleep issues, self-confidence, emotional recovery from anaesthetics and surgery, unhelpful negative emotions, and adjustment to changes in life.

On Tuesday, March 20th Siobhan Macquillan, Physiotherapist at Ross Community Hospital is giving a talk on the important benefits of physiotherapy with, no doubt, some exercises, but nothing too strenuous.

A programme of further events for the year has also been planned. New members are always welcome. For more information contact Paul Baker by email: [email protected] or phone 07867 987992 or Gerald Francis via [email protected]