SACKVILLE, N.B. — Your body has the power to heal itself. You just have to be open to the idea of allowing it to happen.
That’s the idea behind naturopathic treatments that are slowly becoming more accepted and gaining popularity across Canada, ones that Terry Jones is bringing to the area through a new clinic she recently opened in downtown Sackville.
Jones, a registered naturopath and a reiki practitioner, says great things can happen when people seek natural, therapeutic treatments that support the body’s own healing ability.
Reiki, for example, is an energy healing technique that provides benefits by restoring a person’s balance as well as their physical and emotional wellbeing.
“The whole idea, the whole premise (of reiki), is to take the energy that is within the person and redirect it throughout their body so that their own energy heals themself,” said Jones.
“You don’t take energy from them, you don’t give energy to them, they don’t take energy from you … but it’s self-healing,” she says. “It’s hard to explain the way you feel. But it is calming and peaceful and effective in so many different ways. It allows your energy to go to the areas of your body that needs to be balanced for an overall healing.”
Reiki, along with other energy healing treatment, such as hypnosis and chakra, can be used successfully with other medical treatments and therapies a person is undergoing, says Jones.
She notes it’s important clients understand her therapies are in no way intended to replace any treatments or medications they are already taking but are simply a complementary, all-natural, non-invasive way to improve their health.
“I don’t heal, I don’t medicate, I don’t diagnose. All I do is stimulate you – your body and your energy – so that you can heal yourself because the human body has an amazing ability to heal itself.”
The 55-year-old retired LPN and educational assistant is also a trained hypnotist, a technique she describes as putting someone into a state of heightened concentration where they are more suggestible.
Jones said this technique can successfully treat things like anxiety, smoking, phobias, abuse, PTSD, stress and can help achieve weight loss, but the participant has to have a strong will and desire to make that change.
Jones also offers facial and foot reflexology, a treatment she says can benefit just about everyone. It can help with alleviating headaches, reducing arthritic and back pain, easing premenstrual discomforts, reducing diabetes symptoms, giving support during addiction withdrawals, and is effective in lowering stress levels, among others. Simply put, reflexology can improve your overall health and well-being, she notes.
Melissa Wilson, who recently reached out to Jones to help ease her back pain from her office job, says even after her first treatment it didn’t take long to start noticing the benefits reflexology offers. And she plans to be a repeat customer to continue the healing process.
“The treatments are very relaxing and educational,” she says. “I learned a lot through the process of how our body works with different types of pressure points that trigger specific places in your body.”
An ancient practice, reflexology is based on the premise that, by applying pressure to specific points and areas on the feet or hands, which correspond to different organs and systems throughout the body, reflexologists are able to stimulate a response that helps promote the natural function of the related areas of the body.
“All of your systems are getting stimulated to begin to regenerate and to balance,” says Jones, who received her training at the Atlantic School of Reflexology in Fredericton.
Reflexology is not meant to completely replace traditional medical care, particularly when it comes to chronic or acute conditions, she says, but it can serve as a beneficial complementary treatment and is a viable and proven approach to improving a person’s overall health.
“The bare minimum you can guarantee with every session of great foot reflexology is you increase circulation; and by increasing circulation, your blood flow is taking oxygen and nutrients to the areas that need more,” she says.
The doors to Ravenstone at 47 Main St., in downtown Sackville opened in December and Jones says she is enthusiastic about being able to offer a variety of naturopathic treatments in Sackville, which means that people don’t have to leave the area to get those services.
“I like helping people. I get as much out of it as the person who’s getting the treatment,” she says. “It’s joy. It’s not work. I can’t imagine ever doing anything else, except taking more courses and adding more specialties.”
She says everyone should try energy healing or reflexology at least once, treatments that are gaining much more recognition and acceptance around the country.
“I can guarantee that it’s an hour of total relaxation, increasing circulation, helping your body balance and heal itself. It’s totally non-invasive, it’s totally effective, and complementary to everything you have.
“It’s just nice to take a moment to pause. Our lives are so busy and we put ourselves behind on the list of things to do, that we never ever get to ourselves.”
Ravenstone is open Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and bookings can also be made on evenings and weekends by appointment. Call 506-364-1100 or book online at ravenstonehealing.ca
What Ravenstone offers
- Foot reflexology, also known as zone therapy, is an alternative medicine treatment involving application of pressure to the feet with specific thumb, finger and hand techniques with minimal or no use of lotion. Stimulating specific reflexology points with finger pressure helps the body focus on its corresponding areas, encouraging circulation, hormone regulation, toxin removal, relaxation and overall balance.
- Facial reflexology stimulates reflex points that correspond to whole body health, while using natural face lift techniques for vibrant skin glow and anti-aging properties. Clients benefit from improved lymph and circulation flow in the face and body, and frequently report a wonderful feeling of nurture and wellness.
- Reiki is a healing technique based on the principle that the therapist can channel energy into the patient by means of touch, to activate the natural healing processes of the patient’s body and restore physical and emotional well-being.
- Hypnosis is a technique for putting someone into a state of heightened concentration where they are more suggestible. Certified hypnotists use this treatment to help patients break bad habits, such as smoking, or achieve some other positive change, like losing weight. This is done with the help of mental imagery and soothing verbal repetition. It can also help people cope with negative emotional states, such as stress and anxiety, as well as pain, fatigue, insomnia, mood disorders and more.
RELATED:
Mainstreet Redevelopment Sackville Inc. Business of the Month: Payless Liquidation
New Sackville business puts spotlight on local produce from local farms
