In 1995 I left Guernsey to study. Each time heading back to the mainland on the ferry, I watched St Peter Port until I couldn’t see it.  And just look at that sunrise to welcome me back as we arrived at the end of July!

Back to 2000, once I’d finished my degree I found I had more I wanted to study, and the world drew me to different places to learn and experience. And then in 2007 I almost came back. Well, I got as far as Jersey and having chosen to stop a while, other factors dictated that I stay there a while longer.

Now, I love many parts of Jersey and have met some wonderful people there, but Guernsey was always home. I don’t know how many more times I could convince the family to come back in the summer to watch me try to hide when it was time to leave! So finally, and thanks enormously to my family for embracing the big move, and to the support I received from Locate Guernsey, we were able to make that final move… Home.

It all began when I wanted to be a mechanic. I’d like to say it had nothing to do with being like Charlene (remember her?!). But really I’d always liked taking things apart and seeing how they worked. Anyhow, mum said that was a man’s game so I couldn’t do it. Luckily I also wanted to be a doctor and even when I was a kid that was for girls and boys. Fixing people as opposed to machines. However, our experiences in that area were largely based on pharmaceutical medicine which just didn’t hit the button for me so I kept looking. Then I heard about this thing called chiropractic which used a mechanical approach for mechanical problems. Now you’re talking!! And the best bit was the study was 5 years, including certification in taking and reading x-rays and as many hours of study, including many cross over subjects, as medicine, as well as particular focus on neurology and biomechanics, so that satisfied my brain too. Win, win!

I enrolled at the Anglo-European College of Chiropractic (Portsmouth University). All was going swimmingly, and then I went to the World Conference of Chiropractic Students in South Carolina in my 2nd year. Then everything changed….

I met a delegation of chiropractors-to-be that didn’t understand my mechanical view. They had such a different idea of what role chiropractic plays in health is that I left this conference with a million questions ????? some of which I am still finding answers for today.

The primary shift was into functional neurology and whole body acknowledgement rather than segmental. Mechanics in a car is one thing but unless you’re Kit (if you didn’t watch Neighbours you must have seen Nightrider) then a car doesn’t have brains, anticipation, memory of the last time it went down that road when it was wet and slippery so I better go more carefully this time etc.

This is when I found things got truly awesome. Now using long established chiropractic techniques with functional and standard neurological testing laid on top you have a pretty diverse, analytical tool kit to seek out where problems begin, reaching beyond staring at the symptoms. This gives the opportunity to recognise dysfunctional patterns, how different areas of problem may interact and relate to each other and where the origins in the pattern begin (looking for the first domino in the rally).

Which are the easiest to address is a clinical experience decision, and co-working with other professionals or lifestyle change factors will determine what the plan of action is to make those positive health changes.

I’m super excited to be back home and able to serve the community I loved growing up in. So if you want to get yourself checked, if you want a different proactive, positive approach to improving your function and health, to investigating how your body is working for you, then please give me a shout and I’ll share my knowledge of the past 20 years with you.