What brought me to 'here and now'? - and what is my vision for the future?

​

My name is Amy Ward, and I am a friend.  I am a friend who is committed to, and cares a great deal about, work in supporting people to discover their inherent sense of well-being (True Nature), in the way they find works best for them. I experience a deep connection with nature and care deeply about our planet. 

 

Along the journey I've pulled in some qualifications, skills, and experiences that I hope will help to support us. In 2011 I achieved a BSc (Hons) in Psychology at Glasgow Caledonian University then graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 2013 with a Masters in Applied Psychology (Healthcare) for Children and Young People, qualifying as a Clinical Associate in Applied Psychology.

 

Following this I worked in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (NHS) as a Child and Adolescent Therapist providing assessment, diagnosis, and psychological intervention to children, young people, and their families. My role involved working closely with parents, where I learned a great deal about the challenges for, and accompanied passion and determination of, parents of children who were struggling with their mental health.  This experience has been hugely valuable to me as a practitioner although I do now work with parents in a different way, through a soul led conscious parenting approach.

 

I also specialised in Cognitive Behavioural Therapies (CBT) for children and young people, including those with a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder. I worked in a teaching and tutor role with The University of Edinburgh, supporting clinicians to develop their skills in delivering mental health care for children, young people, and their families. Before my clinical training I worked extensively in the third sector with adults with disabilities.  I was also Team Leader for a service that supported children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. I still apply the tools and principles of CBT and also more often Internal Family Systems Theory where I feel that these will be helpful for you but I do so within the ground of Nondual Therapy. I am also deeply committed to Evidence Based Practice however I see many limitations to how this is currently expressed and practiced and practice in a way that I feel is more aligned with what I see to be real and true. You can explore more about my approach to

Evidence Based Practice HERE.

 

I'm delighted to have had these experiences but am also very excited to have now stepped out of these roles and into being more of my own unique expression of life and supporting others in the way that my heart freely leads me. I work with an open heart and what feels like boundless creativity, often living on the road with nature as my guide!

​

I have dreamed of starting this project  for a number of years, wanting to provide accessible and holistic support through nature reconnection.  I have also discovered that I need a life that connects me with nature and works in symphony with our planet as a means of ensuring that my own well-being is taken care of.

 

Nature teaches us to 'work from the centre outwards' and so I gave up my role with the NHS in April 2019, converted my VW Campervan, and set out on my own adventure, discovering and learning about other projects in the UK that are working within similar values and towards similar goals.  During this time I have completed my Permaculture Design Certificate, became a facilitator for the Think Like a Tree programme, and dived deep into The Work that Reconnects and Cultural Emergence, been trained in Nondual Therapy , Breathwork, and other approaches in spiritual psychology and shamanic practice, which have all involved my direct experience in my own deep journey of healing. I have now developed the Light Touch Integration Therapeutic Coaching Intensive as the heart of my work. 

​

​

I strongly believe that by connecting with and being inspired by 'how nature does it' can really support us as individuals and communities to take care of our well-being.  Through my own healing journey over the past three years I have discovered Nature to be our greatest guru, leading us straight to our own inner guru, which guides us to discover our deeper truth and the boundless well of well-being that is our True Nature. In 2019 I experienced a profound Nondual spiritual awakening where I discovered the one True Self of which we all are.  From this experience I could see how learning and following nature's teachings played a huge role in leading me to this realisation.  These experiences and way of seeing completely shifted my understanding of how to support others in their suffering and I now work with people through my seeing that Universal Consciousness is primary to all of existence.  Why, because I know that journeying towards this understanding, through our own direct Self-Enquiry, provides us with a path to freedom from suffering and into a way of living that allows us to experience the joy and vitality of the life that we are, with deep fulfilment! 

​

My pull towards a Deep Ecology  approach to working is also driven by my understanding that we are not separate from our environment, that we ARE nature, and that by supporting others to understand this they can thrive, be released from tension, and live a happy and fulfilled life.  Through developing an awareness of and deeper connection to what we truly are we can, literally, rewrite the story of the body-mind. The result? We heal. deeply! Our whole perspective and way of seeing life shifts dramatically. We experience the peace and symphony of nature's dance, along with all else that comes through the natural world. Our environment really does matter (be that our home, community, or wider planet) and we must strive towards change, transition, and adaptation to support our health and happiness and that of all other living beings. Through working at both an individual and systems level we can help each other across people, communities, and organisations. I have immense faith in our capacity to heal.

 

I can't wait for us to work together in our embrace of this beautiful life!

​

​

​