The first time I meet Gretchen Miles she exuded friendly, down-to-earth energy that immediately made me comfortable and engaged. Maybe it was the fact that we both have curly hair. Perhaps it's because we both married later in life, she at 39 and I at 44. But, I suspect, that it had more to do with the fact that she was highly attentive to what I said and shared information about herself that encouraged real connection.

When I called her to find out more about her specialty, Bowenwork, it became perfectly clear that creating connections is a major focus in everything she does.

Q: What is Bowenwork?

A: Bowenwork is a hands-on modality performed by massage therapists. It involves light pressure and finger strumming across muscles, nerves and fascia in order to elicit the body's innate healing response.

A person experiences deep relaxation and the body goes into its healing mode -- deeply and profoundly like it does when we're in a deep sleep.

Q: How is this different from traditional Swedish massage?

A: During Bowenwork we are mechanically resetting muscle proprioceptors (mechanisms in the belly of muscle and at muscle and joint junctions that indicate to brain if the muscles have stretched too far or have been too contracted). With overstrain the muscles forget how to work naturally. Bowenwork helps to relax the body's defenses and to let the muscle and body heal.

Q: Is it doing anything else?

A: The deep vibration also affects organs and deep structures in the body. So I can positively affect things like: PMS, fertility in both sexes, blood pressure, immune system, migraines, TMJ, frozen shoulder, knee and back pain.

Q: What role does awareness play in your work?

A: Awareness allows me to hear more than the words that people are speaking when they come to me. My awareness enables me to sense if there are emotions that may be underlying the pain and condition. Bowenwork allows the body to heal on many levels. As the Bowenwork creates physical changes, clients often find that other changes are occurring in their life. When you heal physical discomfort, people often then shift their attention to outside influences that often emotionally charged. Clients become aware that emotions create an energetic influence in the body that may create dysfunction.

Awareness allows a gentleness for myself as well as a gentleness in my relationships to others.

Q: When I first spoke with you, you said something that captured my attention. You said, "It's my time and I have to stand in my understanding of that." Can you explain what you meant?

A: I've been through a lot of personal growth and I believe that it's vital that I encourage others to go through their own growth.

I was in a financial field for eight years. I had this expectation of being a super high-powered business person who was available 24/7. I let my business relationships be my social life. I had headaches, body aches and I cried myself to sleep at night.

I finally had an "Aha" moment when I realized that I didn't have any fulfillment in my life. In my heart I knew that I wanted to be working with individuals on a deeper level; I wanted to make real connections. So I quit my job, my career, sold my condo, moved back in with my parents and went to school.

Q: How did you decide on Bowenwork?

A: As a child I had affirming experiences around the power of touch. Then as I got older I would have conversations with people in which I could tell them all about themselves. I could sense things about them that other people would never pick up.

My first day of massage school I had this incredible visceral feeling that I was "home." I knew that this was what I was meant to do.

Now, after eleven years in a healing field, four using Bowenwork, I've refined my business to really reflect my truths.

Q: What are these personal truths?

A: People come to me because they're in pain, but they are drawn to me because I'm trying to help the whole person. I'm treating mind, body and spirit. That's why I've refined my business model to become an integrated health office; I can't treat it all.

Q: What other health services are offered?

A: Traditional Swedish massage with essential oils, and we have a registered nurse who is a healing touch professional.

Another piece of my awareness of "standing in my time" is the responsibility I feel to say "Stop!" to the disconnect between practitioners. Often as healers we can become ego-centered. I've been there, too, when I thought I was the only one who could do it right.

There is so much wisdom in listening to different perspectives. I strive to create connections with other professional healthcare givers: traditional doctors, naturopath, physical therapists, chiropractors, acupuncturists, nutritionists. This way clients have the confidence that the people treating them are talking to each other. The right hand really does know what the left is doing. I'm building a connection in trust.

Gretchen Miles, LMP RBT, operates Integrated Health Northwest, LLC. in Snohomish, Washington. Visit her website at: www.integratedhealthnw.com

One of the biggest challenges that many of us face as we each go after our dreams is this: to remain open and generous when faced with the success of other people.

Have you ever found it difficult to support the growth or success of someone else? Oh, how quickly that little jealousy devil can appear without warning, turning us into less than gracious and supportive friends, co- workers or associates.

We all work so hard and, sometimes, the gains we're seeing don't meet our expectations or desires. At times like this it's easy to fall prey to wrong thinking when someone else makes a big stride, thinking like: "I'm more experienced, why aren't I receiving the attention," or "I've worked so hard, I should be getting opportunities like that!"

I know, I've experienced it myself. As a writer, I used to find that jealousy would instantaneously appear each time I read about an acquaintance or other writer getting a book published. It was a horrible feeling of "why not me?" I certainly didn't like feeling like that.

Likewise, I've experienced a bit of energetic envy shooting my way. That can happen for many reasons. Sometimes, when you go beyond what another person envisions as possible for you, they aren't happy when you challenge their perceptions (even though you may not realize you are doing this). Some people don't like other people finding creative, out-of- the-box, ways to succeed in life. They think everyone should follow ONE way. You can't control other people's perceptions or feelings, so it's important to find a healthy way to handle other people being less than supportive of your efforts.

STEPS TO CONSIDER IF YOU'RE FEELING STABS OF ENVY:

1. Be proactive in your congratulations. Just by taking the action of putting out positive feelings toward another person, by email or in- person, you'll feel better.
   
   
2. Try to really feel excited for their success knowing that your day will come. For instance, I attend book readings and go to book launch parties. That way I see what the experience is like and that makes it easier to imagine what it will be like for me.
   
   
3. Take a breathe and get perspective: there is enough abundance for everyone. We all have individual paths and our specific actions lead to very specific results. That's why it's nearly impossible to imitate someone else's success. You have to embrace your own path to success: the special opportunities that you receive.

People live differently in time. We each move through time in relation to the past, present or future. People who live in the past have a difficult time with change. I'm referenced to the future. Once I know where I'm going, I have no trouble getting there.

Morgan J. Miller, Morgan J. Miller Photography, specializing in children and women.

If you wish to use any of the articles from Living Awareness in your own electronic newsletter or ezine please include the following paragraph:

Reprinted from Living Awareness, a fr*ee ezine from conscious communications expert Melissa Wadsworth featuring interviews, articles and exercises to inspire more life clarity, focus and joy. To sign up go to:
www.melissawadsworth.com and receive a complimentary copy of Seven Steps to Self Empowerment.

Visit the links below to view past issues:

August 2006: The Law of Attraction

September 2006: Successful Self-Awareness

October 2006: Personal Responsibility

November 2006: Change

December 2006: Balance

January 2007:New Year Planning

February 2007: Human Connection