Why give up a perfectly good job?!
- Helen Smillie
- Nov 21, 2024
- 2 min read
Updated: Jun 23

When I left school—after a three-year gap year—I really wanted to study Clinical Psychology. My parents declined this investment opportunity (a great shock to me at the time)… something to do with my deep and enduring commitment to partying, they said. Instead, it was decided I’d train as a registered nurse.
There was a lot I loved about nursing. Supporting people to come back from the brink or being there for them and their families in their final days was hugely rewarding. But I always felt a tension with the medical model. My mum had put herself into remission using yoga and a raw food diet alongside conventional treatment. I’d been fascinated by herbal medicine since junior school, used Bach Flower Remedies as a student to help with stress, and taught my fellow nursing students progressive relaxation techniques. I dreamed of the day conventional healthcare embraced the whole person. I was a square peg.
Years later, while studying First Light Flower Essences of New Zealand, I learned about the tension between the life you lead and your soul’s purpose—and how being out of alignment can lead to illness. It made sense to me that I’d eventually burned out and had to leave the hospital environment (burnout wasn’t really a thing back then… I just thought I was exhausted and mysteriously unwell).
I don’t reject modern medicine—when there’s severe illness or trauma, it’s absolutely necessary. But for those of us wanting to live in good health, balance, and purpose, we need to look beyond the medical model for approaches that see the whole person.
I explored naturopathy and herbal medicine before settling on ThetaHealing, flower essences therapy, hypnotherapy, and NLP. These modalities help me address the whole person. And sometimes, if the occasion is right, I might lean into the deeply woo-woo part of myself with mediumship or spiritual counselling.
So, I’ve left the comfort of a long career in consulting and contracting to finally align with my soul’s purpose—the thing that makes my heart sing and lets the mask of acceptance of a life less well lived fall away. Supporting others to heal! There’s nothing more rewarding than seeing someone come into alignment with their reason for being here, watching the tension between two worlds melt away.
This is me. I’m not jumping on the wellness bandwagon, and I’m not selling snake oil. But I will walk alongside you and guide you to the path that leads to healing—body, mind, and soul. I’ll help you navigate the twists and turns, but ultimately, you’re in control of the journey.
These wise Sufi words are ones I try to live by (and I say try because, like most of us, I’m a work in progress). I hope they might resonate with you too:
Love all and hate noneMere talk of peace will avail you naughtMere talk of God and religion will not take you farBring out all of the latent powers of your being and reveal the full magnificence of your immortal selfBe surcharged with peace and joyAnd scatter them wherever you are and wherever you goBe a blazing fire of truthBe a beauteous blossom of loveAnd be a soothing balm of peace
Hazrat Khwāja Mu’inuddin Chishti (r.a.) 1236 AD