I never meant to be a therapist or start a business…
I never meant to start a business….In fact if truth be told… I fell into it by accident because Bowen Therapy was a life saver for me & I wanted to learn more about it. I don’t know when I decided that it might be my third career, but I was very inspired by my practitioner that looked after me in Norfolk. so much that when I was made redundant and realised it might be the Universe giving me a nudge toward more fulfilling work, although the thought of being self employed was quite scary.
In 2000 Bowen Technique changed my life, when a taster session relieved my pain after three years from two car accidents (in one day in 1997!) and an assault (in 1998), at a time when I had almost given up on pain-free. That last 30 minute taster session of the day, with Stephen Fullick, at a Complementary Health Fair was miraculous to me, especially as I can’t take painkillers so was in a really bad way
I followed up with three weekly sessions with with Stephen Fullick, the pain was gone all that time. Several months later I began to have pain, so chose to have regular maintenance Bowen sessions because it kept me free from aches, pains & stiffness.
When I was made redundant in 2006 I decided it was time to finally ‘put my (redundancy) money where my mouth was’ and trained to be a Bowen Therapist with ECBS (European College of Bowen Studies) qualifying in 2008. Training with people who were already self-employed made it seem ‘normal’ so by the time I qualified in Bowen Technique in 2008, I became self-employed and started trading as Jill Clappison Bowen Therapy.
Blown away again by EMM-Tech & EMMETT Technique
2005 to 2008 was a time of big change for me, getting together with Paul, being made redundant and working contract in Scotland and finally moving to Hampshire, as well as training in Bowen Technique.
Paul was interested in therapy but wanted to try something different, so in 2009 we both attended an EMM-Tech one day course with Sue Gassick, it was absolutely amazing, the results we witnessed & experienced first hand where stunning – I would never have believed I could be blown away again like I had been with Bowen years before, but I was!
Regular Bowen sessions helped me with life’s accidents – including in 2003 I had been knocked into my car’s bumper by another car causing knee & leg problems. Shortly before we moved to Hampshire in 2008, I had a nasty fall downstairs which meant I was having problems with my knees & my mobility because I hadn’t found a local therapist.
During the EMM-Tech course Sue picked me to demonstrate the knee release because I could not get up from seated or a squat without severe pain – a couple of minutes later I could deep squat with zero pain getting back up – I was blown away again & wanted to learn the technique; learning that I could integrate it with my existing therapy encouraged me even more; Paul & I have been huge EMMETT fans and advocates ever since.
Paul & I took our very first modules with Ross Emmett when he visited the UK in 2010 & we were completely hooked. We have taken various courses since becoming therapist in 2010 & full practitioners in 2011. I also became an EMM-Tech tutor in 2011 to share this amazing technique that anyone can learn. We finally became Advanced EMMETT practitioners in 2019.
Life before therapy
Being a Bowen Technique Therapist is actually my third career. Originally after leaving school I worked as a shop assistant for a few years, then I was made redundant which was a something of a shock. After a series of events that must have been more than coincidence I ended up at the local Further Education College studying for a BTEC in Computer Studies. I didn’t manage to get a job after this (it was the 80’s recession) so went on to complete both a HND in Data Processing and a BSc in Software Technology after which I got my first job in IT.
I worked for several different companies, eventually being on the road a lot visiting sites, then in 1997 I had 2 car accidents in 2 days, and a few months later was assaulted. After this I was living in constant pain and fortunately found an office bound role, which was manageable despite the side-effects of the only type of painkillers I was able to take.
About 3 years later I discovered Bowen Technique, had a taster session and miraculously I was pain free. After 3 more sessions I had complete relief of pain from my issues. This lasted 6 months after which just a single session brought me back into balance, having a maintenance treatment every two months continued to keep me pain-free, for the following years
Life has since thrown other things at me & each time the Bowen therapy and now EMMETT Technique (Bow-EMM) has made a difference, resolving issues or accelerating the healing process. I find it amazing that Bow-EMM is not something that the body ‘gets used to’ and is still highly effective even after being treated with Bowen regularly for over two decades now.
The redundancy in 2006 gave me a small amount of redundancy and was the ‘kick in the pants’ I needed to finally get myself trained as a Therapist, originally with a mobile practice covering across the East Hampshire/West Sussex area and working out of Clanfield, now we’ve moved into Portsmouth/Southsea I work out of rented room.
One of the highlights of our year is the festivals and events we attend, it’s great fun to get to talk and meet people and we love sharing Bow-EMM and are so impressed by the results that we can witness with people that have an EMMETT Technique session with us.
Many of the work we do at events is the same releases I teach on the EMM-Tech Course, and we’ve been so happy that quite a few who have attended our course have gone on to the full practitioner courses with Emmett-uk, even if it’s only to assist their partners, family & friends.
I feel lucky and blessed to have become a therapist and be able to assist some lovely people, thank you
For a full list of training we have done check out our Journal