Kirsten Rennie

“Mind Body Medicine”

Diploma of Mind Body Medicine (Dip. MBM)

Diploma of Kinesiology (Dip. Kin)

Reiki Level 2 Practitioner

 

MBM and Kinesiology Course Advisor – College Of Complementary Medicine 2013/2014

Member of the Australian Traditional Medicine Society (ATMS) #28403

 

Welcome,

This is the story of my own personal journey with health and wellbeing. 

 

It also gives you an insight as to why I chose to specialise in Stress and Anxiety and Sexual and Intimacy issues, and why I am so passionate about the mind body connection.

 

This passion and drive has fuelled my vision to help people understand how the health of their mind is just as important as the health of their body AND how the two are linked.

 

When I was a young girl growing up in South Africa I realised I was slightly different from the other kids.  Sure I enjoyed ice cream, playing, and doing sports, but I was the happiest when I could be alone in nature with my thoughts.

 

You see I had many, many thoughts, deep thoughts, and huge philosophical questions I needed answers for!

My inner world was complex and I was fascinated why some people healed from illness and others didn’t.

 

I was always labelled a ‘sensitive’ kid who just liked to be left alone.  Most people wouldn’t believe this now because these days you can rarely shut me up.

 

All this time alone gave me an opportunity to connect with myself in a way (I now realise) most people never do.   I quickly learnt that we are multi-levelled beings and there is so much more to ourselves than just our physical bodies.

 

Growing up I always had a keen interest in the mind, body and soul and that healthy living should be simple and flow.

I instinctively knew in order for our bodies to flourish our minds need to be happy and balanced.

 

Health issue # 1 Sexual Health

In my late teens and 20’s I had some health issues (of a feminine nature) of my own and spent years going through the medical system as no one could find anything wrong with me.

I knew there was something wrong as I could feel pain, had excruciating painful periods and didn’t feel comfortable about being a women.

 

I felt the medical system was missing something – no thanks I don’t want medication to cover up my symptoms, or “coping” strategies.  I JUST wanted to find the root cause of my problem and take the steps to heal from it.

 

I was tired of telling one person about my symptoms and then another about my emotional state, couldn’t someone just treat me at once? I am the same person after all.

 

There were years of medical appointments, the final one came with the comment “its all in your head”

 

Whoa!! Excuse me just because your expertise does not understand the mind-body connection it does not mean that my my problem isn’t real.

 

This brought on my biggest epiphany yet, YES of course it’s all in my head (well mostly) because my head is connected to my body, and my body was the one giving me the grief in the first place!

 

I needed to REVERSE things.

 

So I stopped focusing on my bodies symptoms and started looking at my thoughts, emotions and beliefs surrounding my feminine issues.

 

After a few months of internal navigation and releasing negative patterns (I did this with a kinesiologist) my pain cleared up, periods softened and I felt more balanced and happy than ever before.  I also gained a deeper insight into myself  – this helped me in my friendships, job, intimacy and relationships, and general health.

 

I was able to understand first hand how the mind can affect the physical body. 

So impressed with my great results I decided I would study Kinesiology so I could help women with similar health issues. 

 

Kinesiology is a complimentary medicine that looks at the mind body connection when addressing health concerns.

 

Health issue # 2 Burn out

When I was 28 I had another serious health issue – adrenal fatigue (burn out from stress!) that I will share with you too.

 

Stress is normal and part of the human survival response (fight or flight).  It only becomes a problem when we are continuously in stress mode, leaving no room for the body to relax and repair.

 

What brought on my burn out?

• Stress from breaking up with my boyfriend
• Leaving Canada and my whole life to return to Australia which I really didn’t want to do
• My mother was sick in hospital with heart problems
• My Grandfather (who I was very close with) was dying
• Financial stress – I had been travelling so didn’t have a cent to my name
• Job hunting and accepting a job that was not congruent with my truth
• Leaving Sydney to find house on the Central Coast
• Traveling 3.5 hours each day for work

All this happened at once!

 

There were simply too many stresses, changes and challenges occurring at the same time.  I felt overwhelmed, lost and could not cope.  I was running on adrenaline, sugar and pure will power.

 

I hit rock bottom, became depressed and my health suffered hugely.

 

My symptoms were:

• Depression
• Massive sugar cravings
• Extreme mental exhaustion
• Anxiety & I was constantly fearful
• Fatigue  – I had to force myself to get out of bed
• Lost 11 kilos (and I was thin to start with!)
• Deep dehydration
• Digestion issues, Diarrhoea & Candida
• Hair falling out in clumps
• Mineral deficiencies
• No will to live
• Over thinking and worry

I became fearful of life itself and lost all trust in my capabilities to handle life situations. 

I also disconnected from my friends and family, too scared to ask for anyone’s help as that would mean the nightmare I was living was true.

I lost all respect for myself and caring for my body, which is so not the real me – I was simply surviving.

I had no enjoyment in life and knew there was something terribly wrong when the thought of chocolate ice cream didn’t make me smile – I am usually very food motivated.

 

It took me 6 years to fully recover and get my physical and emotional health back on track.   

 

Adrenal fatigue is one of the hardest and slowest health issues to recover from as it literally depletes you on a core level and messes with so many body systems, hormones and minerals.

 

I learnt, studied and researched what I needed to heal.  Antidepressants were not an option for me.

 

By addressing the stressful thoughts in my mind, supplements, diet and a lot of rest and relaxation my body was able to start repairing.  I worked with my body not against it.

 

Again I used the mind body connection.  I am now healthy and strong, emotionally balanced and in the flow of my life.

 

In clinic I use all this accumulated knowledge, personal experience, qualifications and wisdom to help my clients with stress and stress related conditions (even minor life stresses) to heal quickly and effectively.

 

 

Private Health Fund Rebates – the following private health funds offer rebates on Kinesiology.  Please always check your level of cover before claiming.

Provider numbers:

AHM 24803

Australian Unity 21138772

Grand Unity 21130064

CBHS 24803

HBA/BUPA (part of Mutual Community) C069186

CUA (previously called Credicare) 24803

Health Partners (part of ARGH) 24803

Manchester Unity (part of HCF) 24803

Medibank Private 1340485F

Teacher Health Fund (part of ARGH) 24803

 

How I keep balanced

To keep myself feeling healthy, balanced and grounded I enjoy spending time with my beautiful horse named Xaar. He is adorable, extremely cheeky and is my best friend.

I dedicate regular time to spend with him and when I can’t see him due to time restraints I include him in my morning meditation.

I just love being in nature, feeling connected to mother earth and experiencing true stillness, it’s the whole experience for me.  Xaar and I ride together, learn together and sometimes just hang out when times get tough.

A typical day goes something like this:

Cuddles and carrots, a little bit of training like how to stand still while mummy gets on –

he is an ex race horse so his natural instinct is to bolt when someone jumps on his back (think starting gates flying open), have lunch together.  He is not a good sharer but loves to taste what I am having.

The afternoon is spent brushing, washing, oiling his hooves making him look all spunky and sparkly clean… then he goes and rolls in the dirt, the little bugger!!

Before I leave I watch him graze on the graze with only love in my heart.

Hanging out with Xaar helps me quieten my mind and soothe my soul, I also enjoy getting out of the city and down and dirty in nature.

Dedicating regular time to nurture the quiet aspect of ourselves is really important as it rejuvenates us on so many levels.

Few benefits of quiet time:

• Calms down the nervous system
• Rebalances our energies and keeps us centered and grounded
• Increases relaxation
• Helps digestion and increases immune function
• Gives us an opportunity to re-connect to our truth
• Brings clarity

Horses and animals have an amazing ability to keep you in the present moment.  They also bring love and enjoyment into our lives and keep you in a heart-centered space.

If you are not an animal lover there are many different ways to keep balanced and still enjoy the health benefits that quiet time brings.

Try yoga, pilates or tai chi, bushwalking in your favourite national park, leisurely spend a few hours cooking your favourite meal, reading a book with no interruptions, meditation, treating yourself to a massage and so on.

So how do you keep balanced???