As clients, we want to know if we can “like, know and trust” the businesses we buy from and the people whose services we use, so in this series we talk to the Changemakers who are making a difference in the world and ask them to step out into the spotlight to tell us their story.

It’s the turn of Ciara Roberts from Wholly Aligned

Tell us about yourself and what you do?

Following a hectic career in banking I am now five years into running my own business Wholly Aligned. A life much more aligned with my true values and purpose.

Studying for three years at the College of Naturopathic Medicine in London prepared me with a great knowledge base in naturopathic nutrition covering tremendous and rich teachings of human science, biochemistry of food and understanding various disease pathologies. Importantly looking very much at root cause medicine, alongside building the required clinical skills to become a truly effective practitioner.

Upon completing my nutrition studies I also decided to train as a yoga teacher, yoga having been very much a part of my life since a child and featuring as a helpful tool in adulthood to stay true to my body and understand we are not at the mercy of our minds. The combination of yoga and nutrition as well as other ancient wisdoms I have been drawn to, including shamanic principles that teach us to live in accordance with the laws of nature, have facilitated deep inner spiritual excavation for myself and therefore I am able to share this in service to others with how I now work.

Having lived with kidney issues since a young child, I know how incredible our bodies can be at handling and rebalancing so many different circumstances, so we all can indeed move collectively towards being wholly aligned.

How did you get started?

Our greatest challenges can become our greatest opportunities for growth and evolution. I followed my gut, as to have turned away from my own instincts would have left be empty and unfulfilled. It was a decline in my health that prompted me to dive into my true passions and create a life that I love. So I stepped away from corporate life, having been very fortunate to do so in stages, as I was supported by my then employer to go part time. I went down to three days a week and then decided to take the plunge and just go for it one year later.

You will find when you listen to your heart’s calling, the people and situations around you affirm and support your choices. I had only great positivity when I announced I was resigning. I felt truly that the wind was at my back.

What were you doing in a previous life?

I worked my way up a ladder of corporate success in private banking. Whilst it was full on and at times very draining, I did meet great people along the way and learned a lot about the psychology of behaviour. It also provided the platform to earn money and create a buffer to then move into the life I really wanted in health and wellbeing. During this time I travelled a lot as well, which always provides such inspiration.

Why Holistic?

We are complex beings. One cannot deny the connection between our thoughts and our wellbeing. To nurture the whole, mind, body and spirit to me makes complete sense. This means also we embrace the dark and the light aspects of who we are. We start to understand more then how old patterns might be driving our behaviours and in turn, how those patterns are influencing our physical and spiritual health.

What’s your USP? What sets you apart from your competitors?

Having been through decades of managing an ongoing kidney condition, I know viscerally what it means to overcome your circumstances and find ways to heal. Healing happens in many ways. We just need to tune into what it is that makes us feel wholly aligned. My combination of nutrition, ancient wisdom and yoga knowledge taps into tools to help meet you where you are at, and provide practical advice to move forwards with hope.

What kind of feedback you have received from clients?

Ciara seems to know exactly what I need during each yoga session. She tunes into me and I always feel much better afterwards.

(1:1 yoga client)

 

Ciara’s yin workshops are just incredible. With her well considered themes and soothing instruction, she has helped me understand the benefit of slowing down.

 

I left the consultation (nutrition) feeling so inspired and uplifted with Ciara’s enthusiasm. I look forward now to my follow up sessions as they provide a safe space for me to share how I feel and to honestly reflect on the choices I make in my day to day life. Ciara looks through a wide lens focussing not just on a linear nutritional approach but seeking to help me understand how am I nourishing myself on all levels.

 

What’s the next big project coming up for you?

My book! I spent this summer really focussed on writing and am now at proof reading stage. The book goes into greater detail of my own journey and what tools I have found helpful. A whole chapter is dedicated to my take on the importance of the therapeutic rapport between physician and patient. This is a missing piece in a lot of modern medicine which is why it is so vital we equip ourselves well to navigate what feels right for us and to have access to all the options and what they mean. For a shift to happen, we all need to be responsible for our healthcare.

What’s your big dream?

To be a meaningful resource for people in understanding how to help themselves. To help all to see they can empower themselves through action and information and a willingness to surrender to their highest selves. And to also be part of the shift in medicine that is starting, however needs to be integrated into the mainstream systems.

Where can we find your services?

Details are online on my website.

Also my YouTube channel Wholly Aligned.

Twitter @WhollyAligned

Facebook page: Wholly Aligned

www.whollyaligned.com