Debbie Wishart is a Queen’s Nurse and a Health Visitor in Dunblane.
Here she outlines the benefits of Capacitar for physical healing and wellbeing, and how the techniques can be used to positively enhance both professional and personal lives.
“What is Capacitar?”, is the question people often ask me.
A few years ago, I would have asked myself the same question. However, throughout the development programme, and my journey to becoming a Queen’s Nurse, I was exposed to the benefits of Capacitar as a ‘toolkit for wellbeing’. During that time what I found unique about Capacitar techniques is that they are so simple and easy to use every day, just when you need it the most in a busy stressful working day. I can also practice some of the techniques and other people don’t even realise what I am doing, but it makes me feel better and prepared for whatever my day brings.
My role as a nurse and a health visitor can be stressful, and I often feel drained both emotionally and physically when I finish a shift. However, the techniques I have learnt originate from a range of ancient healing skills which can support the individual to heal themselves, boost their mood and embrace their spirituality. Until recently I used these techniques mainly to cope with my day-to-day work life. Then a few months ago, things changed and I was off work as I had undergone planned hand surgery. It was during my time recovering from this surgery that I truly felt the holistic benefits of embedding Capacitar into my daily life as a way to improve my healing journey.
Following the surgery, I was advised to do physiotherapy exercises and movements which I did as directed but one day when sitting on the sofa at home feeling a little bit sorry for myself, I had an epiphany and Capacitar popped in to my head. I thought to myself, ‘let’s start to do some of the techniques I have learnt and used when I was at work’. They benefited me in that environment and I wondered if it would help with my recovery and healing. Capacitar’s ethos is about ‘healing ourselves and healing our world’. Would this actually help me in this particular situation?
I started with one technique I knew well and previously did each morning and night when I was at work, which is the Salute to the Sun. I could feel the stretch in my whole body including my healing hand and I just felt relaxed and motivated after starting this. Although I was a little bit anxious about doing some of the hand mudras or techniques which focused on hand movements to start with, so I initially stayed with whole body movements.
Next I attempted Tai Chi energy exercises, the Rocking Movement, the Circle of Light movement along with Pal Dan Gum; these felt like the ideal movements for my hand at that time and they gave me the most energy. I found these helped to focus my mind and helped boost my mood and energy (which was not as I had expected when I first started). I thought that the movement was good for me, but I initially underestimated the mental health benefits. I did worry that I was not doing the whole set of exercises for that technique, but I realised that the most important thing was to get my body and hand moving as this helped to release bad energy and enable healing energy into my mind, soul and body.
The benefits included me feeling enhanced and recharged and, with hindsight, Capacitar has been instrumental in my healing journey and a valuable tool and skill to have in my personal and work life.
