Reflections from the Community Wellness Discovery Day

On Sunday 5 July, a group of wellbeing practitioners came together at Soul Direction for the first Community Wellness Discovery Day: a free community event created to give people the chance to explore different wellbeing approaches in a warm, welcoming and accessible space.

The day offered a gentle introduction to a range of modalities, from bodywork and nervous system support to energy practices, relationships, beauty, self-care and personal growth.

Each practitioner shared a short session, offering either a practical tool, a new perspective, or a chance to experience their work in a small way. There was a lovely sense of curiosity in the room, with people arriving for different reasons but sharing a common openness to learning, exploring and connecting.

Here is a look back at what was shared on the day.

Discovering Jin Shin Jyutsu with Lesley Croxton

Lesley opened the day by sharing some of what she has been learning through Jin Shin Jyutsu, a gentle healing art that works with the body’s energy system through awareness and light touch.

Her session introduced some of the concepts behind the practice, including Safety Energy Locks, Depths, and the idea of energy flows within the body. Lesley also spoke about the way different fingers and holds can be associated with particular attitudes or emotional states, giving the group a practical way to experience the practice for themselves.

One of the lovely takeaways from this session was the reminder that wellbeing practices do not always need to be complicated. Simply holding the fingers, pausing, and bringing awareness to the body can support a greater sense of calm, balance and presence.

Lesley has kindly shared follow-up notes from the session, including more detail on Jin Shin Jyutsu concepts and some simple holds explored on the day.

Download Lesley’s Jin Shin Jyutsu notes HERE

Holistic Beauty: The Touch of Love with Morgane Cherronnet

Morgane’s session explored beauty from a holistic perspective, looking beyond the surface and into the relationship between skin, touch, care, presence and self-connection.

She began by sharing a little of her own journey as a beauty therapist, including the realisation that beauty treatments are not only about technique, products or appointments. The space itself matters too. When care is offered from a place of calm and presence, it can become something much deeper than a routine treatment.

Morgane spoke about the skin as something to love, support and care for, rather than something to criticise or fix. Her session was a beautiful reminder that the way we care for our skin and body can become a small act of self-kindness.

She also shared a simple two-minute ritual that can be practised at home: a gentle way to pause, connect with the skin, and bring more love and intention into everyday self-care.

Download Morgane’s two-minute ritual HERE

Polarities in Relationships with Juliette Cazabat

Juliette’s session explored polarities in relationships, including the masculine and feminine archetypes and the different patterns, roles or energies we may move between when relating to others.

Relationships have a way of teaching us about ourselves. They can bring joy, connection and belonging, but they can also reveal our patterns, wounds and the places where we may feel disconnected from ourselves or each other.

From the warmth and laughter in the room, it was clear this was an engaging and lively session, with plenty of space for reflection, honesty and humour.

One of the thoughtful points Juliette shared was that behaviours we might quickly label as “masculine” or “controlling” may sometimes be coming from a deeper place of fear, doubt or uncertainty. This was a helpful reminder to look beneath the surface of relationship challenges and consider the deeper patterns that may be influencing them.

The session also offered a compassionate reminder that relationships are living things. They need attention, kindness, awareness and work. When we can notice our own patterns with curiosity rather than judgement, we create more space for understanding, choice and connection.

Cultivating Safety Within: Connecting to Your Power with Katya Assai

Katya’s session focused on cultivating safety within the body and reconnecting with personal power.

She spoke about the importance of creating a safe space within ourselves, allowing us to move through life with greater grace, presence, and trust. Katya introduced three pillars of cultivating safety within: compassion, joy, and a sense of self, the connection to our own personal power.

The session invited participants to reflect on what self-love truly means and how different life can feel when we experience it from a grounded, centred place rather than from stress, worry or fear.

Katya then guided the group through an immersive meditation, taking participants on a journey inward through the body, deep into the Earth’s core and beyond. It was a powerful invitation to slow down, turn inward, feel supported, and reconnect with a deeper source of strength and wisdom within.

The session offered a gentle reminder that safety is not only something we seek outside ourselves. It is something we can learn to recognise, cultivate, and return to within.

One simple takeaway from Katya’s session was the importance of pausing, grounding, listening inwardly, and remembering who we are beyond our personality, our stories, and our life experiences.

TRE Experience with Rashi Mittal

Rashi introduced participants to TRE, or Tension and Trauma Releasing Exercises, a body-based approach that works with the body’s natural ability to release stress and tension through tremoring.

She explained the idea of tremoring and demonstrated what it can look like, helping to make the practice feel more familiar and accessible. She also spoke about the idea that the body has its own ways of releasing held tension. Rather than relying only on thinking or talking, TRE invites the body into the process.

The session included a simple “vvv” sound practice, giving participants a gentle way to notice how vibration, breath and sound can connect with the body.

One of the interesting moments came when Rashi explored a participant’s experience of feeling blocked while making the sound. Rather than treating this as something wrong, she spoke about it as useful information from the body: a cue to pause, listen and notice what may be happening internally.

Rashi also explained that TRE can become a self-practice over time, with guidance from a trained facilitator helping people learn how to work with their own body safely.

A key takeaway from this session was the importance of listening to the body and working gently, especially when exploring practices that involve the nervous system.

Exploring Ortho-Bionomy with Dale Campbell

Dale introduced Ortho-Bionomy with a simple but powerful question:

What if your body already knew how to find balance?

Her session explored the idea that pain, tension or posture patterns are not necessarily signs that the body has failed. Often, they are signs that the body has adapted as best it could in response to injury, stress, repetitive movement or other life experiences.

Rather than forcing the body into correction, Ortho-Bionomy works gently with the body’s own preferences. Dale explained how moving into positions of comfort can give the nervous system new information and allow the body to recognise easier, more balanced ways of organising itself.

Participants were also able to experience one of the gentle pelvic balancing techniques. Some of the comments afterwards included feeling taller, noticing a change through the hips, or feeling more weight through both feet.

A key takeaway from this session was the reminder that change does not always need to come through force. Sometimes, when the body is met with comfort, awareness and respect, it can begin to find its own way back towards ease.

Dale has also shared that if there is enough interest, she would be happy to explore bringing an introductory Ortho-Bionomy Fundamentals course to Auckland.

Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy: Resetting the Nervous System with Caroline Panesar

Caroline closed the day with an introduction to Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy and its gentle, deeply listening approach to the body and nervous system.

She guided the group through an active practice, creating a quiet space to pause, settle and connect inwardly. By the end of the session, there was a noticeably calm presence in the room, with people expressing gratitude for the day and for the chance to experience different approaches to wellbeing.

This felt very much in keeping with the essence of Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy: slowing down, listening deeply, and allowing the body and nervous system to soften in a safe and supported space.

The session offered a reminder that nervous system support does not always need to be dramatic. Sometimes, the deepest shifts begin with stillness, safety and the space to listen inwardly.

To learn more about Caroline’s work or book a session through Soul Direction visit the Therapies page here: https://www.soul-direction.com/therapies

Thank you to our sponsor

This event was kindly sponsored by Jasjeet Ahuja, estate agent with Barfoot & Thompson.

Jas’s support helped make the Community Wellness Discovery Day free and accessible for attendees, creating space for people to explore, connect and experience a range of wellbeing approaches without cost being a barrier.

Jasjeet also joined in the spirit of the day, taking part in some of the sessions and giving the participatory elements a go. It was lovely to have his support not only as a sponsor, but as part of the community gathered on the day.

A warm thank you to Jasjeet for supporting this first community event and helping bring the day to life.

Thank you for being part of the day

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who came along, participated, asked questions, shared the space and supported the first Community Wellness Discovery Day.

Thank you also to each of the practitioners who generously shared their time, knowledge and presence throughout the day. A special thank you also to Aissa, who provided the beautiful catering and shared some of her products for attendees to try on the day.

Explore Aissa’s online store HERE

We hope the day gave you a chance to discover something new, connect with a practitioner or modality that resonated, and take away a small tool, insight or experience to support your own wellbeing journey.

We would love to continue creating accessible community events like this, bringing together people who are curious about healing, growth and self-discovery in a warm and welcoming environment.

If you attended the event and would like to share feedback, we would love to hear from you:

https://tally.so/r/lbZlRN

With gratitude,

The Community Wellness Discovery Day team