Lecturing | Hilary Barnett

Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn

Benjamin Franklin

“Working with patients, students & graduates alike; watching and helping them develop their personal strengths in order to realize their own potential is particularly empowering”.

How I came into teaching

Early on in my practice I gave talks on homeopathy to all who wanted to hear - mother and toddler groups, Women’s Institutes, local GP practices, cancer support centres and so on. I then moved on to teach ‘Homeopathy and First Aid’ classes. From here my teaching progressed to working at the Lakeland College of Homeopathy. My original role was as student coordinator where I supported the students through their training. My work with the college then expanded to running tutorials and student teaching clinics in which students were able to gain live clinical experience and I became a core lecturer with them.

I now teach at the Souther College of Homeopathy and have a regular guest spot on Debbie Avani's Advanced Studies and Yoga Teacher Training Course. Here I discuss the anatomy & physiology of the Pineal gland and it's relationship with Ajna chakra.

I have also found that many students and graduates find it helpful to expand their awareness of a case by discussion. This frequently leads to a much better understanding of the various aspects it presents. I offer supervision, either in person or by phone, FaceTime or Skype. Please contact me for further details.

My good friend and colleague Wendi Parcell suggested I should extend my teaching beyond the realms of the College and helped me set up seminars on my three favourite topics: the endocrine system, broad spectrum prescribing and space/clutter clearing.

The Endocrine System

My passion is hormones - all of them! Both my grandmothers had a difficult menopause and both died while they were going through it. As well as the usual hot flushes and night sweats they also suffered from depression and mood swings. This was in the late 50’s, long before such things were discussed openly. The knowledge of this made a lasting impression on me and as I began my homeopathic studies, it reawakened my interest in the female hormonal system.

I started studying the system in detail; how it works, what happens when it goes wrong or when we go through natural changes. My practice began to fill up with patients who had problems in this area – be it PMT, painful periods, endometriosis, fibroids, during pregnancy, menopause and so on. I found that by treating the whole person – that’s looking at the mental, emotional and spiritual picture as well as the physical symptoms - they were bringing their bodies back into balance. This might involve realigning the menstrual cycle back or empowering someone to move into menopause and understand it as a beautiful and natural phase of their life.

From here my interest expanded to other parts of the endocrine system – the thyroid, adrenals, pancreas, male hormones etc, and then on to the immune and nervous systems. I realised my patients were also keen to learn the workings of the endocrine system. I began by explaining as much as I could during a consultation but it soon became apparent they wanted more.

As well as teaching this to homeopaths, I also teach other alternative and complimentary therapists as well as patients and members of the public.

Below are some of the areas I cover:

Female hormonal system and the menstrual cycle.
Female energetics - the menstrual cycle, hormones, synthetic hormones incorporating osteoporosis, the parathyroids and menopause.
Male energetics - how it works and its relationship to the sacral chakra.
The pancreas and its role in blood sugar.
Thymus gland - The part it plays with both the endocrine and immune system.
Thyroid gland and the importance of its role to the other endocrine glands.
The brow chakra and the nervous system.
Crown chakra and the pineal gland - including the sleep centre and the hormones serotonin and melatonin.

Broad Spectrum Prescribing

I love to teach others about the methodology I use myself - by treating at 3 different levels. As well as using constitutional remedies, I combine both traditional and new homeopathic remedies with Alaskan flower essences. I also support and strengthen the physical body with organ and/or system supports. The combination of these offers the patient an emotional safety net in which to express and release whatever is preventing them from moving forward. I find this a very effective way to nurture the patient gently and safely through the healing process.

Clearing

Another passion of mine is clearing – be it physical, emotional, mental or spiritual. In 2002, I went to a space clearing workshop run by Steve Johnson, founder of the Alaskan essences. This workshop changed my life by intensifying my awareness of what was around me. I began to notice things which I had not previously seen as clutter and I learned to recognise what was mine and what was not. This led me into the process of letting go of things I no longer needed.

I now teach this process myself by looking at letting go of clutter in four main areas:

Physical: The clutter we have accumulated in our houses – in desks, drawers, cupboards, lofts, garages etc
Mental: This includes the internal chatter going on inside our heads – logic versus intuition and thinking versus feeling. Clutter on our computers, lists of shoulds and oughts, judgements, our overall life vision and how blocking this can lead to dis-ease and physical illness
Emotional: Our unfulfilled life dreams, unexpressed griefs, traumas, fears and anger which prevent us from moving forward
Spiritual: This is represented by values, habits and belief systems.

Booking a Seminar/Workshop

I organise some seminars myself, others are by request from students, graduates or the public, for example groups and organisations. If you would like to organise a seminar, please feel free to contact me.