A keen musician with two science degrees, Simone Collins followed her heart to a career in natural health, choosing modalities that empower one to take charge of their own health rather than becoming dependent on a therapist to fix them and ultimately leading her to found first Totally Sound Health and then the Empowered Health Academy. This is her story.
Growing up with natural therapies
I have had a strong interest in vibrational and “energy medicine” since childhood thanks to my father, a GP who integrated what he called “complementary medicine” with orthodox medicine well before natural medicine was accepted by the general public!
Aches and pains were treated in our family by massaging pressure points, using essences or applying magnetotherapy, and his extensive book collection contained titles from colour therapy to homoeopathy and beyond. We also went to naturopaths, kinesiologists and so on and attended a weekly meditation group. My parents also opened their home for a variety of workshops on natural therapies, which I sometimes sat in on, and they eventually ran their own meditation group as well.
The healing effects of music
Another love I inherited from my father was music. Music has always been an enormous part of my life. If I wasn’t playing music myself, I was listening to it. Through a combination of loud music and recurrent ear infections as a child, I had developed noise induced hearing loss and tinnitus by the time I was 14 years old.
I had wanted to pursue a career in music, but was strongly encouraged by my parents to study science at university instead. I completed degrees in Physics, Applied Maths and Information Technology Systems at the University of Western Australia (UWA), and subsequently embarked upon a very unsatisfying career in IT (though I have no regrets about gaining the skills to create my own effective websites!)
I stumbled across a book on Sound Therapy, a listening program based on the work of ENT specialist Dr Alfred Tomatis, in the UWA book store in 2003. Within 6 months my tinnitus was gone and my hearing had substantially improved – thanks to the right sort of music!
Retraining in natural therapies
That was the turning point for me to start following my passion and retrain in natural therapies, gaining qualifications rather than just picking up knowledge from books and occasional workshops.
I started working with Joudry Sound Therapy after completing training through Sound Therapy International in 2003, and I qualified as a reflexologist (through Caulfield College of Reflexology and Kinesiology) in 2005. I completed 2 years of a naturopathic qualification before shelving that to bring my two daughters into this world.
I qualified as a massage therapist (through Paramount College) in 2009, Reiki practitioner in 2010, and Audiometric Officer approved by WorkCover in 2011. I completed my Reiki mastery in April 2016, to be able to teach and attune others to reiki healing energy as well, though I am not offering that at present.
I have twice completed the certification for Aromatouch Massage (the first time it wasn’t offered as an actual certification; I took it again once it was available as a certification). I have also completed training in other methods of energy healing, several modules on Flower Essence therapy through LiFE Academy, and modules on aromatherapy.
I’m here to help!
I wholeheartedly believe in the modalities I work with, having experienced their health benefits first hand. I generally am drawn to modalities which have a sound science behind them, but also work with energy, having completed training in a variety of energy training and chakra balancing methods; I work on an intuitive level as well.
I’ve had my fair share of health challenges over the years, from arthritis to heart problems, so am very empathetic with those I work with! I’ve suffered from back and neck pain for many years after several car accidents myself, and have had an ankle replacement after living with a broken ankle for 2.5 years! I can certainly attest to how wonderful it is to have a massage or reflexology session with a therapist with a nice firm touch!
I’ve also struggled with my weight my entire life, which has both led to uncovering many other underlying disorders, and a lot of work to deal with underlying emotional issues. I am extremely empathetic and non-judgemental.
While I no longer run my previous natural health centre (Totally Sound Health) I do still see the occasional client by appointment. I’ve taken a break from offering workshops face-to-face while I work on moving these online, which has been slowed down with the passing of my father.
Here’s a few other health products and services I love:
- Plan to Eat: Meal planning made easy! I store my recipes here, and it helps adjust quantities as needed and work out shopping lists.