Kate Sweetapple
Bodyworker
In 2021 I moved to live and work in the beautiful seaside town of Eastbourne in East Sussex. Being near the sea and the Downs is very important to me and Eastbourne provides both of these and so much more.
I grew up near the sea in West Dorset and moved to Brighton to study in the late 80's and continued to live there until 2001 when I moved to Barcombe, a village north of Lewes, East Sussex. Apart from a short time in London before starting university this was the furthest away from the sea I had ever lived (just 12 miles!).
After graduating from university in 1990 I ran a sexual health promotion service for the universities of Sussex & Brighton until 2010. Empowering people to make healthy choices was central to this service which was delivered by student volunteers to their peers. During this time I achieved an MA in Health Promotion.
I trained as a massage therapist in 2006 and started a part-time home practice becoming fully self-employed in 2011. I have had a busy practice ever since and many of my clients have continued to come to me for treatments in Eastbourne. In 2014 I began a four year training in the Feldenkrais Method. I was increasingly frustrated when the issues clients came to me about were not always 'fixed' in the long term. Many acute problems were easily fixed, by finding a trigger point or releasing fascia for example, but the more chronic problems were proving challenging. I realised that in many cases the cause was likely to be "poor posture" or "bad habits". But I wasn't sure how to get this across to a client without them feeling judged and without being able to help them do something about it.
Feldenkrais has provided the answer. I realised that movement was the missing link in my bodywork and that by introducing movement into my treatments my clients' self-awareness and interest in themselves increased. This has led to lasting changes for them. In Feldenkrais there is no judgement, no right or wrong. Just choices and possibilities. All that is required is an open mind and willingness to change.
After 10 years of working from home in a quiet village I now work from a studio in Eastbourne town centre, just a few minutes walk from the station. This change has brought a new energy into my work and I am looking forward to welcoming new clients who also fancy a change.
