Reimagining Therapy: From Talk to Energy, Trauma to Transformation with Ruthie Smith

Send us Fan MailWhat if therapy could feel lighter, calmer, and more grounded—without losing depth? We sit down with psychotherapist, trainer, and author Ruthie Smith to explore a practical way of working that brings the mind, body, and subtle energy into one coherent process. Ruthie shares how a formative career in psychoanalysis evolved after one client calmed within minutes using gentle energy techniques, and why today’s trauma-informed care increasingly leans on somatic regulation, tapping, and heart-based presence.Across our conversation, we unpack what energy psychotherapy looks like in real sessions: short balancing practices to regulate the nervous system, EFT-style tapping to resolve reversals like “it doesn’t feel safe to heal,” chakra clearing with simple imagery, and intention-based work that helps shift core beliefs from the body up. We also talk about evidence and adoption—how tapping and stress-relief protocols are used in GP surgeries, frontline services, and private clinics—and why framing matters when introducing new tools to sceptical colleagues or clients.Ruthie opens her playbook on safety and scope: pacing trauma work, avoiding re-traumatisation, and using parts work to engage child states and shadow material with care. She offers a clear path for practitioners to get started—beginning with basic EFT training, practising methods on themselves, and only then layering techniques into existing modalities. We also tour her book, Energy, Soul Connecting and Awakening Consciousness: a two-part guide that blends a modern paradigm for psychotherapy with a hands-on toolkit for daily practice, including pre-verbal trauma, complex PTSD, and grounding after intense spiritual experiences.If you’re curious about integrating somatic calm, tapping, and presence into talk therapy—or you’re seeking a safer, kinder way to clear the residue of trauma—this conversation is a grounded, hopeful place to start. Subscribe, share with a colleague who’s trauma-informed, and leave a review to tell us which tool you’ll try first.Guest BiographyRuthie Smith is a psychotherapist, supervisor, and trainer with over three decades of experience. She is the founder of The Flame Centre, where she teaches and practices Energy Psychotherapy—a mind–body–energy approach to trauma healing.Ruthie is also the author of Energy, Soul Connecting and Awakening Consciousness – Psychotherapy in a New Paradigm, published by Karnac Books in 2024. Her work focuses on helping practitioners and clients access deeper levels of healing through the integration of subtle energy, compassion, and consciousness.Contact Details and Social Media Handles🌐 Website: www.theflamecentre.co.ukFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/theflamecentre/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theflamecentre/Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruthie-smith-7636bb3a/📘Book: Energy, Soul Connecting and Awakening Consciousness (Karnac, 2024)Subscribe on SubstackVoices in Health and Wellness is published on Substack, as part of The Diagnostician. Every episode lands there with written notes and reflections you won't find in the podcast feed. Free to subscribe.👉 https://thediagnostician.substack.com/s/voices-in-health-and-wellnessAbout the podcastVoices in Health and Wellness features conversations at the intersection of medicine, lifestyle, and human potential, with clinicians, scientists, and thinkers shaping the future of care.About Dr Andrew GreenlandUK-based medical doctor and founder of Greenland Medical, specialising in Integrative and Functional Medicine. Trained in both conventional and root-cause approaches, Andrew helps people optimise health, performance, and longevity, with a focus on cognitive resilience and healthy ageing.