Women these days tend to be overloaded with responsibilities from work to home life and everything in between.They spend a big chunk of their day slaving away at the office, then have myriad tasks to attend to with family.At the end of the day there is little time to devote to themselves and their lives may feel out of balance.Deryn Higgins, the owner of holistic health shop My Sereni-Tea, is encouraging women to take back two hours of their time, and find inner peace.Her shop is hosting a women’s healing circle course from July 18, designed to promote spiritual and emotional bonding.Up to 18 women will have the chance to talk and reflect on some of the challenging issues in their day-to-day lives.There is also a learning component as Ms Higgins has invited special guests to speak on topics like yoga and energy medicine.She said: “I started the women’s healing circles about four years ago to bring women together who were dealing with a variety of issues and to learn other alternative ways to get that peace within.“Women take on a lot of stress. Our nature is nurturing and loving so we just take on a lot of stuff, so I thought a healing circle would be great way to help with that.”She said women didn’t tend to have a lot of downtime “because they were always putting everyone else first”.“So they might be struggling emotionally with something going on, the illness of a family member or stressed out at work and having problems with a co-worker and they just can’t get that inner peace.”Ms Higgins began looking into alternative spiritual practices 19 years ago when her life came to a crossroads. “Something very traumatic happened to me and I followed the spiritual path and everything kind of built from that,” she explained.“I knew there was something more and what happened in my life just jolted me. It made me realise I wanted to help people, because I have been through quite a bit in my life, and wanted to assist people struggling with similar things.”She began researching, reading spiritual books and meditating. She also started taking courses at the Delhi University in Georgia.For two years she worked at The Healing Centre as an holistic health practitioner, but then in May 2012 she opened her own multi-use teahouse on Reid Street, Hamilton.She partnered with Alyson Tuxworth in offering the workshops — the two call themselves the Celtic Sisters.Ms Higgins said some people who come into her shop are “almost broken” reiki sessions, spiritual workshops and classes help them live a more joyful life.The main purpose of the women’s healing circles is to equip women with tools they can implement in their lives to feel joy, peace and love.She said the courses were often popular as more people on the Island are open to considering alternative spiritual and medical paths.“Our classes are full and people are searching. What used to work for them doesn’t work any more and they are trying to find out who they really are.”In the healing circles they talk about a variety of subjects, including looking at how colours and crystals can aid with the healing process.Ms Higgins said crystals can be held in a person’s pocket, purse and desk and emanate energy and specific healing properties.“We talk about all sorts of things to do with healing and understanding the human energy system, known as chakras; how it works, how we can heal the whole body, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.“[We talk about] what role [the chakras] play in our lives illness and felling off-balance emotionally and mentally.”She said women can choose whether they want to interact and share their personal stories with the group. There is no pressure to take part if they don’t want to, she said.They also discuss how people can try to live a more positive life using affirmations.“We make them every day, but sometimes they happen to be negative ones.“Like attracts like so we are trying to reprogramme your mind to stay in the positive mindset all the time.”The women’s healing circle is a three-session course taking place on July 18, July 28 and August 11. The cost is $150, which includes a crystal set and all course materials needed. A $50 deposit is required to secure your space.For more information, or to register, telephone 296-2114 or e-mail myserenitea@logic.bm.