MAGGIE Murphy's face is disconcertingly familiar. You think you know her or should know or have already met her.

Or maybe it's just that it is, above all, a very reassuring face, one that speaks of calm and comfort.

Stillness and inner calmness are her mantras. These are states we should all be trying to reach, she believes - not because she wants us all to live in some Zen-like passivity but simply because when we can bring those qualities into our lives - we are healthier, less prone to illness and the complications that come with stress and, ultimately, more productive and happier.

"It clears your mind, allows you to focus better and it balances the energy in your whole system," she says of Reiki, in which she is a master practitioner.

Originally from Loughrea, Co Galway, Maggie worked with handicapped children in Dublin before embarking on a career as a nurse in England where she ultimately specialised in cardio-thoracic care, heading a team of nurses who cared for those undergoing heart and lung surgery.
But when love happened in the shape of Richard Murphy, another phase in Maggie's life began - and she moved to Germany where their daughter Sonja was born.

Shortly after the millennium, the family moved to Stockholm where they lived, surrounded by forests on one of Stockholm's many islands. "It is one of the most tranquil countries in Europe," she says.

There Maggie worked as a nurse in the International School, leading the way in promoting health initiatives and deepening her conviction that every child matters, every person matters.

Two years ago, keen to root Sonja in her Irish inheritance, they returned to Ireland - and found Ballingarry.

"I always had an interst in complementary therapies but the line of work I was in never freed me up until then. I came back and said - now is my opportunity."

With Sonja settled in school, Maggie qualified as a Master of Reiki and also took a diploma in reflexology. "Both of them I love," she says. "My philosophy is prevention is better than cure."

"If you can make a significant difference in improving an individual's quality of life, health and well-being - then there, that is my mission in life."

She believes passionately that alternative or complementary therapies help accelerate the body's internal healing process. But her nursing back-ground means she is very aware that therapies such as Reiki and Reflexology are about "complementing medicine" - not in opposition to them.

"75 per cent of diseases are stress-related," she explains - and she is passionate in her conviction that complementary therapies have a role in relieving stress.

"So many of us don't take enough time to be still - and to become aware of why we feel as we do, why we feel unwell as we rush around in our hectic lives."

Reiki is a very gentle, non-intrusive approach which works on the body's seven chakras or energy points, helping to detoxify, to decongest and to harmonise the body's energy-flow, Maggie explains.

Reflexology works through the points in the soles of the feet that correspond to the body's organs and functions and through gentle massage of the foot can help to improve a range of conditions.

"Reflexologists are not there to diagnose," Maggie cautions.
One of her guiding principles is: what would I want for myself? For my mother, my sisters? And she strives to provide that in the calm, clutter-free treatment room of her home - a room with a wonderful view of Ballingarry church spire and Knockfierna.

"It is all relatively new, I'm just starting really. But it is lovely to be doing something you are passionate about."