JOE CONNOLLY is concerned with energy that is the biological energy, which he believes surrounds us. As a Bi-Aura practitioner he believes all illness and chronic pain is encoded in the energy matrix of the aura in the form of energy blockages or disturbances, and these blockages obstruct the healing flow of energy.

He works on the premise that the body’s natural instinct is to heal itself and the healing energy is always present, so if we can remove whatever is preventing us from receiving this energy, then our health can improve. Some of the wide range of conditions that have responded favourably to Bi-Aura therapy include allergies, arthritis, asthma, chronic fatigue, emotional problems, dyslexia, migraine, sciatica, sinusitis, autism, infertility and insomnia.

Bi-Aura practitioners use their apparently enhanced energy sensitivity to scan the energy field surrounding the body and detect blockages or imbalances affecting its health and vitality. They clear interruptions to the healing energy flow by drawing the trapped energy out and away from the body, allowing energy to flow into areas that need healing.

The practitioners believe that vortices of energy known as chakras are located at specific points on the body. Each chakra is associated with different regions and organs of the body and the physical malfunction of a chakra is associated with different ailments and diseases.

The Crown chakra, for example, is located at the top of the head. Physical malfunction of this chakra could lead to migraines, amnesia, coma and brain tumours.

RELEASE : How does the Bi-Aura practitioner scan the energy field and detect the blockages? I visited Joe Connolly, a qualified Bi-Aura practitioner in Dublin to find out. My mother, Maria, came along as a willing guinea pig, curious to see if a session would improve her arthrit-ic knee. "You may feel a couple of pulls and if you do, just go with it," said Joe. With gentle music playing in the background Joe proceeds to scan my mother. To the onlooker it was something like watching Jackie Chan in slow motion.

There is no physical contact. Joe explains afterwards that his hands are drawn in like a magnet to a blockage. My mother was very relaxed after the session and was surprised that she could stand for so long. It is fair to say that my mother went as a sceptic, but over the next few days she was telling me that her knee was not as stiff and sore. Three weeks later she is telling me that her knee has greatly improved, and is practically pain free.

HANDS OFF : Joe is beginning to get more male clients, as they realise that Bi-Aura is non-invasive. “A lot of people have low back pain,” says Joe, “and this is the area holding the emotions that don’t come to the surface very often - and it’s mostly men that get this lower back pain.”

Sometimes the treatment starts working on what is the priority in the body, even though it may not have been mentioned. Also, for some people symptoms can get worse after the first. session because trapped energy is being released.”

TINY TOTS : As well as working on some children with dyslexia, he has also worked on children with deeper problems. “I treated a child who was very disruptive in class, a very angry child. When I started releasing it, his mother told me that the father had left them and that the kid was carrying the anger. He is a different child now. I have also treated children with asthma and eczema.”

Another example is Mary Ward from Castleknock in Dublin who had a stroke. "I started working on her in the hospital and she gradually progressed. I used a combination of Bi-Aura and Reiki on her and she is living proof of its effectiveness. She is thriving. She’s walking"

There is something here that I cannot explain scientifically. Joe is having success with his clients, his sincerity shines through, his enthusiasm and dedication are immediately apparent and €40 per hourly session is certainly good value.