Meet Mel Holliday | Author and managing director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mel Holliday and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mel, what habits do you feel play an important role in your life?
Learning and practicing the breathing techniques daily. I now practice before I get out if bed and again before i go to sleep for 15 minutes. It prepares my mind for the day to come and calms it before sleep. It changes our chemical state especially when overwhelmed, have to have a difficult conversation or before a presentation.
Interestingly when I am now in those positions i have noticed my breathing automatically changes to a slower calm state.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Initially in 2019 I was ( and still am) an MD of a successful bespoke furniture manufacturer Chiselwood Limited and also about to embark on building 6 eco homes with my husband. I wanted to begin to diversify into something that helped others. Having a medical training going back to my roots with wellbeing seemed a good option. Dr Ananda lectures got the concept in my mind. I developed a wellbeing course of 8 sessions with tips and techniques using cartoon characters that represented the emotions drawn by a clever artist Rebecca Dyer.
Covid put pay to that after 7 months si between us during lockdown we wrote and published the book Breathe with Bruce, a fun wellbeing book for young children.
It is one of six however we are trying to find a new publicist to help us!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
This weekend would be a perfect example. As we are all still a bit nervous, covid wise being outdoors is a great way to spend time. We would have our first meal in our garden. Saturday we went to Rufford Abby with beautiful walks amongst the bluebells and spring flowers. Out door takeaway pastries for lunch and continue walk around the lake. Home cooked food, followed by card games and drinks. Sunday a leisurely breakfast and long walk in a local woodland. Take a train into our cathedral city of Lincoln to explore the history and a lovely meal in a bistro restaurant.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
The person that changed my pathway to helping others with breathing, mental health and writing a childrens wellbeing story book is Dr Ananda Balayogi Bhavanani. Director and professor if Yoga therapy at Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth University Pondicherry. He visited Uk 2019. His lectures and practice helped me to create courses to help young people to support their mental health and wellbeing.

Website: Www.breathewithbruce.com

Instagram: Breathewithbruce

Linkedin: Mel Holliday

Facebook: Breathe With Bruce