Spiritual France

[Barbara]

Hi,  we are starting to plan our move to France which will hopefully happen either late 2009 or early 2010.  I was wondering if anyone knows any particular areas where the French are more open to spiritual or holistic therapies, such as Reiki, Indian head massage, Hopi ear candles, holistic massage etc.  I know traditionally the French are reputed to be highly sceptical about such things, but I wondered if attitudes are changing at all? Our preferred region at present is the Deux Sevres due to its suitability to the business my husband hopes to work at, but we are open to suggestions!

[jon]

I have been in touch with a local holistic therapist in my region 33...nearest airport Bergerac and she has told me that she is kept rather busy with clients...which suggests that there is a lot of interest in holistic remedies in the area.Have you visited this region Aquiatane?Deux Sevres ...I stayed there last summer....farming land...It all depends what your husband plans to do.

[Ian]

A quick Google search found way more Reiki folk in Paris than anywhere else in France...but if hubby's a farmer could be tricky!  Best of luck.

PS Welcome to the forum![:)]

[Barbara]

Hi  and thanks for the welcome  -  as you may have guessed I'm new to all this!  Anyway both the above are helpful, I hadn't thought of googling it!  And hubby is planning a small-holding with the idea of us being fairly self-sufficient along with doing garden maintenance work, although this is only one idea out of many at the moment, so watch this space! I'm already learning a lot about different areas etc from reading earlier postings which is great.

[jon]

From what you say about your husbands direction I feel that 33 is a good idea as there are a number of people who have a second home...or gite....and a number of chateaux which  are rented and would poss need the services of someone to help with maintenance.33 has rich countryside but with the added attraction of the vines producing some of Frances finest and most exclusive wines there is an affulence which lives outside most other regions.

It still, however lives up to all asperations of real France.

I can direct you to a few agents in the area who have their pulse on properties as they arrive on the market....or before!

To get an idea on what is out there google .....fnaim.fr and then take it from there......or immo-france.com.Thhis will give you ideas about what you can get for what you can afford.

Paris, by the way is exspensive in relation to S.W France.

[Danny]

[quote user="Barbara"]Hi  and thanks for the welcome  -  as you may have guessed I'm new to all this!  Anyway both the above are helpful, I hadn't thought of googling it!  And hubby is planning a small-holding with the idea of us being fairly self-sufficient along with doing garden maintenance work, although this is only one idea out of many at the moment, so watch this space! I'm already learning a lot about different areas etc from reading earlier postings which is great.[/quote]

You might want to think carefully about how you might achieve the things you have suggested. If your hubby wants to do gardening work, he will have to register a business as such and if it is you who wants to practise the alternative remedy stuff, you will also have to register a business. There will be substantial costs involved for both of you. If you don't have a business, or are not employed, you will be classed as inactifs and will find it very difficult to access french healthcare. Find out as much as you can about that and how your various business plans might work and if you have sufficient capital to invest.

Not very spiritual but there's no escaping the finances

Danny

[Ian]

Danny makes a sound point. Gotta be mindful of the €€€s.

That said, there are plenty of Reikiists (is that the right term?) in Paris and as Jon mentioned Paris is very expensive .... leads me to conclude that if there is enough money in Reikiing (verb?) to make it viable in Paris, it should be feasible in a cheaper area assuming a similar demand.

[Celestine]

Hi there, I had plans to open some kind of treatment centre but having heard the amounts of cotisations one has to pay (and this being regardless of whether you have earnt enough to pay them) I decided that rural France probably wasnt the place to try this. I have searched on various sites for other people that do these holistic treatments and they do seem to be busy in the larger areas but whether it is enough to cover the cotisations and still live on the leftovers is debatable here (85).

[Geordie girl]

Hi barbara have a look at this, they do quite well too

http://www.de-stressinfrance.com/

Look at additional facilities on their site

 

[rogerthedodger]

Hi Barbara,

just spotted your question. We're intending to move to France (16) later this year & I will continue working as a psychotherapist, because I need to pay into the French health system. A site that will probably be of interest is this http://www.counsellinginfrance.com/ . They have a list of alternative therapists & their locations as well as one counsellors & psychotherapists. I don't need to earn a living in France because we have company pensions & I intend to continue my practice in UK after completing my doctorate concerning spirituality & 'madness'-I think this will cause confusion for the accountants-but that's what they get paid for!

I guess what is important is living reasonably close to a city, perhaps with a university, and being able to speak French if you want French clients! What is Hopi ear candle therapy in French I wonder? As I type this my wife is finishing 2hours plus of Rosetta Stone French & I can hear the improvement-it's good.

All the best & au revoir,

Roger