Studying Cognitive Hypnotherapy at The Quest Institute.

I have just clicked the send button on my computer and sent through the first part of my HPD to be marked. This is the Hypnotherapy Practitioner Diploma. I am now half way through my ten month long course and absolutely loving it!! The paperwork for the HPD is not due in until the 4th September, but I really wanted to get ahead of the game so have worked hard to get it done - 10 short answer questions (300 words each max) and an essay (1300 words max). When I first opened the paper I did gulp rather, but I stayed calm and worked on one or two questions a day. Fingers crossed that I have done ok...

Its always a bit daunting when you send work like that off to be marked. I always wonder... "Did I put my name on? Did I do all the questions? Did I delete it all as I sent it??" It is, however, a weight off my mind to have it completed. And I did check that I'd put my name on it!!

There are 3 further parts to be completed over the next 6 months, including more essays and a case study. I shall just take them one at a time as they arrive. I trust in my training absolutely.

My training is taking place at The Quest Institute in London and I could not be happier with my choice. I had found the institute online in my search for a place to train and although I looked at lots of schools, I kept coming back to this one. I am so glad that I did. The professionalism, organisation and all round wonderfulness of the place is more than I could ever have hoped for. In the last 5 months I have learnt so much and met the most amazing group of people.

I shall write more about my course in the months to come, but for now I can safely tell you that Cognitive Hypnotherapy, as taught by Trevor Silvester, is superb. I love finding out about the workings of the mind and spend my weekends there learning, laughing and loving every moment. I have discovered things about myself that I had never realised and I am sharing the time with a group of people who are so supportive, so honest and have such positive ethics. I am extremely fortunate.

I am so excited I could burst ... thanks Open University x

I am trying to contain my excitement. No, really. I have been waiting 30 years for this Saturday coming and when I think too much about it I get a lump in my throat...

I have even spent money on a new pair of shoes ... money that could probably have paid off the national debt of a small African nation. But, as I said, its been 30 years in coming.

This Saturday I am going to graduate. I am going to become Secret Housewife BA (Hons) 1st Class. When I started my journey 30 years ago, going to Leicester University to study History of Art and Italian I really never expected that it would take so long to achieve my goal. I assumed that it would be three years of enthralling study in lofty garrets, talking about Vasari and Dante and reading poetry by candlelight.

It didn't end up like that. I spent most of my time at Leicester in a room that resembled a cross between a cell and a section of a multi storey car park. I developed a cheese and tomato twinnie habit and for those of you who don't know what this is - its a massive baguette style sandwich that is absolutely delicious, but wicked on the waistline. Most of my friends were medical students who spent all their time studying anatomy, and not in a fun way.

I was left alone in my room chomping on twinnies and the occasional take away curry, avoiding lectures full of History of Art students in twin sets and pearls who delighted in telling me I was not PLU ( People Like Us) This meant that I had not been to private school and my parents did not own half of Hampshire. The loneliness and boredom crowded in on me like two vicious bullies and I wrote reams of miserable poetry. Just thank your lucky stars there was no such thing as the internet back then or you would have been subjected to my volumes of self pitying despair. No doubt my Twitter feed would have been plagued with 140 character long suicidal verses.

Needless to say that although I was academically successful, mentally I was a mess and during the summer holidays before the third year, where I was due to spend 3 months in Rome (oh, the hardship!), I dropped out.

My tutor, whose name I forget, did not even bother to reply to the letter I sent telling the History of Art department that I was desperately unhappy and would not be coming back. Thanks love.

To be honest it was a move I never regretted. My life turned a corner and I started work in casinos, met my husband, traveled the world and generally led a darned happy life.

But always, in the back of my mind was my failure. I had always been the bright one, the one who might have gone to Cambridge or Oxford ( and not just for the delightful shopping and punting facilities). But I had ended up with only A Levels and a non-professional career. As I hit 40 regret did start to raise its ugly head. There was a sense of "What could I have been...?"

But now I know. My beautiful, kind and clever sister in law told me about the Open University. She told me I could transfer the points I had gained all those years ago and finish my degree. So I did. I have.

On the tab at the top of this post there is a page which links to everything I wrote during the 3 years it took me to complete my degree. It takes you from when I was just considering it, through the hard times, the self doubt and the times when I nearly burst with pride. Like Saturday. Saturday I may well burst with pride and I will definitely be wearing my waterproof mascara. I will write about my day and post photos of me and my lovely family. As I write this I feel a bit tearful, which is frankly ridiculous and could be linked to a distinct lack of chocolate in the house, but I just wanted to let you know. And show you my shoes.

Open University Degree - Done.

I have officially finished my Open University course. All I have to do now is wait until July or August to find out what class of Degree I have managed to get. I can't quite believe I've finished!!! I sat in the sunshine this afternoon reading The Hunger Games, with no intention of writing an essay or analysing the themes within and felt positively odd! It's been three years since I started the course and in all that time there has always been something hanging over my head ... the next essay, the next set of books to read ...

Now its over and I can relax. I know I have definitely passed, its just a case of finding out how well I have done. The course work on this last module - Children's Literature EA300 - has been very enjoyable and I have gained an average mark of just over 90%. I feel a bit embarrassed to put that out there and maybe I shouldn't ... but actually I am proud of achieving such a good score. I didn't even know such grades were possible!! In some ways I am wondering if I will be found out and my average is just a mistake!!

I have a page just above on the tabs at the top of my blog which is all about the OU and my progress. There is a link to all my posts, in reverse order, from the beginning when I was afraid doing this course would be impossible, to now when I have finished. You can read about the ups and downs, the highs and lows ...

And today I have had my blog featured in the Open University student online magazine as Blog of the Month. How cool is that??? I am so chuffed and I really hope that people enjoy reading my blog posts!! I hadn't been on here for a few days and when I looked at my stats they had gone through the roof, so the link must be working!!!

Anyway, if you are reading this because you are an OU student, then welcome. I hope you like my writing. And you might find my OU posts interesting because actually, although this year has been great, my Open University career has been far from easy. I have opened each pack of shiny new materials with trepidation mixed with excitement and I can honestly say that I have viewed the essay titles with emotion verging on terror!! I have always wondered how on earth I will ever write anything as I have rarely understood a word of the titles!!

Thank goodness for some marvellous tutors and a very understanding husband!! I can't quite believe I will never write another essay ... Now all I need is a fab job!!!

Last essay of EA300 on the way, Degree nearly done ... who would have thought?!

Its a beautiful sunny day here, with the breeze blowing my washing on the line in my garden. I can see my neighbours celebrating a birthday with balloons and bunting glinting in the sunshine and the clouds are scudding through the heavens on an endless journey across the English countryside.

I am sitting at my kitchen table, working on the last essay of my Open University course. At least I was before I had this little break! Its due in a week on Thursday - the 24th May. I am so near and yet so far from achieving my goal of graduation.

I have been studying with the Open University for 3 years now and should be heading for a 2:1 Honours Degree if this last piece of work goes well. I started studying as one of those 'bucket list' things that I wanted to tick off before I grew too old and grey. There have been times when it seemed like an impossible task and each new year has found me looking at the fresh list of essay titles with fear and incredulity. Still, I have learnt so much along the way and this year my average score is 90%. I am proud to have achieved that.

When I dropped out of my original Degree course 27 years ago I thought that gaining a Degree would be something I could never do. I felt that I had failed to achieve my potential and yet dropping out was somehow meant to be. If I had not dropped out I would never have met my husband, had our children, worked in casinos, travelled around the world ... Back then I had the academic ability, but not the strength of character to continue.

I remember writing miserable poetry, alone in my room at Leicester University. I have never felt so lonely. I was due to travel to Rome for my last year of the course, to write a dissertation on 15th Century mosaics. I had dreamt of speaking fluent Italian, sitting in cafes discussing the world of art and literature. As it turned out I never made it to Italy. I couldn't face it. Now I look back and wonder what my tutor, whose name I can't remember, was doing when she didn't even reply to my letter saying that I couldn't continue and was leaving the course. Now I think with amazement of the lack of support given to a lonely, miserable girl who spent so much of her time in tears...

But to be honest, I don't spend more than a couple of seconds thinking that way. I am so grateful that I have come this far and shown the determination to keep going when things have been tough. I am glad that I have proved to myself that I am intelligent, I am determined.

Three years ago the journey to gaining my Degree seemed a long and impossible one. Today it is less than 2 weeks away. I am struggling with this essay, but I know that I will get it written and it will be in on time. I am so looking forward to the weeks after I have handed it in when I will know that I have achieved my goal and that I will never have that weight of work hanging over my head again! I am never going to write another essay!!!

This summer holiday I will not spend my time reading and taking copious notes. I plan to read books for pleasure, with no notes at all!!!

I am so grateful to my husband and boys for their unerring support in all this. I have, on occasion, not been an easy person with which to live! And I am forever grateful to my lovely sister-in-law who made me realise that I could do this, who encouraged me and who is just wonderful!

One day soon, in the next year, I know that I will attend my Graduation Ceremony, wear my gown and receive my Degree. I shall post photos of it when it happens and it will be one of the proudest moments of my life.

*Reminder to self - buy water proof mascara.