AN ALEXANDRIA nurse has released her first song which she hopes will aid the stresses of the coronavirus pandemic.

Iona James, a practice nurse at her local GP practice in Balloch, decided to escape the harsh realities of the world with songwriting.

She attended a songwriting course in Glasgow a couple of years ago after always having a passion for music since she was little.

Iona put what she’d learned into practice in a bid to fight insomnia and to relieve her worries about her family who live in England.

She told the Reporter: “I have been doing a few little songs here and there, but not really doing anything with them.

“Then the coronavirus hit, which is an anxious experience for anyone. I found that writing music helped me to relax.

“A lot of people are worried about what is going on. I could see those worries when I was at work, so writing music really helped to distract me.”

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As a New Year resolution she decided to finally turn one of her lyric sheets into a song after receiving a digital workstation for Christmas - and with a little help from friends she made on the songwriting course, she created ‘To The Moon’.

She said: “I have never done anything like this before. I was quite scared – it can make you quite vulnerable as it is my feelings about what is going on.

“You need someone’s ear, because you listen to it for the first time and you think it sounds good, but then self-doubt starts to kick in.

“I was sitting for a little while thinking I may not put it on [Spotify], but with encouragement from my husband I released it to the public.

“I really hope that the words resonate with people who have also struggled with the lockdown.

“There are a lot of people who are working really hard in the fight against Covid and I truly thank them for it.”

The song, which can be accessed on most platforms, partly reflects the emotions the pandemic has stirred up in many of us, but is also partly a love song to her family in Shropshire, where Iona is originally from.

“I have not seen them in over a year,” she added.

“We Skype and have video calls, but the longer we do this, then the dream of seeing them starts to fade. I do really miss them at times, but I don’t want to put them at risk.”

The lyrics of ‘To The Moon’ include the lines: “Don’t know when we’ll meet again, it’s got to be soon; every day I feel the hollow of your absence to the moon.

“I love you to the moon; the world is going crazy but I know where I belong.”

You can listen to the song by logging onto songwhip.com/ionajames/to-the-moon.

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