My Yoga story began when I moved to Thailand at 22. Just a couple of friends in a concrete apartment with a whirring ceiling fan and a fig tree on the balcony. Thailand remains my spiritual home and every home since has been a place to roll out my mat.
My yoga has looked different over the years…
Firstly, I was drawn to the active, Power Yoga practices. The flexibility of childhood ballet and gym transferred to the playful balances, splits and backbends of yoga. Then, the spiritual side began to seep into my pores - much of Thailand’s Buddhist philosophy is echoed in Yogic thinking. For the first time, I found myself leaning into my practice for mental strength more so than physical strength. Yoga became a soft landing, an ally, a constant.
My practice remained a personal one for many years until my husband, daughter and I moved to Whitstable and I walked into a Yin workshop led by Emma Epton. I fell in love with Yin Yoga immediately. Serendipity stepped in and I found myself on a new trajectory. With imposter syndrome stashed in my yoga bag next to my pencil case, I embarked on my 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training with Emma and Hannah at Yoga Reloaded. I qualified in 2020 and, in amidst the lockdowns of a strange year, I’d opened up a whole new world.
discovery
Truth be told, I’m more of a Yinner at heart (less of an agile acrobat), but my training ‘journey pose’ of Vrschikasana or scorpion pose had valuable teaching points. All yoga poses hold a mirror to our strengths and limitations and the importance of honouring both. In Yoga, playing and falling (safely) are better tutors that perfect balance and instagrammable angles … this suits me well as a teacher with neither of those things!
full circle
Yoga will take anyone interested down a miriad of learning rabbit holes. It’s so rich in its branches of wellness, philosophy, myth and wisdom. Two additional Yin teacher qualifications were always going to be my natural progression. I began delivering my own Yin workshops and life had come full-circle.
still learning
Next month, I’ll complete my 100 hour Advanced Yoga Teacher training. The course has been a deep dive into Pranayama, Yoga Nidra, Meditation Assists and teaching advanced poses.
I’m excited to bring Restorative Yoga, Chair Yoga, Trauma-informed and Parkinson’s/Dementia-informed Yoga to Jai Yen Yoga classes.
My Yoga Now…
…continues to look different. I’m always learning about myself, what I find difficult becomes what I need to work on next. For me right now, that’s restorative. Listening to my nervous system is the most important thing in my practice and the realisation that it’s the gateway to everything else. It won’t be fooled, so I’m listening carefully.
