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Qigong, embodiment and creativity: a practice rooted in tradition

I'm a Qigong teacher and practitioner based in Bournemouth, where I teach in Boscombe, Southbourne and Christchurch. Qigong has been part of my life for more than 15 years, and over time it has become the centre of my teaching and creative practice.

My teaching is rooted in an understanding of Qigong as an art as much as a movement and health practice. I'm interested in what happens when we move beyond simply reproducing a form and begin to experience the qualities and principles within it. Breath, imagery, attention, sensation, nature and the changing qualities of the seasons all have a place in my teaching.

I teach regular classes and workshops for people of all ages, with a wide range of experience and physical abilities. I have experience adapting Qigong for people living with illness, fatigue or physical limitations, including workshops for people living with fibromyalgia at the invitation of social prescribers. I also offer courses and workshops exploring how Qigong can support people through menopause. I have experience of teaching classes for older adults including those living in care homes over Zoom. 

For me, teaching is about creating the conditions for people to explore, notice and discover for themselves, while honouring the principles and traditions of Qigong. I bring a playful, lighthearted approach, always leaving room for your own discovery.

In 2027 I will be teaching alongside Mimi Kuo-Deemer on her nine month Qigong Teacher Training and Mentorship, leading five online sessions that take us through the Five Phases, one season at a time.

I'm particularly interested in the relationship between Qigong and the natural world. The seasons, weather and landscape often become starting points for my classes and workshops. The Five Phases offer a rich way of exploring these relationships, connecting movement with season, sensation, emotion and the wider world around us.

I’m also interested in the relationship between the body and its environment. In my writing, I’ve explored the idea of the body as landscape: not something separate from the world around us, but something that is constantly responding to it. These ideas find their way into my teaching too, through movement, imagery and attention to what is happening both within and around us.

A little about my background

Before Qigong became the centre of my working life, I spent more than two decades working in arts and education. In 1994, I co-founded Eastside Educational Trust with Chris Enticott, a youth arts and education charity in London. We ran the organisation together for 23 years, working with young people, artists, educators and communities through creative projects and programmes.

That experience continues to shape the way I teach. I learned a great deal about participation, creativity and the importance of creating spaces where people can experiment, take things in their own direction and discover what they are capable of.

Yoga has also been part of my life for over 35 years and has shaped my understanding of embodiment and teaching. Alongside Qigong, it has encouraged me to think of the body not simply as something to train or fix, but as a place of perception, expression and possibility. One of my earliest memories is of my grandmother lighting ghee-soaked wicks and saluting the sun and greeting the earth. Her quiet reverence instilled in me the importance of imagination and mystery and of quieting down and noticing what surrounds us. All these threads continue to inform the way I practise, teach, think and live today.

Questions?

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Education, training and qualifications

200 Hours Yoga Teacher Training at Yoga on the Lane with Naomi Annand & Adam Hocke - (200 hours)

Teen Yoga & Mindfulness Training Level 3 Sports Coach with Teen Yoga @ Yogacampus - (60 hours)

Qigong Teaching Mentorship with Mimi Kuo-Deemer (110 hours)

Qigong and the Chinese Five Phases with Mimi Kuo-Deemer (40 hours)

Qigong for Yoga Teachers: Immersion at Triyoga with Mimi Kuo-Deemer - (16 hours)

Vinyasa Flow: A Teacher’s Immersion at Triyoga with Mimi Kuo-Deemer - (35 hours)

Diploma in Arts Management at Birkbeck College, University of London

MA English & Modern Languages (Spanish) at Lady Margaret Hall, University of Oxford

BA Hons English & Modern Languages (Spanish) at Lady Margaret Hall, University of Oxford