Hi, I’m Kristie.
For the past ten years or so, I have woven the teachings and practice of yoga into my life. My dedicated practice has gifted me a deeper understanding of myself, others and the environment in which I live. This gentle, loving connection has illuminated a pathway of how to live responsively, consciously and how to find harmony with what is, moment-to-moment, in the ever-changing nature of life (of course, all of this is a continual work in progress!)
This connection and reverence for myself has not always been alive within me and was borne from a sense of great disconnection. For as long as I can remember, I had always felt uncomfortable in my skin. I felt out of place in life, as though I was on the outside looking in. I felt incredibly shy, introverted, lacking in confidence, uncertain and insecure. I was completely unskilled and unaware of how to meet my hypersensitive nature. I continually looked outward, deferring my power to others, somehow hoping that something or someone would resolve the discord I experienced.
I explored a brief connection with the incredible practice of yoga in my late teens, however found sitting with the intensity of my emotions intolerable. This further alienated me, pushing me further away from my centre and inner compass. Yoga became a distant memory. I quite unconsciously found myself on a path of self-destruction and in a misplaced effort to move further away from myself, I moved overseas in my early 20’s as I further explored my career as a Flight Attendant. Always pushing myself to be better and do better, I achieved a wonderful career highlight as a VIP Flight Attendant, working on a private jet based out of the Middle East. I worked, travelled and partied hard, living a lifestyle of indulgence and extravagance which only compounded the sense of disconnection, anxiety and unhappiness I experienced. The perfect fuel for a downward spiral.
Not surprisingly during my time overseas, my hypersensitivity became increasingly heightened and yet paradoxically I continued to push and achieve. I was creating a façade of who I thought I should be, instead of honouring who I was at my core.
During a period of downtime overseas, and in a rare moment of acknowledging my inner voice, I reconnected with yoga and began to once again teeter around the edges. I became close enough to acknowledge my shadow but not close enough to befriend to her. In my late 20’s, I returned to Australia. Yoga and meditation became a lifestyle experiment to better understand my hypersensitive nature and anxious tendencies which were beginning to tell in my physical body through chronic pain. This sweet, simple and quiet agreement to connect with my body, breath and intense emotions just once a week began to pique a deeper curiosity, calling me back to the practice and ultimately back to myself.
Life began to settle. I began to find my inner anchor. Tending to myself with compassion, kindness and forgiveness, I began to turn inward to experience the acceptance, self-love, sense of belonging and enough-ness I was so busily searching outwardly for.
These days, I have the incredible honour of being mum to two adorable, lively souls – Louis and Matisse, quite possibly my two greatest teachers. I am wife to a wisdom-filled, light-hearted tradie. Bee guardian. Lover of the outdoors – the bushland and the ocean. Faltering green-thumb. Dear friend to myself and others.
In the studio, I am a highly skilled, experienced, intuitive, perceptive and welcoming guide. My nurturing teaching draws on the philosophy of yoga and my lived experiences, a passion for mindfulness, movement and the healing art of yoga nidra. I create a welcoming space, guiding students to settle into their unique experience as it unfolds on the mat and how this flows into and is borne from life itself. I empower students to move according to their unique rhythms and structure and in doing so, to reconnect with their heart as they rediscover who they are at their essence.
‘When you feel deeply, small ripples feel like big waves.’
Anon
Qualifications
- Australian Yoga Academy Advanced Diploma of Yoga Teacher Training (2013) 350 hours
- Foundations of Yoga, Simon Borg-Olivier, Yoga Synergy (2013)
- Applied Anatomy and Physiology with Simon Borg-Olivier Yoga Synergy (2014)
- Bliss Baby Restorative Yoga Level 1 and 2 (2014/2020) 58 hours
- Bliss Baby pre and Post Natal Yoga teaching (2014) 65 hours
- Ihana Yoga Post-Graduate Diploma (2016) 150 hours
- Restorative Yoga Lizzie Lasater level 1 (2018) 30 hours
- Ohana Yoga Restorative and Yoga Therapy, Spinal Care (2017)
- Ohana Yoga Restorative and Yoga Therapy, Core Connectivity (2018)
- Ohana Yoga Restorative and Yoga Therapy, The Embodied Self (2018)
- Yoga Nida Teacher and Daring to Rest Yoga Nidra Facilitator, Karen Brody (2020)
- Yoga Nidra Teacher Training, Jane Roemer (2022)
