Sylvana somatic therapy

welcome to my world

I’m fascinated by the beauty and science of human brain and body

I’m passionate about expanding my consciousness and understanding the mind

I’m in awe of human’s potential and body’s ability to heal and regenerate

I’m committed to my daily practice

I appreciate the magic and mystical in life

I’m energised by deep conversations, awareness, creativity, and movement

I believe in changing the mind with the body

I connect with joy through playfulness, togetherness, goofiness, dance and being in nature

I’m inspired by kindness, generosity, authenticity, and ancient wisdom

I celebrate joie de vivre in simple things

I enjoy sitting in silence

I love exploring Jungian psychology and paradoxes of human behaviour

I constantly grow as a therapist and person

The more I know the less I feel I know

I appreciate traditional cultures and I grew up in a community that cherished nature, folklore, and nourishing ancestral food

my story

I once was a perfect example of someone who had spent most of life disconnected from the body - living in my head (a space of imagination and over-intellectualization) - as an insightful observer desperately trying to contain an agitated mind.

Dissociation was my home and safe place.

I remember my first yoga class as a teenager, for a moment I managed to connect to a new way of being in my body, a sense of lightness that felt like joy and relief.

I became curious. I was taken to a place where my body felt happy and calm.

This experience planted a seed, I was intrigued, and wanted more of that blissful state of being.

naturally inquisitive and enthusiastic I was determined to explore ways to find inner-peace and release tension in my body

I gravitated towards practices of self-inquiry, and with strong intuition I was drawn to holistic lifestyle.

After graduation my adventurous spirit took me to London. With a background in Social Sciences and Arts I sensed that my professional path is yet to be discovered.

I was living my life intentionally, weaving in diverse range of trainings that helped me become a yoga teacher. Having always valued a slow approach to acquiring knowledge, I chose long-term courses that gave me enough time to learn, assimilate, understand, and embody the wisdom of the practice.

I particularly appreciated my time in India where I studied with Dr. K.L.M Kumar

The training was rigorous, and very different to what “Western” courses offer. The focus was on developing discipline and mental stamina with deep immersion into yogic philosophy and meditation.

As I was gaining more experience, my teaching style continued evolving. I kept my mind open, being inspired by different schools, approaches, and somatic movement modalities.

After many years of working as a full-time yoga teacher in London I couldn’t shake off the feeling that I needed to restructure my professional life. I was burned out, exhausted, and confused.

It coincided with a couple of crucial experiences that deeply impacted me as a teacher and human and helped me redefine my direction and reignite my passion for teaching and supporting others.

in 2015 and 2016 I went to Greece to work with a vulnerable population in refugee camp

I was witnessing people in extremely hard situations and had opportunity to start a project offering movement/yoga therapy for refugee women. Understandably most of them had suffered trauma and had various mental health issues. Working with these women touched me on many levels. Language barrier didn’t matter, we communicated via laughing, dancing, and moving together, co-creating a space of shared love, and respect towards one another, a beautiful embodiment of sisterhood and resilience-affirming community.

During this time, I’ve realised that I wanted to focus my therapeutic work on yoga for improving mental and emotional health, and I became specifically interested in yoga for PTSD/trauma.

Following my volunteering experience, I was ready for the next important step in my professional development and embarked on a 3 years challenge to study with Minded Institute in London to become a yoga therapist. It was the most comprehensive, demanding, yet extremely rewarding course I’ve done so far, and the most formative experience in my career.

even though I had been practicing yoga for several years and experiencing many benefits, it was only when I started applying yoga therapy tools to my health that I noticed a huge impact on my mental and physical wellbeing

For years I had felt like a prisoner of my dysregulated nervous system, struggling with depression and anxiety. My body was talking to me, and I didn't know how to listen, oscillating between freeze and fight & flight response. The effort to figure things out was futile until I realised that healing comes from feeling, inner safety, connection, and consistent mental and physical practice. Using yoga therapy tools has been invaluable on my healing journey. Learning about how trauma manifests in the body was liberating and I finally found validation for so many symptoms present in my body. The real change occurred when I started regulating my nervous system through breathing practices, gentle somatic movement, and mind awareness exercises.

recalibrating my nervous system was a true game changer

Having experienced the shift in my own mental and physical health I’m wholeheartedly passionate about supporting others in their own process of regaining mental and emotional resilience.

It’s already been over a decade since I started teaching yoga and working therapeutically with individuals. It’s been an honour to facilitate healing experiences and share my love for holistic health.

I’m humbled by the vastness of wisdom that is still to discover and consider myself a lifetime student, amazed by the complexity of human experience

I’m dedicated to the path of knowing-thyself, grateful to all my teachers, mentors, and therapists for helping me on the journey of becoming my truthful, authentic Self.

Thank you for showing an interest in me and my work.

I would be very happy to connect, collaborate or work with you.

With Love & Gratitude,
Sylvana

qualifications/trainings/experiences

• 580h Yoga Therapy Training with Minded Institute (London 2020-2023)
• Certification of Embodiment Coaching (2022)
• Foundations of Embodiment Course (2021)
• 2-day workshop with Gabor Maté on Compassionate Inquiry (2021)
• 60h Yoga Therapy for PTSD, depression, and anxiety (London, 2019)
• 30h Restorative Yoga Training with Judith Hanson Lasater (London, 2015)
• 200h Yoga Teacher Training Diploma with Yoga Campus (London 2012-2014)
• 30h Yoga Therapy intensive with Dough Keller (London 2013)
• 500h Advanced Teacher Training Course with Traditional Yoga with Dr K.L.M Kumar (Hyderabad, India, 2012)
• 200h Dru Yoga Teacher Training with Dru London (London, 2009-2011)
• MA in Enterprise Management in Creative Arts
• MSc in Social Sciences and Communication Studies
• BA in Arts and Analog Photography.

Get in touch

connect

welcome to my world

I’m fascinated by the beauty and science of human brain and body

I’m passionate about expanding my consciousness and understanding the mind

I’m in awe of human’s potential and body’s ability to heal and regenerate

I’m committed to my daily practice

I appreciate the magic and mystical in life

I’m energised by deep conversations, critical thinking, awareness, creativity, and movement

I believe in changing the mind with the body

I connect with joy through playfulness, togetherness, goofiness, dance and being in nature

I’m inspired by kindness, generosity, authenticity, and ancient wisdom

I celebrate joie de vivre in simple things

I enjoy sitting in silence

I love exploring Jungian psychology and paradoxes of human behaviour

I constantly grow as a therapist and a person

The more I know the less I feel I know

I appreciate traditional cultures and I grew up in a community that cherished nature, folklore, and nourishing ancestral food

my story

I could be a perfect example of someone who most of the life stayed disconnected from the body, living in my head, a space of imagination and over-intellectualization, an insightful observer desperately trying to contain my agitated mind.

Dissociation was my home and safe place.

I remember my first yoga class as a teenager, for a moment I managed to connect to a new way of being in my body, a sense of lightness that felt like a joy and relief.

I became curious. I was taken to a place where my body felt happy and calm.

This experience planted a seed, I was intrigued, and wanted more of that blissful state of being.

naturally inquisitive and enthusiastic I was determined to explore ways to find inner-peace and release tension in my body

I gravitated towards practices of self-inquiry and with strong intuition I was drawn to idea of exploring more holistic practices.

After graduation my adventurous spirit took me to London. With a background in Social Sciences and Arts I sensed that my professional path is yet to be discovered.

I was living my life intentionally, weaving in diverse range of trainings that helped me become a yoga teacher. I’ve always valued slow approach to acquiring knowledge that’s why I would choose long-term course that had given me enough time to learn, assimilate, understand, and embody the wisdom of the practice.

I particularly appreciated my time in India where I studied with Dr. K.L.M Kumar

The training was rigorous, and very different to what “Western” courses offer. The focus was on developing discipline and mental stamina with deep immersion into yogic philosophy and meditation.

In general, as I’ve been gaining more experience, my teaching style has been evolving. I’ve kept my mind open, being inspired by different schools, approaches, and somatic movement modalities.

After many years of working as a full-time yoga teacher in London I couldn’t shake off the feeling that I needed to restructure my professional life. I was burned out, exhausted, and confused.

It coincided with couple of crucial experiences that deeply impacted me as a teacher and human and helped me redefine my direction and reignite my passion for teaching and supporting others.

in 2015 and 2016 I went to Greece to work with vulnerable population in refugee camps

I was witnessing people in extremely hard situations and had opportunity to start a project offering movement/yoga therapy for refugee women. Understandably most of them had suffered trauma and had various mental health issues. Working with these women touched me on many levels. Language barrier didn’t matter, we communicated via laughing, dancing, and moving together, co-creating a space of shared love, and respect towards one another, a beautiful embodiment of sisterhood and resilience-affirming community.

During that time, I’ve realised that I want to focus my therapeutic work on yoga for improving mental and emotional health, and I became specifically interested in yoga for PTSD/trauma.

Following my volunteering experience, I was ready for the next important step in my professional development, and I embarked on 3 years challenge to study with Minded Institute to become a yoga therapist. It was the most comprehensive, demanding, yet extremely rewarding course I’ve ever done and the most formative experience in my career so far.

even though I’ve been practicing yoga for many years experiencing a lot of benefits, only when I’ve started applying yoga therapy tools to my health, I’ve noticed huge impact on my mental and physical wellbeing

For years I felt a prisoner of my dysregulated nervous system, struggling with depression and anxiety. My body was talking to me, oscillating between freeze and fight and flight response. I didn’t know how to listen and respond. The effort to figure out things was futile until I realised that healing comes from feeling, connection, and consistent mental and physical practice. Using yoga therapy tools has been invaluable on my healing journey. Learning about how trauma manifest in the body was liberating and I finally found validation/explanation for so many symptoms in my body. The real change occurred when I’ve started regulating my nervous system through breathing practices, gentle somatic movement, and mind awareness exercises.

recalibrating my nervous system was a true game changer

Having experienced the shift in my own mental and physical health I’m wholeheartedly passionate about supporting others in their own process of regaining mental and emotional resilience.

And it’s been already 11 years since I’ve started teaching yoga and working therapeutically with individuals. It’s been an honour to facilitate healing experiences and share my love for holistic health.

I’m humbled by the vastness of wisdom that is still to discover and consider myself a lifetime student, amazed by the complexity of human experience

I’m dedicated to the path of knowing-thyself, grateful to all my teachers, mentors, and therapists for helping me on the journey of becoming my truthful, authentic Self.

Finally, thank you for showing an interest in me and my work.

I would be very happy to connect, collaborate or work with you.

With Love & Gratitude,
Sylvana

qualifications

/trainings

/experiences

Get in touch

connect