Frequently asked questions

If you are booking for an in-person yoga class, they are offered only as pre-paid sessions per term and spaces are limited. For online classes (coming soon), you will need to book and pay in order to attend. Please fill in the pre-yoga questionnaire when you sign up and make sure you have purchased your at-home props and are ready to go.

I recommend that as a beginner you start with a basic introduction to yoga to learn the foundations from the ground up. I have over twenty years experience as a natural health practitioner and yoga therapist and will make sure you are safe at all times. Your first yoga experience can set the pace for your entire yoga ‘career’ so it’s important to feel comfortable and at ease in this new environment. Don’t be afraid to ask questions during class or share when a posture is uncomfortable or perhaps impossible for you. Remember, everyone was a beginner at some point! There is a phrase that yogis use called “beginners mind” that reiterates the importance of being in the moment and developing self awareness. As a beginner you will often experience the most profound releases and insights because yoga is so new and expansive for you, so be brave, be patient and above all, enjoy yourself!

Yoga helps us to shift stale and stagnant energies that embed as tension, fatigue or weakness in certain areas of the body and within the layers of the mind. Think tight hips, stiff shoulders and neck and contracted hamstrings, repetitive thoughts, headaches and confused, critical inner dialogue. Every sensation is an indication that energy is blocked, so when we begin to breathe deeply and fully and start to unpack these old energies, emotions will begin to rise to the surface to be examined, accepted and then released. Don’t worry, it’s absolutely normal and completely fine to shed a tear or feel vulnerable. This may be the first time you have allowed yourself to acknowledge fear, stress or grief, so let things come up and know you are safe and that you are not being judged. If anything, you are being celebrated for your courage in doing so. Everyone has their moments on the mat and this is exactly why we do yoga – to connect more deeply and authentically with ourselves and start understanding the intimate relationship between our present levels of happiness and our unconscious patterns of thought, emotion and deed.

Ideally two to three classes per week will manifest many wonderful benefits for you, but it really depends on what is doable for you. Yoga can increase your sense of inner peace and calm, help you develop greater love and compassion for yourself and others, improve your sleep and cultivate mental clarity and inner stillness. It is the ultimate tool to help you connect to and understand who (and why) you are. It also increases lung capacity and lowers stress levels, helping to create a stronger, flexible and more capable and comfortable physical body for you to live in.

Yoga is a Sanskrit word that means “to yoke” or “unite”. As a practice, it is a scientific system for achieving total physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being; a means to unite the body, mind and spirit. The term yoga is often to describe the postures or the physical part of yoga; however, these poses, called “asana”, are only one of the eight “limbs” of yoga. If you are interested to learn more I recommend the following books: Light on Yoga by BKS Iyengar; The Tree of Yoga by BKS Iyengar; The Bhagavad Gita; Patanjali’s Sutras; The Yamas and Niyamas by Deborah Adele and Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahanda Yogananda.

Yoga is about baby steps; we must crawl before we can walk and walk before we can run. I always offer a modification when I they see someone uneasy in any posture and encourage students to “make the posture their own”, meaning, adjust so you can yield into it with grace and ease so it suits your body in the moment. I never tell students to contort themselves in order to fit into an ideal of what they think a posture should be or to replicate what they have seen in the media or a magazine. I don’t push bodies into postures they aren’t ready for and prefer to stress the non-competitive nature of yoga by inviting you to make the practice your own. Do what is best for you. Don’t force yourself into a shape that you aren’t ready for because we certainly won’t be asking you to do that. The golden rule of thumb is: “If it hurts, don’t do it!”

Although the focus in yoga is more about inner balance, healing and reconnecting to your deepest self, a regular practice will not only open your mind and offer you a fresh perspective on your life but it will also absolutely change your physical body. While not every style offers an intense aerobic workout, most assist to burn calories, stimulate hormones and enhance communication and function between muscles, joints and organs. Just as importantly, as you move into an improved state of well-being, you will make choices off the mat that also improve your health in other ways. This is where it is imperative to practice with teachers who are properly trained and have several years of experience in being able to read bodies – even mindsets – and manipulate and manage energy correctly. Mana Yoga has its’ roots in traditional Chinese medicine and the meridian system and by practicing this particular style you can influence the function of your organs, your metabolism and all systems in your body. There are specific postures that address weight balance as well as effecting the associated emotions and mindsets. You will definitely be moved, cleared and strengthened on all levels.

Yoga is a philosophy, not a religion, although it does have a potent spiritual component. Yoga has been practiced by individuals of widely differing beliefs all around the world for generations. In order to practice, you only need to believe in the possibility that you can transform yourself, that there is always more to learn and that there is a better way to approach life than through the perpetuation of old habits that just bind and restrict one further. At its’ core, yoga opens the heart centre, enabling us to see where we have not yet tapped into our highest potential as human beings. Yoga seeks to put us in touch with our spiritual truth – our inner nature.

For online classes at home, you will obviously need to have your own mat and equipment. I prefer eco-friendly products, even though they may be a little more expensive than the regular (and cheaper) mats used in most studios, they last longer, are free of nasty toxins and biodegradable. I prefer LovEarth or Manduka. You might also want to have some water handy, though I do suggest you drink before and after your practice, not during, to allow your body to regulate itself naturally.

Yes. I have experience teaching in offices, hospitals and schools, as well as team-building classes held privately for corporate groups. I am also available to teach small private groups, either regularly or for special occasions such as birthdays, hens/bucks weekends and during school holidays. To discuss/arrange please contact me at denby@denbysheather.com.(mailto:denby@denbysheather.com)

Please arrive at the studio about ten minutes before class time so you can meet me, have a quick chat with other students and then get yourself settled. You’ll be shown where to leave your personal items, reminded to turn off your cell phone and guided to a mat. Grab any props you feel you need on the way. If others are already resting on their mats, please keep noise/conversations to a minimum. Arriving early will also give you time to ask me any questions you might have and share any injuries or physical conditions for your safety. It is imperative that I know if you are pregnant or dealing with an acute injury BEFORE class begins.

Payment at time of booking is standard practice in the industry. This serves to honor both practitioner and recipient. Pre-payment ensures your chosen session slot is confirmed, while respecting the time and effort I dedicate to preparing the space for you ahead of time, both physically and energetically. If you felt to book a bundle of sessions - spaced every few weeks or months as maintenance - I am happy to offer you a generous discount.

Therapy and coaching can be incredibly valuable, especially for insight, stabilisation, and skill-building. My work complements—but is distinct from—those approaches. It focuses on embodied integration, working directly with the nervous system, somatic memory, and the deeper symbolic layers that often sit beneath conscious insight. Rather than analyzing experience alone, we work with how it lives in the body and psyche, allowing change to happen at a structural level.

Yes. My approach is trauma-aware, nervous-system-informed, and grounded in safety, pacing, and consent. That said, trauma-informed does not mean avoiding intensity altogether—it means knowing how and when to work with depth so that transformation is integrated rather than overwhelming.

Not at all. This work does not require belief in any particular spiritual framework. While it draws from ancient wisdom traditions, it is grounded, embodied, and practical. Some people experience this work psychologically. Others experience it spiritually. Many experience it as both.

Because what we avoid continues to run us. Shadow work allows suppressed emotions, patterns, and survival strategies to be met consciously, so they no longer operate unconsciously. This doesn’t make life heavier—it creates more choice, freedom, and authenticity.

Yes—this is often when the work becomes most potent. Hormonal shifts naturally loosen old coping strategies and bring unresolved material to the surface. Rather than pathologizing this phase, my work treats it as a rite of passage—one that can be navigated with clarity, support, and meaning.

That fear is both normal and wise. This work is paced, relational, and responsive. You are never pushed beyond what your system can integrate. Depth does not mean force. It means honesty, presence, and skillful guidance.