Encouraging your mind into stillness, your body into balance and your soul to smile
Kind Thought | Kind Word | Kind Action
Caroline is a Trauma Informed Breathwork, somatic & yoga therapist, specialising in chronic illness, menopause and acute trauma. she guides classes, wellbeing sessions, workshops and retreats for local communities & workplaces, Also collaborating with medical and psychology teams in London, Edinburgh and online. her work is steeped in the association between physiology and psychology using breathwork as the foundation of Her approach. supporting the systems within the body for optimal health through functional breathwork, she combines this with movement, positive psychology techniques, deep rest & relaxation, to encourage balance within the autonomic nervous system.
She is currently studying an ma psychology & sociology at edinburgh university; and is one half of The menopause Sisters, with her sister Dr Claire, a GP and British Menopause Society specialist and trainer. together they advocate for and champion womens health & wellbeing.
caroline’s INCLUsive approach nurtures connection through community, encouraging individuals to listen deeply to their bodies via interoception, building autonomy & self understanding.
My first experience of embodied wellbeing came in the late 1990s, when my dear friend, nutritionist Toral Shah, invited me to a weekend yoga retreat with Suzy Bolt. The memory of profound peace and calm I felt on a yoga mat that weekend is still what informs my personal practice today. That feeling sparked a long-standing curiosity about how breath, present moment awareness, gentle movement and deep rest can regulate the nervous system and support emotional balance. Over time, this led me to explore practices rooted in a somasensory approaches, supported by the psychology of self awareness and inquiry.
My professional training has evolved over many years and spans a wide range of complementary disciplines. Alongside formal teacher trainings with Yoga Scotland, advanced training in Yin Yoga with Norman Blair, specialist courses supporting young people and those navigating menopause, my learning has increasingly focused on breathwork, fascia, anatomy, trauma-aware practice, and inclusive approaches to wellbeing. I have had the privilege of studying breath regulation with Dr Richard P. Brown; breathwork, fascia and anatomy with Gary Carter, Tom Myers and Jill Miller; embodied movement with Donna Farhi and Dr Karen Kirkness; and inclusive, compassionate teaching with Dianne Bondy. These influences, combined with my current MA Psychology & Sociology studies, alongside meditation, mindfulness and deep rest practices, shape how I guide others today.
My own experience of perimenopause led me to deepen my knowledge of evidence-informed practices grounded in compassionate support for mental, emotional and physical wellbeing. This led to co-founding The Menopause Sisters with my sister, Dr Claire, a GP and Advanced Menopause Specialist. Together we lead and facilitate talks, workshops and 1-2-1’s on menopause and women’s health in London, Edinburgh and online.
Since 2020 my work has increasingly centred on trauma awareness and approaches that focus on the autonomic nervous system. My 100-hour Trauma-Informed Yoga and Embodied Social Change training with Yoga for Humankind forms the foundation of the inclusive, invitational language I endeavour to use, across all the sessions I lead. I am part of the Edinburgh Community Yoga trauma informed teaching team, have created trauma informed menopause and breathwork resources for the National Wellbeing Hub (a Scottish Government initiative), deliver breathwork and movement sessions at HMP Edinburgh and guide classes for the British Army Personnel Recovery Centre for Scotland & North Ireland.
The culmination of these practices support me daily— this may be conscious breathing whilst waiting in a queue, a morning practice of mindful movement, or longer periods of deep rest drawing upon restorative yoga. At the heart of my work is a belief in kindness, self-compassion, and acceptance. I draw inspiration from ancient yoga philosophy—particularly the principle of ahimsa, non-violence—which I interpret as meeting ourselves and others with gentle curiosity rather than judgement. My sessions are designed to be adaptable, supportive, and accessible, using breath, gentle movement, meditation, mindfulness and deep relaxation alongside positive psychology techniques to build inner strength, resilience, and connection. Above all, I aim to create safe inclusive spaces that remind us how to pause and be gentle with ourselves to allow a softening, and acceptance, in the present moment.
Caroline holds insurance for teaching with Balens & is a member of the Protecting VuLnerable groups (PVG) scheme in Scotland.
ADULT QUALIFICATIONS & ONGOING TRAINING
Yoga Scotland 500hr YTT 2017-19
Advanced nine day Yin Yoga Training with Norman Blair 60hr, September 2022
Trauma-Informed Yoga & Embodied Social Change with Yoga for Humankind 100hr, November 2020 - April 2021
Menopause Yoga 40hr YTT, September 2020
Contemporary Issues in Health & Wellbeing 200hr, University of Edinburgh, September-November 2024
Trauma Conference, The Master Series Oxford University, September 2023 with Stephen Porges, Bessel van der Kolk, Deb Dana, Peter Levine & Richard Schwartz
The Fascial Breath with John Wilks, The Fascia Hub, February 2024
Essentials of Myofascial Release with Yoga International, February 2024
Sequencing for the nervous system with Kristine Weber, April 2022
Vagus voyage: an embodied tour of the vagus nerve and its influence with Jill Miller, March 2022
Every Breath You Take Dissection Livestream Speciality Course with Tom Myers and Todd Garcia, February 2022
TRE course - Tension Stress Trauma Release, November 2021
Confidence in the Menopause Education Programme with Newson Health Research & Fourteen Fish, May 2021
Yin Yoga 30hr YTT with Eva Maxine Hamilton, February 2021
Essentials of Yin Yoga with Bernie Clark, January 2012
Menopause: What do women want? Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists webinar, October 2021
Introduction to Trauma Informed Practice, Edinburgh Community Yoga, October 2020
Foundations of Ayurveda Level 1 online with Gillian Grant, Transformational Yoga, July 2020
Five Flows Anatomy for Yoga with Karen Kirkness, Meadowlark, Edinburgh, June 2020
COVID-19 Psychological Impact, Wellbeing & Mental Health online with SLaM & The Tavistock & Portman NHS Foundation, June 2020
Engineering Health: Introduction to Yoga and Physiology online with New York University 50hrs, June 2020
Psychological First Aid online with John Hopkins University, April 2020
Mind Control: Managing Your Mental Health During COVID-19 online with Steve Joordens, University of Toronto, April 2020
6 Critical Problems in Modern Yoga & How To Work With Them with Matthew Remski, March 2020
Coming to our senses with Christine Purves, Edinburgh, January 2020
Yoga Scotland: What is an Ayurvedic lifestyle? Elizabeth Roberts, The Yoga Mill Galashiels, November 2019
Masterclass with Gary Carter workshop at The London Yoga Festival, October 2019
Mantra In Action: How sound can transform your practice with Miranda Taylor at The London Yoga Festival, October 2019
A Brief History of Yoga with Daniel Simpson: tracing yogic traditions & their development through early Upanishads, the Mahabharata, the Bhagavad Gita, and their systematisation in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra, Yoga Newcastle, September 2019
An Introduction to yoga, diversity and body image with Dianne Bondy at TriYoga London, August 2019
Yoga In Healthcare Conference London, 15th-17th February 2019
Tara Fraser one day workshop at Yoga Junction London, January 2019
Befriending the Body, Befriending the Self: A 5 day yoga intensive with Donna Farhi, Edinburgh, May 2018
Ancient Classical Yoga Techniques with Yogacharya Venkatesh & Hema, Union Yoga Edinburgh, May 2017
Yoga Scotland Foundation Course 60hr 2016/17
Yoga Weekend with Firooza Ali Razvi Edinburgh, June 2016
Iyengar weekend with Rajiv and Swati Chanchani from the Yog-Ganga centre Edinburgh, June 2016
CHILDREN & TEEN QUALIFICATIONS & ONGOING TRAINING
Y is for yoga children’s 40hr RYT qualification Edinburgh, July 2017
Teen Yoga 100hr RYT qualification Edinburgh, July 2019
Connected Kids Teaching Children Meditation Foundation with Lorraine Murray Edinburgh, August 2014
Youth Mental Health First Aid with The National Council For Behavioural Health & Mental Health First Aid, August 2020
Child Protection in Scotland with NSPCC, August 2020
Trauma & transitions: supporting children & young people with transitions of Covid-19/lockdown with Dr Karen Treisman, Children In Scotland, August 2020
Therapeutic Life Story Work with Richard Rose, online TLSWi & Children In Scotland, July 2020
Suicide & Self Harm In Young People lecture with Dr Trudie Roussow, Judy Dunn National Conference London, November 2019
Yoga in Youth: Contexts to Thrive and Nurture workshop with Charlotta Martinus founder of Teen Yoga London, February 2019
Yoga for Children with Autism & Social/Emotional Needs workshop with Jyoti Manuel founder of Special Yoga London, February 2019
Practising yoga with children and young people with ASD course with Children In Scotland Edinburgh, December 2018