EU Certified Yoga Teacher & Physiotherapist WHO AM I? I am a mother of a son since 2008 and an active humanitarian working in disarmament since early 2000.
Born Dutch and having adopted a Canadian identity having lived there for more than ten years, I moved to Geneva in 2006. Pursuing my interest in the practice and philosophy of yoga since 1998, I joined a 1500-hour, four-year, European Union and Yoga Suisse certified yoga teacher training in Geneva from in 2008-2012. This experience built on a Bachelor’s degree in physiotherapy and many years of tr
eating patients in a wide variety of clinical settings in the Netherlands, UK, Bangladesh Canada, Hong Kong and Switzerland. Invitations to teach yoga followed upon graduation from yoga teacher training in November of 2012. Since, teaching has become one of my loves, through which I can share the gifts of yoga with many others. WHEN AND WHY DID I START PRACTICING YOGA? Yoga came into my life through sheer chance, thanks to a friend who invited me to a class 25 years ago in Calgary, Canada. I was a runner and a biker at the time and had spent serious time doing triathlons. During my first yoga practice, Ashtanga style (power yoga), I experienced something all-together new. I entered into a space of total flow, presence, and abandon. It was magical. From then on, the practice of yoga has been an essential part of my life. HOW HAS THE PRACTICE OF YOGA CHANGED MY LIFE? Yoga has become a way of life for me; something I turn to daily, whether through recalling one or the other Yoga Sutras (practical textbook that guides one’s spiritual journey of remembering who we really are), or other teachings from one of the foundational texts of yoga, or taking a few minutes to connect with my breath and body, to meditate or to practice asanas (postures). Yoga in all its rich aspects guides my life in that it connects me to a deep inner peace, a calm, joyful, and conscious state of being. Even when the outer face of my life is in turmoil, it is there to help me connect to that ever present – always and already there – sense of quiet, calm and peace. It is thanks to yoga that I have been able to live a more embodied existence where mind and body are increasingly one. For this I am eternally grateful. Of all different practices I have experienced, yoga has offered me the greatest insight into myself, and life as whole. It not only practices the body and the mind, but more importantly, uses the body as a portal to the self. To live a life of increasingly greater inner balance has been the biggest of gifts. Said differently, it means to live my inner world, and my relationship with the larger world around me, in a way that reflects who I am truly within my inner most being; to reflect my true nature of love, spaciousness, lightness, connectedness with self and others. The learning is ongoing, ever more expanding my experience of what it means to be alive, right here and now. At a physical level, yoga has kept my body younger, freer, allowing me to age with more grace than I could have otherwise. Thanks to the practice, I have healed from injury more quickly and have prevented many pathologies, such as low back and shoulder pain. WHAT ARE MY MOTIVATION AND THE REASONS FOR WHICH I CRATED Yoga Free | Genève? The inspiration for Yoga Free | Genèvecomes from a dear friend, who wanted to make yoga accessible to everyone in Switzerland, regardless of financial means. He created the Yoga Free association, to which teachers could adhere. While the association no longer is, the idea continues to pay it forward. I believe deeply that yoga should be accessible to everyone, no matter what. The cost of yoga classes in Geneva is phenomenal, and this often acts as a barrier. Having taught classes on a donation basis over the past six years and seeing how this has drawn in people who otherwise would not have been able to experience the countless gifts of yoga, I am dedicated to continuing teaching in this manner. WHAT STYLE (S) OF YOGA DO I TEACH, AND WHICH TEACHERS OR TEACHINGS HAVE INSPIRED ME MOST? I teach a mix of Ashtanga, Hatha and vinyasa style yoga. Each practice is guided by the breath, as a doorway through which that part of us that is always at peace, calm and silence becomes accessible. I am inspired by Pattabhi Jois, B.K.S Iyengar, Shiva Rea and many others, including Anne Klopfenstein. WHAT TRAINING DID I RECEIVE? I followed a four - year yoga teacher training programme at Yoga 7, sat for and passed the Yoga Suisse exam, leading to a professional designation by the European Union of Yoga & Yoga Suisse in 2012. Many years earlier, in the 1990s, in the 1990s, I graduated with a Bachelor degree in physiotherapy in the Netherlands. Since, I have followed numerous trainings and workshops in both subjects.
16/02/2026
Chères Yogis,
Ravie de vous proposer un workshop exceptionnel en collaboration avec Sophie Gunsbourg et Dana Taligova qui vont vous faire sortir du « mind full » pour arriver au « mindful » avec le yoga.
Le chemin se poursuivra avec le mouvement somatique qui a la conscience corporelle au coeur et s'achevera avec un bain sonore proposé par Aurélie Lara, notre invitée spéciale.
Yoga in the green while my parents rested on a nearby bench and the sun was slowly sinking closer to the horizon. My dad could not resist and joined in for one posture ☺️
11/08/2023
Dear friends,
I am thrilled to be writing you with the news that the Yoga Free | Genève website is now up and running. You may access it by going to: https://en.yogafreegeneve.ch
The site is available in French and English.
From now on, I will no longer be sending invites or confirmations for practices via WhatsApp. Instead, you can book your yoga practice directly on the website.
People who join for the first time can book a first free practice by clicking on the orange button ‘get a free class‘.
If you are already a fan, you can simply click on the blue button ‘book my yoga class’ or reserve it in the calendar at the bottom of the home page.
As some of you already know, I have created the Yoga Free Collective, through which I kindly ask you to contribute an annual fee of CHF 75 at the beginning of the year, i.e. end of August or early September. This will cover cost of rental of the yoga space during holidays, and secure more support for Carl and El (read their story in the section ‘paying it forward’) and other people living in difficult circumstances. In the spirit of Yoga Free, you may of course adjust this fee upwards or downwards dependent on what feels right for you.
I welcome you to take a little journey through the site, which contains insights into the Yoga Free philosophy, pricing and the Yoga Free Collective, replacement teachers, blogs, and on how you are ‘paying it forward’ by stepping on the mat with Yoga Free, and more. Please share it with friends and family.
We will do a little Facebook advertisement campaign next week, but thought it wise to leave you – my original tribe – this weekend to book your classes.
If you come across any bugs in the site or have feedback, please do drop me a line by Whatsapp. You can still always find me there.
Je suis ravie de vous écrire pour vous annoncer que le site Internet de Yoga Free | Genève est désormais opérationnel. Vous pouvez y accéder en allant sur : www.yogafreegeneve.ch
Le site est disponible en français et en anglais.
A partir de maintenant, je n'enverrai plus d'invitations ou confirmations pour les séances de yoga via WhatsApp. A la place, vous pouvez la réserver directement sur le site.
Les personnes qui s'inscrivent pour la première fois peuvent réserver une première séance gratuite en cliquant sur le bouton orange 'réserver un cours gratuit’.
Si vous êtes déjà un adepte, vous pouvez simplement cliquer sur le bouton bleu "réserver mon cours de yoga", ou le réserver sur le calendrier au bas de la page d'accueil.
Comme certains d'entre vous le savent déjà, j'ai créé le Yoga Free Collective, par le biais duquel je vous demande une cotisation annuelle de 75 CHF en début d'année, c'est-à-dire fin d'août ou début septembre. Cette cotisation couvrira les frais de location de la salle de yoga pendant les vacances et permettra d'apporter un soutien supplémentaire à Carl et El (lire leur histoire dans la section "un monde meilleur") et à d'autres personnes vivant dans des conditions difficiles. Dans l'esprit de Yoga Free, vous pouvez bien sûr ajuster ce tarif à la hausse ou à la baisse en fonction de ce qui vous semble le plus juste.
Je vous invite à faire un petit voyage sur le site, qui contient des informations sur la philosophie de Yoga Free, les prix et le Collectif Yoga Free, les professeurs remplaçants, les blogs, et la façon dont votre passage sur le tapis avec Yoga Free est une façon de contribuer à « un monde meilleur » et plus encore. N'hésitez pas à le partager avec vos amis et votre famille.
Je ferai une petite campagne de publicité sur Facebook la semaine prochaine et je pense qu’il est sage de vous laisser - ma tribu d'origine - ce week-end d’avance pour réserver vos cours.
Si vous rencontrez des bugs sur le site ou si vous avez des commentaires, n'hésitez pas à m'envoyer un message par Whatsapp. Vous pourrez toujours m'y trouver.
Namaste, j'ai l'impression d'avoir accouché d’un nouveau bébé.
16/02/2026
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15/08/2023
11/08/2023
11/08/2023
08/08/2023