About

I am an independent Yoga Alliance certified Yoga Teacher, Mental Health First Aider and the first facilitator of PCI-accredited yoga protocol Yoga4Health in Milton Keynes (commissioned by the NHS). I am promoting Yoga for Mental Health as a complementary or alternative therapy in which students learn self-regulation tools through weekly yoga classes and community events. My classes are based on a traditional style of Hatha Yoga with elements of Breathwork, Self-awareness, Meditation and Mindfulness alongside physical poses and bite-size psycho-education.

 

I am the organiser of the first big-scale yoga event in Milton Keynes, International Yoga Day at Willen Lake North. I intend it to be an annual event bringing different modalities of yoga to the local community, with the help and support of local sponsors as well as individual donations.

 

As a member of Yoga in Healthcare Alliance, I lobby with the local government representatives, MPs, voluntary sector organisations and the NHS for yoga to be included in the healthcare system and in any other accessible form which benefits a wider community.

 

Facilitating yoga for anyone who struggles in any way and wants to be happy is at the heart of everything I do. Mental wellbeing, just like general health, is an important aspect of anyone's life, independently whether they have experienced a diagnosed mental health illness, or not.

 

Yoga has been part of my life for over 10 years. My interest started with fancy Bikram and Aerial Yoga when I lived in Spain. Over the years I have been drawn to yoga in all forms and shapes. Learning Hypnobirthing, Mindfulness and Breathwork equipped me with invaluable skills for life. Upon completion of the Yoga Teacher Training I gained a better understanding of the Yogic Philosophy (8 limbs of Yoga). With that yoga become for me a way of living and "a state of mind" rather than physical practice in the class alone.

 

Energy work and spirituality fascinate me as much as the neuroscience and academic research on the benefits of yoga practice on the parasympathetic nervous system. It's great to see modern science catching up with findings of ancient sages on how the mind and body work, and to quantify the effects of yoga practice.

 

I am currently based in Milton Keynes, UK. I collaborate with various organisations and businesses on projects, events, funding opportunities as well as sponsorship. I am always on the lookout for the next great collaboration opportunity.If not on a mat, you can find me paddleboarding in Olney. Travel is my other love which I combine with yoga by organising yoga retreats in Unesco protected areas such as the Bedouin desert in Jordan. 

 

– Joanna Konefal, the founder of Yoga State of Mind