Movement and Meditation Classes

 I run classes in-person and online via Zoom.

If you would like me to run a class specifically for your group, get in touch.

“Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.”

– Audre Lorde

Workshops for organisations

These are the workshops I currently run for organisations:

  • Gentle Movement, Meditation and Deep Rest 
  • Self and Community Care for Caregivers and Activists
  • Recovering from Burnout 
  • Boundaries and Liberating Relationships
  • Connecting and Team-Building
  • Lunchtime Movement and Meditation

All of these workshops include elements of; movement, breathwork, meditation, deep rest, reflection and sharing.

If you have any idea for a workshop, or would like to work together to develop one/a series specifically for your group or organisation, get in touch. 

I have extensive experience of working with groups who suffer the brunt of oppression and are also usually at the forefront of resisting it. Examples include; migrant and refugees (including youth), BiPoc and QtiBPoc, disabled, elderly and Survivors of abuse and trauma.

Jilna’s class is still the only yoga class I have consistently attended since I first started practising yoga. I find her style of restorative yoga particularly effective for managing stress, practising self care, and building resilience – individually and as part of community. I have learned valuable skills I continue to practise and benefit from in daily life.                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
Anouska Ndan

No two classes or workshops are ever the same which

gives them an exploratory and playful feel.

THE PRACTICES

Meditation

“The best way to take care of the future is to take care of the present moment” – Thich Nhat Hanh

The meditation that I teach is grounded in my own practice in the insight meditation tradition. I approach meditation as a practice of coming more fully into our present moment experience. 

The meditations that I guide can be done sitting, including on a chair, standing, or lying down and you can meditate with your eyes open or closed.

You can try out one of my guided meditations below.

There is a common misconception that meditation is about ‘emptying the mind’/not having thoughts, and that if this isn’t happening, you’ve got it ‘wrong’. The meditation that I practice and teach is about learning to tend to the entirety of what is emerging in your experience. The qualities that we aspire to cultivate include:

    • Curiosity
    • Deep listening
    • Kindness
    • Non-judgement
    • Compassion 
    • Grounding
    • Relaxed effort
    • Ease

Movement

The movement that I teach draws on several  traditions and practices. These are:

  • Yoga asana – physical ‘postures’ or ‘shapes’ found across various styles of Yoga practice
  • Chair-based yoga – approaches movement in a way that is more supported and soft through the use of a chair for grounding
  • Feldenkrais Method – explores moving with awareness to foster greater physical and mental ease, efficiency and joy
  • Somatics – emphasises self-healing through listening and responding attentively to our experience (such as breath, sensations, etc)
  • Qi Gong – an ancient Chinese system of practice that focuses on the inner energy body through combining movement, breath and mindfulness.

Working with a range of tools means that I can plan my classes and workshops carefully to tend to the diverse needs and experiences of those attending. 

In all of my classes and workshops, you will always be encouraged to take my instructions in the spirit of invitations – you are your most important teacher. 

I will always offer variations of shapes and movement; it is my role to make sure that the practices adapt around you and not the other way round.

Hatha Yoga

Whilst the concept of Hatha yoga has changed over time, my teaching focuses on ease of breath and movement; the breath helps to hold the movement and the movement arises out of the breath. We move and breathe in a way that cultivates a balance between effort and ease. 

Yin Yoga

Yin Yoga which is about ‘being’, as opposed to ‘doing’. The emphasis here is on softening and releasing and the specific asanas (shapes) that we practice can allow for a sense of deep relaxation. The shapes in Yin Yoga are seated or done lying down. Yin Yoga can help us to tap into the parasympathetic nervous system which is responsible for our ‘rest and digest’ functions and is important in regulating stress responses.

Rest

The way that many of us find ourselves living means that our nervous systems are often in complete overdrive, making it difficult to connect in with the parts of our nervous system that enable social connection and rest (the ventral vagus nerve) . This is especially the case for people who have caregiving responsibilities and who are at the forefront of resisting and challenging oppression. Many of my classes include practices that help us to rest, such as lying down deep relaxation meditations, self-massage and cranial holds. I also run workshops centred specifically on rest. Rest is essential for our wellbeing and we are so often lacking in it. I am inspired by the work and teachings of others in this area, including Thich Nhat Hanh and The Nap Ministry.

“How can we access pleasure and joy and liberation if we’re too tired to experience it?”

– Tricia Hersey, Founder of The Nap Ministry

Jilna has facilitated yoga & breathing sessions for members at Blackfriars Settlement, many who have had experiences in the mental health system. She teaches very sensitively, which is essential when working with people who have had trauma and distress lodged in their bodies. Jilna uses speech skilfully in the instructions that she gives so that everyone is able to follow her simple guidelines. Another important aspect of her facilitation is how she encourages people to make their own choices when offered exercises to follow – this is empowering and builds confidence. There is a strong sense that Jilna understands her practitioners and this comes through in how she teaches.

Renuka Bhakta, Mental Health & Wellbeing Project Officer at Blackfriars Settlement

“Rest, radical care and stillness wants to wrap around our shoulders like a soft shawl. Explore the comfort”

– The Nap Ministry

SOME OF MY PAST WORK

EXAMPLES OF SPACES AND CLASSES I HAVE HELD

Gentle Movement & Meditation class during COVID-19 via Zoom

During the Covid-19 lockdown, I noticed that there was a gap in the availability of accessible movement classes. It is important to me that people of all generations and of differing mobility have access to movement and meditation, especially during this time. Since April, I have been running an online class where the movement practices are mostly chair-based. For me, the most special thing about this class has been how it has become a distinctly intergenerational space.

Yin Yoga & Deep Rest workshops for Black and People of Colour during the Black Lives Matter uprisings.

These workshops created space for people to come together to cultivate stillness and rest. The focus on Yin Yoga and Deep Rest was to facilitate access to the parasympathetic nervous system which is important in regulating stress.

Yoga for Refugee Youth - classes at a regular youth drop-in centres

These classes draw on yoga and breathwork to offer tools for practical support to refugee youth, many of whom are new arrivals in the country. Weather permitting, these classes take place outdoors.

Yoga for migrant women - at a regular migrant drop-in centres

These classes often begin with a short check-in circle which is followed by gentle breathing exercises and then movement exercises where I offer plenty of options.

Rest, Relate, Restore - community workshop series

I collaborated with Marianna Musett of Healing Resistance Massage to offer 3 workshops with the intentional focus of practicing community/collective care. These extended workshops included elements of individual practice and practicing with others, for example, through guided partner work and reflective exercises. Over the course of the 3 sessions, we offered a range of practices; movement (yoga and improvisation), meditation (seated, lying and walking), self-massage, writing, deep rest and sharing. Each workshop ended with tea, snacks and time to connect with others. These public workshops were queer and trans BIPOC-centred, with allies welcome, and included two solidarity spaces for people with insecure immigration status.

Workplace meditation, movement and rest workshops - as part of team-building initiatives and team away days.

These sessions include classes/workshops that are part of team strategy-setting days, team away days and more generally, as part of organisational wellbeing drives.

Gentle movement for adults with experience of the mental health system.

These sessions specifically emphasise practising tools for coping with depression and anxiety. They draw on elements of meditation, movement and rest.

Jilna’s classes were gentle, accessible and deeply nourishing. They helped me feel prepared to greet another day of fighting for justice — grounded, present and balanced.

Ameila Meister, Senior Campaigner at SumOfUs