Yoga by Nature
Background
My name is Orla Beaton and I run "Yoga by Nature" in Milnathort, Perth & Kinross. I have been teaching my own gentle blend of movement & mindfulness since 2015 and prior to that I worked as a massage therapist specialising in pre & post natal bodywork for 8 years.
Qualifications
2023 One year QiGong Mentoring with Mimi Kuo Deemer
2022 200hr Well Woman Yoga Therapy training with Uma Dinsmore-Tuli
2021 Level 2 Training with the Mindfulness Association in Compassion (Feb-Aug 21)
2021 Essential Somatics Movement Teacher Training - Level 2 (now a certified teacher)
2020 Qigong Immersion for Yoga Teachers with Mimi Kuo Deemer (August 20)
2020 Essential Somatics Movement Teacher Training - Level 1 (March 20)
2019 Level 1 Training with the Mindfulness Association in Mindfulness (April - Nov 19)
2019 Winterlight - 12 Week course in Mindfulness with Orlaith O'Sullivan
2019 Fundamentals of Essential Somatics with Martha Petersen (2 Day workshop)
2018 Mental Health First Aid (12 Hour - SMHFA)
2018 CPD - Yvonne Austen "Adjustment & Observation"
2018 CPD - Brenda Louw "Anatomy & Scaravelli Yoga"
2018 CPD - Somatics Workshops with Jahna Clark (Shoulders & Hips)
2017 CPD - Rona Main "Creating Space/ Sutras"
2015-17 2 Year (500 HR) Yoga Teacher Diploma with Yoga Scotland
2016 Youth Mindfulness Kids Teacher Training
2015 Certificate in Jikiden Reiki
2015 First Degree in Usui Reiki
2015 Forest Schools Practitioner (Level 2)
2014 Art of Mentoring (Ring 1)
2013 1 Year Foundation in Yoga with Acquaviva Yoga
2013 Baby Massage Instructors Certificate (SSCBM)
2011 Diploma in Remedial & Sports Massage (AMTS)
2010 Wellmother Diploma in Massage & Pregnancy
2010 Certificate in Massage for People Living with Cancer
My Journey
I was initially drawn to yoga and holistic therapies in my late 20’s when I was searching for a better work-life balance and a solution to my stress-driven anxieties. Living in Dublin at the time, a work-hard play-hard culture had driven my body and mind to the brink and I regularly experienced panic attacks, depression and became quite unwell with an over-active thyroid – my body had had enough. Deep down even then I knew there was another way but felt stuck in my chosen career at the time. A chance conversation one evening in a pub with a friend opened my eyes to the world of holistic therapies like homeopathy, massage and yoga and a different way of being. I began to consider the prospect of honouring my heartfelt desire to help others. However it wasn’t until I fell pregnant with my first child that I found the courage to try a pregnancy massage and join a yoga class, persuaded by the chance that others would be beginning too. Healing myself came first and is an ongoing journey. Returning to Edinburgh that year I continued pregnancy yoga and massage and I have no doubt that both allowed me to sail through the 9 months inspiring me to go on and train as a bodyworker and leave my career in finance behind. I then spent many years working and learning about bodywork and building a successful niche massage practice supporting expectant and post-natal mums and their families. Some say that the average work-span of a massage therapist is 8 years and that certainly was the case for me. Whilst I was and still am hugely passionate about the benefits of positive touch, my body knew otherwise and it was time for a break from treating bodies in such a hands-on way. This realisation coincided with an opportunity to step back into employment for a while and I spent 3 fantastic years working for Secret Garden Outdoor Nursery founded by Cathy Bache. The chance to step into such a fabulous social enterprise was a true gift and allowed my deep love of Nature, which had been lost along the way, to resurface. I had the privilege to take part in a deep nature connection program called Art of Mentoring in 2014 and went on to train as a Forest Schools Practitioner and support young children in their free explorations of natural world.
At that time, along with Nature, yoga was the biggest source of support in my life, emotionally, mentally and physically. I returned time and time again to the refuge of my mat to ease the physical and emotional stresses of parenting and life. In 2013, I had the privilege of doing my Foundation Yoga Training with Marc Woolford of Acquaviva Yoga. This year of training based around Marc’s interpretation of the teachings of Vanda Scaravelli really laid the foundations of my daily yoga practice and greatly influenced the style of my teaching today which is gentle yet deep, somatic and very mindful. In 2015 the conditions finally felt right for me to progress onto a full Teacher Training Diploma with Yoga Scotland, one of the most thorough and diverse qualifications in the UK. The loss of a dear friend that year and the deep grieving that unleashed became a transformational stage for me and gave me the push that I needed to step up and allow the Yoga teachings that had supported me so much over the years to be passed on to others. I completed the 2 year (500 hour) course in June 2017 and I'm now living and breathing Yoga and bringing my blend of the teachings out into my local community.
Om Shanti,
Orla x
