ABOUT
Breathing Space is for anyone who wishes to take time to give back to themselves through yoga, and other movement practices, start or dive deep into meditation, explore evidenced based mindfulness and self-compassion practices, and be part of a supportive and inclusive community.
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Our classes and courses will invite you to step into your own wholehearted space so you can breath, reset, and remember how magnificent you are!
Michelle Papa - Founder
Michelle is a senior yoga teacher, a mentor to many yoga teachers, and has been teaching locally and internationally for over a decade. She believes in the importance of understanding the various rhythms and transitions in life with awareness and self-compassion.
She started her yoga journey 20 years ago as she was seeking to find balance in life. It was when she was living in Los Angeles when she discovered the powerful practice of vinyasa yoga and meditation under the guidance of Annie Carpenter and Sharon Salzberg. Through yoga she was able to connect with a part of herself that she thought she had forgotten. Her interest in a love for yoga has grown exponentially upon moving to Perth in 2007 completed her Hatha Vinyasa yoga teacher training at The Yoga Space with Jean and Rob. This led her to several trips to Mysore, India where she practiced and studied Ashtanga yoga and chanting at KPJAYI and Ayurveda.
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Michelle's deep interest in supporting women in pregnancy, birth and post-natal life has led her to co-create Mindful Birth Australia, a Yoga Alliance and Yoga Australia accredited Pregnancy and Post-natal yoga teacher training, over a decade ago. She has delivered the Mindful Birth teacher training course, in person and online all over Asia and Australia. She is a qualified antenatal educator with a Diploma in Childbirth Education, studied with Dr. Sarah Buckley, and with Spinning Babies founder Gail Tully.
Michelle is a youth mentor with Raise Foundation. She's also expanded her studies in Trauma Sensitive Yoga with TCTSY, Mindfulness and Self-Compassion with Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield. Michelle is currently studying to become a Psychologist at Charles Sturt University.
TEACHERS
Kimberly Ashton
Kimberly is the creator of Qi Food Therapy. She has been teaching and practicing yoga for over a decade. She is a wellness coach since 2009, plant-based chef and teacher, and a macrobiotic counselor. She spent over 16 years in Shanghai, 8 of which she co-owned China’s first health food store and nutrition cooking studio.
She has trained in Yin Yoga and Yoga Nidra with Sarah Powers, Sebastian Pucelle, Murielle Burellier, and Andre Riehl.
Kimberly has completed level 3 Macrobiotic Counselling at the Kushi Institute of Europe and Macrobiotic Institute of Portugal. She is also an author of a TCM inspired Healthy Smoothies book (in English) and Everyday Chinese Superfoods (in Chinese) theory & recipe books. In 2021 Kimberly launched her website www.qifoodtherapy.com offering private coaching, online courses/programs and e-books based on the wisdoms of the 5 Elements, Chinese Medicine food therapy and Emotional & Metaphysical Anatomy.
At Breathing Space, Kimberly will be teaching Yin classes and will also be sharing her passion on the energetics of nutrition in relation to how food & cooking methods effect Qi, transform physical health, mood and emotional well-being through her workshops.
You'll leave Kimberly's classes and workshops feeling connected, grounded and with knowledge that can be useful in daily life as she is generous and passionate about sharing the gift of wellbeing to all.
Simone Lambert
Simone Lambert is a teacher of traditional hatha yoga. She draws her teaching from 24 years of yoga experience influenced from Ashtanga yoga, Satyananda yoga and more recently Shadow yoga. Having also studied a Bachelor of Fine Arts she has a strong passion for the creative process. She designs yoga sequences reflecting on the principle known as Vinyasa- Krama. Krama meaning- to step, nyasa meaning- to place and vi- in a special way. Within this format she chooses asana (postures) that form a progression, inviting one asana to set up the body for the next.
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Her class sequences will contain circular rotations that move towards more dynamic standing postures to seated movements that end in stillness. All the while keeping close attention on breath. She draws inspiration from the rhythms that are significant in yoga and life - seasons, moon cycles, time of day . She encourages her students to begin slowly while building a strong foundation with patience and persistence.
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She is currently studying Ayurveda to complement her yoga teaching whilst developing a more extensive knowledge of how the gross and subtle bodies work. She looks to traditional ancient texts to inspire her teaching. Simone hopes to help people transform their everyday life into connected living through the cultivation of awareness that yoga brings, encouraging an open, receptive and fluid body and mind.
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Simone is looking forward to be holding space for you as she shares her love for yoga at Breathing Space.
Irene Malamas
Irene's yoga journey started shortly after losing her mother, when she wanted to understand why chronic illness develops in a seemingly healthy person. She read about studies that revealed the relationship between lifestyle and even our thoughts and attitudes with our health and well being. She learned that yoga and meditation could make significant positive changes in people with all kinds of health issues. She was young and healthy and She began to think about how she wanted to age. This is what brought her to her first yoga class in 1998.
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After 20 years of dedicated practice, she realised that yoga was central to her wellbeing and wanted to share it with others. In late 2018, she commenced her studies with one of Australia's most reputable and comprehensive yoga schools, gaining her 460 hour Diploma of Yoga Teaching with the International Yoga Teachers Association (IYTA) in 2020.
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As a yoga teacher, she want to help people find awareness of how they move and interact with the world and find steadiness and ease, both on and off the mat.
Tamara Sweeney
Tamara is a teacher of traditional Hatha/Iyengar yoga. Yoga has been a part of Tamara’s life since she was 12 years old. After juggling a career in the fashion industry and being mother of two, it was time to take her interest and passion to the next level. Having completed both her level 1 and level 2 teacher trainings with Judy Krupp and Byron Yoga Centre, several years ago, she has since been loving sharing her passion for movement, form, stretch and strength to make yoga accessible for all.
During Tamara’s Gentle Flow classes, you will move a little slower, taking the time to explore what is happening in your own bodies. Working with your breath to move deeper into the postures, finding your alignment and strength throughout the lesson. A practice to support your health and wellbeing whilst encouraging and supporting movement for every age and ability!
Tamara is currently studying the Feldenkrais technique and looks forward to incorporating this into the classes to help with freedom of movement, while releasing tension from the body. Feldenkrais is a practice of an awareness through movement to help with pain, injuries, aging, stress, anxiety and improving posture & balance. This class is suitable for beginners and advanced practitioners alike.
Melinda Farrar-Rabbidge
Melinda started practicing yoga and meditation from the age of 8 to help manage anxiety. She has now engaged in a range of styles and has had a dedicated practice for over 20 years. With the aim of teaching yoga as a complementary approach to supporting the mental health of others, in 2021 Melinda decided to complete 200 hours of trauma-informed Hatha training with the Yoga Impact Charity. Melinda also believes that the benefits of yoga should be available to all people and has trained in Chair Yoga with LV Yoga Australia.
Melinda has a background in Psychology, health promotion, social impact, and lived experience advocacy and has worked for over four years for various mental health charities including the Black Dog Institute, batyr, and Butterfly Foundation. She embeds her background into her teachings by holding space for her students to be heard and seen, and to help students recognise their inner strength through yoga. Melinda's classes focus on educating and empowering students to develop regular breathing and movement practices for self-regulation of the nervous system to help restore energy and cultivate a sense of calmness. With a focus on alignment and accessibility suited to students' bodies, Melinda's teachings hope to strengthen foundations and body awareness to help students feel confident in their practice.
Melinda is currently studying a Master's degree in Not-for-Profit Management at UTS and is continuing her education in the field of yoga.
Natasha Nicholas​
Natasha was introduced to Hatha and Iyengar Yoga as an 8 year old child by her Yoga Therapist Grandmother. At 17 , undertook her first 500 hour teacher training through her Grandmother’s yoga school and later refreshed both her RYT200 & RYT 500 hour training at The Yoga and Ayurveda Centre.
Natasha has undertaken additional training as an Oncology Exercise Specialist, which also included Oncology informed Pilates and yoga at The Cancer Exercise Training Institute in the USA; has completed certification as an Oncology Rehab Specialist with PINK/Steele Internationals and has completed numerous Post Grad Yoga specialties including Yoga Therapy.
Natasha is the Director of Three Points Clinic which specialises in Oncology Rehab, Pain Management , Lymphoedema , Cancer Counselling and Corporate Wellness. Three Points Clinic partners with the Yoga Foundation; Yogability; St George Community Partners and Griffith University to deliver programs to various populations and communities in need or who need specialized care.
Natasha feels privileged to guide people through their practice and finds the alchemy of yoga-the way it transforms wellbeing inside and out; on the mat and off the mat continually awe-inspiring. She looks forward to seeing you in class!