*Wendy C, 40s, Newark — Paramedic*
*Class: Yoga Tune Up (online via Zoom), 2020*
TESTIMONIAL
"As a paramedic working shifts on the frontline, I work in challenging circumstances — even more so now due to Covid-19. My weekly Yoga Tune Up class with Susannah is an essential part of my self-care routine.
The Zoom classes work really well for me and I try to join the group session when shifts allow, as I feel more connected that way. Having access to the replay if I miss my usual class is also really helpful.
The sessions not only help with the physical aches and strains but with the emotional stress too. After class I feel relaxed, refreshed and more able to cope with the week ahead.
Susannah's experience, knowledge and skills — combining yoga, self-massage, relaxation breathing and the Tune Up balls — are exceptional. I find it particularly useful working with the Coregeous ball on the thoracic spine, chest and abdomen. It eases my back, opens up the intercostal muscles and ribs to help me breathe better, and helps me manage stress and genuinely relax — and it can be done in a short five-minute session when I'm tired before or after a shift.
I would greatly recommend joining one of Susannah's sessions. I guarantee you will not look back and you will feel better in yourself — both physically and mentally. Susannah is very friendly, supportive and will always go out of her way to make you welcome, whatever your circumstances."
*— Wendy C, Paramedic, 2020*
## 4. TEACHER'S NOTE
Wendy wrote this during the first year of the Covid pandemic, when she was working on the frontline as a paramedic. The context matters: this is someone whose nervous system was under sustained, serious pressure — shift work, physical demands, emotional exposure, and the particular strain of frontline healthcare during a crisis. That's not everyday stress. That's a body and mind running on high alert for extended periods.
What Wendy describes is exactly what Yoga Tune Up is designed to address at that level. The Coregeous ball work she mentions — on the thoracic spine, chest, abdomen and intercostal muscles — directly targets the breathing musculature that tightens under chronic stress and threat. When we're in a prolonged stress response, the diaphragm and the muscles between the ribs become restricted, which keeps the body locked in a shallow, guarded breathing pattern. Releasing that tissue is one of the most direct routes into the parasympathetic nervous system — the rest and recover state — which is why five minutes with the Coregeous ball before or after a shift can have such a noticeable effect.
The fact that Wendy could access this online, fit it around unpredictable shift patterns, and use the replay when she missed a live session speaks to something I feel strongly about: self-care tools need to be accessible and realistic for the life you're actually living, not the life you wish you had. For shift workers, carers, parents and anyone whose schedule doesn't follow a neat routine, that flexibility is everything.
Since this testimonial was written, online classes and the nervous system focus at the heart of this work have become even more central to my practice. Working with the breath and the body's stress response — whether in person in Newark or online — is now the thread running through everything I do.
Yoga Tune Up classes Newark, online yoga classes, yoga for shift workers, Yoga Tune Up for NHS staff, self-care for frontline workers, Coregeous ball, intercostal release, thoracic spine release, stress and shift work, emotional stress and the body, yoga replay classes, flexible online classes Trauma care
holistic therapy Newark, Susannah Nelson, massage therapy Nottinghamshire, bodywork Newark, wellness Newark, Yoga Tune Up Newark, fascia therapy, somatic therapy Nottinghamshire, nervous system therapy Nottinghamshire, online yoga Nottinghamshire, online wellness classes