Our Story
In 2018, Benedetta decided to create a NPO to promote Yoga in the Belgian healthcare system.
Convinced by the efficacy of complementary approaches, Sarah embarked with her on this project.
TEAM
benedetta schiavetti
Founder & projects manager
I was as a researcher and consultant in supply management and quality of essential medicines for international organisations. I did a specialisation in pharmacological sciences and medical anthropology. These experiences broadened my view of the different social and cultural beliefs about diseases and care.
I’ve been practicing Haá¹ha Yoga for 15 years. Also, being aware of the limited scope of action of pharmacological treatments, my interest in integrative approaches grew over time. In my opinion, the healthcare system would be more effective with the integration of non-invasive, cost-saving and holistic approaches. As, for instance, Yoga and Yoga Therapy.
That’s why in 2018 I decided to found Yoga in Healthcare: to make yoga affordable and accessible for patients. How can you do that? Through the health institutions and by building a Belgian network of stakeholders. All of whom shares the vision of an integrated healthcare system.
Sarah Swannet
Co-founder
I am a doctor and a mother. I graduated in 2003 and I worked for several years in Africa with Doctors without Borders. Nowadays, I’ve been working in different areas of primary healthcare medicine. I am still in contact with a particularly vulnerable population in a medical house in Brussels. Besides that, I also work in a center for HIV/STI screening and another one for vaccination of small children. I believe that Yoga is a useful contribution to conventional medicine practice, since not all can be cured with a ‘magic pill’ or intervention.Â
Medicine is being challenged in this new era where a more holistic approach to the patient is key. I think that raising resilience and self-confidence through the ancient practice of Yoga should be made accessible to all.
veronica voltolini
Assistant project manager
I am a multilingual communication professional with a passion for all forms of language. I believe in the importance of living in a more resilient society, where care is accessible, integrated and centered on patients’ life goals.
That’s why, yoga is an extraordinary tool for activating patients towards their health and improving their lifestyle.
emily gold
I was born in New York and I’ve been practicing Yoga since 2003. After completing my university degree in 2006, I travelled to Thailand where I discovered the joys of meditation. I truly believe that there is a Yoga practice out there for everyone. I weave between different yogic modalities to create practices and teachings that are gentle and accessible, focusing on acceptance, growth and healing.Â
Faced with seizures from a benign brain tumor in 2008, I learned of the healing power of Yoga, turning to my regular practice as a relief for the physical and mental pain I was experiencing. This healing path led me to pursue Yoga teacher training, beginning in 2013 and I became a Yoga therapist in 2017. I am currently completing a Master’s Degree in Spiritual Psychology.
Paulette matkovic
Yoga and yoga therapy consultant, YeS program organiser
For over 20 years, my personal yoga practice has been what keeps me healthy, empowered and connected to the world. After training as a sociologist interested in non-verbal communication, and a stint in contemporary dance, I trained as a yoga teacher and then in yoga therapy. I am currently training in Somatic Experiencing, an approach based on polyvagal theory for the management of trauma and deep stress.
During my consultations and classes, I see how a regular yoga practice improves the quality of life of each individual, bringing both peace and energy. Unfortunately, this is not yet affordable for everyone. Integration of yoga and yoga therapy into the health care system and collaboration with the medical community will make these practices more accessible and contribute to a more comprehensive approach to health, focused on the individual.
Charlotte lemaitre
Yoga teacher, YeS program organiser
I discovered yoga at the age of 10 and then resumed a regular yoga practice at the age of 23. I am trained at the Amrita Yoga Center of Traditional Hatha Yoga in Paris and certified by the European Yoga Union. I am also trained as a yoga teacher for children and teenagers, certified by the Ajna Yoga school (Brussels). I am currently trained in the body-psychological method of the Muscular and Osteoarticular Chains GDS of the ICTGDS in Brussels. Yoga is for me a way of life, a philosophy and a postural, respiratory and meditative practice that helps us to stay in body awareness and anchoring.
I believe more and more in the therapeutic virtues of yoga and the important place it can have in health centers to help people feel better in their body and mind. In my opinion, yoga is a powerful tool that helps us to better manage certain physical and psychological sufferings. A regular yoga practice helps one’s immune system to become deeply strengthened. The entry of yoga into medical facilities is a real challenge and that is why I am very excited to be involved in the Yoga In Healthcare project.
irene ibba
Yoga teacher
I started practicing yoga in 2009 while working as a biology researcher. Yoga was a revelation to me. I immediately felt a direct and extraordinary connection between body and mind. In 2012, I completed my first teacher training, Bihar tradition.
Since then, many qualifications have followed and my life, both personal and professional, has changed. I am also an Ayurveda therapist, YAH school. I strongly believe in the preventive and curative power of yoga and Ayurveda as a complementary tool to modern scientific medicine. I am very proud to collaborate with YIH to help share the benefits of yoga with as many people as possible.
Marianne is a yoga teacher, a yoga therapist and Ayurveda therapist.
Marianne Couderè
Yoga and yoga therapy consultant
I am passionate about yoga, Ayurveda and other Eastern philosophies as preventive and healing self-care approaches that can provide insight into personal development and personal well-being. I have been practicing yoga for over 35 years and am a certified yoga teacher, Svastha yoga therapist, Ayurvedic therapist.
As a cancer patient myself, I have been able to apply the power of yoga in all its aspects in variations appropriate to the stages of the disease.
Out of gratitude for the science of Yoga, Ayurveda and the Vedas and the training I have been receiving primarily from Mohan for years, I share my expertise and knowledge with trained yoga teachers in a 5-day training entitled “Cancer Wisdom”.
Caroline is a yoga teacher and is training in Chinese medicine
Caroline Goffin
Yoga teacher
Yoga came to me by chance. Unable to take my usual sports class, I turned to yoga thinking it would help me loosen up for a while before going back to the gym… Here I am 15 years later! Yoga was a real revelation. The unique sensation of an inner journey a reconnection with oneself and with one’s space. The present moment takes all its meaning. The magic that delights me in each class – as a student or as a teacher – is that of this return to oneself. Â
Yoga is a path that leads to the truth. It reveals to us that hidden space, that calm that lies within all of us, that within us all, that space that knows. Through the letting go and the calming of the mind the mind, yoga opens a door to the state of presence to oneself and to the world around us. Benevolence and gratitude finally take place. Like agitated water that prevents us from prevents us from seeing the bottom, a mind is calmed, we are invited to see the treasure at the bottom of the water (Patanjali). After years of practice, I was taken by the desire to share this magic of yoga. I trained with my different teachers before obtaining my 200H Teacher training in Hatha and Vinyasa in Paris. I teach Hatha and Vinyasa with a therapeutic approach. At the same time I am finalizing my 5 years of studies in traditional Chinese medicine in acupressure. What I like about my path is that each step complements the other.
Brigitte is a yoga teacher, yoga therapist and group coach.
Brigitte wezel
Yoga & yoga therapy consultant, YeS program organiser
Liên is a yoga teacher and works in an organic flour cooperative.
Liên romeyns
Yoga teacher
My name is Liên and I work in a small organic flour cooperative, following my interest in healthy eating and new sustainable farming systems. I trained in Hatha Yoga and teach this style, with many elements of somatic movements integrated. These are very slow and gentle movements that allow us to explore the body’s capabilities without pushing it into pain or discomfort. Somatic movement allows us to release tension in the muscles and fascia, held by chronic stress and unconscious postural habits, in a benevolent way, respecting our own bodily limits. Somatics integrated with hatha yoga postures is a great practice for managing chronic pain, improving sleep and stress.
Offering the possibility to practice yoga in health centers is a wonderful project for me. I believe that patients with chronic illnesses often feel betrayed by their bodies and that yoga can help them feel more connected to their bodies, accept themselves as they are and help them live with their illness. Yoga also helps them manage the stress and pain associated with their illness. I am always moved after my classes by the gratitude of the students and their curiosity to discover more.
Walenka is a yoga teacher and a social worker
WALENKA RAEYEN
Yoga teacher
My name is Walenka and I am a social worker with a therapeutic background. In almost everything I do, there is a connection between empowering people, reconnecting and discovering your own strength. I am trained in Hatha yoga and I really enjoy Yoga Nidra. In the past I have also done vinyasa yoga, but two years ago I felt I wanted to deepen my yoga experience and that is how I discovered hatha yoga. I focus on the personal process, teach with kindness and try to give time to be there and experience. My classes are usually slow – so that one can take the time to feel each pose – but they are also active, without any rush.
Yoga has so many benefits for the individual, both physically and mentally, that I am thrilled that progress is being made to integrate yoga more and more into medical homes. Yoga allows us to connect in a different way to ourselves, to others and to the center itself. In this way, we can make huge positive changes in people.