Andrew has been an RMT since 1992 and is the owner and founder of Applied Somatics Institute. He has worked in health care for the past 32 years, and has worked as an RN and a CCURN, before becoming an RMT, a Hanna Somatic Educator, and a Yoga Teacher. He has been a Yoga Teacher since 2002, and his training includes Somatic Yoga training with Eleanor Criswell, East to West Yoga’s 350 hour teacher training, and Red Door Yoga’s 500 hour teacher training. Andrew is passionate about sharing somatic techniques with clients and practitioners and believes people from all walks of life can benefit from somatics.

“I have personally practiced somatics since 1993, and it has helped me to work through the effects of three motor vehicle accidents, multiple shoulder dislocations, three knee surgeries, and the chronic pain stemming from these incidents.

I have been an RMT for 28 years, working with clients to treat injuries, chronic pain, stress, and for wellness. I have practiced 37,000 clinical somatic seasons with people in acute and chronic pain, and have used somatics to work with scoliosis, hip replacements, vertebra replacements, whiplash, post-surgical procedures, multiple sclerosis, and the elderly. I have taught more than 3500 public somatics classes, many of them to these same acute and chronic pain groups.”

Violet's journey of personal awareness started 30 years ago including meditation and yoga. She was introduced to Somatics in 1994 in her first year of training to become a Registered Massage Therapist. Through her experience she realized how effective Somatics was for relaxing the nervous system, releasing tension, decreasing muscle tension and pain and eliminating headache frequency. Her formal exploration and education in Clinical Somatics and Somatic Movement began in 2004 with Applied Somatics and concluded in 2010. Since 2009 she has been teaching weekly classes in Somatics and Somatic Yoga at Duncan Wellness Centre. In 2013 she began working as a teacher’s assistant at Clinical Applied Somatics trainings and co-created the Somatic Yoga training offered by Applied Somatics Institute. At Red Door Yoga in Nanaimo she attended the Yoga Fitness Leader, RDYT200 hr and RDYT 500hr, completing the training in 2013. She is passionate about helping students and practitioners learn Somatic education, theory and techniques so they can support their clients in their healing journey. Our 'Soma' is our body experienced from within - 'when I withdraw the senses and experience from within, I experience a profoundly deep relaxation and sense of peace.'