Instructors

Instructors

Yvonne de la Roche Instructor

Yvonne is a certified instructor of the Ananda Yoga System using affirmations. She teaches Hatha Yoga for private and corporate clients and presents corporate seminars on yoga and the workplace.

Tom Heah Instructor - Mindfulness

Tom is a Certified Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) Teacher through the UC San Diego Mindfulness Based Professional Training Institute, and is a MBSR and MBCT Mentor for the Centre for Mindfulness Studies. He has a Masters in Occupational Therapy and has worked in both public (Vancouver Coastal Health) and private practice in mental health and substance use. Tom is also an Advisor and Mentor for the year-long Training in Mindfulness Facilitation at UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, and is a Mindful Awareness Practices (MAPs) Instructor for UCLA. He has taught MBSR, MBCT, MAPs and other mindfulness based courses since 2006 for the management of stress, pain, anxiety and psychosis, and the prevention of relapse due to depression. Tom maintains a meditation practice and attends yearly meditation retreats.

Denise Coles Instructor - Mindfulness

Denise received a certificate in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) from the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care and Society at the University of Massachussetts Medical School in 1999.   She is a Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC) in both private and public practice and works for Richmond Transitions Mental Health and Addiction Services.  She specializes in helping people respond in healthy and positive ways to life's challenges and changes, including the management of stress, anxiety, and depression.
She has been facilitating mindfulness meditation courses and groups for over 15 years including MBSR, MBCT for Prevention of Depressive Relapse, and also for Generalized Anxiety Disorder. She regularly attends mindfulness courses and retreats through the BC Insight Meditation Society. She has a Master's degree in Counselling Psychology from Antioch New England Graduate School and a Diploma in Journalism from Langara.