How a Cactus Improved my Wellbeing
Sitting there with my little cactus all those years ago I had no idea how it would change my life – or my wellbeing –completely.
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A shock diagnosis left me feeling vulnerable, isolated and disconnected from myself until yoga teacher training helped me rebuild from the inside out. Along the way, I found inspiration in the resilience of cacti, which became both a symbol of survival and the heart of my yoga and coaching business.
In 2009 I was diagnosed with long QT syndrome, a little-known heart condition affecting the heart’s electrical rhythm, with the potential to cause dangerous irregular heartbeats. At the time I felt scared, alone and isolated. I remember sitting on my bed, looking at this little cactus and just taking comfort from it. A calmness came over me and suddenly I felt like I wasn’t alone.
Looking back, that was a pivotal moment that changed the direction of my life completely.
The resilience of that cactus reminded me of my own inner strength and inspired me to reassess my life and what I really wanted to do with it, marking the beginning of my spiritual adventure. And since then, I’ve always had cacti in my life. I see them as friends guiding me and silently cheering me on.
Finding yoga
In the months that followed my diagnosis, I began doing yoga daily which helped me deal with my diagnosis, both mentally and physically. As my practice deepened, I felt called to train as a yoga teacher. At the time, I was working in youth social care, a job I loved but had grown increasingly frustrated by. Yoga gave me the space to breathe and take stock of where I wanted to be.
During my training I began to realise how disconnected I was from my body. Slowly, yoga helped me reconnect with myself, heal long-standing mental health struggles andrecognise my own worth.
Letting the cactus guide me
Even before I believed I could run my own business, the image of that little cactus kept appearing in my mind. Without realising it, I had my logo before I had anything else. Today, my logo features five cacti of different shapes and sizes – a reminder that, just like people, each one is unique and worthy of being celebrated.
Growing up dyslexic, school was difficult and I often felt different without knowing why. Honouring individuality became a core value I wanted my business to embody.
After qualifying as a yoga teacher, I found a beautiful home in historic Stony Stratford with enough space in the garden for a small yoga studio. Before long, Cactus Yogis was born. It was incredibly special to be able to share our home with others and create this nurturing space in nature – it’s such a beautiful place to teach and hold space for others.
Taking inspiration from my past
As well as yoga classes and workshops I’ve begun offeringcoaching sessions, where I integrate physical movement withdeep emotional work. This blend helped me so profoundly that I felt drawn to offer it to others.
Similarly, as a child I used to use art to express myself and process my emotions. I used to doodle cacti constantly — drawing up one arm as I breathed in, and down the other as I breathed out. I later learned this mirrored bilateral movement techniques used in art therapy.
Blending my youth work background and my coaching training, I now offer art-based creative coaching sessions for young people, giving them a safe space to explore what’s going on in their lives through art and movement.
A growing community
Today, the Cactus Yogis community is more than 100 strong and it is about so much more than just yoga and coaching. I love being around people and so I host lots of social get-togethers and playful workshops – from creating cactus shaped pizzas to hama bead cacti.
The cactus has become my signature. Friends and students send me photos of cacti they spot on holiday or out and about, and it always makes me smile. Recently, I gave out little cactus sew-on badges as a reminder that none of us are alone.
Because at its heart, that’s what Cactus Yogis is really about: community, connection, and celebrating the resilience within us all.
Sitting there with my little cactus all those years ago I had no idea how it would change my life – or my wellbeing –completely.
