Meet The Team

Kim Burnham (nee Mackie)

Fred Burnham

My name is Fred, I am a Registered Nurse (RN) and have worked in the NHS since 1997. I have always been fascinated with the “Human Condition” and an interest, bordering upon near obsession with Health and Wellbeing. I qualified as an RN in 2000 and went on to become an Advanced Nurse Practitioner in 2012. I worked in Respiratory Medicine for 4 years, then 12 years in the Emergency Department at Dorset County Hospital and the Weymouth Urgent Treatment Centre. I moved into General Practice in 2017, where I continue to work. I have a specialist interest in ‘Disorders of the Musculoskeletal System and Chronic/Persisting Pain’ including the associated suffering that people experience with these conditions. I continue this work for the NHS in the Weymouth Locality. 

It was also in 2017 that I found a regular Yoga Practice, which I found had personal benefits, although I only dabbled at this stage with Mindful Yoga and Ashtanga Vinyasa. It was just after lockdown that I met with my teacher’s Yoga teacher, Āchārya Dr. Kausthub Desikachar and was introduced to Viniyoga. This was a pivotal moment in my life. I understood that Yoga had so much more to offer than strengthening the body and mind by making it more supple and toned. That you could have a strong body and contort yourself into unfathomable positions - to the point of injury, fatigue, and damage to one’s health but still miss the real point of Yoga and its subtler nuances that come about in our day-to-day living and derived from a personalised daily yoga practice given by an Authentic teacher. That Yoga is a multidimensional approach and a Spiritual Practice to us fulfilling our Life’s Purpose. “Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self.” Bhagavad-gītā.

I continue studies on Patanjali’s Yogasūtras-s with Sarah Ryan and begun further study of The Yogarahasya of Nāthamuni with Kausthub, both ancient and revered texts on Yoga. Also, undertaking a year of Samantraka-āsana Practice. In addition to these studies, I am also about to start my 100 hours Prāṇāyāma Course with Āchārya Dr Kausthub Desikachar next month.

I have just completed my first year, (comprising of 2 modules each year) of the 1000-hour Viniyoga Therapy course, again with Dr Kausthub Desikachar, relaying the teachings of his father TKV Desikachar and his grandfather, Yogācārya Śrī T Krishnamacharya. 

I have a deep admiration and sense a subtle connection to this long line of teachers which dates to Nāthamuni’s time and is in keeping with the Vedic Tradition of Haṭhayoga. What I find even more awe-inspiring is that this system of Health and Wellness, which is millennia old - is answering questions for me, that I have pondered on for long and hard - that are not answered by modern medicine. That some of the advanced technologies of modern medicine are only just understanding and evidencing that Meditation techniques and other facets of Yoga do affect the body on such a delicate and sublime way, that promotes Wellbeing and Longevity. I am fascinated by the many tools of Yoga such as Chanting, Mantra, the use of Mudrā-s and Āsana-s, Gestures (Nyāsa), Conscious and regulated breathing Practices (Prāṇāyāma) and the therapeutic effect that they have; without the side-effects of the chemicals, we use in Pharmacology and Medicine. I was long becoming disenfranchised with the paternalistic approach to Western medicine. The way it disempowered patients by letting them believe there is a Magic Pill for this, and an operation for that. But the knowledge I am gaining from the Viniyoga teachings; particularly the Pañcamaya model, I am beginning to understand how other systems within the body such as the energetic system can have a profound effect on an individual’s well-being. I have a newfound motivation to incorporate both the Ancient Eastern approach to help people empower themselves with the Modern Western Modalities of care which still have a crucial role when people become unwell.

From what I have learned and witnessed through my teacher’s teachings, and my own observations and practice is that there is significant difference between Teaching Yoga in a class, and Teaching Yoga as a therapist. So, I acted. Last year I completed my 200-hour Teacher Training on-line with Himalaya Yoga so I could start to develop my own teaching style, I am very excited to be given this opportunity to teach at the Dorchester Yoga Centre. I have a real passion and drive to deliver this wonderful model of Health and Wellbeing to those who wish to learn and Practice, as I am continuing to do so.

My other hobbies and interests include playing the guitar, golfing, family walks and outings as well as the occasional drop of ale. I am a dedicated Father of 2 children, Husband, and Advanced Nurse Practitioner. I am very much looking forward to this next Step in my journey with you all.

Namaste

Fred Burnham January 2024