From new beginnings to a very own style: A conversation with Bernadette – The Writing Yogini

I’m so happy to have Bernadette on the blog today, because she’s a huge part of my teacher training experience! That’s where we met, and we also carpooled a few times to our teacher training weekends, where we also ended up sharing a room.

Bernadette’s yoga journey is a very special one, which is why I was so thrilled that she agreed to do an interview! She is very versatile, combining Hatha and Yin Yoga with mantras and harmonium music. Lately, she also got into Thai Yoga, creating a special relaxation experience for her clients. On a bigger scale, she teamed up with two other women to share the magic of yoga with retreats. As you can see, she has a lot to tell – and I’m happy to present you the first part of our interview!

Hi Bernadette, thanks again for agreeing to this interview! Let’s start right at the beginning: How did your yoga journey begin—what originally inspired you to step onto the mat?

My yoga journey began in 2010 in Frankfurt’s Bornheim district, at TG Bornheim, a large sports club. I had just broken up with my boyfriend at the time and had just started my first job after college. My mother had passed away shortly before. For me, this period felt like a reset, like an inner fresh start where I was beginning all over again.

Less out of deep sadness, but rather from the feeling: Now I have to take responsibility for myself—and do it right. At first, I practiced yoga mainly for the sake of movement. Sports that required coordination and made me sweat had always put me off, so I found my form of exercise in Hatha Yoga. Clear, calm, structured.

Practicing yoga this way—without a specific spiritual background, without yoga philosophy, without a deeper understanding of anatomy or the connections between body and mind—stayed with me for several more years.

It wasn’t until I moved within Frankfurt, from Bornheim to Nordend, that I switched to the Shiva Yoga studio. There, I slowly began to get closer to the original idea of yoga.

One evening a week, I would watch the aspiring yoga teachers walk up the stairs. I looked at them with awe, because back then I still thought you had to be incredibly experienced, acrobatic, and exceptionally flexible to even become a yoga teacher.

After the birth of my second child, I finally decided to pursue yoga teacher training myself. Not because I wanted to teach, but because simply attending yoga classes was no longer enough for me. I wanted to delve deeper into this vast, as yet unexplored field of mindful contemplation.

At what point in your life did the idea of teaching yourself emerge from your practice?

Only very late—actually, not until the end of the two-year yoga teacher training. My intention was never to teach, but to experience and understand yoga for myself.

The desire to teach myself crept up on me. Almost unnoticed.

It was my instructor who more or less threw me in at the deep end. At first as a substitute, and shortly thereafter I had my first class of my own. Looking back, this gradual growth into the role felt just right for me.

Today, You work with Hatha, Yin, and mantra elements—how would you describe your personal style?

I would simply describe my style as “Yoga with Bernadette.” Not because I can’t define it, but because I don’t want to.

What defines us as people and as yoga teachers is always an expression of our true selves and our experiences. And what we love, we pass on.

For me, connection has always been central. Where others might want to set boundaries, I seek connection—without sacrificing myself or putting my own needs on the back burner.

Even as a child, I felt a strong connection to the people and animals around me. That was—and still is, at times—exhausting, because it means truly sensing the person I’m with. At the same time, I see it as a gift, because it makes deep encounters possible.

Through mantra singing and Thai Yoga Bodywork, I have expanded my way of connecting to two further levels. With the sound of my voice, accompanied by the harmonium, which resonates with the water within us, and through the physical touch of Thai Yoga, I have found ways to express myself while simultaneously creating spaces where people feel safe and can encounter themselves. For me, this is pure devotion.

My yoga classes, workshops, and retreats also emerge from this mindset. They are never planned in advance and never the same; instead, they arise from within me. As a result, they can embody different qualities— melancholy, strength, gentleness, or simply stillness.

What significance do sound, harmonium, and mantras hold for you—and how do these elements influence your participants’ experience?

As already mentioned, sound resonates with water, and our bodies are largely made up of it. We know that, from a neurophysiological perspective, tissue, breath, and the nervous system respond to rhythmic vibrations. So it’s not surprising that through this form of—I’ll deliberately call it, quite unscientifically—“vibration,” we can enter a deep state of relaxation.

For me, it’s not just the sound itself that plays a major role, but above all the way it is used. It takes empathy to meet people where they are—often lying down, tired, sensitive, or after a demanding day. I let the sound slowly build, carry the participants, and take them along.

Just as in Thai yoga, where I, as the giver, connect with the recipient’s breath to resonate on the same wavelength, this principle can also be applied to mantras.

Each mantra carries its own unique quality: About Shanti stands for peace, Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu for a sense of connection that transcends the self. They work not through the mind, but through repetition, rhythm, and resonance.

What feedback do you receive most often—and what touches you most deeply?

Most often, it’s not words. Silent glances of connection that need no explanation. A quiet knowing that connection is there—even in a large group.

Since the beginning of my training, the concept of Aparigrahanon-attachment, has accompanied me. What I embody has nothing to do with ego or the desire for validation, but rather with bringing something into the world that is an expression of true love.

When someone tells me that my classes feel like a caress for the soul, that person can trust that this is exactly what is close to my heart. And in moments like these, I know: I am exactly where I want to be.

This is actually such a beautiful quote that it would be perfect to close the whole interview… but this was just the first part! Stay tuned for next week, when Bernadette shares more about her personal rituals and challenges as well as her vision for the future. It’s definitely worth the read, so make sure to check it out!

In the meantime, you can visit her on Instagram: Yoga with Bernadette