Sharing holistic bodywork, and breath and movement practises that support people to live with vitality I also facilitate workshops and post graduate trainings.
Motivation for my work, both the hands-on bodywork, breathing retraining and movement play. comes from a wish for all people to be comfortable in their own skin, to have an ease of movement, to trust their own inner knowing - their intuition, and to understand the mind-body connection. My aim is to share a love of being and moving, to encourage an exploration of oneself and to support a return to one's natural state of balance and harmony. I am an experienced multi-disciplinary bodywork therapist passionate about and specialising in Zenthai Shiatsu, Pregnancy Zenthai, Internal Organ Bodywork, Craniosacral Balancing and Lomi Lomi. All of these therapies assist in maintaining or regaining a free flow of blood and qi, structural and energetic freedom and nourishment, and support a deep felt sense of oneself. I offer private, small group and public movement classes that focus on mobility, agility, strength, dynamic balance, stability and mental acuity. I have a particular interest in foot health and joint freedom and easeful nasal breathing. Here’s some of the stuff that delights me: My intention is to bring people together to explore ways to move and be together. I offer ideas, movement and bodywork that encourages freedom to the structural and energetic bodies. These workshops may include the sharing of simple and effective techniques through respectful loving touch, informed by Zenthai Shiatsu, movement explorations that support an increase in self awareness and confidence, breathwork that supports a normal physiological breath (nasal breathing), and mental acuity. I’m taken with the notion that we live in a body that is designed to move, finding the movement in stillness and the stillness in movement. Our body's and our minds thrive when we move and extend and reach and pull and push and twist and turn, when we exert, and when we rest and feel and listen. When we do this with our body, our mind also becomes freer, expansive and exploratory. I have some knowledge, understandings and tools that may be helpful, and you know yourself and your body, better than anyone else. Together we cultivate a relationship co-creating a treatment plan that utilises my skills whilst engaging you, in the management of your health and wellbeing. It’s a consultative and feedback process. This requires participation rather than a passive receptivity. It is empowering. Self awareness grows and understanding of the body’s messages is better understood. Thus we address the underlying cause of your symptoms. In this way the purpose of your visit is addressed. My movement history includes a multitude of sports, dance, a brief foray into Tai Kwon Do, 10 years in Community Dance working with people with various abilities, 16 years in physical street theatre, Yoga Teacher training that lead to a daily practise and an unravelling of beliefs and ways of being in the world. Mat Pilates training and an ongoing exploration of natural, grounded, functional movement practises that are integrated my into daily life. I have worked with people with diverse abilities and life experiences and of different ages (children to adults). I look forward to sharing space with you, on the mat or table, or in a class or workshop. I am currently exploring a sliding scale pricing structure in an attempt to keep the possibility of attendance open to all. Information here:
Sliding scale payment options for Zenthai Shiatsu Therapy, Pregnancy Zenthai, Internal Organ Bodywork (Bellywork), Craniosacral Therapy and Lomi Lomi.
90 min session�
$180 is the actual fee for the 90min session. If you choose a fee below this tier you are receiving a discount.
$170 is for those who are able to meet their basic needs but have little-to-no expendable income. Paying for this session may qualify as a sacrifice but it would not create hardship.
$160 is for those who struggle to meet basic needs and paying for this session would still be a significant hardship.
60min session
$130 is the actual fee for the 60min session. If you choose a fee below this tier you are receiving a discount.
$120 is for those who are able to meet their basic needs but have little-to-no expendable income. Paying for this session may qualify as a sacrifice but it would not create hardship.
$110 is for those who struggle to meet basic needs and paying for this session would still be a significant hardship. Sliding scale ideas credited to: Alexis J. Cunningfolk https://www.wortsandcunning.com/blog/sliding-scale
Here are the general guidelines about how I am currently describing my sliding scale pricing and to help you determine where you fall on it.
- The highest dollar cost reflects the true cost of the class or service. It is the cost that the practitioner would charge all clients in the absence of a sliding scale. If you have access to financial security, own or rent high end property, or have personal savings, you would not traditionally qualify for sliding scale services. If you are able to pay for "wants" and spend little time worried about securing necessities in your life, you have economic privilege and power in our community. This price is for you.
- The middle cost (when there is one) reflects the practitioner’s acknowledgement that paying the full cost would prevent some folks from being able to receive a session, but who do not honestly find themselves reflected in either descriptions for the highest cost or the lowest. If you are struggling to conquer debt or build savings or move away from pay day to pay day living but have access to steady income and are not spending most of your time thinking about meeting basic needs such as food, shelter, medical care, child care, etc., you belong here. If you, however, can ask others for financial support, such as family members, partners, or friends, please consider using those personal resources before you use the resources of the sliding scale and limit opportunities for others.
- The lowest cost represents an honest acknowledgment by the practitioner that there are folks whose economic circumstances would prevent them from receiving bodywork if there was not be a deliberate opportunity made for them to access services at a cost that is reflective of their economic realities. If you struggle to maintain access to needs such as health care, housing, food, child care, and are living pay day to pay day, or are in significant debt, you probably belong here and you deserve a community that honours your price as equal an economic offering as the person who can pay the highest tier. Even when the lower tier is still prohibitive, I will work with folks to offer extended payment plans and other solutions.
So how does this workshop relate to Zenthai and other massage/bodywork therapy?
We are familiar with the notion of stagnant blood, deficient qi, excess in one meridian system and deficiency in another, as viewed in Chinese Medicine. We can feel fullness, hardness or emptiness in the body. People experience this as discomfort or pain, lack of agility or fatigue. We are drawn to certain areas in the body.
By continuing the education of our fingers (our eyes and ears) to become more alert, perceptive and responsive to what they encounter, and to trust the messages we receive while treating, can only make us more effective therapists.
Come join us :)
A 1 day workshop to: ~ deepen the sensitivity of your touch ~ connect with the subtle rhythms in the body ~ explore the potency of a more non-doing approach
14/02/2026
Perceptive Fingers workshop
As Thich Nhat Hanh reminds us, "When we touch something with deep awareness, we touch everything"
You will receive:
- explanations and demonstrations of some simple techniques
- a short bodywork session to explore how these principles can easily be
integrated into, and augment your existing practise,
- a handout as a reminder of information and bodywork shared
- an opportunity to connect with others
- morning and afternoon tea :: a selection of herbal teas and wholesome GF,
vegan snacks
A 1 day workshop to: ~ deepen the sensitivity of your touch ~ connect with the subtle rhythms in the body ~ explore the potency of a more non-doing approach
To restore knee health, movement is essential. One of the biggest paradoxes of modern medicine is that the more people try to “protect” their knees by avoiding movement, the faster the joints deteriorate. Doctors often advise rest and reduced load, but a joint cannot survive without motion. Knee cartilage has no blood vessels; it is not nourished directly by blood. Its nutrition comes only from synovial fluid—the joint’s natural lubrication—and that fluid is produced only when the joint is moving. When knees are constantly spared and immobilized, cartilage gradually dries out. A joint does not truly rest; it degrades from inactivity.
Taoist practitioners understood this centuries ago. Their approach is simple: kneel and move gently. Knee walking softly compresses the joint, pushes out stagnant fluid, and draws in fresh fluid, working like a pump. Each movement nourishes the joint from the inside. Knees often become warmer, mobility improves, morning stiffness fades within days, and cracking sensations may decrease over time. This is not mysticism, but basic body mechanics.
Safety is essential. This practice should never be done on a bare floor—only on a thick carpet, folded blanket, or mattress. The knees must sink into softness. If pain is strong, walking is not required; simply kneeling for a minute and gently shifting weight is enough to stimulate circulation. As the joint adapts, slow forward and backward steps can be added, keeping the back straight and movements controlled. Joints should work, not suffer.
In Chinese medicine, knees are considered a key center influencing circulation upward through the body. When knee function improves, many people report a general sense of lightness and clarity. Even for immediate discomfort, gentle pressure on specific areas around the kneecap can help reduce tension and swelling. Small, consistent habits like this often support joint comfort better than complete stillness.
You will receive:
~ explanations and demonstrations of some simple techniques
~ a short bodywork session to explore how these principles can easily be integrated into, and augment your existing practise,
~ a handout as a reminder of information and bodywork shared
~ an opportunity to connect with others
~ morning and afternoon tea :: a selection of herbal teas and wholesome GF, vegan snacks
A 1 day workshop to: ~ deepen the sensitivity of your touch ~ connect with the subtle rhythms in the body ~ explore the potency of a more non-doing approach
This quiet listening and gentle way of connecting with (touching) the body is a useful and, I suggest, powerful, tool to help anyone feeling overwhelmed or anxious to regulate or reset their nervous system. You may be surprised by the sensations/information your hands and fingers are able to receive.
It is also ideal as immediate support for acute injury. Non-intrusive touch connecting with the subtle rhythms in the body helps to re-orient the whole being towards wellbeing. The inherent healing ability of the body is facilitated.
This workshop is for Zenthai Therapists and ZT students, experienced manual therapists of other modalities, yoga and movement based teachers.
A 1 day workshop to: ~ deepen the sensitivity of your touch ~ connect with the subtle rhythms in the body ~ explore the potency of a more non-doing approach
08/02/2026
To all of you who have noted an interest in participating in the PERCEPTIVE FINGERS workshop, I'm looking forward to sharing this day with you.
In this introductory workshop we will bring awareness to :
~ feeling the movement of fascia in our own body
~ feeling the movement of fascia in another
~ sensing any other subtle rhythms
~ how this sensitivity may be incorporated into and benefit our existing practice.
~ the transverse diaphragms, why they are relevant, and how we are already addressing them in our Zenthai practise.
These are all great practices in listening deeply..
You can book via :
A 1 day workshop to: ~ deepen the sensitivity of your touch ~ connect with the subtle rhythms in the body ~ explore the potency of a more non-doing approach
06/02/2026
Craniosacral Therapy (CST) is both a gentle and potent therapy that supports the body's inherent healing abilities re-establishing balance and harmony. Structural, mechanical and psycho-emotional imbalances/dysfunctions can be felt and restored with gentle palpation.
A craniosacral therapist uses very low forces over a sustained period of time to help facilitate the body’s movement though corrective rebalancing as the body-mind connection adapts. Change is not imposed on the body, rather, through quiet listening the therapist invites resolution and is alert to any changes and goes with them.
24/10/2025
My passion and specialties in bodywork lie with Zenthai Shiatsu, Pregnancy Zenthai,
Internal Organ Bodywork (aka bellywork), Craniosacral Balancing and Lomi Lomi.
These therapies cater for a broad range of conditions and support free flow of blood and
chi, structural and energetic freedom and nourishment, and encourage a deep felt sense
of oneself. Free and easeful movement and breath is maintained, or regained. There may
be a releasing of old patterns resulting in a greater acceptance and understanding of
oneself manifesting as a quiet inner happiness.
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Hello. I’m Monique and I am keen to support you in regaining (or maintaining) freedom and ease in your body and to support you in reconnecting with your innate intelligence.
Motivation for my work, both the hands-on bodywork and movement practises, comes from a wish for all people to be comfortable in their own skin, to have an ease of movement, to trust their own inner knowing - their intuition, and to understand the mind/body connection. I understand that there are many factors which influence this, though there are a few basic ingredients that make a marked difference to one’s overall sense of happiness and wellbeing. Some of these ingredients include having an ease of movement, trusting your own inner knowing, your intuition, and to understand the mind-body connection. Thus the fullness of life may be experienced with greater equanimity.
My intention is to share a love of being and moving, to encourage an exploration of oneself and to support a return to one's natural state of balance and harmony. I am interested in sharing simple practises that can easily be included in one’s daily life.
Do you experience pain or discomfort? Does your back, shoulders and neck feel stiff and have little movement? What about headaches? Feel stressed or anxious? Have difficulty sleeping? Excessive fatigue? Discomfort after eating? Cold hands and feet? Or sweaty palms? If so, it may be useful to explore a session with me.
Here at Reconnect holistic bodywork I encourage the release of any held tension or discomfort, assist in dealing with stress more gracefully, inspire greater ease, confidence and positive outlook; both stimulate vitality and support deep relaxation.
I practice hands-on bodywork that awakens both the energetic and structural body and recognise the body's inherent ability for self healing. I offer private and small group grounded, natural movement classes to encourage freedom of movement, ease and strength in your body. I also facilitate hands-on bodywork workshops inspired by Zenthai Shiatsu, where we share simple and effective techniques through respectful loving touch. All therapies offered here at Reconnect holistic bodywork are practiced with presence and focused intention, allowing you to return to a state of easeful living.
I invite you to relax, revitalise and experience deep healing.
I am an experienced therapist specialising in Zenthai Shiatsu, Pregnancy Zenthai, Internal Organ Bodywork, Craniosacral Therapy and Lomi Lomi. I also offer lifestyle and self care guidance stemming from a discussion around your core values and needs. My understanding is that embodying self care practises brings us into self acceptance and self compassion, supporting us to be the best version of ourself.
I look forward to sharing space with you, on the mat or table, or in a class or workshop.
