About

Róisín Erskine

Yogi  |  Artist  |  Therapeutic Practitioner | Female Martial Arts Instructor

Róisín holds a 400hr Advanced Certificate in Yoga Studies & Yoga Therapy from the Guild of Yoga Ireland, having studied under Marie Quail and Shiv Sharma among others.  Having recently completed a Diploma in Sound Therapy, and now training Systema Martial & Healing Arts, Róisín is always looking for new ways to deepen her experience and learn from many masters of their craft. 

Prior to this, her career was forged in peace-building, working in & for disadvantaged communities across Northern Ireland.  It was through this work she saw  the day-to-day impact that living in a post-conflict society ultimately has on our individual and collective wellbeing.

This background in working with first hand, and trans-generational trauma has had a profound impact on Róisín and is what defines her teaching style. She is keen to make her work as accessible as possible, particularly for those who otherwise wouldn’t have access to such therapeutic practices. Presently she works with refugee women, amputees & veterans, the LGBTQ+ community and older people, having previously also worked with everyone from survivors of physical and sexual abuse, people affected by dementia, young people with learning difficulties, those within the criminal justice system and paramilitaries. Her experience of working with marginalized, ‘at risk’ individuals and those perceived to be dangerous, has taught her that the impact of trauma can have devastating, life-long effects extending far beyond the original incident, and ripples out into the lives of those around us.

Yoga has been a feature of her life since as long as she can remember, and she came to practice meditation after describing to a friend how she felt ‘frayed round the edges’ : A kind of exhaustion and impatience that she had never known before.  It was at this point she was introduced to a Buddhist monk and began to study meditation. The immediate benefits of which were obvious to Róisín, and it is now one of her favorite things to teach, especially when it comes to incorporating sound, whether through vocalization or using other instruments outside of the body. It wasn’t until a particularly devastating encounter with grief that Róisín truly experienced and understood the potential and effects of sound as a therapeutic modality, which spurred her on to learn more about embodied cognition, polyvagal theory and sympathetic resonance to name a few concepts. It is this holistic understanding of our body as a set of inter-dependent instruments that is really the signature of Róisín’s work, because she not only helps clients to identify the root causes of mental, emotional, spiritual and physical barriers, but she is determined to ‘set the tone’ by curating therapeutic frequencies in a range of formats which others can avail of without having to understand why it feels so good. So whether you’re being guided through a Yoga Nidra with live instrumental soundscape, or participating in a course about Shame and the Voice, you are guaranteed to feel nourished, empowered and relaxed.

In her creative endeavors, she has worked as a musician; fire performer; textile artist & festival decorator; even as a clown and children’s entertainer.  Her main aim throughout any of her roles is to alleviate stress, and create joy.  We do NOT have to do things the hard way! 

In December 2019 she stood as a finalist in the ‘Mighty Women’ awards for her service in community music workshops.  

In March 2021 she was honored to be nominated for the Community Relations Councils “Good Relations Award” for outstanding contributions to peacebuilding, inclusion and diversity in post-conflict Northern Ireland.

In September 2022 she became the Irelands first female Systema Instructor and was told recently at an international training seminar in Milan, that makes her the only Female Systema instructor in Europe! In line with all the other vocations and studies she has undertaken, Róisín is hugely impressed by the raft of therapeutic benefits that come from this modality and is keen to bring Therapeutic Martial and Healing Arts to the masses. If you want more information on this modality specifically, look out for our ‘Systema Belfast’ Instagram and Facebook pages!

In a world where turmoil is rife; our rate of consumption is unsustainable; and we face physical and mental health epidemics globally, Róisín is excited to be sharing the wisdom and techniques of a variety of ancient art forms for wellness and contentment.