Birthlight Perinatal Yoga Teacher Training
Learn how to share specially adapted Yoga that will enhance all women’s health and wellbeing throughout pregnancy, helping to prepare mentally and physically for labour and birth and begin to restore balance and strength in the early postpartum period.
Are you drawn to supporting women journeying through pregnancy, birth and postnatal recovery?
This course covers everything you need to know in order to offer effective, inclusive and supportive Yoga for Pregnancy and birth classes plus early postpartum recovery practices. Based on over 30 years of collective experience of working with pregnant women from all walks of life and from different cultures, this training has inspired many other training courses.
Birthlight’s Perinatal Yoga teacher training (also known as Pregnancy Yoga) offers original adaptations of classic yoga practices for women from conception through to the early postpartum period. This course is complemented by Birthlight Postnatal Yoga covering Early Postpartum practices with progressions to a classical yoga practice through the first year after birth.
Nurture, calm strength, and balance are our priorities.
What makes Birthlight’s Perinatal Yoga teacher training unique?
This Yoga offers a wealth of embodied resources that resonate with both ancient wisdom and recent findings on the physiology of birth. Nurture, with emotional wellbeing rooted in body-based practices, is at the heart of this training. Birthlight’s ‘Mothering the mother’ approach provides an essential foundation for a woman’s self-confidence and ability to nurture her baby, creating cascades of wellbeing all around her.
Whilst adaptations of classic poses will be explored, this course focuses on Yoga specifically aimed at the holistic wellbeing of the pregnant person and their baby.
Many women start yoga for the first time in pregnancy and the practices in this course are beneficial for both beginners to yoga and those with an established yoga practice.
What is the Course Schedule?
This course takes place in 2 parts with time to study and practice in between. Coursework is ideally completed between Part 1 and Part 2, including teaching your case studies. All coursework is carefully read and commented on, helping you to further refine your teaching.
Part 1:
28th, 29th, 30th November 2025
5th, 6th, 7th December 2025
Part 2:
5th, 6th, 7th June 2026
All Live Online via Zoom, 9:30 to 13:30 UK time each day
What will you learn on this course?
- How to guide the building of self confidence through embodied understanding.
- Lead flowing sequences originally designed for pregnancy, birth and beyond.
- Gain confidence to combine movement, breath, and relaxation. Learn how to guide postural awareness on and off the mat.
- How to enhance pelvic health and function, awareness of the pelvic floor and practices to enhance elasticity.
- Guide the strengthening of the muscles supporting the growing baby.
- Skilfully deliver effective birth preparation.
- Understand how to support pregnant women with common ailments such as backache and pelvic pain.
- Get inspiration for offering classes that give women the opportunity to bond with their babies before birth.
- Train to support groups of mothers-to-be with individual and group attention.
- Learn methods for preparing the body and mind for labour and birth.
- Gain a repertoire of breathing for pregnancy, any kind of birth and early parenthood.
- Learn to teach a range of relaxation techniques for pregnancy, birth and after.
Who can join this course?
Birthlight trains both yoga teachers and maternity professionals who go on to offer successful regular Pregnancy Yoga classes and workshops in yoga studios, community spaces, hospitals as well as midwives integrating the practices into their care on labour wards, in birth centres, routine appointments and home visits.
- Yoga Teachers with a 200hr+ general yoga teacher training
- Health professionals with a personal yoga practice but without a formal Yoga teacher training.
Course Resources:
- A comprehensive course manual
- Access to the Birthlight online learning platform
- Support from tutor and fellow students via online group and access to a dedicated members training website (learning resources, business and marketing resources, film clips, latest research)
Assessment:
- Parts 1 and 2 are assessed by a practicum observed by a tutor.
- Coursework: an essay (2000 words) or presentation and 10 questions, two case-studies, four class observations and a review. The aim is to develop your teaching skills and knowledge around pregnancy and gain confidence for the best delivery of your classes.
Course attendance requirement:
Students must attend the course in full in order to get the qualification. If more than 2 hours of the course are missed, certification cannot be granted and arrangements will need to be discussed and agreed in order to complete.
Qualification:
The Perinatal Yoga Diploma is awarded after assessment of coursework and a final practicum on the Part 2 course.
Accreditation:
On successful completion of the training, teachers will be able to list themselves on the Birthlight international directory of qualified teachers.
Yogacampus Diversity and Accessibility Bursary
We are offering one bursary (50% off the full course price) to a dedicated yoga student with a demonstrated financial need and active involvement in a community that could benefit from yoga. This bursary is provided by Yogacampus – The Life Centre Education, a not-for-profit educational body committed to sharing knowledge and making yoga accessible to all.
Bursary places will be awarded to a teacher or trainee who has the ability and commitment to take the course teachings into a disadvantaged community and play their part in the drive to increase accessibility to these profoundly healing practices. Priority will be given to those who themselves are from marginalised or vulnerable groups or are from a minority ethnic background.
To apply, please complete our online form before the closing date of 26 October 2025.
Meet the Teacher: Kirsteen Ruffell
Kirsteen Ruffell is the Co-ordinator for Birthlight’s land-based training courses and is one of our experienced Perinatal and Baby Yoga Tutors. She is a registered Senior Yoga Teacher with Yoga Alliance Professionals, has been teaching yoga since 1998 and began tutoring in 2008. Kirsteen is passionate about nurturing students’ professional development on every training course and enhancing their ability to use new understanding creatively to best serve the students in their own classes.
Within the sphere of Perinatal Yoga, Kirsteen has developed a particular interest in Postnatal Yoga and has worked closely with Birthlight founder and pioneer, Dr Françoise Freedman, to develop specific practices for the postnatal year. She continues to refine her practice and understanding through regular CPDs (Continuous Professional Development courses) and Birthlight Conferences. Her background is in Hatha Yoga (Sivananda) and Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga and she started teaching Birthlight Perinatal Yoga in 2002. She is also a trained Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapist (Karuna Institute).
Kirsteen is continually inspired by teaching Birthlight’s gentle and enjoyable yoga practices that work profoundly across languages and cultures to support women and babies around the world. She regularly leads Birthlight training courses in London, the Netherlands, China, Russia, Portugal, Belgium, and Germany.
What our graduates say?
'Even though I had previously done the BWY Yoga for Pregnancy Module, I had been wanting to study with Birthlight for some years and when the opportunity of the online course arose I took it and I'm so glad I did. It lived up to all my expectations and more. I learned much more that I had anticipated and it has not only refreshed and updated my teaching of perinatal yoga but also given me a new perspective and deeper understanding which the pregnant women attending my classes really benefit from and enjoy.'
- Birthlight Perinatal Yoga TT Graduate
'Kirsteen's perinatal yoga course I am thoroughly enjoying! I became pregnant on my yoga teacher training diploma. I have practiced yoga throughout my pregnancy and it has given me real presence, grounding and calmness - amongst the chaos of pregnancy (physically, mentally and emotionally). I want to share the magic of yoga with other pregnant women. I was recommended Birthlight and I couldn't feel more happy with the course content and the teacher Kirsteen. Kirsteen has decades of experience, is so insightful, informative and is a real inspiration. I feel like I really couldn't access a better pregnancy yoga course anywhere else. Kirsteen is providing us with the knowledge and confidence to safely teach yoga to pregnant women. Not only offering a yoga class but offering support and guidance as someone who will likely have regular contact with the pregnant woman. I am really excited by all the course content - thanks Kirsteen!'
- Birthlight Perinatal Yoga TT Graduate
'I had wanted to train with Birthlight for a long time but had not been able to because none of the courses were anywhere near where I live and I'm not able to travel. Taking this training online allowed me to access this excellent training which more than lived up to my expectations. Birthlight is a very supportive organisation and has a lot of online resources to support my continuing learning. I've learned a lot from a very experienced teacher and feel confident to go out and teach perinatal classes to help pregnant women in my locality.'
- Birthlight Perinatal Yoga TT Graduate
Meditation Myths De-bunked
3rd March 2026 • Online Live • Graham Burns Isabell Britsch
- Details and booking
The Art of Sacred Sound Training
21st March 2026 • Online Live • Anne Malone
- Details and booking
Online Panel Discussion: The State of Yoga
28th October 2025 • Online Live • Mary Richards Lisa Petersen Graham Burns Kristen MacPherson
- Details and booking
Tugging the Heartstrings: Yoga Practices to Support Emotional Resilience
9th December 2025 • Online Live • Mary Richards
- Details and booking
Urban Vajrayoga™ Retreat with Professor Robert Thurman and Dr John Campbell
8th November 2025 • The Studio Space • Face to face • Prof. Emeritus Robert Thurman John Campbell, PhD
- Details and booking
Yoga and Neurophysiology
30th November 2025 • Online Live • Stanford Wong
- Details and booking
Advanced SATYA: Regulating Blood Pressure, Regulating the Heart | Online Immersion
5th November 2025 • Online Live • Tias Little
- Details and booking
Guiding Meditation
14th January 2026 • Online Live • Graham Burns Isabell Britsch
- Details and booking
Restorative Yoga - A Beginner’s Guide to Teaching and Self-Practice
5th November 2025 • Online (Pre-Recorded) • Adelene Cheong
- Details and booking
Meditation Roots and Shoots
18th November 2025 • Online Live • Graham Burns Isabell Britsch
- Details and booking
Yoga & Somatics for Healing & Recovery in-person workshops: London 2026
30th May 2026 • The London School of Capoeira • Face to face • Charlotte Watts
- Details and booking
The Connected Body: Experiential Anatomy of the Fascial System
10th November 2025 • Online Live • Leila Stuart
- Details and booking
Menopause Yoga Teacher Training
1st November 2025 • Online Live • Petra Coveney
- Details and booking
Birthlight Perinatal Yoga Teacher Training
28th November 2025 • Blended • Kirsteen Ruffell
- Details and booking
Mindful Yoga in Supportive and Palliative Care and into Bereavement
1st November 2025 • Online Live • Kate Binnie
- Details and booking
A Yoga Therapy Intensive (London)
22nd October 2025 • The Arc Centre • Face to face • Gary Kraftsow Sold out
- Details and booking
Yoga for Burn-Out and Fatigue Conditions: Trauma sensitive and subtle yogic approaches to support overwhelm and exhaustion
19th October 2025 • Online Live • Charlotte Watts Leah Barnett
- Details and booking
Meditation Teacher Training
18th November 2025 • Online Live • Graham Burns Isabell Britsch
- Details and booking
Meditation is All in the Mind (or is it?)
11th February 2026 • Online Live • Isabell Britsch
- Details and booking
Yoga & Somatics for Healing & Recovery online workshops
9th November 2025 • Online Live • Charlotte Watts
- Details and booking
Yin Yoga Teacher Training: Minds, Meridians, Moments (In Person)
24th November 2025 • West London Buddhist Centre • Face to face • Norman Blair Sold out
- Details and booking
Related Articles
What Makes a Skilled Prenatal Yoga Teacher?
Reflections from Birthlight's Founder, Françoise Freedman...
