GINA DE LA CHESNAYE
ABOUT
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GINA IS A CONTEMPLATIVE-BASED TRAUMA AND RESILIENCY EDUCATOR AND INSTRUCTOR
Gina de la Chesnaye
is a yoga, meditation and Qi Gong teacher, competitive kickboxer, writer, photographer, and humanitarian.
For 20 years she has practiced and taught contemplative-based mind-body practices for trauma recovery and resiliency to trauma survivors, clinicians, humanitarian aid workers and caregivers.
She is the founder and director of The Nachan Project, as well as on the faculty of numerous organizations including The Lineage Project, The International Center for Mental Health and Human Rights, Second Response and others offering practice in New York City, East Africa and Nepal.
She lives in Brooklyn with her two daughters.
WORK
PROJECTS
Gina offers contemplative-based trauma education and training for caregivers, counselors, first responders, refugees, and trauma survivors in New York City, East Africa, and Nepal.
CLINICAL CARE TRAININGS
Gina has offered workshops on "Psychotherapy & The Body" with Dr. Seema Desai and Dr. Jonathan Kaplan as well as solo led workshops on "Metta Based Trauma Therapy and Poly Vagal Theory Through the Use of Mind/Body Practices." Through Second Response, Gina has led "Care for Caregiver" workshops in the U.S. and East Africa for trauma therapists, humanitarian aid workers, street counselors, and social workers. Recent workshops include: "Toolkit: Skills for Self-Regulation" and "Mindfulness and Trauma Management"
She will continue to offer trainings for clinicians through The Therapy Collective in 2021.
MARTIAL ARTS & Qi Gong
Qi Gong is an ancient Chinese form of meditative movement in the healing arts tradition. As a teacher and former competitive kickboxer, Gina weaves martial arts and the psychological process together. She studied and competed in Western Boxing, San Da Kickboxing and K1 Kickboxing within many dojos and fight gyms in NYC. Including NY Kung Fu and Kickboxing, NY San Da, Elite Plus, InnerG and C1MMA.
She offers private kickboxing and QiGong training for self-defense, strength training, up-regulation and healing through embodied awareness.
NACHAN
The Nachan Project, led by Second Response faculty member, Gina de la Chesnaye, brings mindfulness-based practices to the women and children living in the Katwe and Kisenyi slums of Kampala, Uganda and trauma informed trainings to social workers, street counselors and caregivers in East Africa.
Nachan promotes the ability to move beyond surviving into thriving.
TRAUMA INFORMED YOGA & MEDITATION
A practitioner of over 20 years, Gina specializes in offering trauma informed yoga and meditation classes with an emphasis on grounding, finding agency and returning to the resource of the body.
SECOND RESPONSE
Gina is a core faculty member of Second Response, an organization which provides body-centered methods to relieve the harmful effects of stress, distress & trauma. Most recently Second Response served survivors of sex-trafficking, refugees, street-children and the women in Uganda and Kenya.
108 LIVES NEPAL
Dedicated to humanitarian relief, she has spent several years focusing on trauma and resiliency work with children in orphanages, schools, IDP camps and monasteries throughout Nepal with the volunteer organization 108 Lives. In March 2018 Gina led a group of 13 volunteers.
FEATURED WORK
THE BODY: A HEALING ENVIRONMENT
The Body: A Healing Environment
Read to learn more about Gina's work with the Harvard Program for Refugee Trauma and Recovery.