Women’s wellbeing house

A new wellbeing centre dedicated to women’s health has opened in Penzance, Cornwall. Garbo House offers a programme of progressive, holistic support to help women navigate menstruation, pregnancy, postnatal care, motherhood, menopause and issues around female fertility. It’s a multi-faceted space offering classes, workshops, activities and treatments.
Behind the centre is Leif Olsen, a yoga practitioner with 20 years’ experience, who developed the idea after witnessing first-hand the lack of support for women at key times during their lives, putting them at risk of long-term physical problems and poor levels of mental health.
“I’ve seen hundreds of women experiencing profound life-changes, and I strongly feel that right now many are being let down by massive gaps in the traditional healthcare system,” she says. “Garbo House offers practical help, but also a support network.  These are vital things that women need for their health now and in the future.”
Olsen’s pregnancy yoga classes through the years have given her an insight into the challenges facing pregnant women and new mums: lack of contact with midwives and low levels of postpartum care, feelings of isolation and intense pressure.
Garbo House also brings together other specialist practitioners to offer something unique in Cornwall: an independent centre with a 360˚ approach to women’s physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. The timetable includes yoga for teenagers, pregnancy and baby yoga classes, women’s yoga therapy, a singing group, meditation, couples birth preparation, mamas retreats and workshops on baby massage, perimenopause, anxiety, trauma and using herbs in your home.
“Our health system deals with illness and disease,” says Olsen. “Fertility issues, pregnancy, menopause: these aren’t diseases, but they are complex aspects of women’s lives and they can have ongoing, and often unseen or undiagnosed, effects.”

Visit: garbohouse.com