The Nest Space: Reclaiming the World of Wellness
Anesu Mbizvo and Banesa Tseki have co-created The Nest Space: a proudly African, inclusive wellness space. Based in Parktown North, it offers a range of holistic services including yoga and meditation as well as reiki, hypnotherapy, support groups and affordable workshops.
As Banesa says, it functions as “an interruption and a disruptor” to a side of wellness that has largely been ignored, allowing people of colour to see themselves in positions such as yoga teachers or reiki practitioners.
Anesu, a medical doctor and yoga instructor, started The Nest Space in 2018. She recognised the power of yoga as a healing practice but wanted a space where her healing journey, shaped by her life experiences as a woman of colour, could fully unfurl. Banesa is a wellness practitioner who shares Anesu’s values, and, with her expertise in brand strategy, was the missing puzzle piece needed to create The Nest Space.
Sharing Anesu’s experience of being othered in the wellness world, Banesa had always felt it contradictory to the idea of healing to be in a space where you feel uncomfortable or unseen. That’s why The Nest Space is rooted in the ethos of inclusivity. It is for all bodies regardless of age, race, gender, sexual orientation or physical ability.
The Nest also provides a yoga teaching academy, training yogis of colour wishing to become yoga teachers. “When you're able to see yourself in any vocation, it's validating," says Banesa, speaking to the importance of representation in the wellness landscape. The academy has trained over 80 yogis of colour so far, a notable feat in a sector where the model is so needed.
Beyond inclusivity, The Nest Space is rooted in an African context and perspective of healing. Anesu and Banesa are committed to validating and preserving the indigenous healing modalities and spiritualities that have often been undermined or appropriated by Western-driven societies. “Reclaiming practices such as yoga, breathwork and energetic healing and educating our community about the fact that these practices were birthed in Africa is a radical act of social justice,” Anesu says.
Wellness means awareness of the self, Banesa explains. “Once aware, it is doing everything within your capability to maintain that presence. That overextends physically, psychologically, metaphysically, even spiritually,” she says.
An integral aspect of this journey is embracing the self in its multifacetedness. “Healing demands truly facing all of the different parts of yourself. Taking ownership of all of our identities and the legacies that come with them is vital if we want to heal as individuals and as communities,” Anesu said.
With their offerings ranging from beginner yoga classes and mindful hikes to moon ceremonies and hypnotherapy sessions, The Nest Space has something for everyone. In a world where the wellness sector can feel daunting and exclusionary, The Nest Space serves as an important beacon for those wanting to take the first steps on their healing and wellness journey.
Article by: Shaazia Ebrahim