About us

Pause & Breathe CIC is a not-for-profit organisation founded by husband and wife Susie Hooper and Phil Blackburn. Pause & Breathe is all about creating safe and welcoming spaces to form connections and improve health and wellbeing.

Our vision is that participants will become more skillful in managing their health and wellbeing.

Our mission is to offer a variety of sessions to enable a wide range of participants to improve their overall health and to form connections. We do this by creating safe spaces to encourage connections to form and skills to improve health and wellbeing to be learned.

We are passionate about making wellbeing more accessible financially, as we believe everyone is entitled to access services to enable good mental, physical, emotional and social health. Based in Bonnybridge, with a second centre in Bo’ness - both within the Falkirk area (Central Scotland), we promote the health and wellness of our local community through providing wellbeing sessions that are accessible to all. We encourage habits that contribute to improved physical, emotional, mental and social health by increasing awareness of factors and resources that contribute to wellbeing. 

Our Values:

  • Community: healing and growth happen best when people feel seen, supported and connected. Encouraging connections to grow to reduce loneliness and isolation.

  • Accessibility: reflecting our commitment to making wellbeing approachable and available to all, reducing barriers to attend wherever we can.

  • Self-acceptance: encouraging people to meet themselves with kindness, letting go of the pressure to be anyone other than who they are. Helping people understand that they are enough, and can come along to sessions exactly as they are.

  • Resilience: honouring the strength people already carry within them, while creating spaces that help them rebuild, restore and move forward with confidence.

Ways we can work with you:

Accessibility is really important to us, so we have a number of ways that you can access our services:

  • Attend regular sessions: online or in one of our centres (Bonnybridge and Bo’ness)

  • Retreat with us: Experience nurturing retreats, dedicated to your well-being. Step away from daily pressures to relax, recharge, and reconnect with yourself.

  • Corporate Events: Invite us along to work directly with your organisation - online or in-person.

  • Hire our space: bring your wellbeing services to our local community.

For more information, contact Susie at susie@pauseandbreathe.co.uk.

  • Susie Hooper

    Susie has been facilitating mindfulness sessions within her local community since January 2017. She was introduced to mindfulness through her role as a Social Worker within Justice Services. At the start of 2021, Susie left her role as a Social Worker to commit to Pause & Breathe full-time.

    Susie is passionate about creating safe spaces where participants can form connections and find community. She works with people to help them find self-acceptance, emotional balance and to get to know themselves better.

    Susie is an accredited Trauma-Sensitive Mindfulness teacher, Daring to Rest Yoga Nidra Facilitator and is qualified to teach Qi Gong, Chair Yoga and Nia Dance.

  • Phil Blackburn

    Phil Blackburn

    Phil is a well-recognised Martial Arts teacher, specialising in Japanese Ju-Jitsu. Training for a little over 40 years in Martial Arts, Phil has coached throughout Europe whilst studying in the main Shaolin Zen meditation, this being single point meditation. Phil started his path of meditation after being introduced to it by his martial arts instructor JF Yamaue, who is also a Shaolin priest, over 25 years ago.

    Phil is a mindfulness teacher, having trained through Skillful Minds. He has also undertaken Youth Mindfulness training in their kid’s programme, and is qualified to teach this to 7-11 year olds.

    Phil is a Reiki Master and can offers Acupressure and TFT/EFT – otherwise known as Tapping.