A British dance teacher has won her fight for a payout after suffering an emotional breakdown during a yoga course in India. Melissa Revell, 35, from Richmond, London, said that unadvertised psychological exercises on the £2,250 course in Goa in 2019 triggered a meltdown, leaving her unable to work.
Ms Revell claimed she was 'retraumatised' when memories related to her adoption were brought to the surface. She said she was in good physical and mental health before the course but now cannot care for herself or exercise, and has gone from a size six to a size 16. She sued TYP International Ltd, run by British yoga guru Jamie Clarke, 59, and Mexican instructor Dulce Aguilar, 43, for more than £200,000.
At the London High Court, Mr Clarke confirmed the company had dropped its defence over liability, citing lack of funds. 'The company is no longer trading as of July 2022,' he told Master John Dagnall. 'We are now unable because of funds to defend the claim.' The company had previously denied any wrongdoing or that the emotional collapse was a foreseeable risk.
Marcus Grant, representing Ms Revell, described the exercise that triggered the breakdown. On 24 September 2019, students were instructed to pair up and hold each other while imagining the other person was their parent, saying phrases like 'I love you, you are my teacher, my carer, my nurturer and I forgive you.' Ms Revell began shaking and feeling ill, and later experienced overwhelming anxiety.
Despite speaking to Mr Clarke, she was offered only one-to-one therapy sessions back in the UK. Mr Grant said the 'dismissive response' and pressure to participate in further psychological exercises caused her to become very ill and fly home. She was later diagnosed with complex PTSD and functional neurological disorder, and remains significantly incapacitated.
