My Story

My yoga journey started 25 years ago.

My yoga journey started 25 years ago when I discovered Ashtanga after the birth of my first child. I grew up doing ballet and other various forms of dance so it felt like an organic transition to Ashtanga, the mother of flow yoga. I loved Ashtanga because it melted the baby fat away in weeks. At first that was as deep as I got into the practice. As the years became increasingly challenging, yoga became an essential tool for managing my depression. Giving someone the gift of a yoga practice is such a beautiful opportunity to change their life. A yoga practice is a gift that keeps giving.

I found myself doing self practice for a few years until baby number two came along. Fortunately, I was blessed to find Maty Ezraty and Chuck Miller, the original owners of Yoga Works. They helped me develop a strong primary series. I was honored to be accepted into their very last 200 hour teacher training program, before they sold Yoga Works and it went corporate. 

I gave birth to my third child at home in my bathtub after a 3 day labor, without a solid yoga practice I don't think it would have been possible. Back in the day when I had kids running around, I did not have as much time to devote to my practice. Nevertheless, even a little bit can go a long way. When I reflect back on my life, my yoga practice was the one consistent thing that made me feel better in any situation.

So as life would have it I was in Uganda for few years working with orphans for “Yoga off the mat”, attempting to run a non-profit. My yoga practice had dwindled to 45 minutes a day tops. That is when my eldest daughter and a bone disease brought me back to my mat. The doctor told me I would need to walk with a cane, due to avascular necrosis in my right hip. The only option was to have a hole drilled in my hip, which only had a 50/50 chance of working.

My daughter, who had recently found Ashtanga videos on youtube, asked me if I intended to stay on primary series my entire life. She showed me youtube videos of intermediate series with the intense hip openers, and it seemed like a better option than going under the knife and drill, especially with a 50/50 success rate.

This led me to Omkar108. I started to practice 6 days a week with Jorgen Christiansson. He encouraged me to journey to “the source” in Mysore India. I went 3 times for a total of six months. Going to study Ashtanga Yoga KPJY with Saraswati Joies was such a wonderful opportunity. Saraswati is such a lovely teacher and powerful woman. She filled me with inspiration.

I have been fortunate to have had an opportunity to study with some of the best yoga teachers in the world. Saraswati Joies, Jorgen Christiansson, Mark Robberds, Deepika Mehta, Bobbi Boston, Mary Freedom and Ty Landrum to name a few.

Ashtanga cured my bone disease in my right hip, but I then developed tendinitis in my left shoulder. I started seeking answers by dissecting my practice and incorporating a program that I learned from Mark Robberds. It incorporates restorative yoga, dance movements, Kin stretch and CARS (Controlled Articular Rotations).

I am grateful for this journey. My injuries helped make me be a better teacher. As a young dancer I could do many advanced poses easily, but then I failed to understand the current physical limitations of students and how to work with them. With age comes new wisdom and understanding.