In my late teens I was so drawn to practicing yoga. Back then, the primary way to research local businesses was to look in the yellow pages. When I opened the phone book, I found two studio listings: one on Queen Anne and the other was located on one of the islands. I went to Queen Anne, the studio of Maria Svoboda, a beloved and renowned Iyengar teacher in our community. I didn’t know it at the time, but walking into that little studio would change my life forever.

Back then, yoga was something I did ocassionaly, but in my late 20’s, I went through a very difficult life transition and yoga became my refuge. I can honestly say, I am not sure where I would be today without this profound practice. Through yoga, I have met my dearest friends and most profound life teachers. Studying, practicing, and teaching yoga has led me to places all over the world. I am immensely grateful for the practice, to my teachers, and to all of the beautiful people I have met on this path.

In 2006, I went to India to study yoga. There is a saying, “Don’t plan India, because India will plan you.” This is exactly what I happened. While there, I fell in love with a Swiss man who had just opened a yoga retreat center, a place I had gone to study yoga and meditation. I moved to India to live, work, and study yoga and Ayurveda.

I have a background in Iyengar, Vinyasa, Restorative, as well as Ananda yoga, a devotional style of yoga based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda, I draw from these traditions to create a fluid and meditative practice. I teach in the most authentic way that I can to inspire others to experience the profound gifts of yoga, creating a sense of wholeness among heart, body, mind, and spirit. This sense of wholeness or oneness also dissolves our sense of separation from others. I encourage students to go inward; nourishing themselves, deepening their intuition and honoring the divine within.

With my dear friend Tami Hafzalla, we teach a 200-hour Yoga Alliance Registered Teacher Trainings through the school we founded together, Synergy Yoga School.

I am a registered teacher with the Yoga Alliance. Yoga Teacher Trainings and Continuing Education include:

• Ananda Yoga at the Expanding Light – 200-Hour (2002)
• Power Vinyasa Yoga with Baron Baptiste Level I – 80 Hours (2003)
• Power Vinyasa Yoga with Baron Baptiste Level II – 80 Hours (2003)
• Pre and Post-Natal Yoga with Colette Crawford – 100 Hours (2003)
• Vinyasa Yoga with Shiva Rea (2006)
• Vinyasa Yoga with Seane Corn (2007)
• Brahmani Yoga’s Advanced Yoga Teacher Training – 200 Hours (2009)
• Silver Age Yoga Teacher Training for Seniors – (2012)
• Relax & Renew® Restorative Yoga Training with Judith Hanson Lasater (2015)
• Yoga for Chronic Pain with Gary Kraftsow (2015)
• Yoga for 12-Step Recovery with Nikki Myers (2018)
• Trauma Informed Yoga with Hala Khouri (2018)
• Insight Yoga Training with Sarah Powers (2018)
• 8 Limbs 300-Hour Certified (2019)

I am an Ayurvedic Practitioner, and my Ayurveda and Massage training Include:

• Ayurveda Wellness Counselor, Ayurveda Natural Health Center (2009)
• Licensed Massage Therapist, Cortiva (2015)
• Massage for the Childbearing Year, with Kate Jordan (2015)
• Ayurvedic Bodywork Training with Sarah Kruse (2015)
• Chest & Breast Health Massage, with Barbara Helynn Heard (2017)
• Summer Seminars with Dr. Vasant Lad at the Ayurvedic Institute in Pulse Reading and Marma Therapy (2018)
• Ayurvedic Wellness Counselor, Kerala Academy (2020)
• Ayurvedic Wellness Practitioner, Kerala Academy (2021)