My yoga journey began in 2019 when my employer at the time started a new Health & Wellness initiative and brought in a wonderful yoga instructor for us once a week. I really LOVED the practice but at the time, I was a very active member of my martial arts gym & didn’t feel like I had the time to further my yoga practice outside of the office. Later that same year, I sustained a nasty ankle injury and all of my activities were put on pause. It took me a long time to recover physically and even longer mentally.
In April 2022, I found myself at an all-time low. I knew I needed yoga in my life again and finally I mustered the courage to walk through the front door for my very first yoga studio class experience right here at Mountain Yoga Sandy. I remember having this feeling – this sensation throughout that whole first class, like this deep internal voice who had been so silent for so long was suddenly shouting “THIS IS WHERE YOU NEED TO BE”. By the end of that same year, it was on my heart to attend Yoga Teacher Training, and I completed my first 200-hour training (also at MYS) by the end of the following year.
On my mat as a student, I found mySelf. Peace and joy lightened and filled my soul. I had found a sanctuary to JUST BE present. For the first time in my life I found true acceptance and love for my body and mind, together at once, just as they are in that moment and in a way that felt sustainable long term. The Yoga Sutras, the philosophy of yoga, provided me with language for what I’d long felt or known deeply & intrinsically. Having that language enabled me to reconnect with my own spirituality that I had once shunned hard and outright because the only language I had for it, just didn’t fit.
In teaching yoga, I know I have found my purpose, the work I was meant to be doing in this world, my dharma. Reflecting now, I see so clearly how EVERY step on my path before yoga was preparation for when I arrived here. To hold that space for others to find themSelves, to give the gift – the medicine of yoga as it was given to me is so much more than a privilege.
I am forever a student of yoga. Continuously pursuing deeper knowledge, understanding, and further education and training. Words cannot quite express the depth of my gratitude for the teachers & mentors who have guided me on my path so far nor for each and every student who has trusted me to guide their practice, and for all of those whom I’ve yet to meet on the path ahead.
Originally from the Springfield area of Missouri, I moved to Utah in 2015 with my husband, Levi, and am so proud to call Utah home. Off my mat you can find me exploring, hiking, & camping in these majestic mountains while the weather is warm. Or in winter months, relaxing at home with my husband and our doggo, usually in and out of the kitchen cooking and baking something delicious.
I look forward to seeing you all on the mat!
