Everything I knew about taking care of myself went out the window right when I most needed it. 

I'd been a yoga and meditation teacher for a decade when Ocean was born...

It turned out he had a lot of needs, but not a need for sleep. He screamed a lot and I didn’t know how to soothe him. His multiple daily meltdowns frayed my nerves and his. I felt like a terrible mom. 

At 3, Ocean was diagnosed with autism.

It was a relief to have more clarity, but by then I had completely lost myself. Who knows when I had last slept or eaten well? 

I felt like a hollow shell. 

Prior to parenting, my self-care was hours of daily yoga and meditation. I couldn’t leave Ocean while I went off to do that, and the advice my mentors gave was impossible to follow. Just when I felt most shattered, a wise mom of three appeared, then disappeared, leaving me breadcrumbs...

Her advice was so simple: feel your feet on the ground. It made a difference!

I started to gradually return to myself.

I sought community and support for Ocean and I. We were lucky to find an inclusive, judgment-free space where we made friends who understood us. In therapy, I faced and embraced my anxiety and complex trauma.

I reconnected with mindfulness, and reconciled it with my parenting reality.

When I could ground myself during (or after) Ocean’s meltdowns, we both recovered faster.

Our relationship mended. 

Through research and advocacy for him, I discovered sensory processing disorder and high sensitivity - and recognized myself. I devoured everything I could about Polyvagal Theory, loving boundaries, and emotional regulation. 

In time I distilled the most effective somatic practices I knew into concentrated 1-3 minute drops that I could sprinkle throughout my day.

Now I teach those tools to parents riding the most intense waves of raising neurodivergent kids.

It’s not necessary to spend 90 minutes in a yoga class, but it does help to move mindfully and often.

• It helps to breathe consciously.
• It helps to practice self-empathy.
• And it really helps when those practices are accessible to your present reality!

Now I work with highly sensitive and neurodivergent people who tend to live in their heads most of the time. They're parents, creatives, or professional caregivers. 

It’s always the most caring people who put themselves last. I want to change that, because we're the ones who will create a kinder, more inclusive world.

My students love mindful yoga for its mental, emotional, spiritual, as well as physical benefits. 

They value having a guide they can trust.

“I love myself way more now than I ever have in my life.”