Yoga Therapy and Heart Disease
About Me
My path into yoga began while studying Health and Wellness, where I discovered that healing extends far beyond the absence of disease. Yoga became a framework for understanding the relationship between the body, nervous system, mind, and lived experience—and a lifelong foundation for how I approach health, leadership, and human development.
Today, I serve as a Certified Yoga Therapist (C-IAYT), Sattva Yoga Therapist, and Lead Faculty at PranaYoga Institute. With extensive experience in nonprofit management, I currently serve as the Chief Wellness Officer in a wellness organization dedicated to human development. My work integrates evidence-informed health sciences, yoga therapy, developmental science, and community wellness to create accessible, person-centered approaches to care across clinical, educational, nonprofit, and community settings.
I have experience supporting individuals across the lifespan with chronic and complex health conditions, including cardiovascular disease, neurological conditions, cancer, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), chronic pain, post-operative recovery, prenatal and postpartum care, trauma, anxiety, depression, addiction, grief, and life transitions. Across every setting, my focus remains the same: understanding the whole person, supporting nervous system regulation, and empowering individuals to actively participate in their healing actively.
Whether working with clients, mentoring clinicians, or leading community initiatives, I believe every person possesses an innate capacity for healing, adaptation, and growth. My role is not to fix people, but to create the conditions where resilience, self-awareness, meaningful change, and the light that already exists within can emerge.
What to Expect From Me as Your Mentor
My role is not to give you all the answers... it's to help you become the Yoga Therapist you are capable of becoming.
You can expect me to:
- Lead with curiosity and compassion. I'll aim to cultivate a safe environment where questions, reflection, and honest conversations are welcomed.
- Challenge your clinical reasoning. I'll ask thoughtful questions that strengthen your assessment, decision-making, and confidence.
- Integrate evidence with humanity. Together we'll bridge health science, yoga therapy, and lived experience to provide individualized, ethical care.
- Provide honest feedback and accountability. I'll celebrate your strengths while encouraging continued growth, reflection, and professional integrity.
- Meet you where you are and walk with you to where you're going.
- Model lifelong learning. None of us has all the answers. I value humility, collaboration, and the willingness to keep learning.
My hope is that our mentorship equips you not only with clinical skill, but with the confidence, presence, and discernment to serve others with both competence and compassion.
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Research has proven yoga’s ability to fight stress and balance hormones that raise the blood pressure and heart rate. Learn tools and techniques to lower the risk of heart attack as well as rehabilitation for those who have undergone heart procedures. Learn protocols for different stages of heart disease .
Upon successful completion of this module students will be able to:
Understand:
· Common medical terminology
· And reference healthcare providers
· And ability in designing, implementing and evaluating group programs for preventing heart disease as well as rehab after surgery for all levels.
Explain:
· Benefits of yoga therapies for heart disease and working in vinyasa krama for rehabilitation.
Describe:
· Contraindications and language for meeting care-seekers where they are.
Define:
· Commonly used drugs and surgical procedures pertaining to heart disease.
Required reading: The Healing Path of Yoga by Nichala Joy Devi.
About Me
My path into yoga began while studying Health and Wellness, where I discovered that healing extends far beyond the absence of disease. Yoga became a framework for understanding the relationship between the body, nervous system, mind, and lived experience—and a lifelong foundation for how I approach health, leadership, and human development.
Today, I serve as a Certified Yoga Therapist (C-IAYT), Sattva Yoga Therapist, and Lead Faculty at PranaYoga Institute. With extensive experience in nonprofit management, I currently serve as the Chief Wellness Officer in a wellness organization dedicated to human development. My work integrates evidence-informed health sciences, yoga therapy, developmental science, and community wellness to create accessible, person-centered approaches to care across clinical, educational, nonprofit, and community settings.
I have experience supporting individuals across the lifespan with chronic and complex health conditions, including cardiovascular disease, neurological conditions, cancer, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), chronic pain, post-operative recovery, prenatal and postpartum care, trauma, anxiety, depression, addiction, grief, and life transitions. Across every setting, my focus remains the same: understanding the whole person, supporting nervous system regulation, and empowering individuals to actively participate in their healing actively.
Whether working with clients, mentoring clinicians, or leading community initiatives, I believe every person possesses an innate capacity for healing, adaptation, and growth. My role is not to fix people, but to create the conditions where resilience, self-awareness, meaningful change, and the light that already exists within can emerge.
What to Expect From Me as Your Mentor
My role is not to give you all the answers... it's to help you become the Yoga Therapist you are capable of becoming.
You can expect me to:
- Lead with curiosity and compassion. I'll aim to cultivate a safe environment where questions, reflection, and honest conversations are welcomed.
- Challenge your clinical reasoning. I'll ask thoughtful questions that strengthen your assessment, decision-making, and confidence.
- Integrate evidence with humanity. Together we'll bridge health science, yoga therapy, and lived experience to provide individualized, ethical care.
- Provide honest feedback and accountability. I'll celebrate your strengths while encouraging continued growth, reflection, and professional integrity.
- Meet you where you are and walk with you to where you're going.
- Model lifelong learning. None of us has all the answers. I value humility, collaboration, and the willingness to keep learning.
My hope is that our mentorship equips you not only with clinical skill, but with the confidence, presence, and discernment to serve others with both competence and compassion.