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I am a yogini and a mother, and I'm the creator of altAred living.
I believe we can alter and altar our life: There is magic in the mundane... bliss in the banal. Life is ceremony. The day is your dharma. altAred Before all this though, I was totally frazzled, ungrounded, and desperate (DESPERATE) for change. I finally realized things wouldn't change until I did. In my practice of yoga and Ayurveda (yoga’s sister science) I realized it’s the little things we do all day, every day that add up to the biggest impact on our life- mind, body and spirit. Potent life transformations occur when the wisdom of Ayurveda is incorporated into daily rhythms. And ESPECIALLY when we begin to see everything through the lens of the sacred and ceremonial. The mundane can be magical, the banal can be blissful. I'm not “lucky” or “better” or “special”. Mental and physical well-being is possible for us, if we’re willing to show up and make the space for change and healing. And when we honor the day-to-day as well as spirit. When we alter, we altar. |
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First, a little background. Of the many adventures I’ve had in my life (from teaching English in South Korea, traveling through Peru and Spain, instructing ballroom dance, and serving as an AmeriCorps member) the biggest, by far, has been the journey into motherhood. Pregnancy was a blast for me and I loved the sense of community and support I felt in my prenatal yoga classes.
Some of you may or may not know about my own journey and transition into motherhood. I’ll briefly tell you in case you don’t know. It sucked. It was a daily battle of resentment, anxiety, arguments with my partner, hating that I couldn’t “do anything” as a stay-at-home mom, very little movement or exercise, feeling trapped by circumstance, sleep-deprived into insanity, exhausted, coffee-fueled, and I was in the middle of a big, massive identity crisis. I drank almost every night because I couldn’t handle my own day and felt overwhelmed as to what to do about my situation. I was so drained and so tired all the time. I didn’t even know where to start. Add to this the sobering realization that I did NOT want to be married and some very strange neurological issues where no specialist or CAT scan could find anything wrong or that it was the start of any disease... well, friends. I fell apart. It had been a couple of years of hell and I was DONE. From the outside everything looked fine, even beautiful and wonderful. But inside, I was beyond falling apart. Thankfully I had the inner wisdom to know that I would have to CHANGE things if I wanted to feel better. I also knew I had a mission to serve women. There was no way I could serve that mission as drained as I was. Enter the habits of Ayurveda, yoga’s sister science. It’s been a few years since I started the journey into living Ayurvedically and the difference in my quality of life is unfathomable. I even have friends that say “You really seem to have come into your OWN and into your own power.” Yes. I sleep deeply, I have more energy, I am so happy that I literally well up with tears at random moments during the day, my mindset is so positive, I’m not hard on myself, I have more connection to my own power and I can hear my intuition and FOLLOW my intuition. I know what I want. I don’t EVER feel guilty about “me time” because I know the value of it. I quit drinking and I drink coffee on occasion because I like it, not because I need caffeine to power me through the day. Even those strange neurological issues went away. My seasonal allergies are improving. My relationship with my daughter is a loving and patient one.... This bio is too short to describe all the small and big and subtle mental, physical and spiritual changes I’ve undergone. But I can tell you that inside and out, I’m truly joyful. I wish I’d known about these habits and this way of living much earlier in life, but it’s never too late. I now get to live for the next 50-60 years with these habits and also be that example for my daughter. I wasn’t raised with Ayurveda, but now my daughter can be. After having my complete crisis, I invested in an Ayurvedic training program with a group and was able to be surrounded by women who were struggling with different things in life and to also see how they were able to turn things around as well, slowly but surely. The power of being surrounded by these women was potent and transformative and I know I wouldn’t be as far along as I am now without being part of this group. |
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I spent a transformative month living at the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health getting my 200 hour yoga teacher certification. I received my 85 hour pre/postnatal certificate through the Bhakti Yoga Center in Portland, OR. I've trained more than 200 hours in Ayurveda and habit change with Cate Stillman, and completed the Ayurvedic Health Counselor program from the California College of Ayurveda with 600 hours of studies. I’ve learned a great deal, but still have so much more to learn through all the individuals I work with. Interested in learning more about me? Read my interview with Bonnie Weeks or follow me on Instagram to share in the adventures of altAred living: natural movement, yoga, Ayurveda, chakras, plant allies, and empowerment. Namaste! |
