My Wellness Journey

To me, wellness does not mean that our life is without struggle.  It means that we are equipped for the journey.  That when hunger strikes, we have a snack.  When the hill we have to climb is steep, we have good shoes on, a mantra to repeat, water to hydrate, and we know how to take breaks when we need them. That when the school day is exceptionally tough, we know what will refuel us, rather than further deplete our energy.  Wellness means making space for what is present, deeply knowing ourselves and what we need, and then feeling empowered to give those things to ourselves.  It’s about having tools to process the past, be fully present, and mindfully plan for the future.

Even as a young kid, I was drawn to journaling as a way to process big feelings and make sense of the world. Throughout my time growing up, I was active in different sports, tried yoga when it was offered in high school, was an avid reader, and loved being in nature. When challenges presented themselves though, I mostly just channeled that stress into attempts at perfectionism and was “fine”. 

In college, I fell in love with running.  The determination it required was a great source of stress relief.  I love that it reminds me how strong I am, how I am capable of setting new goals and meeting them, and that rest is also important.  My mind clears when I run, and I often am hit with inspiration - planning my best lessons or professional development while out on a run. Over the past decades, I’ve run dozens of half marathons or shorter races, and 2 full marathons, of which I am very proud.  They were SO hard! But life is hard sometimes, and the lessons learned on those endeavors revisit me in other aspects of life to remind me that, as Glennon Doyle says, “we can do hard things”. 

Yoga, at first, was a great way for me to balance out my running.  Stretching felt really nice and it also helped strengthen muscles I needed. When I moved to San Francisco though, I met yoga teachers that introduced the practice of yoga to me in a whole new way.  The physical practice was just one component.  Yoga was a whole way of being.  There was meditation.  Tools to support us in undoing thought patterns that keep us stuck. The movement practice itself is really a tool to help us in clearing the mind, through reflecting back to us our tendencies, and offering opportunities to learn how to show up in new ways.  I completed my 200 hour teaching training in 2017 and began teaching shortly after. I’m currently about a third of the way through my 300 hour teaching training and I continue to get to know myself in new and deeper ways through the practices of yoga, and I am able to show up more grounded, steady and present as a result.