Yoga is the practice of replacing old patterns
with new, more appropriate patterns.
- Sri T. Krishnamacharya
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Who Am I?I discovered Yoga right when I needed it. Just a few short years ago I had come to a place in my life where it was clear that I needed to re-assess how I was doing everything. In short, I was depressed and spent each day simply subsisting on the bare level of engagement.
I could sense that things were about to implode, so I staged a kind of intervention for myself, systematically re-examining many areas of my life. Part of 'the new Zander plan' was to finally get physically active again. Other than casual bike rides, my physical activity was essentially limited to carrying cases of beer back home. Over 10 years earlier while living in Vancouver, BC, I had a done a handful of Bikram Yoga classes, and I remembered a unique kind of clarity connected to those experiences. Somehow these classes left a strong enough impression that a decade later, I still felt like Yoga was something I should give an second chance. Perhaps it would help me find new ground, and undo some of the damage I'd done to my body over the years. But I also feared that Yoga would force me to face my insecurities, both physically and mentally. |
After just one vinyasa yoga class, I knew that I would begin a daily practice, and everything unfolded from there. Slowly and gently, Yoga gave me the space to reflect on how I was living my life and where things needed to change. It also surfaced and allowed me to heal and release all of the difficult emotions that I had collected through my life.
Today there isn't an aspect of my life that hasn't been touched and changed by the practice of Yoga. It informs everything from what I eat for breakfast to how I experience joy. It provided the tools to help me recover the incredibly vibrancy of the world. Ayurveda continues to broaden and deepen this new perspective, helping me to see that every aspect of our daily lives can be lived as a form of empowered ceremony.
Today there isn't an aspect of my life that hasn't been touched and changed by the practice of Yoga. It informs everything from what I eat for breakfast to how I experience joy. It provided the tools to help me recover the incredibly vibrancy of the world. Ayurveda continues to broaden and deepen this new perspective, helping me to see that every aspect of our daily lives can be lived as a form of empowered ceremony.
EDUCATION
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I am an E-RYT-500 Yoga Alliance registered Yoga Teacher, having taught over 4000 hours of classes and attended over 1000 hours of on-going training since completing my initial 200 HR teacher training. Some training highlights include:
My academic background also informs the approach I take in seeing Yoga as a healing and awakening practice. I have an MA in Philosophy (2010); my thesis concerned the correlation between interdependent concepts of selfhood, community integration and mental health. I continue to have an interest in the philosophy of psychiatry, philosophy of mind and philosophy of language. I'm currently completing a second MA in the Asian Studies Department at the University of British Columbia. |
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND |
I currently teach at Semperviva, Yyoga, Ashtanga Yoga Vancouver and One Yoga for the People. In the recent past I was the Manager for One Yoga for the People and prior to my return to Vancouver, I managed and taught at the Yoga Hive in Pittsburgh.
I have a background working for homeless service providers, and have been employed as a Case Manager for an emergency shelter in Pittsburgh as well as a youth shelter and supportive housing program for individuals struggling with homelessness and addiction in Seattle. I have also offered weekly meditation and mindfulness instruction for the HOPE program at the Pittsburgh County jail. |