I first discovered yoga over 20 years ago. It wasn’t a love-at-first sight story, but when I became pregnant with my first child in 2007, and found myself lacking the energy and stamina I was accustomed to, I turned to yoga in search of not only an opportunity to maintain strength and manage weight gain, but for that uplifting influx of energy I knew could result from a session on the mat.
The prenatal yoga class I tried at my local studio left me feeling like I was doing pregnancy all wrong, so I turned to practicing along with videos in my living room and there the love affair began.
I could practice yoga whenever I felt like it, and I soon learned that even if I wasn’t “at my best,” I would feel better after finishing than when I began.
During a time full of unknowns – not just because I was pregnant for the first time, but because my husband and I had moved halfway across the country to start a new life with no family nearby – my yoga practice became something that I alone controlled.
That word “alone” that for me was a positive thing, I ultimately learned was also the thing that left me out of some of the greatest gifts a yoga practice can offer, such as a like-minded community, the support and guidance of teachers, and the energy that fills a room when we practice together.
Energy, after all, was the very thing I had been originally seeking. After five years of practicing alone, I tried going to a yoga studio again – and realized what I’d been missing all that time.
A few years later, when both my kids were in elementary school, I made the time to take a 200-hour yoga teacher training, and a couple years after that, I met Jessica and discovered Ma Yoga. I found myself wishing I had known about MaYoga when I was pregnant, and discovered a drive to offer it to others!
I look forward to seeing you in class!
For more info about me, visit www.hkyogala.com.
Together we can discover what you need most right now and how your yoga practice can support those goals on and off the mat.
Heather’s Recommended Local Caregivers:
- Ruth Sie, LAc is an Acupuncturist and Classical Chinese Medicine practitioner in Culver City trained in sound therapy, tai chi, fertility awareness methods, and health coaching. Vibrant Acupuncture.
- Erica Reid is an Occupational Therapist with extensive training in manual therapy techniques that address the fascial and connective tissue system, which extend to every cell in the body. Head2Soul.
- Jess Koehler is a maternity and family photographer in Los Angeles who is passionate about supporting families, however they become: queer, solo, surrogate, adoption, divorced, nuclear, blended – all are welcome. jesskoehlerphoto.com.
- Molly Nourmand, LMFT s a psychotherapist, yogini, and mother. Her approach is grounded in Psychodynamic Theory, and informed by over a decade of teaching yoga and meditation, as well as an ongoing exploration of Somatic Experiencing. Our Life After Birth, support for new and expectant parents.
