Michelle has been practicing yoga for thirteen years and initially used it’s benefits to relieve stress while working a high-stress career in Washington D.C. Diagnosed with cancer in 1999, Michelle embraced yoga further as a means to help heal her body and spirit while fighting illness. She credits her yoga practice as one of the main reasons for being cancer-free today. Through times of grief and emotional distress Michelle has found yoga to be her comforting inner-toolbox aiding her in increasing her awareness of her own body, mind and spirit as she moves through life.
Michelle has practiced and studied yoga in various parts of the world while traveling and living abroad including India, Japan, Thailand, and Canada. Trained in the Vinyasa and Iyengar styles of yoga with a strong foundation in the Atmananda Yoga Sequence, her approach to teaching yoga is welcoming of all levels with a strong intuition in wellness and balance for her clients.
Michelle received her yoga teacher training in New York City at Atmananda Yoga Studio under the instruction of Jhon Tamayo and Sabina Stahl. Also trained as a Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapist, Michelle is currently in her eight-month mentorship program working towards full certification to become a Yoga Therapist. At this time she is offering full Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy sessions to individuals. Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy is a client-focused therapy using supported yoga to help the client explore mental, psychological, and emotional blockages that prevent the client from living their full potential. For more information about Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy visit: www.pryt.com
Michelle's teaching style encourages her students to find their own path of self-awareness with yoga. She embraces all levels of students creating a non-competitive safe environment for individuals to explore their practice.
ON THE LIGHTER SIDE: Michelle loves knitting and all things made by hand. She appreciates local foods and the folks who grow them. She has an affinity towards cats, especially her feline Sweet Potato Pie. Always gravitating towards all foods ethnic this has fueled her desire for travel, especially in Asia. She adores pizza and believes the best pizza on earth is made in her own home oven by her husband, Chris. On occasion, she has been able to squeeze out a tune on the accordion and strum a diddy on the ukulele.
