Ever wonder if there is more to yoga than just the yoga postures? Join my guest Eric Shaw for a discussion around his new book called Sacred Thread: A Comprehensive Yoga Timeline: 2000 Events that Shaped Yoga History. Eric’s teachings and passions have been influenced significantly by his teachers, in particular Shandor Remete and Rod Stryker. You can visit Eric on his website at prasanayoga.com and you can purchase a copy of Eric’s new book on Amazon here.
We discuss topics like:
What is the pre-common era?
Yoga sutras and urbanization in India.
Buddha gives us a new philosophy of life.
The difference between consumer consumerism and environmentalism in India.
Mapping connections through language patterns.
Who were the key cultural movers of the Theosophical Society?
The History of the Hatha Yoga Project.
Historical perspective of Krishnamacharya’s story.
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Check out this discussion with Jeremy Strickland titled Jin Shin Jyutsu in Rishikesh. Jeremy practices and teaches Yin Yoga and Jin Shin Jyutsu bodywork in Rishikesh, India. Enjoy stories from the heartland of yoga as Jeremy speaks about the power and efficacy of Jin Shin Jyutsu therapy.
During this conversation Jeremy speaks about:
How he decided to live in Rishikesh?
Cranial sacral therapy and massage.
The convergence of traditional Chinese medicine and astrology.
Feeling the pulse of the heart.
Living in the yoga capital of the world.
The wildest thing he’s seen in India.
Jeremy’s bio: Jeremy Strickland is a yoga instructor with a 500 hr RYT certificate from World Peace Yoga School, Rishikesh, India. He brings a light-hearted approach to asana practice, lifting spirits and making the complicated simple. His background is over 20 years as a Certified Massage Therapist in the USA, with a focus on Craniosacral Therapy and the esoteric art of Jin Shin Jyutsu physio-philosophy.
Well, welcome to Native Yoga Toddcast. I’m so happy that you are here. Today I have the pleasure of introducing you to Jeremy Strickland. Jeremy is a Jin Shin Jyutsu practitioner, which is a form of manual therapy utilizing contact points or points of awareness of the pulse in the body. And he is also a yin yoga instructor. He resides in Rishikesh, India, originally from USA, he has a website, check them out at yinyoga1.com. And you can also find him on the IG the Instagram with the handle @yinyoga_jinshinjyutsu. And of course, those links are in the description. Wherever you’re listening, just give a little click and I’ll take you right over. So happy to have this chance to introduce you to people that are experts in the field of yoga, and bodywork from all over the world. Remember that if you would like to practice with us here at native yoga center, in the description and links below, there’s a link for you to join to try two weeks of unlimited live stream yoga with us for free, you can join us for the classes that we offer to the public on a daily basis. And also every Thursday on YouTube Live, I do a free webinar where you can ask questions and so I have a different topic each week. And you can join in and ask questions via the chat box. So there’s a link there as well. You can click on that, check it out. And remember to go look for Jeremy on his website. yinyoga1.com. I hope you enjoy this discussion. Enjoy some cool stories from the other side of the world. Alright, let’s begin. I’m super excited to have the chance to speak with Jeremy Strickland. He’s a Jin Shin Jyutsu practitioner, also a yin yoga instructor. And he’s joining me today from Rishikesh, India. Jeremy, how are you doing today?
Jeremy Strickland
I am fabulous. It’s really exciting to be here.
Todd Mclaughlin
Oh, thanks, man. I’m really excited to have a chance to talk with you. First of all, I’m really curious, how did you land in Rishikesh India and managed to not leave?
Jeremy Strickland
Well, all by happenstance, just before India, I was actually living in Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh City, and I had been there for eight months, I was my first time living outside of the US had had a big life change just before then. And was kind of not doing much of anything, just experiencing life in a new culture, studying language and what have you. And I thought I would get a yoga teacher certificate. I practiced vinyasa and bodywork for 20 years and I have dabbled in and out of yoga classes and had a pretty decent Ashtanga experience at one point. And as I was just out traveling, I thought I should get a yoga teacher certificate so I can see if I can make something happen, you know, and I was going out with a yoga instructor at the time in Vietnam. And she told me to go to Rishikesh. Yeah. And so I just did some research and it was cheaper to fly here and do a 500 hour program than it was to do anything in Vietnam or anything around there. So two weeks later, I’m in Rishikesh, first time in India. I had signed up to do a 500 hour program and ended up staying because I’m familiar with the meridian system that they’re using in yoga. And so the manager of the school that I was out when she found out that I knew the theory fairly well. She said you should stay and teach Meridian theory and the yoga teacher training which is very cool. And so I took off after my program for a couple of months and worked in Nepal and Thailand and traveled around a bit, and was about to start looking for something and she messaged me again. She was like, hey, what are you doing? She said, “You should come back here and do the 100 hour and yoga teacher training and start teaching meridian theory.” And I thought, it sounds like a good opportunity and came back and did exactly that at the beginning of 2019. I was teaching three, four or five classes a day couple of drop in classes, some Meridian theory in the 10 day teacher training program, up until COVID. And then when COVID happened, locked down was pretty intense here. But I didn’t want to go back to the US. And so I just ended up staying nice.
Todd Mclaughlin
How does it work in relation to your work visa? And then with COVID? I know a lot of folks that move to Indo and usually have to do a visa run after either a six month or one year period. Did that enable you to not have to do visa runs?
Jeremy Strickland
Yeah, well before I was just on one year tourist visas. And on the US you have to leave every six months. Yeah. And then we’re just do like a border run to Nepal. But when COVID happened, you they stopped making you leave the country and you did everything online for a while. Yeah. And then eventually, when they started kicking everything back in again. They gave everybody exit visa and told people to leave and so I left and got them. I was the first time and then I went back to the US for five months. That was the first time I’ve been back to the US and like four years.
Todd Mclaughlin
Are you around visiting family and came back like eight months ago? Are you originally a San Franciscan?
Jeremy Strickland
No. Well, originally I was born in Ohio, just for a couple of years. And then I was pretty much raised in small town in Texas. Henrietta, Texas.
Todd Mclaughlin
Yeah, very cool.
And you have a 20 year bodywork history?
Jeremy Strickland
Yeah, I stumbled into massage school when I was about 19 or 20 years old or something.
Todd Mclaughlin
That’s cool. And what is that story?
Jeremy Strickland
So I actually I had when I was a teenager, I was detailing automobiles. My dad was in the car business. My whole life was a child. And so I wound up at 19 years old, I was like detailing cars, grungy, dirty work, didn’t know what I was going to do with my life or anything. And my dad had started managing a bunch of PT schools at this time, and I came home one day and he had a female friend. And I was complaining about being dirty and sweaty and grungy and not liking my work. She said, almost verbatim. She said in six months from now, you could have a manicures license and be working in an air conditioned salon wearing nice clothes and holding hands with girls all day long. And sure enough, six months later, I’m in a salon polishing fingernails and giving manicures and pedicures. And at one point I see a reflexology chart by the pedicure stage. And that was the first time I’d ever seen that or that concept. Yeah. And so I thought, well, I should maybe learn how to do some reflexology, if I’m giving people foot massages for pedicures or whatever. So I called the local school and asked if there was a class. And I say, Well, we talked about it in our massage training program. But we don’t offer it as an individual class. And so soon thereafter, I’m signed up for the massage therapy program. And I went to that was in 1995.
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Special guest, Raji Thron, shares stories from his life lived in the pursuit of yoga. Raji is full of interesting tales of adventure from his birth in India that started him on the path of yoga.
During this conversation he speaks about:
Living in an India as a youth.
What was the state of yoga in Boulder in the 70”s and 80’s?
Making the decision to become a yogi.
How he met Richard Freeman?
Falling in love with ashtanga.
Guru Barometer and respect for elders.
Reframing the guru/ yogi dynamic.
The rise and fall of John Friend.
Raji is the co-owner of Yoga Synthesis studios and Program Director of YS Teacher Trainings, which since its inception in 1999 has had hundreds of graduates who have earned certifications. He is registered with Yoga Alliance as a E-RYT 500, lead trainer and continuing education provider and certified through International Association of Yoga Therapists (CIAYT) as a Yoga therapist.
Welcome to Native Yoga Toddcast. My name is Todd McLaughlin. I have the pleasure of bringing Raji Thron to the podcast today. And Raji is the founder and co director of Yoga Synthesis in Ramsey, New Jersey, which was founded in 1999. Please visit his website, yogasynthesis.com. And you can also check out his personal website Rajithron.com. And I had a really incredible discussion with Raji, I’m so excited for you to hear this. And he’s got a very rich and vast history of personal practice experience with yoga and the world of yoga. And I’ve heard amazing things about Raji years ago from a student that came and visited and I happened upon his website. And I thought, I wonder if this is the Raji that my friend Tim was talking about? And it is! All right. I’ll let him speak for himself here. Let’s get started.
I’m so excited to have Raji Thron here today with me. Raji, thank you so much for joining me. How are you doing today?
Just to get started here, you’re in New Jersey. Is that correct?
Raji Thron
Well, actually, yeah, we live just over the border in New York.
Todd Mclaughlin
Okay.
Raji Thron
Rockland County. So pretty much like Northern New Jersey, it feels the same.
Todd Mclaughlin
Yeah, I bet. I bet I hear you. And you have a yoga studio called Yoga Synthesis. Right?
Raji Thron
Yeah in Ramsey, New Jersey.
Todd Mclaughlin
Wonderful. I feel like somewhere along the way, someone has come in to our studio and told me about you before. And I feel like I’ve heard about you over the years. The way that I found your website actually was I had purchased that an anatomy coloring book by I believe…. a woman that may have practiced or taught for you at your studio.
Raji Thron
Yes, she was one of our main teachers for a while.
That’s right.
Todd Mclaughlin
And in the process of looking to see like, where she was, I found your website. When I saw your bio, and I was like, Wow, he looks really interesting. You have a really rich history of practice and teaching. So I’m excited to have this chance to ask you some questions about your yoga journey. On that note, can you give me a little bit of a historical perspective about how and when you started yoga practice?
Raji Thron
Well, I guess I should go back to I was born in India, in Chandigarh, and my father was a mathematics professor. He was teaching at the university in Punjab, which is in northern India. So we traveled there on a number of occasions. And the time I first learned yoga was when I turned 12. And we were living in San Diego at the time.
Todd Mclaughlin
Wow.
Raji Thron
And so then coming back to the United States, I kind of got into it and got really hooked. This is like mid 70s.
Todd Mclaughlin
Nice.
Raji Thron
That’s the short answer.
Todd Mclaughlin
That’s the short answer. That’s good. That paints a really cool picture. You learned yoga in India at the age of 12! What an incredible age to have such a eyes opening experience.
Raji Thron
Exactly.
Todd Mclaughlin
And then you find what type of yoga class or yoga teacher experience? What was that like?
Raji Thron
Well, in India, I studied with an old man. He was actually in his 80s. He was a friend or our family. And he, he passed away that year. And so it was what I would call a classical hatha yoga practice. And it was a very kind of intense time, as you might imagine, for me, coming from Boulder, Colorado, where we lived, where I grew up, when went back to there. That’s where my dad, you know, was teaching, was a professor. So basically, the teaching that I got from my teacher there was when I turned 12. By the way, his name was Yogendra Paul, which is kind of wild.
Yogendra Paul Yogananda. Paul. So he
was he was a yogi named Yoginder. Yeah. He was an older man, and he taught me just basic, hatha yoga. Let’s just say, that’s what I call a classical hatha yoga. Now, I know not everyone uses that terminology. I like to use that. Because, you know, when you have kind of the standard form that you might see in India, it’s not Ashtanga. It’s not Ashtanga vinyasa anyway. And it’s not Iyengar. And it’s just, you go to any town, any village, you’re gonna find yoga that has a certain in the way it’s kind of come to the modern world, modern yoga, modern India. It’s what I would call a classical hatha yoga.
Todd Mclaughlin
Can you paint a picture what a practice session with him would look like then? I’m guessing classical positions, such as like a triangle?
Raji Thron
Yeah. classical sense. Fluid is different from the Ashtanga sense. You’re probably familiar with that, like stepping back, going to cobra, upward dog. And then stepping into the lunge. You know that whole form? And then classical poses. Really actually, in the beginning, it was way less standing poses. And more just sitting, you know, doing forward bends, twists, and hip openers, some back bends, and inversions was covering a framework of these basic poses. But I mean, at the time, I was really young.
Todd Mclaughlin
So did he try to impart any information regarding theory or philosophy?
Raji Thron
Interestingly, after he passed, I was still living in India for a little while before we moved back to the United States. And so, I mean, he was less philosophically oriented. He was definitely oriented in a certain way, telling me about Mahatma Gandhi, and like Indian saints, and that sort of thing. Yeah. Then I met a younger man, whose name was Surindir who was a Sikh member in Punjab in India. Those are names of a lot of Sikhs. So, this guy was definitely a major influence on me philosophically. He was actually a cricket player at the university, you know, being in shape and he wasn’t doing so much yoga per se, but he did all kinds of exercise and we’d sit and he would talk to me about basically the reality of existence. And you know, how and you know, being 12 years old, is definitely it was a shaking up, transformational time for me, because there I was having come from, you know, being in this very, kind of like, what would you call it upper middle class kind of situation and maybe middle class, whatever you call it, professorial? Yes, University, you know, yeah. And going living in India, and the first time I ever really saw poverty, and, you know, living at a standard of living that was much lower than I was used to. Sleeping on cots with, with a concrete floor. Yeah. And just the whole, the whole thing of seeing India. I could look over the wall from where we lived. And, you know, there were shards of glass on the top of the wall, right. And on the other side was a slum. I could see it from our balcony, and I’d see these people like, basically living right there. So for me, there was this whole interesting Awakening on so many different levels, you know, to really the blessings of life. Knowing that life can be hard. Yeah. You know, and it’s like, how do we learn to relate, personally and collectively, to this, this existence, this human existence? So there’s a lot of conversation I was having with Surindir. Questions like why is this happening? Why are people living like this? You know, yeah.
Todd Mclaughlin
So did he have an answer for you? Did he offer you any more insight?
Raji Thron
Yeah.
It was really into how he personally had gone off to travel around India. And he was like, he was in his 20s. And he said, he left home, he traveled around India. And that’s why he was so kind of philosophically inclined. Yeah. And he is like, yeah, you know, you get out there and you see what’s going on. And it makes you realize certain things like being a wandering Sadhu, you know, yes, you go. I think this is, this is part of what yoga, you know, in a way, the essence pointing to the essence of it is to let go of all these outer trappings. Yeah, this holding on to sit really almost anything at a certain point, you know, yeah. But, I mean, we do love our creature comforts. Yeah, it’s still, it’s definitely you know, there’s a certain pointing towards, you know, austerity are asceticism. And, for me at the time, I was questions like, What are you? So then, you know, actually, as I got further along, I realized, you know, what, what the implication was, and even now, I’m still still trying to, you know, integrate. I don’t know, I’m not sure if I’m giving you the nutshell of it very clearly. But it’s, it’s, it’s really a lot of different aspects.
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I am so delighted to bring Robin Martin on the podcast. During this conversation we discuss topics like:
How she got into yoga.
The decision to become a yoga teacher.
Balancing social media pressure and social media stardom.
Passive flexibility vs active mobility.
Advice for budding yoga teachers.
About Robin I’m Robin Martin, a certified yoga teacher based in Seattle, WA, USA. My practice and my teaching are ever evolving. While vinyasa yoga is my favorite style of yoga to both practice and teach, I have studied many different methods of yoga with numerous master teachers and appreciate the beauty in all styles. I earned my 200 Yoga Alliance certification through Tiffany Cruikshank of Yoga Medicine. Additionally, I have 4 advanced training certifications in shoulder, hip, spine and myofascial release through Yoga Medicine. I am also certified to teach paddleboard yoga.
Welcome to Native Yoga Toddcast. I’m so excited to have the opportunity to interview Robin Martin. Robin Martin is a yoga teacher that lives in Seattle, Washington. She teaches locally in studios around where she lives. She teaches on Zoom and she also leads international retreats where you can join her. One of them’s coming up in Greece actually. Check her out on her website, RobinMartinyoga.com. And also follow her on Instagram at @RobinMartinyoga. All right, let’s begin. I’m so excited to have this opportunity to speak with Robin Martin and Robin, how are you? How are you doing today?
Robin Martin
I’m doing well. Thanks so much for having me on your pod…..on your Toddcast, if you will.
Todd Mclaughlin
Thank you so much. My wife, when I said I was gonna do a podcast, said you have to do a Toddcast. I couldn’t argue with her. So thank you.
Robin Martin
It’s very cute.
Todd Mclaughlin
Thank you. I appreciate that. And where are you joining us from Robin?
Robin Martin
Seattle, Washington. Northwest Coast USA.
Todd Mclaughlin
Are you born and raised there?
Robin Martin
I actually am. I’m one of the few natives I think of the area. I was born in Seattle. I grew up in Olympia, which is the state capitol. It’s about 90 minutes south of the city. Both of my parents grew up in the city. But my dad got a job for the State Department of Fisheries. And that was located in the Capitol area. So that’s where I grew up. And then I headed right back to Seattle. I went to University of Washington, and I’ve stayed in the area ever since. I travel a lot. I travel all over the world. But Seattle is home.
Todd Mclaughlin
Wonderful. Are you in downtown Seattle?
Robin Martin
Actually, no, I’m on the east side. I did live in the city. For a while after college, I lived on an area called Queen Anne, which is right in the city. And that’s actually where my mom grew up. And then I moved to the east side, which is for those who know the area Bellevue, Washington. It’s on the east side of Lake Washington.
Todd Mclaughlin
Nice.
Robin Martin
I am about 30 minutes outside of the city.
Todd Mclaughlin
Awesome. I’ve never been but my sister used to live there. And she loved it and just always raved about it. I wish I had gone and visited her while she was there.
Robin Martin
Where was she living when she was there?
Todd Mclaughlin
Oh, that’s a great question. You stumped me. I don’t remember the suburb they were in to be honest.
Robin Martin
Yeah. I am always curious.
Todd Mclaughlin
That’s cool. Do you teach yoga in a studio? Or are you teaching more on a retreat basis?
Robin Martin
Oh, I teach all of it. And everywhere. I teach retreats, I teach in several studios in the city, and I teach at home. I have regular zoom classes leftover from the COVID era when they all kind of started but I have a relationship with iHeartMedia. So I teach for those guys a couple days a week and then I have privates that actually come to my home. So yeah, it’s a pretty full and and interesting schedule. And I really like it because it’s such a variety of places, temperatures, vibes, you know, all of that. And traveling, I have taught at lots of festivals and workshops around. I taught in Saudi Arabia in October of this past year. It was a wonderful opportunity to teach at an event that they were hosting there. The Crown Prince was hosting. So yeah, I have a very colorful teaching history and hopefully going forward, it will continue.
Todd Mclaughlin
Yes, that’s amazing how many years have you been teaching?
Robin Martin
I’ve been teaching for about 12 years I think.
Todd Mclaughlin
Cool. Yeah. And how about practicing? When did you start practicing?
Robin Martin
May of the year 2000? So it’ll be it’ll be 23 years in May. Yeah. Hard to believe considering I’m only 24 years old. (laughter)
Todd Mclaughlin
Yes. A miracle. That is incredible, right?
Robin Martin
My mother practiced yoga when she was pregnant with me in utero.
Todd Mclaughlin
Yes.
Robin Martin
Don’t you love that one? That’s like the best yoga answer.
Todd Mclaughlin
Right. I’ve been practicing since in utero. Have you heard the theory that while in utero, we practice every yoga pose that’s ever been created?
Robin Martin
I’ve never heard that. No,
Todd Mclaughlin
I’ve heard someone say that. This idea that 84 number and that there’s 84,000 different yoga poses or Shiva practiced something within the realm of 84 million yoga poses. And that in utero, we actually go through all of those positions before we actually come out. I don’t know how true that could be?
Robin Martin
And, you know, I mean, then as the baby is forming in the uterus, it is changing and moving around and right. Who knows? I don’t know.
Todd Mclaughlin
That’s a good point. I know. It’s kind of fun to think about.
Robin Martin
However, I do have to question that one. Because, like Padmasana for example, Lotus Pose would require a lot of maneuvering to get into. It’s the one where your heels are tucked up by the creases of your hips. So I don’t know. I can’t really imagine that.
Todd Mclaughlin
Yeah, yeah, I think it’s a myth. It’s a fun myth.
Robin Martin
Yeah, it’s interesting. I mean. They’re not gonna be grabbing their foot doing a Dancer Pose.
Todd Mclaughlin
Are you a mom?
Robin Martin
I am.
Todd Mclaughlin
How many children do you have?
Robin Martin
I have two.
Todd Mclaughlin
Nice, awesome. Do you mind me asking how old they are?
Robin Martin
No, I don’t. They’re 16 and 18.
Todd Mclaughlin
Oh, cool. I have a 16 year old and a nine year old.
Robin Martin
Okay.
Todd Mclaughlin
Yeah, is your 16 year old driving?
Robin Martin
Well, I have two daughters. And, and it’s funny, they just didn’t seem to be in any rush to get their driver’s licenses. My 18 year old finally got hers at some point. But she also had the whole issue where she did her driving school during COVID. And so she had to wait till the drivers were available to do her drives. And they were very backlogged. And my younger one is kind of in the same situation, though, she was done with her whole driving school while still 15 And she’s just anxiously waiting to do her drives and she wants to get a driver’s license. My older one just didn’t seem to be in any hurry. And same with my nephew. I was just reading an article just today, oddly about how how kids today don’t have this sense of urgency or drive. I mean, I couldn’t get mine fast enough. I mean, it was like, the day I turned 16 I think was at the DMV getting my driver’s license.
Todd Mclaughlin
100% What would you, if you had to take a stab in the dark, the reason is that kids at age 16 aren’t chomping at the bit the way we were?
Robin Martin
You know, well, I don’t know. I mean, it doesn’t make any sense to me. I know that I lived a bit out in the sticks. And for me, it was freedom to be able to drive. When my daughter and her closest friend drives drives her around so maybe that’s the reason why she’s not in such a hurry. It’s easier to get around now. They can Uber. They’re just closer to everything than I was to anything where I grew up. I can’t really explain it because I think it’s crazy.
Todd Mclaughlin
I hear you. I kind of pushed my son. I was like, when you are 15 you are getting your learner’s on the day. Because you’re gonna want your license when you’re 16. Let’s go.
Robin Martin
Does he have his license?
Todd Mclaughlin
He does. Yeah, he’s cruising. So far. So good. Knock on wood.
Robin Martin
When did he turn 16?
Todd Mclaughlin
July 11. So he’s been going now like eight months already. Yeah.
Robin Martin
Yeah, mine just turned 16 last month, but she’s just waiting to do the drives with the driving school. When when I was 16 we had driver’s ed in high school. I think I had to pay extra for it. But it was like it was something you could do. Right, and like teachers volunteered to do the drives with the students. It’s different.
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New Student FREE 30 Minute Yoga Meet & Greet ~ Are you new to Native Yoga Center and have questions that you would like us to address? Whether you are coming to In Studio, Livestream or Online Recorded Classes we offer a one time complimentary 30 minute zoom meeting to answer any questions you may have. Schedule a time that is convenient for you. Click Here
Check out the new podcast with Caitlyn Burkhardt titled Transformational Breathwork. During this podcast we discuss topics like:
How she became inspired to practice transformational breathwork?
The pros and cons of Ayahuasca and breathwork.
What is transformational breathing and how does it work?
How breathwork helps with depression and anxiety.
The four pillars of trauma release.
Nutrition training and training.
Caitlyn has worked in the wellness industry for over 15 years and embodies whole health by nourishing her mind, body, and spirit using all of the same tools that she offers her clients. She is a Transformational Breathwork Facilitator, Polarity Therapist/energy medicine provider, massage therapist, and functional mobility coach. By offering these well rounded services, she seeks to empower people through knowledge, self discovery, and movement so that they may better care for their bodies and love themselves just as they are.
Welcome to Native Yoga Toddcast. My name is Todd McLaughlin. And I have the pleasure of bringing Caitlyn Burkhardt on to the channel today. And so check Caitlyn out at her website, bodacitysportandsoul.com. And also her instagram name is at @bodacity_ sportandsoul. She’s going to be teaching a Transformational Breathwork workshop here on Sunday, March 5, just two days from now. If you’re listening to this after March 5th, don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll be having her back. You can join in via zoom no matter where you are. It’s gonna be 1:30pm Eastern. We cover all this to throughout the conversation. So on that note, I’m so excited to have you here. Caitlyn, how are you doing?
Caitlyn Burkhardt
I’m so excited to be here. Thank you for having me.
Todd McLaughlin
You’re welcome. You know, today is this podcast release and in just two days on Sunday, March 5 at 1:30pm Eastern, you’re going to be offering a Transformational Breathwork workshop here at our yoga studio. But it’s also going to be live streamed so that some anyone can join anywhere in the world. So I’m excited to have you on the podcast today just to introduce our listeners to you and to you our listeners and learn more about what you’re interested in. So I’m curious, can you first of all, tell me how you got inspired to practice transformational breathwork and or study transformational breathwork?
Caitlyn Burkhardt
Sure. In a nutshell, I basically was suffering from really chronic suicidal depression and nothing worked. I had been in therapy for like 25 plus years, I’ve been on and off medication. And I had always taken really good care of myself like physically. And so when I started to feel suicidal and sad again last year, I was like, “This just doesn’t make any sense.” Like I shouldn’t be feeling indifferent about living. And so I tried, I decided to do something different. And I booked a retreat down in Costa Rica, where I did ayahuasca, but they also offered us two breathwork journeys on the first day and the last day. And so that was my first experience with Breathwork. And the second like that, after that first class, I was so blown away with the results of it. I was like, I have to learn how to do this to give this to my clients.
Todd McLaughlin
Nice. Amazing. Can you explain? There’s a lot there.
Let me let me first dig back a little bit on into at what point in your life was depression something that was apparent that you had? Like, are we going back to high school days? Are we going back to like, eight years old? When do you remember having that recognition that I have something that I’m trying to deal with here? That’s serious?
Caitlyn Burkhardt
Yeah. Yeah. It started well, it started with eating disorders when I was like around 11. And then my behavior started to also spiral. But the depression probably reached its peak in high school, and I was hospitalized for that and my eating disorders three times. During high school. I was put into foster care because my behavior was so uncontrollable that my parents were like, we can’t keep her home. I was engaging in very risky behaviors. I never did drugs, that wasn’t my thing. But I was like hitchhiking and hanging out with pretty bad people. And just putting myself in harm’s way, like pretty regularly. And so, um, depression and anxiety just became like, a part of my life forever. After that, I maintained therapy with two therapists. And it would kind of come and go, like, I would manage it and be like, Okay, I need to make an appointment with my therapist, and then it would just, but it was never like gone, it was always there. And as an adult, I have suffered from Adrenal Fatigue, which is basically when like, you have a nervous breakdown and your whole your nervous system gets so over fried and overworked that your body kind of starts to shut down. Yeah. And I just decided back in 2020, to like, the everything I’ve tried so far, isn’t working, like why don’t I feel better yet. So going to that retreat in Costa Rica is a place called Arrhythmia. It’s a medically licensed retreat, and they actually code a lot of data on everybody that goes there. And one of the most interesting facts they told us is that they turn away 22 people a day from doing Ayahuasca journeys, which is a pretty hardcore psychedelic plant medicine. Yeah. So they have to turn away people daily from there, for whatever reason, medical or whatever. And those people, they gave them five nights of Breathwork instead, and all of them have the same exact outcomes and comparable experience that we all had taking the Ayahuasca. Yeah, it’s powerful. And I can attest to that. Yeah.
Todd McLaughlin
So you had the opportunity to participate in an Ayahuasca ceremony as well? When you were not under the influence of the Ayahuasca you also underwent these breathwork sessions? And then if you were to make a comparison of the experiences from each, what were the pros and cons?
Caitlyn Burkhardt
So the way that plant medicine and breath work, the way that they work on your brain is actually very similar. Because there’s basically you have your amygdala, which is like your fear center of your brain that holds a lot of your emotions. And then you have your logical center or prefrontal cortex. And normally, they’re not talking to each other. They’re just like this one, the fear, one is getting information first. And then this one, the logical one gets information second. And when you’re doing ayahuasca, or plant medicine, or breathwork, what happens is those two parts finally converge. And so you’re kind of able to have a conversation with parts of yourself, like as a third party, so you can go back into a moment in your childhood and go, Oh, I didn’t have the capacity to handle this as a child because I wasn’t in control. But now I’m an adult, and I can see how this story no longer serves me. I’m gonna let that go right now. Yeah. And the other thing about plant medicine and breathwork, the way that they’re similar is they’re deeply somatic. So it’s a very visceral experience with both of them. However, with Ayahuasca, you’d purge a lot differently, like there’s vomiting, there’s, there’s pooping, and you’re stuck. So when things start to get too heavy, you’re stuck on that trip for like, who knows on 6,10, or 12 hours sometimes. And with breathwork, you are much more in the driver’s seat, because you can just switch up your breathing. And you can take a break if you need to, and then go back into it when you’re ready.
Todd McLaughlin
Are you open to speak about what your Ayahuasca experience was like?
Caitlyn Burkhardt
Sure. I did four of them. While we started with breathwork on the first night, and I didn’t know it at the time, but I had three rheumatoid arthritis flare ups in my wrist, hip and shoulder. It was to the point where I was limping. I couldn’t lift my arm up and I was kind of concerned. I’m like, how am I going to be able to do anything this week? How will I do yoga? And after that first breathwork class, all three of my flares were pretty much gone. And I was able then they were gone completely the next morning. So the next morning I was fully functional able to do yoga. It was like they never happened.
Todd McLaughlin
Amazing. That’s cool.
Caitlyn Burkhardt
Yeah, yeah. Because what breathwork does is it makes you so alkaline, temporarily that all of your cells become extra oxygenated. And disease really can’t live in an alkaline environment. Yeah. So it’s like an incredible anti inflammatory. Nice. And then on my Ayahuasca journeys, what I discovered was, I mean, I just covered a lot of stuff, but like the first place we went to was back into the womb. And I learned that a lot of my depression wasn’t in fact, mine. It had been passed down to me, generationally through the womb. Yes. And so I was able to purge that and get that out. But the thing that a lot of people often mistake with things like Ayahuasca is that it’s gonna make all of your problems go away. And it doesn’t do that, because my life, in fact, completely fell apart in the next three months after returning home from that retreat.
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Meet Nat Flood of Shamana Circle Studio in Bermuda. Nat is the founder and director of Shamana and she weaves her history of dance, yoga, pilates and birth doula into her teaching. During this podcast hear Nat speak about:
Dealing with postpartum trauma.
What does a tongue tie mean?
The Bermuda Triangle and it’s history.
The story behind the Shamana Circle studio space.
How she pivoted her business during the pandemic.
Pilates practice before and after birth.
How she turned her understanding of physical rehab work into yoga.
How she structures her yoga certification program.
Welcome to Native Yoga Toddcast. I’m so excited to have you here and also to introduce you to Nat Flood. Nat is a yoga and pilates and much more than just that teacher that owns a studio in Bermuda on the island of Bermuda out in the Atlantic. She has a studio called Shamana Circle studio, and you can find her on her website, shamanacirclestudio.com, also on Instagram at @shamanacircle, and also on her personal page on Instagram at @natofshamana. Also, I do a free live webinar on YouTube every Thursday at 12pm Eastern. If you join in live, you can ask questions of which case I’m happy to answer during, and it’s recorded. So you can always check it out afterwards as well. Check in the links below for all those details. Again, remember to look for Nat at Shamanacirclestudio.com. All right, let’s get started. I’m delighted to have the opportunity to converse with Nat Flood. Nat, How are you doing today?
Nat Flood
I’m great. I’m so happy to be here and chat to you.
Thank you.
Todd McLaughlin
This has been several months in the making because you are a new mom, or a recently, again new mom. And I know that when I reached out to you and said you can do this, but you just need a little bit of time. And so thank you so much for carving out time. I do know how busy you are and as a parent how hard it is to carve a little bit of time for ourselves. Can you tell me a little bit what it’s like being a new mom again?
Nat Flood
Yeah, my pleasure. I’m so happy to chat. Yeah, it’s amazing over and over and over again. I feel like we learned so much about ourselves over again. You know, we have maybe as a second time mom, for me, like an expectation of how things are gonna go. And of course, none of it went the way that I expected. So it’s just nice to be put in that position with new variables. I love having stuff just thrown at me and dealing with new things. So it’s been great.
Todd McLaughlin
What is an example of something that you tried to premeditate that did not go according to your plan?
Nat Flood
Yeah. So I mean, luckily for me, the second birth was so much more fluid and on the level that I wanted. I was successful, this time in my home water birth, which I’m just so grateful for, took a lot of preparation. It’s just not a done thing here in Bermuda. Not not to say that you can’t do it, but it’s not regulated, and it’s not legislated. So it’s a personal risk that we take on to do it here rather than birthing at the hospital, which is like the major option. But I did long extended breastfeeding with my first son. So we made it to about 15-16 months breastfeeding. And so I was really looking forward to the breastfeeding journey with my second and it was discovered, I kind of knew that there was a problem. He was kind of having a hard time latching on. I knew that it wasn’t right. And then we discovered a massive tongue tie issue for him decided to go ahead with revision and even with revision, he was so guarded and he would not let the dentist in there to do it. So it wasn’t successful. And I ended up pumping exclusively and bottle feeding him. And I mean he’s only nine months so luckily I have a great supply so I was able to pump in store for six months, and he’s still living off my supply. So hopefully I’ll get into a year with my with my breast milk supply. So for me that was just such a new way of thinking or like seeing motherhood you know, you especially as a business owner, it’s it was so time consuming, so body consuming.
Todd McLaughlin
Oh my gosh, I can’t even imagine. I mean, obviously, I can’t imagine being a male, but at the same time being a dad and what all goes into it.
Nat Flood
Yeah. Oh my gosh, right. Like I remember just even if we were attempting to get a night off in the process of needing to try to have enough supplies ready to go was was a lot of a lot of extra work. A lot of extra work! Just doing the bottle sterilizing process, oh my goodness, I never did that with my first.
Todd McLaughlin
Can you explain to me what tongue tied is? I can guess what that means. But can you further clarify?
Nat Flood
Yeah, so he has it’s called a sub lingual, sub lingual mucosal tongue tie. I’m probably butchering that, for anyone knows a lot about tongue ties. So it’s quite deep in the back and hard to see. And so what it means is that they can’t get their tongue up to the roof of their mouth to perform that perfect latch. So anytime he would latch on to my breast, it was a couple of sucks and a release and a release, and he could not get a good flow going. So when you have your let down, you know, he had basically trained my body to be two to three ounces of a letdown. And then he would just stop feeding. And he was actually doing something similarly to a bottle. But obviously, with a bottle, it’s a whole lot easier to get the suction, the latch going. So luckily, the tongue tie reversal, what she could do, what the dentist could do, made it a lot easier with a lot less clicking on the bottle. But he was still never able to like develop that positive relationship with breastfeeding. He was very, it was it was traumatizing for him to breastfeed. Yeah. So for us, it was like, You know what? Yes, we could have potentially gone off Island and found another dentist that would have done another revision, but like, you know what? We just whatever’s best for him. And right now, this seems to be his happy place, feeding from a bottle.
Todd McLaughlin
So yeah, so I hear you and you just use the word off island. So on that note, I want to mention that the reason that I was able to find you is I have someone who comes to our studio that she travels to Bermuda. And she just every time she comes back, she’s just raves about how beautiful Bermuda is? That the energy there is just so incredible. And she’s piqued my interest. So in the process of finding you and a yoga studio in Bermuda, I guess I’m just really excited to actually talk to someone who lives in Bermuda. Yeah, can you tell me what Bermuda is like?
Nat Flood
For me? It’s awesome. So we’re a subtropical island that’s about 700 miles off the coast of North Carolina. So we’re like right in line with North Carolina. We are kind of the halfway in between the US and, and really like the continent of Africa, like it’s on the other side, obviously. And then we have Britain above us. So we are at an overseas territory of the United Kingdom. So kind of like how Jamaica was before they went independent, essentially. And it’s beautiful. It’s a 21 square mile island. It’s a mile wide. at its widest point. If you look at a map of Bermuda, it looks like kind of, I’ve heard it described as like a hook. Or like someone said to me recently, I had a teacher, one of my best friends came and taught here for me, back in October, she’s like, it looks to me like a witch’s finger, that’s like curling in telling you to come here, like come here, that sort of thing. So it’s a really cool shape. It’s actually a volcano, we’re living on top of an inactive volcano. And so there is like, you know, it’s just kind of the island and then everything below it is inactive volcano. So we have incredible reef surf. And then we have this insane drop off point. So all of the fishermen here, they go out to the drop off, and that’s where they do their fishing. But when they go out that far, you can’t even see the island anymore. That’s how far out it is.
Todd McLaughlin
Wow. So it’s cool. It sounds amazing. I know everything I’ve heard about it. And the pics I’ve seen have from the surf culture as well just looks like this really incredible.
Nat Flood
It is like super hush hush to a lot of people that move here and don’t know that you can surf here. And there’s like the small contingency of surfer dudes and super surfer girls that go out and they, you know, they’re watching the weather radar, like crazy to make sure that the conditions are right and they go out and they paddle and they go for it. So it’s cool. It’s like it’s starting to become a real thing. Like people are coming here to surf.
Todd McLaughlin
Nice. So yeah, so um another reason to go I’m What drew you or When did you move to Bermuda? Are you born and raised there?
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I am so excited to share this podcast with you. ⭐️ Meet the amazing TARA STILES!⭐️
Tara Stiles is the co-founder of Strala Yoga, best-selling author, and well-being expert. Tara revolutionized yoga for millions, transforming a practice so often seen as dogmatic, and guru-based, into an everyday movement that supports ease and well-being.
Strala Yoga is practiced in more than 100 countries, thousands of Guides lead Strala classes around the globe, and Tara shares yoga with thousands of people on the Strala Yoga app. She has been profiled by The New York Times, Times of India, The Times (UK), and featured in most major national and international magazines.
Welcome to Native Yoga Toddcast. So happy you are here. My goal with this channel is to bring inspirational speakers to the mic in the field of yoga, massage bodywork and beyond. Follow us @nativeyoga, and check us out at nativeyogacenter.com. All right, let’s begin.
Well, yeah, I’m so excited to have Tara Stiles joining me today on the podcast. Tara, thank you so much. How are you?
Tara Stiles
I’m doing good. Thanks so much for having me. I’m excited to chat with you too. Thank you.
Todd McLaughlin
So for those of you that listened to the podcast with Yulady Saluti, she spoke so highly of Tara, that it got me excited to reach out to you Tara and get a chance to speak with you. So thank you for being so gracious in accepting my invitation. I know you have a busy schedule. Are you in New York City currently?
Tara Stiles
Oh, I’m not actually I just got back from Singapore yesterday. But we’re in Illinois. We got this place in Illinois a couple of years ago to be close to family and kind of support everyone here. So we’ll be going to New York in the fall for Daisy’s school. But we’ve been here for a couple of years, kind of based out of hometown America. So that’s been really pretty sweet. Actually.
Todd McLaughlin
Wonderful. Not in Chicago? It sounds more like in a rural setting.
Tara Stiles
Yeah, you got it because you know America. A lot of friends in Europe are like, Oh, Illinois, Chicago. But yeah, we’re pretty far south. So the weather is actually a little bit warmer here than in Chicago. But yeah, all my family’s here. They’re farmers and hanging around the place. So it’s been nice to catch up with everybody and just be together.
Todd McLaughlin
That’s so cool. Is that the town that you grew up in?
Tara Stiles
I didn’t. I grew up a little bit closer to Chicago, but everybody is from here. So my parents got a place down here a few years ago. So everybody’s kind of in the same location. So it’s nice to just be around for sure.
Todd McLaughlin
I hear you, that’s cool. And especially having farm life is pretty amazing. Do they have like a big farm? Are they more like cottage farmers? Do they have chickens and veggies? Are they more of like big time farmers?
Tara Stiles
I mean, I don’t know how big time but kind of all of it. My aunts and all my relatives have gardens and things like that. So come summertime and late fall, you’ve got everything and they can at all for the winter.
Todd McLaughlin
That’s awesome!
Tara Stiles
Yeah, they do the veggies for the personal consuming. And then they do corn and wheat and things like that. I remember a few years ago asking my cousin who’s a few years older than me, she does a lot of the big kind of combining and stuff, and we get to ride along. But I asked her where the corn goes, you know, after reading Michael Pollan’s book and all of these kinds of things. I know there’s a lot of the problems with America, but they found a way to sell their corn for hard plastics and windshields. So I thought that was kind of cool. Just everybody’s trying to do better.
Todd McLaughlin
Yeah, I hear you, that’s amazing. Are you an organic gardener? Or a do you have time for a garden? Or do you just get to benefit from your family’s efforts?
Tara Stiles
To be honest, I would love to. But you know, we’re not here in the summers all the time. I’d love to actually do a greenhouse. I’ve seen that you can kind of buy these pop up greenhouses. They’re becoming more easy and economical and fun. You kind of pop that up in your yard now and just buy these things for a few 100 bucks. And maybe I’ll pop one of those up at some point. You know, see if I can get that going.
Todd McLaughlin
Very cool. What was it like over, you said, Singapore?
Tara Stiles
Yeah, Singapore.
Todd McLaughlin
How was Singapore?
Tara Stiles
Yeah, it was great. This festival called Glow Festival brought me out for about a week and I got to lead classes there, which was really fun. And I’ve been to Singapore a few times. So first of all, it was really fun just to catch up with old friends and new friends and just be back in person with people you know, I’m just one of the millions that are so grateful to just be together with people and and do yoga and they have a great festival and I got to kind of feel like that studio affect again. It was a couple of classes a day and there was other teachers
and other experiences and lots of people. So it was just really nice to hang around and practice and just talk with people and hug people and things like that.
Todd McLaughlin
That sounds really cool. Was it structured sort of like a Yoga Journal type conference where you have a couple of teachers were teaching in different rooms at the same time, or was it one room and then you would take turns teaching with the other teachers?
Tara Stiles
Yeah, it was just one big room and they did this cool thing. It was inside. And they had these large kind of interactive screens that were like almost like a jungle. So they did this really neat tech thing. And at first, I thought everybody would be overwhelmed seeing these screens, but the room was really humongous. So kind of in the distance, you’d see an elephant kind of walking by and things like that. So it was pretty unique and, and fun to just hang around and be together with people for sure.
Todd McLaughlin
Cool. When you had a chance to teach, what type of class did you teach? Did you do like a Vinyasa flow, or what is on the forefront of your specialty these days?
Tara Stiles
Sure, I guess that I’ve always loved to lead. It was a really cool opportunity to have so many different time different time slots, you know, it’s kind of like a regular studio. And they wanted a variety of classes. So some a bit more energetic, some more gentle, some kind of in between. And everything that I love to lead is based in easygoing movement, breath, body connection, this kind of
almost East Asian influence in the yoga, but it doesn’t need to come across that way so much. But really, the idea of moving well comes from Tai Chi and shiatsu and things like that. But everybody usually says, Oh, that yoga class felt really nice. Or I didn’t know I could do something so challenging without forcing myself or It felt nice to move from my center and harmony. So I usually don’t, especially in just an open class, say, okay, now we’re going to be doing tai chi and shiatsu and learning all of these things. I just think that’s, you know, kind of too much located in the mind. So we just move and breathe and, and feel good. In that way.
Todd McLaughlin
That’s really cool. What is your timeline in terms of how long have you been practicing? And how long have you been teaching?
Tara Stiles
Oh, gosh, well, I think like a lot of people’s yoga story, I got really lucky, finding yoga was in my ballet program growing up. So I was thinking I was going to be a contemporary dancer. That was my whole life’s dream. And my ballet teacher brought yoga into our program, I guess I was 17 or 18. And instantly, just like everybody else, felt like this is amazing. And, and then my second thought was, why don’t all my friends do this? Why, you know, I felt like my family, had these values had these philosophical ideas about life. But we weren’t doing this physical practice that I felt could just kind of crack everything open and really guide life. So I just wanted to learn more and share this kind of movement all at the same time. So that kind of just kicked me off and learning more about it. And then at first kind of casually sharing what I was learning with people. And then more and more things led me to doing that with more of my time. So yeah, it’s the beginning of my life, my teenage life
years ago.
Todd McLaughlin
That’s amazing. Can you give me a timeline view of an order of different modalities that you then started to pursue and study?
Tara Stiles
Sure, yeah. Yoga was the first big practice for sure. And then I got to New York pretty shortly after to dance and do other things. But I was always kind of asking people, Hey, do you do yoga? Where do you do yoga, if you don’t do yoga, let’s do a little bit together….. this kind of a thing. And I think because New York has everything I was starting to find shiatsu places, and some ayurvedic practitioners, and all of these kind of, you know, modalities one by one. And I think like a lot of people who have started to learn one and then learn the others, you wonder, okay, are these connected? How are they connected? They don’t appear to be in isolation from each other. How can we, or how can I live in more harmony with myself and not just practice to be more knowledgeable about these modalities, but to integrate them actually in my life and to feel better and live a good life of purpose? And how can I start to communicate that in a sensible way to other people if that starts to make sense to me?
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About Melissa Influenced in my early yoga days by concepts of Iyengar and Ashtanga lineages, Vipassana meditation, and the study of structural bodywork, my yoga practice was cemented through a dedication to the Ashtanga system which since 2003, has taken me on journeys around the world to study with senior teachers. I am forever grateful to my teachers Victoria Laws, Annie Pace, R. Sharath Jois, Ruth Harting, Lee Joseph, Christopher Beaver, Dawn Eagle Woman, and the teachings of S.N. Goenka among others for some of most my profound learning journeys. I consider my path as a mother to my daughter and puppy dog to be my greatest teacher, and greatest gift, yet. I aspire to meet my students where they are in the support of healing and growth. I am in the process of obtaining my E-500 RYT status to reflect my years of study and teaching since my initial certification with Yoga Alliance in 2011. I look forward to seeing you on the mat!
Welcome to Native Yoga Toddcast. I’m really pleased to bring to the channel today, Melissa Friedman. Melissa is a mom. She is an Ashtanga yoga teacher. She also teaches yoga therapeutics. She is an artist, and she is a naturalist. And you can find her on Instagram @nectarofthebee. Which she also has another Instagram handle called @themedicinebeads, where she showcases her artwork, which can also be found on Etsy. If you have any questions reach out to her. And so I’m so happy that you are here. Thank you so much for your support. Your feedback is so motivational to me, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it. So, on that note, let’s just go ahead and get started here. I’m so excited to have Melissa Friedman here today. And Melissa, you’re joining us from Telluride Telluride, Colorado. Is that correct?
Melissa Friedman
Yes.
Todd McLaughlin
Well, thank you so much for joining me. I have been watching you post about teaching primary series in Colorado. And so I’m really excited to ask you questions about yoga and all of those great things. I also just want to make mention that people can find we can find you on Instagram, and you have a handle called at @nectarofthebee and also at @themedicinebeads. And so I’m curious if you can first explain what the @nectarofthebee site is?
Melissa Friedman
So that’s my paintings. I’m a painter. And yeah, it’s so I had a little yoga studio a few years ago that I actually turned into a little art gallery at one point. And the art gallery was called Nectar Arts. So my name Melissa means honeybee and I’ve always had an affinity to honeybees. So a lot of the names of my things have centered around bees and nectar and so @nectarofthebees is my Instagram for my for my paintings for my artwork.
Todd McLaughlin
Cool. Did you own a yoga studio in Telluride?
Melissa Friedman
Yep, it was just a tiny little space. And I originally had opened it to do yoga therapy and just one on one work with people. And then I had other teachers using it and teaching really small classes for a while.
Todd McLaughlin
What time frame was that during?
Melissa Friedman
Um, gosh, that’s a good question.
Todd McLaughlin
It’s it’s 2023 right now. I’m kidding.
Melissa Friedman
I’m trying to think…. so it was a space I had for body work. I was a body worker for a long time I had a studio and this little space opened up right next to it in the same building. And I just kind of jumped on it and because I needed a place to do my yoga therapy and I had a space for it, but it wasn’t quite big enough. So I want to say it’s 2012. Yeah, something that too until I went on maternity leave in 2019 In so yeah.
Todd McLaughlin
And so I’m curious what came first bodywork or yoga practice?
Melissa Friedman
Um. bodywork came first. I mean I had started exploring yoga before that for sure. I probably got into meditation first when I was just like 14 years old or something like that. And so I started exploring Yoga I would say in college for a little bit. And then I think the bodywork, my interest in bodywork kind of led me into a deeper interest in yoga and just the body in general. So, yeah, I became a body worker before a yoga teacher before I was like crazy passionate about yoga. Yeah.
Todd McLaughlin
Where did you grow up?
Melissa Friedman
I grew up outside of Boston.
Todd McLaughlin
How did you find yourself landing in Telluride?
Melissa Friedman
Um, my sister, I have two older sisters, and one of my sisters moved here first. And I came to visit her and just fell in love with this area.
Todd McLaughlin
So that’s cool.
Where did you go to bodywork school.
Melissa Friedman
I went to a school called Pacific College of Bodywork and Awareness. It was in Kauai.
Have heard of that?
Todd McLaughlin
Yeah.
Melissa Friedman
The founder, Lee Joseph. He passed away a couple of years ago, a few years ago now. But he was just an amazing human being. And that was kind of where my journey started with it. And it just, you know, evolved from there
Todd McLaughlin
Was that in Hanalei, Kauai?
Melissa Friedman
His school at the time? I’m not sure if it stayed there after years after I left. It was. Have you been to Hawaii?
Todd McLaughlin
I have not been to Kauai. I’ve always wanted to go to Kauai because it’s a pretty epic surf destination.
Melissa Friedman
It was kind of in between towns. So I don’t know technically where it was. It was like in between Kappa and this the other small town. I can’t think of what it’s called right now. But it was just like it was built down a long winding road. And he had this beautiful property. And so the school was a separate building on his property.
Todd McLaughlin
Had you known that you wanted to get licensed as a massage therapist or certified and then consciously went to Kauai to study there or were you just hanging out on Kauai and realized this is what you wanted to do?
Melissa Friedman
Actually, I was living here and started looking into massage schools and I had heard about Kauai and that I had to go there. I asked around and another therapist here said oh my goodness, you’ve got to check out my teacher that I studied with and I looked at several schools and the second I had a phone conversation with Lee Joseph I just knew that he was my teacher.
Todd McLaughlin
Were the fundamentals in Swedish massage or was was he trained in everything and blended everything into the training?
Melissa Friedman
I would say that the fundamentals were more Rolfing based structural bodywork and he also part of the program was hypnotherapy. So a lot of what we did was very psychosomatic centered. You know, getting into the body and finding what was stored there emotionally and really getting to the root of why we get stuck.
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Originally from Montreal, Quebec, and currently living in Vero Beach, Florida. Veronique studied theatre at Russell Sage College and discovered yoga as a way to calm her mind and feel good. With over 500 hours of training as a RYT (Registered Yoga Teacher with Yoga Alliance), she is inspired off the mat to create unique and creative yoga classes. Classes are tailored based on the setting, students, and inspirational themes. Her goal is to empower and inspire her students to shine their light. She offers precise alignment cues, as well as modifications for students who are healing an injury or expressing beginner to advanced levels of practice. When guiding, she uses descriptive words and tune in to when to be silent, so that each student can simply breathe.
Welcome to Native Yoga Toddcast. I’m so excited to introduce to you Veronique Ory. She has a website yogawithveronique.com. She has an Instagram @VeronicaOry. All of those links are in the description below. She has a brand new book Shine On and Off the Mat, which we speak about during this podcast. Also, she has a virtual program called Coming Home. And she’s offering a yoga retreat in June down in Costa Rica. That sounds amazing. So I really enjoyed speaking with Veronique. She’s so nice. I loved it. I can’t wait for you to hear it. Let’s begin.
I’m so happy to have Veronique Ory here today. How are you?
Veronique Ory
I’m so well. How are you, Todd?
Todd McLaughlin
I’m doing really well. Thank you so much for joining me today on our podcast. I really appreciate it.
Veronique Ory
Thank you for having me.
Todd McLaughlin
I can hear some birds in the background. I can see you and I can see your house behind you…. but what are you looking at?
Veronique Ory
Yes, I’m facing this beautiful preserve. There’s a giant oak tree right in front of me that is protecting me with a beautiful orchid that’s in bloom attached to the side of it. And there’s amazing Cardinals and mockingbirds and all the Florida wildlife that emerges from the trees from time to time. Squirrels and bunnies and sometimes bobcats and armadillos.
Todd McLaughlin
Yes. That’s cool. And I noticed your dog came up to you since we’ve been chatting. Is that your dog?
Veronique Ory
Yes, my Yogi pet Bowery. He likes to sit with me when I am in baddha konasana, butterfly pose. He thinks that is the perfect place to sit on my meditation cushion with me.
Todd McLaughlin
That’s great. You would have to pay someone to assist you like that normally, but it sounds like you have a full time personal assistant.
Veronique Ory
Yeah, yeah, we have a fine exchange going on.
Todd McLaughlin
Nice. I was really excited to see that you’re located in Vero Beach, Florida. We’re not far away from each other. There’s so much building and development going on around here that the wildlife is getting pushed out. To hear beautiful bird sounds like that I’d maybe think you are in Costa Rica or down in the Amazon or something. To hear that you’re right here in Florida and there’s so many birds in the background reminds me of how much natural beauty there is here in Florida. You’re originally from Canada, is that correct?
Veronique Ory
Yes, Montreal in Quebec.
Todd McLaughlin
How did you make your way to Florida?
Veronique Ory
Oh, my so many different cities along the way. I was
In a theatre company called Athena theatre and was very much immersed in the arts, which then led me to New York City for nine years. When I was in the world of immersion and a vibrant and energetic feeling that was so alive with all the different languages and feeling so just lit up by culture and all that there is to explore I also was confronted with a lot of anxiety. And as I found yoga and was getting older and really was craving the house with the yard and a bit of sunshine boost. I’ve landed in Florida four years ago, just really wanting that upgrade and quality of life. I really feel that Vero Beach is just so peaceful. It’s such a quaint little beach town and I really love it here.
Todd McLaughlin
I love Vero! My son and I will go up there and go surfing. The waves are often a little bit better up there. Depending upon which angle the swell it can vary greatly in relation to here in Palm Beach County. I love taking a road trip to Vero. It always feels a little bit more like Old Florida to me when I go there.
Veronique Ory
Hmm, cool. Yeah, it’s, it’s a little tucked away. And it’s a little bit far from the major airports. So it isn’t so congested, like the major cities on the east coast of Florida in particular, I’ve noticed though people have started to fly down. The snowbirds are definitely here in full effect. This year I’ve been definitely feeling the difference for sure.
Todd McLaughlin
Big time. I mean, the weather here right now is so amazing. Like lately, the skies have been like crystal clear blue. And it’s like in the high 70s. It’s been absolutely amazing. So I agree the traffic is just so much more intense right now because of it.
Veronique Ory
Yeah. Yeah, there’s definitely a trend of wanting to embrace more sunshine. It definitely affects the way that you just stand and breathe and walk around. Yeah, I was marveling yesterday walking Bowery, like, there isn’t a single cloud in the sky. Am I living in a reality?
Todd McLaughlin
Was the weather absolutely amazing yesterday or what? I was like, Oh my gosh, I had that kind of moment, like, so nice. I agree. I agree. When did yoga come into the picture?
Veronique Ory
2012 is when it really landed. I had sort of nibbles over the years and I really came into it in 2012. At the sort of wake of Hurricane Sandy in New York City where all the subways closed down and we were just holed up in our apartment just waiting for the sign that it was safe to move around. And the yoga studio called the Yoga Room in Astoria and Queens opened up and my roommate Matt at the time said, “Do you want to go to this class?” And it was just sort of like this off handed…. Do you want to do this? And he probably could have said anything. And I would have been like, Yeah, let’s go. And it was one of those everything in life coming together kind of moments. That class rocked me to my core, it was so beautifully done. And one of those moments, you know, for anyone who’s landed into this sphere, it’s like you show up and you’re like, how did this teacher know exactly what I needed to hear at this precise moment, and I just signed up for a 30 day unlimited pass on the spot. And I just thought I want to feel like this all of my days. And I’ve been really into that rhythm ever since.
Todd McLaughlin
That’s cool. What type of practice was it?
Veronique Ory
It was a Vinyasa style class for the first 60 minutes and then the ending 30 minutes was restorative. And so we were just snuggled up with bolsters and blankets and just steeping in all of the movement that we moved through.
Todd McLaughlin
Very cool. Did you have like an emotional experience? Sometimes a lot of people will talk about the first time they go into Savasana after their first yoga class….. that they’ll have like a coming home experience and or feel their senses in a way that they’ve never felt? Can you explain a little bit more what you remember of that first practice?
Veronique Ory
Absolutely, I felt so much during that time because I was operating at such a high functioning, stress building rhythm. And I very much attribute myself lovingly as Type A, OCD and high achieving. I wanted to do all of the things and check off all of the tasks. And I think because I had been operating at that pace for so long, it wasn’t until I slowed down that I was able to objectively see how very much that this lifestyle isn’t healthy or sustainable in the long term at all. And I realized how much of those emotions I was storing in my body. And so much of what I’d call happiness, or my level of contentment was like so much in relationship to validation outside of myself, being in the entertainment industry. If I would receive praise in one moment I would be feeling jubilation. Then someone could give me shade and I would be wrecked. This could happen in like a 15 minute window where like I’m so ecstatic one moment, and then like bawling on the floor, in my kitchen like a puddle the next moment. And I think, you know, depending on any industry one is in, there could be that tendency you know. Like you’re seeking a raise, or you’re seeking a kind word from your boss, or whatever it is. And it’s like, when we’re constantly reaching for something outside of ourselves, we are really giving our light and our magic away. And also just like, playing with that area of where our own control habits reside. It’s really, really toxic, ultimately, in terms of finding that sense of peacefulness, and remembering what it is to actually be in this deep contentment. That is devoid of the exterior, which is, you know, so much easier said than done. But, you know, it was some of the things that started to kind of plant the seed in those regards of moving through these emotions. Unlocking so much stress and anxiety and also like, really noticing where the triggers show up. The triggers are like very at the surface when you’re living in an urban environment in particular, because you’re just like, wrestled, and sort of jostled, and with so much different energy all of the time that if you’re an empath, or you know, in tune with other people’s emotions even a little bit, you know, as human beings, we’re sponges, we tend to like pick up on the energy that we surround ourselves with. And so to be in that frequency for an extended period of time, the yoga practice was just like, so soothing. And it was just this amazing breath of fresh air. I could feel a resonant connection to the breath. I don’t know that I was breathing with any kind of awareness until then. And the breath part was actually also one of the main components that really awakened a lot of my personal yoga practice as well.
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I am pleased to present to you…….. YULADY SALUTI! It is with great pleasure I can bring to you yoga and running celebrity Yulady Saluti. Yulady is an inspiration and motivation to thousands of yoga practitioners and running enthusiasts. She is an Ostomate and Breast Cancer Survivor who has beaten the odds many times. During this podcast she shares her passion and enthusiasm for motivating the masses.
During this podcast she shares:
what got her started in yoga
the catalyst that got her started on her journey of healing and recovery
how she became addicted to drugs and found sobriety
getting past the fear of honestly telling her story
Welcome to Native Yoga Toddcast. I am so excited for today because it marks an anniversary. Today is episode number 100. Yes! I had the goal of getting here. And I’ve made it. I can’t believe it, and I remember after my first episode, which when I go back and listen to now I’m like, “Oh…. I’ve learned a little bit since then.” I remember thinking when I saw other podcasters that have 100 episodes and thinking, “oh my gosh,” I just gotta get started with one here. And then two, and then little by little, interview by interview, person by person here we are. It’s just been such an incredible experience for me. Every time I get a chance to interview somebody around the world who has passion for yoga and has learned something from their experience with yoga I get so inspired. I enjoy hearing their passion for bodywork and their ability to teach and to share. The stories that I’ve heard over these last 100 episodes, about overcoming challenge and the willpower that exists in us as human beings is phenomenal. The ability to jump hurdles and or to get knocked down and to come back up again and, just be here for each other and to listen and to foster open communication. For me, this is just an honor, a privilege, and I love it so much. Because of you and all of your feedback and all of your encouragement and support, we’re all here together still trucking along.
On that note, as a special guest for episode number 100. I am pleased to announce that today’s guest is you Yulady Saluti. There’s so much I could try to say to introduce you to you Yulady, but she’s going to tell you everything that you need to know. She’s incredible! She’s inspirational! And I love her passion and her honesty. So without hesitating. Let’s go ahead and begin…..
I’m so excited to have this opportunity to bring you Yulady Saluti to the podcast today. Yulady, how are you doing?
Yulady Saluti
I’m great. How are you? Nice to meet you.
Todd McLaughlin
I know, I’m so excited, because we tried to get this to happen for a little while now. So now that the moment is here, I’m just thankful. Thank you very much.
Yulady Saluti
No, thank you for being so understanding, of course, of course.
Todd McLaughlin
So I have a lot of questions for you. I’ve been following you on Instagram. And I find that you have a very inspirational message. And I guess to get started, the first thing I noticed on your Instagram, the very first thing you have written is Noli Stan, and so obviously that you’re your baby?
Yulady Saluti
Yes, that’s my granddaughter.
Todd McLaughlin
That’s your granddaughter! Okay. All right.
Yulady Saluti
So a little background on me. My husband and I have been together 20 years and we are a blended family. So when I met him, I had a daughter from a previous relationship. And he had three kids from a previous relationship. And then we have two together. So we’re like six altogether. And we’re a big family. So my my oldest, I call them all my kids. I hate this term stepchildren because I grew up with a stepdad myself and he hated when I called him stepdad. He said that and you know, eventually I was like, Yeah, I get it. I get it. So I call all of them my kids. So my older son Jerry got married during the pandemic to a lovely girl and they had a baby on last September. So I decided that I was going to turn my Instagram account into a Noli fanpage.
Yeah. She’s the best.
Todd McLaughlin
Can you share what it’s like to be a grandparent?
Yulady Saluti
Oh my god it is so amazing! I was just saying to my husband, because I was babysitting, how incredible this feeling is to be able to be with her. I babysat her for a few hours, all by myself. I just had her here it’s like, this cannot get any better than this. This also goes for people that have their own children. Like picture that feeling when you have your own baby and then magnified by like, 100. That’s the greatest feeling. And you just like I can’t believe I’m lucky enough to be part of like this. This baby is mine, like not mine. But like it’s it’s my baby. Because my grandkid is a different type of love than a child love. It’s like bigger. I don’t know if that makes it any justice. Does that give your question any justice?
Todd McLaughlin
Yeah, that’s a great explanation. It’s funny. I have a friend who was a grandpa and he used to always say, it’s double happiness. Double happiness because I’m so happy when they show up. And then when their parents come to pick them up on I’m even happier.
Yulady Saluti
You get you get to do all the hanging out and then I get to drive home and sleep all night.
Todd McLaughlin
Right, you get a full night’s sleep, and then have the joy the next day. Oh, that’s amazing. Yulady. That’s cool. Yeah, yeah, awesome. Well, you know, I mean, where do I even begin? How about can you talk about what got you started on the journey of yoga practice? I know you have a lot of talents. And I definitely want to go down the track of what you’re really passionate about right now as a runner. But I want to kind of start with what was your intro into yoga and how did your healing journey begin?
Yulady Saluti
Well, yoga is my, I guess, was my my number one passion. My first passion and probably will always be my number one passion. My husband and I would get out of work and our first thing was to get to our favorite yoga class, and it was this wonderful reward at the end of the day. And so, two weeks into it, I mean, no, two months into it, I got sick. I noticed that like, I just couldn’t handle any physical activity and not the heat, and the physical part of it. There was nothing like it and I was in and out of hospitals, and in a lot of pain. I mean, like maybe like 10 out of 10 pain in nobody could figure out what was going on. And I had to I have had a surgery. Two years prior to that and then another one a year later for these masses that they found in my colorectal area. So very high up into the rectum, like right where the colon the rectum meet. I didn’t have great health insurance. So I didn’t question anything. I said, Okay, let’s get a biopsy in. I went to get the biopsy. And that night, I got really I got really sick. And it got really, really infected. And I ended up with more pain and another surgery to fix it. And then another surgery and then that gave me like a year of relief. And that’s in that year is when I met my husband we met shortly after that we moved in together and then he and then that’s how I found yoga. So my yoga life took a pause for many years because I was sick for many years after that. And then I went to have children what happened in this part of my medical journey was I needed a colostomy bag, which is for those who don’t know what a colostomy bags is, they essentially pull your intestine out of your body and sew it to the outside of your stomach and you poop out of there. They cut the intestine out and they put it out so you don’t no longer poop out of your rectum you know your your don’t use that area anymore, you poop into a bag that you change all the time. Like a couple times a day if you need to. Yes. And I was very young I was in my early 20s, I was very uncomfortable. Having that, like, I didn’t want to share it with anybody and I kept it all very to myself. Many people that knew me, wouldn’t ever know that. I wouldn’t ever mention it. And I so that kept me from ever going back even when I started to feel better. Ever going back to a yoga class.
Todd McLaughlin
Do you feel like because of the fact that it would be noticeable through your outfit that that is why you didn’t want anyone to see you?
Yulady Saluti
Yeah. And also another thing, which I’m very comfortable with now, and it actually took me many years to get where I am was, when you have this, when you pass gas, you have no control over it, you know, because there’s no muscles holding. So it just comes in it makes the noise in same thing with poop it comes whenever you want to. So that always made me so uncomfortable. So to me that was like, “Oh my God.” Now it happens all the time and I’m with clients. And I’m like, “Oh, I’m sorry.” And it just we just laugh, you know? Yeah, yeah. So it took me a long time to get comfortable with it.
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