Why Aerial Yoga?

I wanted to share with you my aerial yoga journey in hopes that it will offer you some insight on why I love it and what it has done for me. Having been a dancer since the age of 4 and having taught dance since 1999 movement is all I have even really known. Around the time I turned 10 my mother decided to start training in aerobics which led to her opening her own studio when I was about 14 or 15. As part of the studio she brought in a yoga teacher and out of curiosity I began taking classes with her. I had never been exposed to visual tools and breath work for releasing stress and tension so I found it all so helpful and interesting, especially as a stressed out teenager. The stretching reminded me of my dance training and definitely helped me to grow as a dancer. Eventually the instructor moved away and as I grew older yoga continued to call to me and I tried to find a class that reminded me of my first experience with it. When I moved to Texas I the early 2000’s I searched for yoga classes and tried a few but nothing felt the same way as it had previously. When I came back to NEPA a few years later yoga was still a relatively new thing in the area and I still wasn’t finding what I was looking for. I began learning about the Nia Technique in 2009 and started taking classes from home through DVD’s. This opened up a new outlet for me and eventually let to training to become an instructor in 2011. Nia helped me to bridge the gap between worlds fusing dance, martial arts and yoga together. It filled me in those areas for many years and connected me back to my love of movement and child-like play but as time went on I was aching for something else. Something to connect me to aspects of myself that had not yet been explored and were calling for me to come out of my comfort zone. In 2017 after looking and talking myself out of trying Aerial Yoga for about a year I finally took my first class. It was not the magical experience I had hoped it would be and I often tell everyone that my first class was quite traumatic. I had a lot of apprehension and fear around inverting or doing things that felt like tricks, the whole process was new to me and instead of moving through poses we simply played on the hammocks doing any and all possible things that one could do in an open level aerial yoga class. This or course did not ease my fears and only made everything worse. I returned to my car after class and cried the whole way home because I felt defeated. It took me about 3 months to return because I simply could not get it out of my head. It felt like something I needed to do for myself and so I followed where I was being guided and each time it got better. Each class I felt stronger and more confident and before I knew it I was there 4 times a week and a year in decided to become a teacher. That is not to say that I knew everything at that point because I definitely did not and still do not. It wasn’t about perfection it was about sharing what this practice did for me and how I wanted to help others find that too. Now what changed for me from my first experience to then? I realized that the fear that had bubbled to the surface was exactly what was holding me back and that I was ready to let it go, to become this next version of myself. I not only gained strength from aerial yoga I gained confidence. I could see how conquering fears in class was mirrored in my life. I began speaking up for myself, feeling stronger in who I was as a person. This practice brought me back to myself and made me feel whole again. I have been able to carry my experience with me into my classes. Attending to my students with love and compassion, recognizing what they need in the moment and being there to cheer them on as they conquer their own fears and grow stronger. Remember what you seek is seeking you and if you are feeling called to something there is a reason. Follow your inner compass and trust that your heart knows the way to what you need. This holds true for anything that we are called to. You came here for a reason with your own desires and strengths. Let them guide you on your journey and if you feel called to join us in our sanctuary we will be here to support you fully, all my love!