Biography

Massage

At the Palo Alto Body Therapy Center, I first studied Esalen® massage with long time Esalen resident, Arthur Munyer and Daniella Urbaseck. Esalen® massage is an intuitive, nurturing blend of Swedish massage, deeper work like Rolfing (though it’s not Rolfing, it’s just been influenced by it), and the joint mobilization work of Milton Trager that incorporates many long, flowing massage strokes that move fluidly from heal to head and back. Esalen® massage emphasizes the wholeness and is always working to integrate the body. I was also able to pursue my interest in anatomy and physiology under the tutelage of Michael Murphy, Rolfer and Mary Ann Furda, D.C. as well as body structure reading and massage techniques with these teachers.

After completing my studies at The Body Therapy Center, I enrolled at DeAnza College. Here, I studied with May Ann Furda and then with Medical Qi Gong practitioner and Doctor of Chiropractics, Seth Lefkowitz. I continue to take courses whenever I find good teachers and the time to slip away from work for a few days.

Yoga

While spending several years as an office worker, the soreness I felt from constantly sitting and performing repetitive tasks, was dispelled daily with my yoga practice. My early yoga practice from 1982 (as a freshman in high school) to 1990 came from a book I found on my mother's bookshelf: Richard Hittelman's 28 Day Yoga Exercise Program. I thought if I followed the instructions very carefully, I might reach enlightenment in those first 28 days.

While working for a non-profit after college, I could only afford one yoga class per month. Finally, in my late twenties I had a job with health benefits and enough disposable income to go to yoga class once a week. I studied locally with Julianne Rice of the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment for several years and then studied locally with Sherry Han.

Though it was the inner peace, connection to source, beauty, and strategies for relieving body tension that drew me in to yoga, after several years of reveling in the Vinyasa-flow practice, I wanted a deeper understanding of the technical aspects of the poses. After much complaining to my teachers, that I knew there had to be more, they directed me to study Iyengar Yoga. I've done that with the founders of Yoga Fitness, Jito Yumibe and Linda Bostrom, and their excellent teachers (now that list includes me) since 2003. That year I also started a nine month Yoga Teacher training program with local Physical Therapist and Yogi, Joyce Anue of Yoga Educational Seminars (Y.E.S.). After continuing to study and teach the Iyengar method, I’ve just started Bija Yoga’s 500 hour Iyengar teacher training with Senior Iyengar teachers Manouso Manos and Gloria Goldberg. I will complete this three year program in December 2012.