Hi, I’m Steff (she/her).

I am an Ayurveda practitioner, self-care coach, yoga teacher, speaker, college educator, and host of the podcast, Humaning: the shit we need to talk about.

I help liberation-focused and social-change oriented people take the work they are doing out in the world and bring it home with a more embodied, easeful, and human-centered approach to daily life and self- care.

My story.

In September 2017, my life turned upside down when my aunt passed away unexpectedly. It was my first experience dealing with such an immense loss and I did not have the skills or foundation to meet myself there. At the time of her passing, I was overwhelmed and burned out by my competing priorities of parenting two kids under 4 years old, being a present partner, working a demanding full-time job, and dealing with the stress of not having enough time to heal my body after 2 pregnancies and c-sections before jumping back into my fitness instructor duties. Bubbling up under the surface of all of that was 20+ years of unresolved racial trauma. The only way I could cope was to push through the grief while hustling through all of my responsibilities. My life quickly unraveled from there. In early 2018, I was at rock bottom, a shell of myself, holding so much pain, and not really present anywhere. I could see so clearly how parents could do the unthinkable and leave their children because life just felt like too much to handle. 

I am grateful for the support of my husband, trusted friends, and professionals so I could fight my way back to myself. I made radical decisions to center my self-care and mental hygiene practices so that I could begin to build the capacity to acknowledge what was present, be deep in discomfort, and slowly move through it all towards a more healed version of myself. The teachings of Yoga philosophy and Ayurveda wisdom were lifelines for me. Since then, I have been on a profound journey of learning to love myself, dismantling how white supremacy culture and capitalism are showing up in my life, and creating a foundation of sustainable self-care and mental hygiene that can ebb and flow as I navigate this beautiful and hard world.

And let me tell you, this journey I’ve been on has been an invaluable resource to me, especially most recently when life as I knew it shattered in an instant with my dad’s sudden passing in November 2023 (more on this, maybe, another time).

My methodology.  

Within white supremacy culture and capitalism, we are not taught how to truly listen to our needs and deeply care for ourselves. Those of us with marginalized identities are also not afforded the time, space, or resources to do so. And yet, it’s necessary for our well-being, and I’m living proof of that. The systems are keeping us unwell, overwhelmed, burned out, and disconnected from ourselves and each other. In order for us to continue our work in dismantling them, we have got to change how we meet ourselves so we can be well as we tear it all down.  My work is heavily informed by the wisdom and science of Ayurveda and Yoga because both of these traditions bring our awareness back to ourselves, our self-love, and how we move through the world in community with others.

 

I created a framework to help clients alleviate burnout and overwhelm sustainably. It’s a flexible and personal process that’s not linear, and often involves fluid movement between steps as you continue to navigate one situation to the next.

STEP 1: RELEASE THE PRESSURE

When you’re in the height of overwhelm, feeling dis-ease, the depths of burnout, or time-crunched between competing priorities, the first wave of relief will come in softening the tension a bit.

To release the pressure, we’ll work together in establishing the building blocks of your foundation to:

  1. Acknowledge the reality and validity of a) what you’re experiencing AND b) how you want to feel.

  2. Develop ways to meet yourself in the resistance that arises when what you want to do for yourself rubs up against the messaging from dominant culture and begin practices to build the skill of dealing with the discomfort of deciding to follow through with self-care when life gets in the way.

  3. Nourish yourself with basic self-care practices and even begin simple shifts based on your needs, time, and energy.

  4. Keep releasing the pressure little by little.

STEP 2: IDENTIFY YOUR PATTERNS

We all have behaviors we repeat that we developed based on coping or that were taught to us by family or society. Unfortunately, we may not be aware of how our patterns are keeping overwhelm, burnout, or the struggle in managing competing priorities going strong (no shade or shame here!).

During this process, we’ll work together in developing personalized skills and tools to:

  1. Build your awareness of your shoulds, judgements, standards, expectations, ideals, reactive behaviors, old beliefs, truths that are not yours, spiritual bypassing, gaslighting.

  2. Identify when and how your patterns are showing up.

  3. Develop your capacity to be uncomfortable with what shows up and with releasing judgment or shame.

STEP 3: INTERRUPT THE CYCLE

Once you’ve released the pressure and have begun to identify your patterns, it’s time to break shit up.

In this period of customized coaching, we’ll use the foundation, skills, and tools you’ve developed to support your work in disrupting old processes and:

  1. Create intentional shifts that disrupt your patterned behavior.

  2. Explore practices that will support you in interrupting the cycle, all based on your current bandwidth and capacity.

  3. Recognize when old habits or behavior that doesn’t serve you happen and course correct (without judgement or shame!).

  4. Develop mindset shifts.

STEP 4: NURTURE YOUR DAILY LIFE

Continue utilizing practices to help you release the pressure, identify your patterns, interrupt the cycle, promote ease, and experience joy.

Support is available in my self-care group mentorship program that includes personalized self-care coaching, weekly livestream Yoga and Zumba classes, restorative and meditation practices, and a monthly group gathering on Zoom so that you can:

  1. Continue to keep things super simple.

  2. Remain flexibile in honoring your needs and circumstances as they are.

  3. Explore new practices that deepen your connection to yourself, allow you to authentically connect to your community, and elevate the way you allow yourself to enjoy your life.

  4. Begin to thrive!

Remember: this process is alive and fluid, and your life is happening in real time so it may actually look like this:

Revisiting steps to reinforce new behaviors or to support you in new challenges that you uncover as you continue to move through life.

Stay connected!

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My credentials & experience.

I have a Master of Education in Kinesiology, a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, and 20+ years of experience working in the fitness and wellness field. Additionally, I am an educator at Rutgers University in the Department of Kinesiology and Health.

My past roles include: Strength & Conditioning Coach (CSCS), Group Fitness and Zumba®️ Instructor, Fitness & Wellness Consultant, Personal Trainer, Group Fitness Instructor Course Trainer, and Fitness & Class Program Coordinator at a large university.

MY TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION INCLUDES:

MENTAL HEALTH & TRAUMA-INFORMED YOGA TEACHER - 2021

  • Yoga for Mental Health Teacher Training

  • I am trained to use asana, breathing, meditation, and self- soothing tools to support people living with anxiety, depression, chronic stress, PTSD, and trauma.

AYURVEDA YOGA SPECIALIST - 2019

  • Himalyan Institute, PA

  • I am trained to curate yoga and self-care practices designed specifically for your needs, whether that’s to support a health issue, help you balance your mental health, or simply develop practices that are more aligned and sustainable for you.

E-RYT 500

  • 300 hour Yoga Teacher Training - Smart Asana Yoga, 2021

  • 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training - Smart Asana Yoga, 2011

  • Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher with Yoga Alliance

  • Yoga Alliance Continuing Education Provider

  • I am trained to teach yoga asana, breathwork, and meditation classes to people who are pregnant, disabled, injured, dealing with health issues (including cancer), and athletes.

MY LEARNING COMMUNITIES INCLUDE: