Hey There.
Welcome! My name is Saya, and I am a 500 RYT (Registered Yoga Teacher). Through my personal journey, I have experienced the transformative and magical powers of yoga, and I wholeheartedly believe that it has the potential to change lives. Let's grow together.
My Yoga Journey
Before I found yoga, I was lost. Lost in my career, lost in life. I knew what I didn't want, but didn't exactly know what I wanted. I was constantly worried about the future, afraid of taking risks and failing, and felt insecure about myself.
When I started taking yoga classes, it was just a way to stay physically active during off-season, which was summer as a skier. I quickly fell in love with the practice, and in 2018 I traveled to Thailand for a yoga vacation, and by 2020 I was practicing every single day. When I decided to deepen my practice by taking a 200hr YTT, I learned about the other aspects of yoga - pranayama, meditation, philosophy, lifestyle.
One by one, things started to click. I learned to let go of certain expectations and worries. I learned to stay true to myself and process emotions in a healthy way. The more I studied, the more I was able to apply yoga into my life, and the happier I felt.
Yoga is now my career. And my life. And my calling.
Yoga and TSW
I had been told by doctors that I have eczema, and that I will need to use topical steroids for the rest of my life. So without doubt, I had been doing so for 12 years. I didn't question it...until I started studying yoga.
Learning about ahimsa and the natural healing powers of the body, I started to question it and one day I discovered a condition called Topical Steroid Withdrawal. I voluntarily went into withdrawal by quitting topical steroids, cold turkey. From 2021 to 2023, I suffered all the symptoms of TSW- flushing skin, bone-deep itch, altered thermoregulation, elephant skin, insecurity, depression and anxiety. It was a nightmare. The most painful period of my life. But I did not give up.
Pranayama and asana helped enormously, but it was more the yoga mindset that kept me going. I was able to trust the process because nothing is unchanging. Knowing that the pain is not permanent, and trusting that there will be light at the end. I would not have survived TSW without yoga.
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Certification
May 2022
200hr Yoga Teacher Training
Vikasa Yoga, online
Foundational YTT with founder Kosta Miachin, philosophy and meditation teacher Alexey Vyazovov, and anatomy and Universal Yoga teacher Mikey Lazano.
September 2022
100hr Refresh Retreat
Vikasa Yoga, Thailand
2-week, in-person course as a supplement to my online 200hr YTT. With founder Kosta Miachin and all lead teachers: Mikey Lazano, Niki Lundberg, Michael Murray, Alexey Vyazovov.
June 2024
300hr Yoga Teacher Training
Vikasa Yoga, Thailand
5-week advanced YTT with founder Kosta Miachin, master guest teacher Daniel Rama, Vikasa lead teachers Niki Lundberg and Michael Murray, philosophy teacher Alexey Vyazovov, and Universal Yoga teacher Jovan Tevin.
