bringing the healing tools
of yoga to under-served populations
this isn't just my job
It’s my life.
I share it with others because I feel it is my duty, given the benefits I have seen it have in my own life and body.
Teaching Yoga to Diverse populations
- experienced at life (seniors)
- veterans and active-duty military families
- children and teens
- LGBTQIA+
- Folx dealing with chronic pain at the physical and/or emotional levels
- Folx wanting to feel better in the skin they are in
"safe" space healing
*I acknowledge that “Safe Space” can not always be provided for everyone. However, I actively work to ensure that biases are acknowledged and addressed – within myself as well as those that work with me. There will be no tolerance for hate, discrimination, colonialism, homphobia, transphobia, misogyny, body shaming, ableism, xenophobia, immigration status, or any other such practice in language or action with regard to self or others within my space.
I am willing to hold space for those that are unpacking and working through their own such issues on a one-on-one basis – using the lens of yoga – to the extent that my own boundaries are respected.
Why the lotus blossom flower?
thrives in mud
At first glance, it is just a standard flower, but the lotus is revered from North to South in the Eastern Hemisphere. Unlike any other flowering plant, its roots latched in mud and mire, it submerges every night into the dark murky depths of the water to re-bloom each morning beautifully unfolding petal by petal to show no signs of its origins or nightly sanctuary. The most beautiful blossoms come from the deepest, thickest mud. While its daily resurrection is one thing, the lotus has an almost limitless power of survival – a will to live – and its seed can survive thousands of years without water only to germinate rebloom given the opportunity. As if divine, the lotus continues to resurrect itself on a strong stem each morning, refusing to accept defeat. It has an almost unwavering faith that it will rise above the water’s surface each day.
an analogy for life
It is a wonderful analogy for the human spirit. We are rooted in the mud and mire – our own individual life challenges like sadness, loneliness, failure, disappointment, grief, illness. These experiences are processed and integrated – like the growing lotus seed. Through these experiences we gain wisdom, compassion, a gentleness of spirit. We rise from a state of muck as our petals unfold one by one – it is a process to unfold. We must have the will to resurrect ourselves daily and possess an almost unwavering faith in ourselves – just like the lotus. Without the mud of our lives, there can be no lotus – the divine within blooming forth to transcend each day. It is not a one and done event, but a process – the lotus retreats to the depths and darkness each night, as we continuously encounter challenges in our lives, but through our practice, our routine, we, like the lotus can continuously resurrect ourselves time and again, realizing our inner potential and our potential to harness the divine energy within to become more divinely ourselves. Without mud there is no lotus to unfold petal by petal.
Without life’s challenges – big and small – we cannot blossom into our most beautiful, resilient selves.
Training Details and credentials
- Trauma/Anxiety
- Lymphatic Issues
- Auto-Immune Disorders
- Joint Replacements
- Structural Issues
- Chronic Pain
- Generalized Stress Management
- Cancer Recovery
- Military/Veteran Populations
- Children in Foster Care
- Diabetes
- Stroke Recovery
- Neurological Issues
Certified Yoga Therapist – International Association of Yoga Therapists
- Integrative Yoga Therapy
- Trauma Informed Yoga Therapy
- Functional Yoga Therapy
- Therapeutic Adaptive Yoga for MS
- iRest Level 1
- Yoga Tune Up Bliss and Breath
- Warriors at Ease Levels 1 & 2
- Yoga Warriors International
- Veterans Yoga Project
- Anatomy Trains for Movement Professionals
- Neuro Kinetic Therapy Level
- Stop Chasing Pain Lymphatic Mojo
- Lauterstein-Conway Massage School and Clinic
- C-IAYT, LMT, PYT1000, TIYT, ERYT, RCYT, YACEP, NKT, LMT Licensed Massage Therapist State of Texas – License # MT133544
I am a Yoga Warriors International Certified Instructor, a Certified Therapeutic Adaptive Yoga for MS Instructor, and a Warriors at Ease(WAE), Veterans Yoga Project, and iRest Yoga Nidra trained instructor.
Michelle L BOwles
Founder
My practice
I have been practicing various styles of yoga since the early 1980’s, consistently since 1994, and incorporating yoga into a variety of teaching activities since 2002. After training at Sundara Yoga Therapy, I became a Yoga Alliance Registered Yoga Teacher in March 2012, was grandfathered as a Registered Children’s Yoga Teacher, became a Certified Trauma-Sensitive Yoga Teacher – Now called Trauma-Informed Yoga Therapist – in May 2012, an Integrative Yoga Therapist at the 500 Hour Level in August 2013 and at the 1,000 Hour Level in May of 2016, and was certified as a Yoga Therapist by the International Association of Yoga Therapists in September of 2016 in accordance with their grand-parenting policy and standardization of training. As of 2017, I have greater than 4,500 hours of training in yoga and have facilitated more than 4,500 hours of yoga practice for others.
My affiliations
-
- International Association of Yoga Therapists – Member Schools Committee 2018 – Present
- Integrative Yoga Therapy, 200 Hr Affiliate Program Director 2018 – Present
- Functional Yoga Therapy, Assistant/Faculty/Mentor 2015- Present
- Returning Heroes Home/Warrior Family Support Center/Soldier Recovery Unit – Rehabilitation Yoga Facilitator 2016-Present
- Tuesday’s Children – Texas Retreat Yoga Facilitator for Gold Star Family Members 2017 – Present
- Casey Family Foundation San Antonio – Yoga Therapy 2016-2019
- Esther Vexler Yoga School, vice president board of directors 2013, Guest Lecturer 2013-2015
- Sundara Yoga Therapy – Integrative Yoga Therapy 200 Registered Yoga School, guest lecturer, assistant teacher 2013-2016
- Trauma-Informed Yoga Therapy Advanced Yoga Therapy Training, guest lecturer, assistant teacher 2012-2016
- Yoga Day 501c3, primary instructor 2012-2015
- Haven for Hope – In House Recovery Program, primary instructor 2012-2015
- Audie Murphy VA – PolyTrauma Rehabilitation Program, primary instructor 2014-2015
- The Overcoming Anxiety Project, advisory board 2014-2016
- Austin Queer Yoga Collective, founding member 2015-2016
- Childsafe, volunteer yoga teacher 2015
- Say Si ,volunteer yoga teacher 2016
- City of San Antonio, volunteer yoga teacher 2014
Follow On Social
Frequently asked questions
private sessions + public class offerings
During Covid-19, please visit Accuity to find time in your schedule to work with Michelle -- virtual appointments are offered unless otherwise indiciated.
Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.
