I first got into yoga when I lived in New York City in 2016. I never needed mindfulness more than when living in the biggest city in the world! When I became pregnant in the spring of 2018, there were hardly any prenatal yoga offerings in the city. When I moved back to Seattle in the fall, I had a similar experience trying to find prenatal offerings. If I did find one it would be offered once per week during typical working hours (9 am-5 pm), so it was never possible to attend.

It wasn’t until Jack was four weeks old that I learned about a local studio dedicated to family yoga. Aditi Yoga + Wellness offered prenatal, postnatal, baby + me, crawlers + me, and family yoga classes all the way through the teenage years. It remains one of my favorite things I did with Jack in the first year of his life. I connected with my postpartum body while my baby played on the top of the mat.

In the summer of 2019, I was inspired to take pre/postnatal yoga teacher training. I wanted to share my passion for this specific practice to support women (and their babes!) through the most transformative, magical, and challenging time of their lives.

I have spent the past year supporting expectant mothers who are navigating a pandemic while they prepare for the arrival of their newest family member(s). If you’re pregnant or hope to be soon, I am so happy you’re here to learn more about what I bring and what to expect in my prenatal yoga classes.

Connection to Other Moms. One of the most invaluable resources an expectant parent can have is support and resource in other parents. Some of the most brilliant advice I received was from women I connected with in my yoga classes. I begin class with a connection question to help break the ice and help the group get related.

Connection to Your Baby. Your experience with your growing belly is unique to you. Maybe you work full time and it’s challenging to make time to connect with your baby as often as you’d like. Perhaps you already have a child (or two or three!) and it’s difficult to take the time to just be with this pregnancy. Lastly, you may be freaked out by the whole process and experiencing discomfort. These are all normal feelings! Prenatal yoga offers mindful time to connect to your body and acknowledge the life growing inside you.

Meditation. The world is loud, the unwelcome advice and labor horror stories are unhelpful, and life is just plain busy. I begin the practice with a meditation to ground you in a safer space that’s just for you.

Movement + Modification. The movement is safe for all stages of pregnancy. I guide you through the yoga poses and offer modifications throughout class. Need a little less intensity? Try this. Want an added challenge? I got you. Your body is shape-shifting every week. You are always in choice as to what you need in your practice. I simply share the options. A typical yoga sequence looks like this:

• Seated poses
• Hands + Knees poses
• Sun Salutations
• Balancing Poses
• Standing + Strength poses
• Restorative poses
• Savasana (the laying-on-the-mat-almost-like-a-nap pose!)

Education. Throughout the class, I will offer insights into which poses support various pregnancy pain points (low back pain, getting babe off your bladder, etc.) as well as helping prepare your body for birth, no matter what your birth experience (vaginal, unmedicated, c-section, homebirth) may be.

Passion. Lastly, you can always count on me, a fellow mama, to show up fully and with a passion to support you. In my humble opinion, moms do not get enough support in pregnancy and postpartum. This work is deeply meaningful to me and I will always hold space for whatever you’re experiencing. I got you!

You may be wondering what is the difference between a postnatal class from a regular yoga class. A postnatal class will have a dedicated focus on strengthening your pelvic floor, abdominal wall, and offer modifications as you adjust to your postpartum body. I enjoyed the education and movement in postnatal yoga for the first 6-12 weeks after Jack was born.  

Ready to join me on the mat? You can register for my weekly virtual prenatal yoga class at Aditi or send me a message to set up a virtual private session. I hope we will see each other in person soon but for now I am grateful we are able to connect in a virtual space.

I leave you with the same send-off I share at the end of my classes; the mama in me honors the mama in you! You got this.