Namaste, I am Sue!

Here’s the backstory of how I found yoga—and developed my practice and teachings. 

I started practicing yoga in my 30’s, it complimented my workout routines and calmed my mind while working in a fast-paced corporate environment. But it wasn’t until 2011 that I began a passionate, personal study of yoga and meditation.  I was told “you have cancer” by my doctor over the phone sitting in my office. I felt my entire world stop and my breath knocked out of me.  

During my cancer journey, I took an 8-week course in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), a program developed in the 1970’s at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center by Jon Kabat-Zinn.  Yoga and meditation were my safe heaven during my cancer journey. It was my private outlet to calm my mind from fear of the unknown. Yoga helped regain control of my body in my recovery and well-being. It soothed my soul with hope during a time of pain and anger. 

In early 2019, I received my 200-hour teacher certification with Jodie Rufty at Yogaworks. Taking the 200-hour teacher training was a stepping stone to building a strong foundation for my personal practice and gave me the opportunity to give back to the yoga community and my fellow cancer survivors.

I continued to master my skills in advanced training with Tari Prinster in Yoga 4 Cancer, a specialized oncology-based yoga program that provides in depth information, research and supervised practice to ensure yoga teachers can safely and effectively work with cancer patients and survivors. Tari Prinster is a cancer survivor, master yoga teacher, author, and founder of Yoga 4 Cancer (y4c), an organization that brings oncology yoga to cancer survivors worldwide. In addition, I trained and received my certification with Jillian Pransky in restorative yoga. Jillian Pransky is an international wellness presenter, certified yoga therapist and the author of Deep Listening.  

With this strong foundation to skillfully teach and give back, I created Yoga for Life and Wellness. Yoga gave me a sense of empowerment when I needed it most during a challenging time in my life. I am blessed to have the opportunity to share the same empowerment with my students.