My discovery of mindfulness practice back in 1998 not only changed my life but quickly blossomed into a professional career path. My training and focus from that time on have been to offer yoga and mindfulness-based interventions to groups and individuals in the service of helping people create more joyous, healthy, and meaningful lives.

After living in California during my 20s in order to “find myself,” I returned to my hometown of Columbia, Missouri, to pursue my doctorate in psychology. After receiving my training as a health psychologist, I developed the Mindfulness Practice Center on the University of Missouri campus in 2002 for faculty, staff, and students. My training through the Center for Mindfulness in Healthcare, Medicine, and Society in Boston and as a Community Dharma Leader through Spirit Rock Meditation Center in California formed the basis of my early work. Along the way, I have been teaching, developing, and researching mindfulness-based interventions and yoga targeting stress, pain, cancer, depression, and eating.

In 2007, I developed a ten-week program called Eat for Life that helps people have a better relationship with food and their bodies. A study on the program was published in the American Journal of Health Promotion in 2014. I wrote The Mindfulness-Based Eating Solution (New Harbinger, 2016) to offer the scientifically validated practices in Eat for Life to a wider audience. I taught live online Eat for Life Classes to the public over Zoom for 15 years and trained professionals around the world to teach Eat for Life to others.

In 2015 I was invited to serve on the Board of The Center for Mindful Eating, a non-profit organization whose mission is to teach and serve professionals who work in the field of mindful eating. I was the President from 2018 through 2022. I now serve on the Advisory Council.

My latest book, Savor Every Bite (New Harbinger, 2021) offers 50 short chapters and mindfulness exercises that teach you to live and eat mindfully, move your body in ways that feel delicious, and live with greater ease and joy.

I teach Kripalu yoga and Energy Medicine Yoga® (EMYoga) at alleyCat Yoga Center in Columbia, MO, as well as lead yoga and mindfulness retreats to Pura Vida Retreat and Spa and Tierra de Suenos in Costa Rica. My teaching combines the wisdom and clarity of mindfulness with the heart-centered, meditative aspects of Kripalu Yoga.  My favorite mottos are: “If you can breathe, you can do yoga” and “Yoga should feel delicious!” I love teaching yoga and meditation to all levels of students, no matter what their experience or physical ability. My 200-hour yoga certification is through the Kripalu Center in Massachusetts and my EMYoga training certification is with Lauren Walker where I am an Advanced Teacher.  I am currently working on my 500-level training at Kripalu Center in Lenox, Massachusetts.

Joy is a big part of my spiritual practice in the Yogic and Buddhist Traditions and you might see me break out in spontaneous dance and laughter at any moment. I taste mindfulness in my own life by doing yoga daily (even in the grocery store), taking long walks and biking on the Katy Trail, playing the piano, seeking out diverse food experiences, watching documentary films, gardening, spending time with family and friends, and playing with Chi Chi (my torty cat).