Therapeutic Playful Yoga + Adaptive Yoga Studio

Founded on the virtues of INCLUSION and ACCESSIBILITY, TheraPLAYoga is changing the SHAPE and VIBE of yoga in Lansing.

A specialized practice and studio space for kids, teens, and adults; TheraPLAYoga is, TRULY, for every body, brain and ability.

A Care & Wellness Modality

Yoga isn’t about contorting your body into graduated poses to- one day- be good enough to register for an advanced class.

Guess what! Moving is only a fraction of the practice; you don’t have to move AT ALL… or maybe you struggle with stillness. Movement and stillness is my option to you; you take what works.

It’s not about being thin, White, able-bodied, or having a brand-name mat, and wearing spandex pants.  But you wouldn’t know all this by what’s dominantly portrayed by yoga teachers, studios, and social media.

Yoga is a complex mind-body practice of inquiry, exploration, and engagement; with physical and mental health benefits, supported by scientific research and 5,000 years.

Very basically- Yoga connects the mind, body, and spirit through physical movements and stillness, breathing practices, meditation, and ethical philosophy. There are different lineages, often referred to as styles of yoga.

What style is TheraPLAYoga?

Specialty Yoga

Yoga for children and youth is a yoga study and practice; within developmentally appropriate parameters, typically measured by ableist standards.

Adaptive yoga is practiced using props and modified physical movements to support diverse groups including people with physical disabilities, injuries, limitations, and/or new-to-yoga.

Therapeutic yoga is practiced with an intention to prevent, reduce, or alleviate mental and physical pain and suffering; and improve overall physical and mental health.

However, if you or your child experience disabilities, neurodivergence, trauma, or anxiety – then you’ve likely felt unseen, unheard or unsafe, and excluded.

THAT’S WHERE I SLIDE IN.
NOT NEARLY AS SMOOTH AS TOM CRUISE IN RISKY BUSINESS.

I make difficult yoga poses, confusing yoga philosophy, the science of yoga, embodied self-care, and engagement radically inclusive and truly accessible to diverse bodies, brains, and abilities within a space that is accepting and affirming to all identities and experiences.

Therapeutic Playful Yoga

Through a trauma-sensitive and anti-ableist lens, TheraPLAYoga is a therapeutic, playful yoga practice; which uses:

• lots of supportive props
• conscious cue phrasing and affirming language
• playful and creative tools
• sensory-integrated, therapeutic modifications with awareness to contraindications, conditions, and limitations.

A Few Things Supported by TheraPLAYoga :

Therapeutic Yoga Teacher

I take a different approach than most yoga teachers and studio owners out there:

TheraPLAYoga is a boutique yoga studio within a 100+ year old building; offering space for private sessions and small groups. 

Located on the Eastside on Downtown Lansing on the Michigan Avenue Corridor; TheraPLAYoga is the middle child between The Green Door and Everybody Reads Bookstore.

I can make heart shaped Roger Rabbit eyes at Rooted Socialite and Strange Matter from my windows.

I started my business to fill the hole in the local yoga community and holistic wellness programs for 
individuals and families who experience the intersectionality of neurodivergence, disabilities, and trauma.

AROUND HERE, INCLUSION AND ACCESSIBILITY GO BEYOND OCCASIONS AND EVENTS. TheraPLAYoga is FOUNDED ON THE VIRTUES OF INCLUSION AND ACCESSIBILITY.

Through my words and actions, I seek to disrupt the systems of privilege and power that contribute to and maintain disparities and social inequities in the yoga community and my local community.

Through therapeutic, playful yoga I…

• empower kids teens, and adults in becoming their own best advocates by cultivating self-awareness, regulation, and resilience
• help people safely and effectively manage stress and chronic pain, who experience disabilities, injury, limitations, and health conditions
• coach discerning parents, who live on the edge of chaos and exhaustion, in tending to their needs and building unshakable confidence in parenting with compassion, intention, and respect.
• teach people with diverse bodies and brains, who hold self-limiting beliefs or experience gatekeeping, ways to practice yoga that honors and is compassionate to their body and mind
• offer non-intimidating and accessible tools for explicit compassion, empowerment, and resilience– and share them through group experiences, one on one, written articles, and social platforms.

I partner with non-profit organizations, schools, community-minded businesses, and YOU to uplift individuals and families in the Greater Lansing area, who would benefit from therapeutic, playful yoga.

And hey, I’m looking for co-conspirators just like YOU. But before we roll out our mats, let us first plot. Ya know, to be sure it’s a Cinderella fit.🪄