About Jamie
Jamie first discovered yoga and meditation 23 years ago as a high school student in Sewanee, TN. Inspired by the profound impact these practices had on her own well-being, she completed her first teacher training in 2010 with the intention of combining her B.A in Psychology with complementary techniques. This marked the beginning of her journey to integrate ancient wisdom with modern therapeutic approaches.
In 2013, while studying maternal mortality in the Mississippi Delta, Jamie became acutely aware of the effects of burnout on healthcare professionals. She gave her first wellness presentation to OB-GYN physicians and nurses, sparking her passion for supporting allopathic healers with self-care tools. Later that year, she completed a Yoga for Self-Regulation and Trauma training under Hala Khouri and began deepening her focus on trauma-informed practices.
Moved by the story of J.D. Salinger and his struggles with combat stress, Jamie pioneered a yoga program for PTSD and pain management at a VA hospital, bringing yogaā€™s healing potential to veterans. She also managed outreach for a yoga service nonprofit, directing her studies toward trauma-informed care.
Jamie attended several workshops with Roshi Joan Halifax and was inspired by her GRACE model along with her contributions to contemplative careā€”especially within end-of-life settings. In 2015, Jamie took the leap and began volunteering with UCLA's No One Dies Alone program, with the desire to better understand the unique stressors placed on workers encountering death and dying. She eventually returned home to Nashville to be with family, and continued volunteering in the palliative unit at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, later serving an internship in hospice care. She spent a total of 2.5 years in end-of-life care.
Jamie simultaneously worked at Vanderbilt School of Medicine in the Center for Experiential Learning and Assessment, specializing in healthcare communication and patient-provider relationships.
She designed and implemented her first workshop for healthcare professionalsĀ at Vanderbiltā€™s Osher Center for Integrative Health.
The first group of participants in her 3 module program consisted of mostly pediatric workers, so when Jamie moved to Denver she felt called to volunteer at the Children's Hospital of Colorado. She spent a year immersing herself in the NICU, PICU, oncology and pulmonary units to gain a greater understanding of the stressors placed on those who care for young lives.
Early in 2020 she began ride-alongs with fire service/EMS and law enforcement.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, she returned home to Tennessee to care for her elderly father, where she continues to reside.
In the Summer of 2020, Jamie accepted an online instructor position for the Contemplative Sciences Center at the University of Virginia teaching students about nervous system regulation, yoga therapy, and other mind-body tools for self care.Ā
In April 2021 Jamie began an 800 hour training with Inner Peace Yoga Therapy, guided by renowned teachers whose expertise spans a variety of disciplines. The faculty included Joseph Le Page, Indu Arora, Maria Shamas, Neil and Lisa Pearson, Chinnamasta Stiles, Dr. Shailla Vaidya, Smitha Malian, Anne Pitman and Jessica Patterson. With the support of her program director Michele Lawrence, Jamie also began to research yoga therapy techniques for psychedelic harm reduction.The collective wisdom of her teachersā€”spanning somatics, Ayurvedic principles, trauma-informed care, and subtle body healingā€”provides the foundation for her innovative approach, integrating traditional yoga therapy with emerging practices in psychedelic therapy.
In October 2023, Jamie earned her designation as a Certified Yoga Therapist (C-IAYT) through the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT), a globally recognized credential for advanced therapeutic yoga practitioners. This achievement represents the culmination of years of dedicated study, practice, and application of yoga therapy techniques within diverse populations.
