Sober Yogis

A perfect stranger took this picture. Her name was Trina and we met on the hurricane ridge trail in Olympic National Park.

She had just gotten off of a 12hr shift at the hospital and wanted to get more steps in.

I’m still in awe of how she captured the essence of the childlike joy that still lives inside me.

That lives inside us all.

It’s easy to forget.

Thank you, Trina.

“It remains the dream of every life to realize itself, to reach out and lift oneself up to greater heights. A life that continues to remain on the safe side of its own habits and repetitions, that never engages with the risk of its own possibility, remains an unlived life.”

It was nearly four years ago on this mountain top I heard my life whisper ‘you have to leave’.

So I did.

And here I am.

Thank you to everyone who has sent labor, love, money, food, etc. Your generosity kept me sane and paid my rent this month 🥹

Recovery is taking longer than expected and I’m still on crutches a month later 😕

Making meals is the biggest challenge (right foot gets sooo tired being the only one holding me up).

So if you can bring me a meal or send a door dash that would take such a weight off (literally).

DM me and I’ll send a link to my meal train 🙏

I soak my foot in the icy cold deschutes river every day- this spot right here. It heals my broken bone and soothes my achy heart.

Life insisted I sit still this summer. I’m not fighting.

“Let go or be dragged”, she said. My face cupped softly in her hands, a gentle smile in her eyes.

When will I return to work? Where will that be? Will my own love ever be enough? How can I stop living in fear? And when can I ditch these gd crutches??

No idea.

I will lie in her loving arms as I unfurl.

Waiting.
Resting.
Trusting.

“Create a clearing
in the dense forest of your life
and wait there patiently,
until the song that is your life
falls into your own cupped hands.” Martha Postlethwaite

I was addicted to m**h for eight years. I remember so clearly the day I sat holed up in my bathroom, staring at my pipe, thinking with 100% certainty that I would NEVER be able to stop. It give me chills me to this day.

Long term m**h use is DETRIMENTAL to the central nervous system.

🧠 loss of neurons that cannot be recovered
🧠 structural changes; damage to brain tissue
🧠 anxiety
🧠 confusion
🧠 mood disturbances
🧠 emotional dysregulation

The odds were against me.

I've been free from the chains of addiction for over thirteen years. I've managed to recover enough of my brain to complete a bachelors degree, over 500hrs of teacher training and start my own business that's been thriving for a decade now.

How is that possible?

🧘‍♀️ YOGA AND MEDITATION 🧘‍♀️

(Shocker, I know)

Studies show that yoga and meditation...

💪 increases activation of the prefrontal cortex (the thinking mind)
💪 impacts the activity of the amygdala (emotional mind)
💪 reduces rumination and mind wandering in the default mode network (daydreaming mind)
💪 increases the volume of the hippocampus which is involved in learning and memory

For those in the throes of addiction, I love you. There's hope.

🌟 And there's a spot for you in the Sober Yoga Immersion 🌟

📆 Fri, March 7-Sun, March 9, 2025 online via Zoom
🔗 Link in bio

🌟 Is the Sober Yoga Immersion + Teacher Training Right for You? 🌟

This training is perfect for drug and alcohol counselors, therapists, yoga teachers and yoga students. Increase your knowledge and enhance your skills with trauma-informed techniques and programming suited for people who want a healthy relationship with alcohol et al. 🌿

Curious if it's a fit? Let's connect! 💌Send me a direct message if you have any questions.

📅 Fri, March 7 - Sun, March 9, 2025
🔗 LINK IN BIO
👩‍💻 Online via Zoom

💔 This was taken in treatment just months after I was r***d. I was 15.

The juvenile justice system did the best they could, but little was known about the connection between trauma and addiction in the early 90s.

I wasn’t even addicted at the time. I was using drugs to numb the pain.

But they said I was an addict and that had a disease that would never go away.

So my heart broke a little more and I continued to numb.

The guiding principle in Sober Yoga is that we are NOT addicts at our core. Our true nature, as yoga says, is goodness. We don’t drug or drink or gamble etc because we’re addicts. We do it to soothe the pain of being disconnected from our wholeness.

There are spots left in the Sober Yoga Immersion + Teacher Training and I would love to share the empowering concepts and practices that revealed my true nature and healed my broken heart.

Sober Yoga Immersion + Teacher Training

🌟 Sat, March 7- Sun, March 9 online via Zoom 🌟
🔗 https://www.sadiebarryoga.com/immersion
LINK IN BIO

✨ Learn an approach for a healthy relationship with alcohol (et al) that takes into consideration the interplay between the nervous system and addiction ✨

The Sober Yoga Immersion + Teacher Training equips you with the knowledge, skills, and tools to:

🧘‍♀️Soothe a dysregulated nervous system
🧘‍♀️Understand how the chakras are connected to human development
🧘‍♀️Create supportive spaces tailored to the needs of people on the sober path
🧘‍♀️Learn a new interpretation of addiction that doesn't make it the enemy
🧘‍♀️See how belief patterns take root in the body

Empower your teaching and make a difference! 🙌

📅 Fri, March 7- Sunday, March 9, 2025 online via Zoom
🔗 LINK IN BIO

💕 The heart behind Sober Yoga Immersion + Teacher Training 💕

Twelve step recovery started feeling yucky after about 5 years. I grew more and more frustrated trying to force myself to live with ideals that weren’t authentic to me and then ridiculed or judged by others if I challenged them.

The heaviest hitter was powerlessness. After all, that's the foundation upon which the program is built. But that word becomes toxic when you're a person trying to process and heal from a trauma history.

I got smaller and smaller in the rooms, quieting my voice and burying my truth. I lived there for YEARS. Not anymore.

Sober Yoga is built around empowerment 🌿 Sobriety gets to look however you want. Harm reduction, moderation, abstinence…it’s all valid. YOU HAVE THE POWER TO CHOOSE.

The foundational building blocks of Sober Yoga are nervous system regulation, mindfulness, and self compassion to find your center and reclaim your power.

Try on a new pair of glasses and join me on this journey 🙏

📅 Fri, Sept March 7- Sun, March 9, 2025 online via Zoom
🔗 https://www.sadiebarryoga.com/immersion