My Yoga Journey: From Student to Teacher

If you had told me ten years ago that I’d be a yoga instructor — let alone owning my own business and creating a space for honest, soul-deep conversations on and off the mat — I would have laughed and said, “No way.”

I always knew I wanted to help people. That part was never unclear. But the how and when felt like this never-ending puzzle. I spent most of my twenties helping build other people’s dreams. I was successful on paper, but inside, I was deeply unfulfilled. There was always this quiet tug at my chest, a whisper that I was meant for more. I felt displaced, stuck, unsure of how to take the first step toward a life that felt like mine.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve struggled with self-esteem and body image. Body dysmorphia is real, heavy, and isolating — especially in a world where we didn’t talk about it, especially as young women growing up in the early 2000s. It felt like I was living inside my body, but not actually living in it. That kind of disconnect is hard to put into words.

While other kids wore tank tops in Florida’s 90-degree heat, I hid in hoodies, pulling fabric over the parts of myself I hoped no one would notice. I didn’t understand the “why” back then — only that I felt safest when I was unseen.

Maybe it was growing up right as social media started shaping what we thought we should look like. Maybe it was comparison culture. Maybe it was simply my own internal battle. Whatever the reason, I spent years inhabiting a body I didn’t feel connected to.

Then one day, I walked into a yoga studio… and everything shifted.

That first class felt like someone handing me a key I didn’t know I’d been searching for. I remember thinking, This is it. This is how I’m meant to help people.

The message was simple but life-changing:

Come as you are.

Honor where you are.

Stay present within the four corners of your mat.

Nothing else matters.

For an hour, the anxiety that lived in my chest 24/7 softened. The more I practiced, the more the anxiety loosened its grip. Weekly classes turned into multiple classes a week. Practice at the studio turned into practice at home. And eventually, yoga became the thing that carried me through moments I never thought I’d survive — like breathing through a full anxiety attack for the first time in my life.

For the first time… I felt peace. Actual, real, grounded peace. Yoga helped me quiet the noise, slow the spiraling thoughts, and feel connected to myself again. It helped me learn to love a body I had spent years trying to hide.

As my practice deepened, so did my curiosity. How could something as simple as breath — something we do without thinking — change everything? I wanted to understand, to learn, to grow.

So I took the biggest leap of my life. I invested in my education, in my healing, and in a path that made me feel whole for the first time. And when I did, the universe met me halfway. Doors opened. Opportunities aligned. I found a sense of belonging I’d spent years searching for.

And from that, Bound By Karma was born — a sanctuary rooted in community, connection, and the belief that we all deserve to feel safe and seen in our own bodies. A space for like-minded souls to soften, explore, and reconnect with the parts of themselves they lost along the way.

This dream was never about becoming a millionaire. It’s about living with purpose. It’s about sharing the teachings that changed my life. It’s about cultivating a community built on compassion, truth, and good karma.

That is yoga.

Come as you are.

Honor where you are.

Grow at your own pace.

Being a teacher is one of the greatest gifts of my life. Guiding others as they uncover the strength, softness, and magic that has always existed within them — that’s the part that lights me up. My students do the real work. I just help them unlock what the world convinced them to hide.

Hope to see you on the mat, friends.

With love always,

Lauren