Today we’d like to introduce you to Jodi Carey.
Jodi, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Since I was very young, I was known to be that very serious child who’d play by herself and danced to the beat of her own drum. I was always drawn to spirituality, and it started with growing up in a very celebratory, family oriented protestant Christian church in lower Manhattan. I loved singing songs to this mysterious god and healing all of the sick people in a church through prayer. Although I do not consider myself a Christian anymore, I believed it was that time that taught me the power of Faith and Prayer. It was also during this time that I fell under the spell of dancing.
By the time I was 18 I was very involved in performing arts and theater and was already dabbling in books about chakras and healing work, as well as teaching dance and movement. By the time I was 20 I started performing professionally with a company that took me to London in 2000 then Broadway that following year. This is when I found Yoga. A tired body and loss of passion took me to meditation. I feel that Yoga taught me acceptance and stillness and dance taught me discipline and focus. This was the bridge that ignited a natural lean towards teaching yoga as a self-healing art.
I dove into many teacher training and holistic studies between 2001-2008, initially certifying in Integral Hatha Yoga. I was pulled to the flow of vinyasa yoga, and teachers who taught from tantric perspectives like Shiva Rea, Gary Kraftsow and Mark Whitwell as well as teachers who come from a more Vedantic, even Kashmir Shivaism lineage. Meditative states revealed many of the teachings that I teach today. Having ignited more intuitive intellectualism rather than the study of books, I empower my students to study and devote themselves from this perspective. I say, “the primary source of information is direct experience, theory is secondary”.
Teaching now for 17 years, still, my deepest intention for myself and students is to continuing trusting the great inner teacher that dwells within through cultivating purity of awareness and devotion to living life fully. teachers are everywhere… in the trees, in the ocean, in the bees, in our hearts.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The road has been bumpy! Becoming a full-time yoga teacher 17 years ago was not the norm. I had to say YES to every opportunity to teach and that meant teaching for free and in places that were scary and not very welcoming. But this is what taught me humility and to be creative in my approach.
I used to teach 18 yoga classes a week just to make rent. Some would judge this and say yoga teaching isn’t about making money. I am so grateful that I went through this so-called boot camp of teaching as it taught me about energy management, saying “no”, boundaries, and finding my true voice much earlier in my career. I had to look deeply in the mirror every day during a time I was going through my own self-healing and growth.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the flowintuityoga story. Tell us more about the business.
I call my style flow~intuit. Of course, I am opening to that changing along the way as I continue to evolve.
Back in 2005 I worked in a clinical setting in the research of yoga and post-traumatic stress disorder, and was
exposed to a lot of neuroscience and psycho-therapeutic models and study. I believe it was this experience that accelerated my growth as a teacher. I came across some research by the Russian psychologist, Mihaly Csikszentmihaly who coined the term “flow”. a state of heightened focus and immersion in activities such as art, play and work. Combined with my passion for cultivating the intuitive mind and emotional intelligence I thought it to be a great way to describe what I do with my clients when I work one on one.
Over the past few years, my private sessions have evolved into something that looks like a combination of counseling, energy work, breath-practice, and postural stabilization. I am fascinated by the somatic wisdom of the body informing us about the pain we hold from unprocessed trauma. I am not a therapist, nor do I consider myself a healer. However, my clients do come to me for these things. I create a space for them to become empowered, and that’s my sole intention.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I don’t believe in luck. I believe in karma. What you give is what you receive.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.flowintuityoga.com
- Instagram: flowintuit_movement
- Facebook: flowintuit
Image Credit:
Kiro Ace
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