Bio: a Laura and a Tara
Certifications & Accreditations:
200-Hour, Yoga Alliance-Accredited, Certified Experienced Yoga Teacher since 2016
30-Hour, Yoga Alliance-Accredited, SUP + Yoga Instructor since 2017
Bachelor of Science in Psychology, University of West Georgia, 2019
Master of Social Work, Florida State University, 2022
Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) since May 2023
Trained in the Internal Family Systems Model, Theory and Practice since January 2024
About me…
I work at the intersection of the grounded and the mystical, integrating somatic tools like yoga, meditation and present-moment awareness with therapeutic skills and practice. I offer classical yoga and meditation classes along with somatic therapy services, each rooted in my guiding philosophy that we don’t need to be fixed, but seen.
I am a certified, experienced 200-hour yoga instructor (E-RYT 200), have been studying the practice since 2013 and teaching all over Georgia and in the online space since 2014. I became a Senior Teacher in the Kashi Yoga Lineage in 2021. My offerings encourage students to relate to the breath, body and moment as center points for an experience of greater wholeness, and on commitment to honoring authentic yoga - the kind that is empowering to all practitioners living in all bodies and identities.
I teach yoga asana (physical postures) with a focus on safety, integrity, adaptability, and intelligent alignment, and design my classes with a synthesis of creative sequencing and workshop-style learning. Each session features thorough breath and meditative techniques to ground practitioners into the inner awareness central to yoga. I also offer guided meditation sessions designed to make the deep, mystical breath and contemplative practices of classical yoga as accessible as possible.
In addition to my work as a yoga and meditation teacher, I am a somatic psychotherapist under clinical supervision, having graduated from Florida State University as a Master of Social Work in December of 2022. I earned my associate licensure (LMSW) in May of 2023, and in that same year joined Align Wellness as a clinician. My therapeutic style synthesizes body-based and contemplative tools like yoga and meditation with classical talk therapy skills and practice to encourage nervous system regulation, empowerment and growth in my clients.
I also have a background in social media strategy, with experience empowering clients on the spiritual path to show up in the wild, ever-changing online space in alignment with their capacity and values, through both consulting and account management. I’ve been considering prescient questions about how to walk a spiritual path in our increasingly-online world for most of my adult life.
My personal journey into the landscape where embodiment meets mysticism began when I was just 19, when the yoga practice found me in the midst of an intense struggle with anxiety. After studying yoga at my undergraduate university for 2 years, I became a student of Swami Jaya Devi Bhagavati in 2015 and graduated from Kashi Atlanta Ashram’s Classical Yoga Teacher Training program in 2016, a program I now help to facilitate. It was through my training that I received a spiritual name from the Kashi Yoga Lineage: Tara Devi Jaya, named for the Tibetan Buddhist goddess of compassion and liberation. Those qualities are the ultimate intention of all that I do, and I’m honored to have you here with me.