In this episode, Nikki chats with manual therapist and yoga teacher Isidora Romantini about how addiction and self-destructive behaviors intersect with yoga and wellness culture.

They discuss:

- Isidora's experience with addiction and how the process of recovery shifted her perspective of movement and informs how she works with students

- How even people with addictions or disorders will often use "healthy behaviors" in an unhealthy way as a coping mechanism

- How our culture and social media affects our behaviors, goals, and sense of self

- Why compassion and tolerance are often the missing pieces in this equation of helping ourselves and our students feel better on and off the mat

About Isidora:

I started practicing yoga 13 years ago because I was told it would help my physical performance. I reluctantly started, and in the beginning always skipped Savasana because it was "boring".

After sticking with it, although I was still active in my addiction to alcohol, I found that it started to offer more than just the physical practice. Yoga gave me more than my other movement practices could ever give me. It quieted and woke me at the same time, becoming one of the catalysts towards my recovery.

Today, as a Registered Massage Therapist of 12 years, Yoga and Pilates Teacher for 8 years, I own a studio and run Teacher Trainings with the goal of sharing my knowledge of the body, cultivating teachers and students who think for themselves. I encourage those who wish to practice and teach to feel empowered and take the practice where it needs to go for them, in the present. Being of service is where I need to be.

To connect with Isidora, visit www.modernyogamethod.com or say hello on instagram @isidora_of_stouffvilleyogalife.