About Me

My name is Joanna and my pronouns are she/her. I was born and raised in Durham, NC, which is the native and stolen land of the Lumbee, Skarukreh/Tuscarora, Cheraw, Occaneechi, and Shakori Nations. My first spiritual home was at Watts Street Baptist Church where years before, my grandfather was the minister and had a statue of the Buddha sitting on his desk. I grew up with a belief in life’s goodness and a knowing that I was held in grace.

A transformative event at age nineteen left me wrestling with life’s big questions and feeling the sense of groundlessness that we all feel at one point or another. Most therapists did not know how to relate to my experience in a way that felt true or empowering to me. I did, however, find mindfulness during this time and it became a refuge.

I later received degrees in Elementary Education and Special Education from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro and taught in the NC public school system before having my first child.

When I became a mother, I experienced a resurgence of this familiar anxiety along with a strong pull to understand my inner world and connect with what I call “God” in a much deeper way. I was fortunate enough to find a therapist who related to my experience with trust, respect, and reverence and it was then that I began to find my way. I developed the skills to change my relationship to thoughts, to learn more about how nervous systems work, and to practice surrendering to a deeper knowing.

Compelled to learn more and help others, I completed The Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program in 2023, a two year professional training program for teaching awareness and compassion based practices with Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield. This program was in partnership with Sounds True and The University of California, Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center. In 2024, I will have completed an additional year of meditation teacher training for guiding individuals in embodied inquiry. My personal experience leaves me with a passion for working with young adults encountering similar existential openings and also parents of young children, though I’m happy to work with anyone who feels pulled to nurture their inner world through the lens of mindfulness.

As a teacher and fellow mindfulness practitioner, I am committed to my own continued growth both personally and professionally. I engage in ongoing professional development with my mentor, Stan Eisenstein, and have my own personal practices to take care of my mental and spiritual health. I am also committed to being trauma informed, anti-racist, and an ally to the LGBTQIA+ community. Additionally, I am a proud member of the Whole Mama Yoga Teacher Collective.

I currently live in Durham, NC with my husband, two young children, and a lab mix named Tallulah. My primary role is homeschool parent and I enjoy carving out space for mindfulness and contemplative practices as they are my life’s passion. You can find me in nature with my family, gardening, listening to music, enjoying vegan food, and devouring audiobooks and podcasts.