Guiding an outdoor retreat with Naked and Afraid star Laura Zerra and Heather Nodelman near Lake Louise, Montana. September 2021. (Photo credit: Heather Nodelman)
Clarity &
Compassion
Playfulness
& Power
I help you build your capacity for stress and accomplish your goals through somatic awareness and resilience practices. You’ll learn to return to the present moment, observe yourself and come back to center while connecting to your inner and outer resources.
I work with a individuals, groups, families and businesses to help you activate your genius and build your capacity for your life.
I coach one-on-one sessions, group classes, and lead retreats.
Photo: Ingrid Peterson
Hi there, I’m Shannon,
a somatic coach and yoga teacher.
I’m also an artist and community builder.
You can read about all of the above on this website.:)
I want to see a world where people unlock their gifts and offer them to the world.
Yoga and somatics have birthed my art, community, business, and ability to lead a more fulfilling life despite countless ups and downs.
These are liberation practices. I know they work. I’ve felt it in my life.
So, I offer somatics and the arts in my coaching to empower you to do the same.
You contain multitudes.
How these layers function shapes your moment to moment experience of yourself. Each layer is a manifestation of who you are. Each layer is an entry point for self-discovery, healing and actualization.
My coaching holds a mirror to your layers to see where you are resourced, and where there’s work to do.
We work together to bring harmony to your layers of self.
Ambition, balance, and coming into your gifts is a life long journey. The process not linear. Growth can sometimes be challenging.
In my life and in what I’ve seen of the people I work with, the most challenging moments are precursors to break throughs.
I help you build your capacity for your evolution.
I’m also not a one and only style coach. I love to collaborate with your care. I can and will refer you to others when it is appropriate.
I have taught folx ages 2 months to 92, BIPOC, LGBTQ+, Latinx, C-suite Executives and Architects, office teams, pregnant and new moms, dads, artists, creatives, athletes, working professionals, housewives, people who work with their hands, doctors, healers, social workers, teachers, attorneys, techies, persons with disabilities, and dying people.
What I love about teaching is the puzzle that each person or situation presents and learning how our pieces fit together with the most stability and ease.
Testimonials
“We at EcoR1 are grateful for our yoga sessions with Shannon. Her sessions are a meditative break from a busy workday, giving us the ability to unwind and take care of ourselves both physically and mentally. Since March we have continued our sessions via videoconference, and we have been very happy with them. Thank you Shannon! ”
“When I first started working with Shannon, I felt stuck in areas of my life and leadership and was holding myself back. Through our 1:1 somatic coaching work, she has helped me unlock an inner strength and bring more of it into how I show up in the world. I have greater clarity, more confidence in my voice, and practical tools to ground and regulate myself so I can show up better at work and in my personal life.
Our work has also fundamentally changed how I see and navigate situations and relationships. Shannon has helped me build a much deeper awareness of myself and others — to understand what may be happening beneath the surface, recognize patterns and dynamics more clearly, and respond with greater intention rather than simply reacting. That increased sense of relatedness and situational awareness has made me a better leader, partner, and human.
Shannon is an incredibly gifted practitioner. Her ability to hold space for me as a whole human is unlike anything I’ve experienced before. There is room for the full range of emotion in our work together: fear, anger, grief, joy, humor, and everything in between. I leave our sessions feeling more connected to myself, clearer, and stronger.
I’ve been raving about Shannon and the impact of our work together, both personally and professionally, for years. I’m deeply grateful for her and will continue investing in myself and in this work with her for years to come.”
“Your First is Always Special. Shannon was our morning yoga guide on a company retreat. The other (younger) team members were stupefied that I had managed to live over 60 years, much of it in Southern California, without ever doing yoga. Shannon was super encouraging, and managed to tailor sessions that challenged the more experienced practitioners, but also allowed a novice to explore and enjoy the satisfaction of accomplishment.”
“Meeting Shannon is a perfect example of the universe sending me exactly what I needed. As soon as I walked into the yoga studio I was immediately struck by Shannon’s energy, her openness, her smile, her grace (and her adorable outfit!). After an hour of yoga with Shannon, and reconnecting myself to yoga, I had an epiphany. I realized a large part of the reason why I had taken such a long break from yoga wasn’t just because I had no time, but because I hadn’t felt fully aligned with a yoga teacher in a long time. Shannon had opened her door to me and I walked through. I knew I had found something special. Amidst my current crazy and busy schedule, I have managed to commit to yoga again! It is Shannon’s creative classes and dedication to learning more about yoga, herself and her connection to the world, that keeps me coming to class, and refreshed and reconnected to myself when I leave.”
“Shannon is a profoundly wise teacher. Taking what she has learned from many books, her own life, and great teachers, and applying it directly to her life on and off the mat. Shannon weaves it all into her teachings and shares with grace and clarity. Her integrity, strive for balance, and true compassion makes her a trust worthy teacher. Shannon’s Asana classes are the perfect *balance of challenging yourself and restorative*. She helps you to build strength by working up to challenging poses. Combined with supportive grounding poses and meditations to help release tension in the body. I always walk away from class having learned something for my mind, body, and spirit. Feeling supported, strong, and uplifted.
Participating in the share your heart project was truly a joyous experience. It ignited my physically body, allowed me to tap into my creative mind, and offered the time and space to self reflect on important relationships in my life. The combination truly links mind, body, and spirit, allowing for deep healing to take place and ultimately allowing one to return to their joy, by releasing what your heart has been holding and/or wants to share. It is a simple yet deeply powerful practice. In the past I have found it challenging to create the space to draw and make art; the share your heart project opened me up to dormant potential I didn’t know I had and made it easy to begin creating. I enjoyed sharing this practice in community, where deeper conversations could evolve from the beautiful prompts. ”
Who I’m not
I am not a licensed psychotherapist. Though at times I partner with mental health professionals, I work outside the mental health system. The coaching I offer is body and nervous system based, and based in learning yogic lifestyle and creativity.
The services I provide are not mental health treatment, western psychology, psychotherapy, or psychiatry. I do not diagnose or provide psychological treatment. I am not a medical doctor. I can consult with yours if you have one, and if you need referrals, I can provide them.
I am a 500+ hour certified yoga & meditation teacher with a decade of daily spiritual study. I am a trained landscape designer, artist, writer, dancer, teacher, facilitator, mother and human being. I have a certificate in Somatic Experiencing® which helps you focus on present-moment awareness, body literacy and self-regulation skill building . These modalities are the lenses through which I help you build the capacity to bloom outside the box.
Thanks @nastasiadusapin for the pretty pictures