​I hold a PhD and MSW in Social Work and am an expert in integrative health and wellness. I discovered yoga around age 11 from recorded classes at my local library and have been an avid follower since.

 

As an adult, yoga opened the door to learning, practicing, and becoming certified in numerous other somatic practices, including brainspotting (certified brainspotting practitioner), Reiki energy healing (certified level II), meditation, trauma-sensitive breathwork, and EFT tapping, among others. In addition to being a certified yoga instructor (RYT-200), I have trained with leading institutes in the evidence-based mind/body space, including the Deepak Chopra Foundation.

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My work brings somatic and holistic healing practices into traditional health and mental health care.​ My yoga classes, specifically, blend classic hatha, vinyasa, restorative, and yin yoga sequencing with somatic practices. My classes aim to ground the body and release tension while letting positivity and light in.

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Earlier in my career, I worked in the human and community development space, serving in both direct practice and policy. For over a decade, I worked in international humanitarian development, leading programs across the world in countries including Guatemala, Brazil, and Ireland, and working for organizations including the United Nations, the International Labour Organization (ILO), and various international NGOs and non-profits.

 

Over the last five years, I headed a private practice, which blended somatic healing practices into traditional mental health care. I closed my private practice indefinitely in 2025 to return to macro-level, community-based social work, which is where my heart lies.

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Today, I serve full-time as the Executive Director and a founding Board Member of the Susan Kay Matthew Foundation, a charitable family foundation. I am based in Hawai'i on the island of O'ahu, and frequently travel to Florida, where my family is located.

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On the side, I offer community yoga classes, wellness workshops, and educational talks that bring mind/body/spirit practices like yoga and meditation into preventative health care and wellness. I am deeply passionate about wellness and active living for all people, in all bodies, across the life course. I have witnessed first-hand as a Dr. of Social Work and have experienced myself just how transformative and expansive physical movement and being in nature can be for our health, healing, longevity, and well-being.

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