My STory
As a hard-core workaholic since my teens, finding yoga in my 20s saved me from myself while I pushed my limits building my art career, giving me a sense of belonging, community, and establishing healthier habits and connection to my body’s intuition. As my jewelry business soared in my 30s, I started teaching yoga to deepen my practice and found that serving others nourished my spirit in a way that felt sustainable and rewarding.
My early 40s hit me like a brick wall - chronic hip, pelvic, shoulder and foot pain, nonstop colds - I was in burnout. I needed to choose ME over work PRONTO. My husband was having panic attacks and anxiety was palpable everywhere. A friend introduced us to Restorative Yoga and it was love at first Savasana: Release, Rest, Refuge. Then my massage therapist had me try the MELT Method® which empowered me to proactively manage and relieve my pain. To combat the flu in 2019, I turned to Facial Gua Sha self-massage for decongestion and lymphatic drainage, leading to a faster recovery with added benefits of decreased jaw tension and glowing skin. Now at 50, I look and feel better than ever, and so can you!
ABOUT EMIKO OYE
I am a Yoga Alliance Certified Yoga Teacher in Forrest Yoga (ERYT-200), Certified MELT Method® Level 5 Instructor, Reiki II Certified and Jewelry Artist in LEGO® based in San Francisco, CA. My mission is to help workaholics and creatives like myself experience the transformative power of Letting Go and slowing down in order to connect to the body’s inherent wisdom and become more present in life. Do Less and Be in the Now are my mantras.
I’ve studied yoga since 1997 and have been a teacher since 2012. My yoga evolution has mirrored my artistic career, covering the spectrum from super hot and disciplined (Bikram, Hot Hatha), to empowering my inner She-Ra and finding my healing tribe (Forrest), to embracing the Pause and self-empathy (Restorative Yoga and NonViolent Communication).
Restorative Yoga, complemented with MELT Method® and Facial Gua Sha self-massage has been the secret sauce to me staying out of chronic pain, feeling younger from the inside out and accessing my inner calm. My interests in Mindfulness Meditation, pranayama and experiential anatomy inform my sessions. I approach wellness from a holistic perspective. In my group classes I create a safe space for people to be real and vulnerable and be inspired by one another.
Cultivating community, corgis, cooking, comedy and crystals bring me joy.
With much gratitude to my teachers: Judith Hanson Lasater, Sue Hitzmann, Ana Forrest, Oren Jay Sofer, Mary Richards, Mary Jarvis.
“I started taking Restorative Yoga luckily with emiko as my very first teacher.
From her I learned how to truly relax my nervous system and listen to silence! I have learned that restorative yoga is the pot of gold. I use everything I learn from emiko long after I take her classes. I especially find her suggested mantras to be potent, such as “Body, Breath, Release,” and “I am safe in this moment.” ”
