I came to this work
through my own body
My philosophy isn't based on protocol. It's based on the practice of slowing down, listening to the body, and healing at the root.
o1. THE BEGINNINGI started as a dancer
I started as a dancer.
I trained at UCSB and went on to dance professionally in New York City. Dance gave me discipline and precision. It taught me how to move, how to perform, how to align from the outside-in.
Dance also taught me to push. To bypass. To perform through pain because someone was always ready to take my place. That culture of endurance, of overriding what my body was telling me, lived inside of me for years.
o2. THE TURNING POINTThen my body stopped me ….
My sweet body had had enough.
My back went into such severe spasm I could barely walk. I saw two orthopedic surgeons — one told me I should never dance again and urged surgery. The other sent me to physical therapy. The first PT barely assessed me, barely listened. I left her office in more pain.
Then I found Nicola Weiner, a PT who worked with dancers and taught at the Kane School. She assessed me for nearly an hour. She listened. She told me I could heal. My body exhaled. I felt seen, hopeful, and empowered.
That was the moment everything changed. She showed me what healing actually is. And what my work would one day become.
I've healed my own body more than once by listening beneath the surface, beneath the symptom. It's the foundation of everything I teach.
twenty-five years of learning
-
MOVEMENT
BFA Dance, UCSB
Professional Dancer, NYC 2000–2004
Kane School of Core Integration
1st Generation Pilates – Jay Grimes— Jay Grimes
Vintage Pilates -
BODY & BREATH
Gil Hedley — Human Dissection Labs
Alexander Technique — Jane Kasdan
Art of Living — Breathwork and Kriya
OM Yoga, Iyengar Institute, NYC
Hypopressives & Pelvic Health — Abby Lord -
MIND & SPIRIT
The Work of Byron Katie
Enneagram Training
Archetypal Studies
Elena Brower -
TEACHING
Vintage Pilates — Teacher Trainer
Kane School — Teacher Trainer
PostureWorks Physical Therapy, Santa Monica
YogaWorks, Los Angeles
o4. THE ROOTSComing home to the wisdom of my ancestors
Topanga reminds me of Kefalonia, Greece, where my Yiayia came from. The slowness. The animals that live here. The fertility of the land.
My Yiayia left Greece to marry my grandfather and settled in Hermosa Beach, where she worked the fields and brought flowers to the downtown LA market. She wasn't traditionally educated, but she was deeply connected to God. She was a hard worker, and a medicine woman.
She listened to her intuition. Both of my Yiayias did. They listened to their bones and trusted what they couldn't see.
There's a Greek word for this: Metis. Embodied wisdom — knowing and trusting the bones, the body. This is the heart of my work.
o5. THE INTENTIONI help you slow down and listen to what your body is telling you
To trust the soft signals under the loud symptoms.
Your body knows what to do. I'm here to help you remember.
“Barbara has been an absolute gift in my life! With her guidance, I learned to listen to my body and developed a much healthier relationship with it—one based on acceptance and love.”
-Ali K
"I have never done breathwork like that! It was incredibly profound and you are an amazing teacher”
-Barrett Freibert, Trauma Informed Coach
Barbara has been an absolute gift in my life! With her guidance, I learned to listen to my body and developed a much healthier relationship with it—one based on acceptance and love.
-Ali K
"Since working with Barbara, I have less fear in my mind and body. I have more confidence in moving, and in life. My body has also changed and I feel I am discovering a new strength that THRILLS me."
-Joan B
FEATURED INPilates Style Magazine
September Letters
HEAL with PrimaFoodie
Southbay Yoga Conference
Voyage LA
ShoutOut LA
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