Yoga Sanctuary

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Yoga Sanctuary Yoga Sanctuary is a nonprofit studio seeking to increase access to holistic yoga for all who seek it

Yoga Sanctuary is a nonprofit, holistic studio, offering a place of respite and integration for your body, mind, and spirit. We seek to teach safe, fun relational yoga every day, to EVERY BODY, offering classes, workshops, and 230hr Yoga Teacher Training at sustainable prices fostering abundant access to holistic yoga. We recognize the disparity and inequity inherent in our country’s origin and intentionally offer reduced rates and scholarships to BIPOC folks who have been harmed by systemic racism. If you are experiencing financial hardship and want to join us for yoga, please connect with [email protected] - we want to share yoga, share life and share peace with you. The practice of yoga tells us that everything we need for peace and wholeness is already inside us but living and practicing yoga is best done in the context of a supportive community. Together, we will work to ignite the transformative and healing power of being fully present in our bodies and in our lives.

"Hi, I’m Ariel (she/her) and I’m a therapist (LICSW/LADC) who uses a variety of therapies including psychodynamic, EMDR,...
10/23/2026

"Hi, I’m Ariel (she/her) and I’m a therapist (LICSW/LADC) who uses a variety of therapies including psychodynamic, EMDR, DBT, and Havening, in NE Minneapolis.

I have been in this field for over 20 years and have been fascinated with human development, in particular the relationship between our mind and body.

Take a brief moment and think about where in your body you store your anxiety or stress…..often in the jaw, the shoulders, the neck, the chest.. we all have holding patterns, causing conscious and subconscious blocks in the body, mind and heart. This course allows us to connect to our bodies with self compassion and curiosity, and provides us with more insights to the emotions stored within.

Even brief experiences can help people shift out of stuck thought processes, reduce anxiety, and/or help us better see ourselves more clearly.

'Havening Techniques' is a psychosensory therapy that uses touch to create delta waves in our bodies, reducing the impact of whatever is coming up for us and bring about a sense of calm steadiness that allows us to move through our lives feeling more balanced. Havening Techniques change the way the brain encodes challenging experiences and supports nervous system regulation.

Through this 6-week course we will be learning ways to self regulate using different techniques, including touch, distraction, and more.

I’m looking forward to teaching this class again after a successful first round! If you prefer to reach out for individual session you can reach me through my website www.BrinsonTherapy.com" -Ariel Brinson

Register to save your spot at YogaSanctuaryMpls.com

Havening for Group Practice
6 week cohort : Sundays 5:00-6:15pm
October 25 - December 13 *no class 11/8 and 11/15
Limited to 12 students so please pre-register
$132 / 6-weeks

Kate Lucas is an experienced Yoga Instructor, published Poet, artist, and dear friend who infuses her offerings with an ...
10/21/2026

Kate Lucas is an experienced Yoga Instructor, published Poet, artist, and dear friend who infuses her offerings with an awareness of the the mind, body connection striving to help students make the class their own, listening to their body and what it needs that very day, and coming home to themselves more fully. This Friday she is offering something especially unique...

"The inspiration for this workshop came from the Sacred Creativity Retreat last year. I found that my own creative practices were blocked by the habit of waiting until I had a big chunk of time to really dig in to my creative work – when if I was instead taking small bites, I was more likely to step into the creative flow more often. I gathered many small ways to “drop in” to creative or contemplative practice, even when you only have 5 minutes." - Kate Lucas

Join Kate for this 2 hr workshop combining simple seated somatic practices with writing and drawing prompts to help you feel grounded and centered. There will be space for students to reflect and share after exploring creative responses, so that we might further the feelings of connection in community. You do not need a yoga mat for this workshop; these practices will go with you anywhere and are intended to be used while standing or sitting in the everyday world. Students will receive a small notebook to use together in class and then take home.

ALL are welcome to join for 'POCKETS of CREATIVITY and CENTERING' this FRIDAY, OCTOBER 23 10a-12p (Sliding Fee)

Registration and details can be found at YogaSanctuaryMpls.com/Workshops-Class-Series

*2.0 CEUs through Yoga Alliance available upon request
*Presented in collaboration with Yoga Sanctuary's Holistic Yoga Teacher Training 320hr program

'Havening Techniques' is a psychosensory therapy that uses touch to create delta waves in our bodies, reducing the impac...
10/17/2026

'Havening Techniques' is a psychosensory therapy that uses touch to create delta waves in our bodies, reducing the impact of whatever is coming up for us and bring about a sense of calm steadiness that allows us to move through our lives feeling more balanced.

Havening Techniques change the way the brain encodes challenging experiences and supports nervous system regulation.

Through this 6-week course we will be learning ways to self regulate using different techniques, including touch, distraction, and more. In additional to this practice, students will learn about:

The way emotions are stored and released
🤲Guidance through self-compassion practice
🤲How to strengthen confidence and positive belief systems
🤲Reducing stress and anxiety

Space is limited to keep this cohort small so please pre-register to save your spot!

Havening for Group Practice
6 week cohort : Sundays 5:00-6:15pm
October 25 - December 13 *no class 11/8 and 11/15
$132 / 6-weeks

Join Kate for this 2 hr workshop combining simple seated somatic practices with writing and drawing prompts to help you ...
10/15/2026

Join Kate for this 2 hr workshop combining simple seated somatic practices with writing and drawing prompts to help you feel grounded and centered.

There will be space for you to reflect and share after exploring creative responses, so that we might further the feelings of connection in community.

You do not need a yoga mat for this workshop; these practices will go with you anywhere and are intended to be used while standing or sitting in the everyday world.

You will also receive a small notebook to use together in class and then take home.

"The inspiration for this workshop came from the Sacred Creativity Retreat last year. I found that my own creative practices were blocked by the habit of waiting until I had a big chunk of time to really dig in to my creative work – when if I was instead taking small bites, I was more likely to step into the creative flow more often. I gathered many small ways to “drop in” to creative or contemplative practice, even when you only have 5 minutes." -Your Host Kate Lucas

POCKETS of CREATIVITY and CENTERING
FRIDAY | OCTOBER 23 | 10a-12p
Sliding Fee: $20-$30

*2.0 CEUs through Yoga Alliance available upon request
*Presented in collaboration with Yoga Sanctuary's Holistic Yoga Teacher Training 320hr program

CLASS UPDATE! Starting October 25th, Yoga for Men is moving its day and time! You can now join Alex Modic's Men's Yoga C...
10/14/2026

CLASS UPDATE!

Starting October 25th, Yoga for Men is moving its day and time! You can now join Alex Modic's Men's Yoga Class on Sunday morning 8-8:45am.

Yoga For Men is a weekly space for men to come together and explore yoga. We will promote breath, flexibility, mobility, and stress relief tailored for men’s bodies.

In each class, we will calm the mind with breathwork, philosophy, and meditation. While strengthening the body with functional movement, core work, and stretching. This fun and welcoming space is meant to get more men into yoga in the hopes of creating a stronger community as well as stronger, healthier, and peaceful men.

This plant is a metaphor... At the beginning of the Summer this prayer plant was near dead. Kris, our plant care volunte...
10/12/2026

This plant is a metaphor...

At the beginning of the Summer this prayer plant was near dead. Kris, our plant care volunteer, said the plant wasn't gone for, it just needed a different environment. So Tracy, HYTT Trainer and instructor, took it home and placed it outside in a shady spot.

Amidst the busy-ness of Summer, it was forgotten about. But despite that fact, it thrived! Not only did it burst back into life, a spider plant found its way into the soil to take root and grow alongside it.

Here's the metaphor...
When things appear bleak, when hope is waning, you are not a lost cause. Don't blame the plant, get curious about what is or isn't supporting what it needs in the season that it is in. Sometimes we just need to change our conditions for us to come back to life. The right conditions will yield your growth and becoming.

This plant is a metaphor... This prayer plant was near dead at the beginning of Summer. Kris, our plant care volunteer, ...
10/12/2026

This plant is a metaphor...

This prayer plant was near dead at the beginning of Summer. Kris, our plant care volunteer, said a different environment was what was needed. So Tracy, HYTT Trainer and Instructor, took it home for the Summer to rest outside in the shade.

Amidst Summer's activities, it was forgotten about, but despite that fact, it thrived. It was in the right spot at the right time for what it needed. Now, it's not only healthy and thriving, it adopted a baby spider plant that took root in the same pot!

Here's the metaphor...
When hope wanes, or when what we see appears bleak, you are not a lost cause- maybe you just need to change your environment, try a new set of conditions that can offer you what you need to grow and thrive!

Living a modern life often encourages a disregulated nervous system. Too often, our mind and body are stuck in the mode ...
10/06/2026

Living a modern life often encourages a disregulated nervous system.

Too often, our mind and body are stuck in the mode of fight, flight, freeze, fawn or fib. Calming Yoga is a practice based on ancient wisdom and modern science that helps the nervous system to settle and regulate itself. Through a combination of gentle, dynamic movement and restorative yoga, calming yoga helps the mind and body to move into the parasympathetic state of rest, digest, and process - a state that encourages deeper sleep, better digestion, a stronger immune system, and a greater sense of well-being and feeling of safety.

This workshop will provide information for understanding energy in the body and mind through the lens of yoga and Ayurveda (gunas and elements). This lens is not prescriptive nor is it critical. It is helpful to assess a person's state of mind/body/emotion and then to access simple practices and tools for yoga teachers and therapists to create and guide portions of or a full trauma-informed calming yoga practice, for students and clients. This workshop is also relevant for yoga students to create your own home practice, including the theory, set up, pacing, and sequencing. Our time together will include lecture, discussion, and a full hour-long calming yoga practice + take home practices.

Shelley Pagitt, E-RYT 500, Founder of Yoga Sanctuary, Yoga Teacher/Trainer, Certified in Trauma-Informed Yoga and creator of Calming Yoga, along with Kate Lucas, E-RYT 200, and longtime Calming Yoga Teacher will guide this workshop and hope that yoga teachers and therapists will join in.

*2.0 CEUs through Yoga Alliance available upon request
*Presented in collaboration with Yoga Sanctuary's Holistic Yoga Teacher Training 320hr program

AGENCY. This word has stayed at the front of my mind all week.It sparked after I listened to a Hidden Brain podcast feat...
10/05/2026

AGENCY. This word has stayed at the front of my mind all week.

It sparked after I listened to a Hidden Brain podcast featuring psychologist Martin Seligman. He discussed his groundbreaking research on learned helplessness and his book, AGENCY, which traces human progress through history.

While the podcast was fascinating, it made me think about agency in relationship to the ego. Many spiritual traditions, including yoga, often treat the ego as something to battle. However, I believe it is vital to have a "right relationship" with our ego. We need a strong, steady sense of self (small "s") that reminds us we do have agency, even when it is denied or stripped away by the control and harm of others.

This small "s" self is healthiest when rooted in the capital "S" Self—the part of us that doesn't need external validation. It is a deep, intrinsic knowing that, in our very essence, we are valued, worthy of love, and deserving of goodness. Connecting to this Self propels our agency, fostering the belief that our actions matter and can change our lives and the lives of those around us.

We are all dropped into a scene we didn't choose: a family, a personality, a body, and a mind, with zero initial agency. But as we grow, our ego matures, and hopefully, our sense of agency expands.

Holistic yoga is an open invitation to grow our agency. It teaches us to listen to that still, small voice inside and choose what is best for us as we move and breathe. Yoga is vast and expansive. At its roots, especially through a trauma-informed lens, it offers more than just permission; it is an enthusiastic invitation to pay attention to your body, mind, and heart. You are empowered to move, be still, breathe, or rest exactly as you need.

This year has been brutal for many who have experienced trauma that violated their sense of agency. Please know that we see your pain. We honor your surviving and your thriving. We wholeheartedly invite you back to your agency.

On Tuesday night I had the privilege to sit in a Yoga Sanctuary Board Meeting. Yes, that's correct, it is indeed an hono...
10/02/2026

On Tuesday night I had the privilege to sit in a Yoga Sanctuary Board Meeting. Yes, that's correct, it is indeed an honor to lead this community, this nonprofit business, with the steady guidance and compassionate wisdom of our Board Members, Kim Masters, Jamie Gates, Laura Reese, Julie Gudmestad and Tim Palmer.

As we discussed the budget, we noted our collective communal work of raising $40,000 for NEIGHBOR CARE during Operation Metro Surge. We mobilized more that 60 YS friends to care for 14 immigrant families who were living in terror and in need of support. All of the funds went to DIRECT MUTUAL AID. I'm proud of our collective LOVE IN ACTION!

As the Board and I talked about this year's Square Dance Fundraiser, considering the scope of stress that many of us are feeling about the state of our world, the bombardment of need in the face of societal unraveling, and we decided this year's SQUARE DANCE will be a GRATITUDE CELEBRATION! 

Please save the date and invite a friend! 
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21 at 3:30-6p

We are grateful for each of you and grateful that our MISSION IS WORKING! We continue to offer quality, holistic yoga for all, at the LOWEST CLASS PRICES in the area. I'm so proud of this. At a time when hyper-consumption and egregious-capitalism are like a raging river in our society, it feels good to create a business model that intentionally swims upstream against this current. We have not raised class prices since Covid, when we almost had to close our doors!

We are grateful for each of you who choose to SHARE YOGA, SHARE LIFE and SHARE PEACE with us. Every time you say "yes" to you by joining us for classes and workshops, you are saying "yes" to YS. Our business is rooted in a RELATIONAL EQUITY model - good for the students, the teachers, the studio and the broader community.

with gratitude and deep regard from me and all your YS Teachers,

Shelley (YS Founder) and Krista, Julia, Tracy, Joi, Dre, Taylor, Alex, Marjorie, Courtney, Leni, Preethi, Sarah, Henry, Kate, Alexis, Karen, Chelsea, Dina, Lydia & Sofia

Address

100 W 46th Street
Minneapolis, MN
55419

Telephone

+16125679642

Website

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