Let’s Go to Vagus: The Workshop I Wish I’d Had

Three years ago, I suffered a brainstem stroke—an ischemic blood clot in the pons, a small but critical region of the brainstem.

It affected my entire right side: my mobility, my resting heart rate, and my nervous system.

Through neuroplasticity, I regained movement faster than anyone expected. From the outside, it appeared to be a remarkable recovery.

I was an uber-healthy yogi—a clean eater, deeply active, someone who genuinely took care of herself. I did all the “right” things. And because of that, the story quickly became one of success and resilience.

But recovery isn’t always as visible as it appears.

What the eye couldn’t see—and what few could explain—was how profoundly my nervous system had been altered, and how much healing was still unfolding beneath the surface. Inside my body, things were far from resolved.

The Symptoms No One Explained

What lingered were symptoms no one could fully make sense of: a dangerously low resting heart rate; debilitating gut issues, and recurrent vasovagal episodes. Doctors discussed the possibility of a pacemaker.

But no one talked about the vagus nerve.

At the time, I didn’t know what I didn’t know.

The Missing Link

Eventually, I learned something that changed everything:

The vagus nerve originates in the brainstem.

Suddenly, my symptoms made sense. The heart-rate irregularities. The digestive dysfunction.
The fainting episodes.

They weren’t isolated problems—they were part of a disrupted communication loop between my brain, gut, and nervous system.

That understanding became a turning point in my healing.

From Recovery to Reorientation

Since my stroke, I’ve become a 500-hour Yoga Medicine Therapeutic Specialist, trained in therapeutic movement with Jill Miller, and immersed myself in understanding how the nervous system actually works beyond symptom management and quick fixes.

Why the Vagus Nerve Matters

The vagus nerve plays a central role in:

• heart-rate regulation

• digestion and gut motility

• blood pressure and fainting responses

• stress resilience and emotional regulation

• the body’s ability to move out of survival mode

When vagal signaling is disrupted—by trauma, illness, injury, or chronic stress—the body can remain stuck in dysregulatory patterns, even when everything looks fine on paper.

And yet, most people are never taught how to work with this system.

The Workshop I Needed Didn’t Exist—So I Created It

Let’s Go to Vagus is the workshop I wish I’d had in those early months after my stroke.

It’s a science-informed, body-based experience designed to help you understand and support your nervous system through accessible, practical tools—movement, breath, and sensory input that invite regulation rather than demand it.

This isn’t about hacking your nervous system. It’s about learning how to partner with it.

Taking Let’s Go to Vagus on the Road

I’m now taking Let’s Go to Vagus beyond the studio.

Have suitcase, will travel!

This workshop is available for: yoga and movement studios, high schools and colleges, wellness programs, and community spaces.

If you’re interested in hosting—or you know a space where nervous-system education would be supportive and timely—I’d love to connect.

Let’s Go to Vagus.
I’d love to vagus with you.