Wellness in motion: Exploring healing and growth at Tara Yoga

Get updates on Mississippi’s healthcare crisis

Receive a monthly roundup from the health team when you sign up for The Pulse.

FLOWOOD, Miss. — At Tara Yoga Movement and Wellness Clinic, yoga is more than just movement – it is a practice of healing, self-discovery, and connection. Founder Tara Blumenthal has dedicated her journey to making yoga accessible to all through FMYoga, or Functional Movement Yoga, which prioritizes individualized instruction and adaptation to each student’s needs.

During a recent class, Blumenthal offered insight into her teaching philosophy, emphasizing that the space is a sanctuary for her students — a place where they can practice without outside observation.

“The beauty of what everybody was doing,” she said. “There’s a similarity of shape, but I know everybody’s history — who had neck surgery, who had hip surgery — and I think about how one of the poses we’re all doing might feel different for someone. So I check in and offer adjustments.”

Blumenthal’s journey to yoga was born from personal loss. She lost both of her parents at a young age and, for years, struggled with the emotional weight of that absence. 

“The more I explored why I am the way I am — how I move, the traits I inherited from my parents — it helped me begin to reconcile my grief,” she said. This process of self-reflection through yoga became a form of healing, allowing her to confront and process emotions she hadn’t fully addressed before.

“I turned something very difficult into something beautiful,” she said. “I call that a dirty blessing. I didn’t want the challenges I faced to define me, but rather use them for transformational purposes. This ultimately made me dig deep and ask: ‘Why do we do this pose? Does it actually serve the purpose everyone says it does?’”

Through self-reflection, she began to question conventional yoga philosophies. 

“I came through post-classical yoga,” Bluementhal explained. “The classical philosophy was to overcome your body and mind to reach your spirit, but I think that’s kind of silly now. This is all we have, right? So let’s embrace it. Why separate the spirit from the body and mind?”

A core value of Tara Yoga is diversity — creating a space where people from all backgrounds, ages and abilities feel welcome. 

“If in my disorganized body, I can do yoga, I felt like anyone could,” she said. “Everybody’s bodies are wonderfully, but also uniquely, different.”

For longtime student Annette Pridgen, yoga has been a game-changer for maintaining mobility and strength. 

“It helps me with functional mobility,” Pridgen said. “Even the next day, I find myself doing those same movements. They might look unusual in class, but they help me stay mobile and carry out daily activities.”

Pridgen, 69, originally sought chiropractic care before discovering yoga. 

“My sister brought me to a garden club meeting and said, ‘You can use yoga to help with gardening,’” she said. “I don’t go to the chiropractor anymore—I do yoga, and it makes a big difference.”

Beyond daily tasks, yoga helps Pridgen stay active in her social life. “I love going to football games, but there are lots of stairs and walking,” she said. “I want to stay active so I can do those things — go to parades, take trips. You need mobility for that.”

Instructor Ann Snapka, 34,  became a yoga instructor because of the profound impact it had on her own life. 

“I love hearing how yoga has changed people’s lives,” she said. “That’s why I became a teacher. Yoga changed me physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. It made me feel more complete, more at peace with myself, and helped me navigate life’s challenges.”

Beyond personal transformation, Snapka emphasized yoga’s ability to alleviate pain and stress. “It helps manage aches and pains — neck and shoulder tension, low back pain, joint pain, even injuries from other activities,” she said. “Mentally, it helps you sort through the chaos that life inevitably brings.”

Blumenthal also believes yoga serves a purpose beyond physical healing. 

“I think the cool thing about it is for people to stick around long enough, they start to make their own growth discoveries. Such as, ‘we are sometimes our own worst enemy,’” she said. “Yoga helps us get out of our own way and step into the better version of ourselves.”

At Tara Yoga, classes go beyond exercise; they foster a space where students can connect with themselves on a deeper level. Above all, Blumenthal  remains committed to ensuring her studio is a safe and inclusive sanctuary — one where diversity is celebrated, and everyone, regardless of their background or ability, can find healing, movement and growth.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Read original article by clicking here.