Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Leeron London. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Leeron , appreciate you joining us today. If you had a defining moment that you feel really changed the trajectory of your career, we’d love to hear the story and details.
I love that I get to to reconnect here because I truly want to show people that following a passion, or pursuing your own business is not always magical and linear and definitely not easy and everyone has a different way of getting there. During Covid, I lost 99% of my doula work (which was my main source of income) and all of my private clients since doula’s were not allowed in the hospitals and everyone was quarantined in their homes with minimal income. In addition, I also had to homeschool my kids. During this time, my husband and I ended up separating, which meant that I needed to have a steady income to help provide for my children as a single parent. I had to take a regular corporate job to sustain my bills. My ex was doing the same. We all remember the struggles of the time.
About a month into my new job, my back went out. Completely out. I could not move, every position would cause excruciating pain and over time this got better, (with PT, bodywork, yoga, etc.), but it would consistently return creating challenges in my new work environment, until I was no longer able to work there. The day I was let go, it was a shock. I was feeling defeated. I took a week to adjust my frame of mind and began to realize this was actually the universe pushing me back into the right life path. I was so focused on survival, I forgot what I had to offer and how to listen to my body’s signals and connect to my inner intuition. It was an incredible learning curve that taught me HOW to truly tap into and listen to my body and help others do the same. This moment made me realize that I was never meant to work in a regular 9-5 job, that going back to work that was more fulfilling was the right choice for me. I took the time while on unemployment to rebuild my yoga, birth and bodywork business.
Even now, while adjusting to new ways of running a business, I have always found it important to maintain an organic and authentic way of connecting to my clients. Supporting pregnant and postpartum mommas, and those who simply need mental, physical and spiritual support has always worked best when I maintain these authentic and intuitive connections regardless of the ever-changing entrepreneurial business landscape.
Leeron , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
In high school, a friend took me to a yoga class that I never forgot, That class would pop into my mind over the years and after college, while working a corporate job I started attending yoga classes again. I got hooked, which let me to take a teacher training. Over the course of multiple years, while still working the corporate job, I ended up taking a 200 hour teacher training, a meditation training, a kids yoga teacher training and, eventually, completed a year program for yoga therapy. At the end of that year, I found out I was pregnant. A friend from the training encouraged me to take a prenatal yoga class, which truly shifted my view on ways to teach yoga. That yoga teacher pushed me to get a doula for my birth, which led me to get trained as a doula after my first child was born. And then, the same teacher was leading a prenatal/postnatal teacher training. I knew I had to take it! The moment I completed that training, I found myself finding opportunities to teach prenatal yoga and found a real love of teaching mommas.
I had been teaching regular vinyasa flow for years at that point and enjoyed being able to empower my students and also ground them, but teaching pregnant moms added an extra element of magic that spoke to me. I began taking doula clients and teaching yoga whenever I could, while still working a full-time corporate job and taking care of a toddler. Although, the amount of work has shifted over the years of Covid and giving birth to an additional baby, I have found that my journey continues to push me deeper into this work. It is where I thrive and feel of most service.
Now that I teach full-time I find that most of my public classes are prenatal yoga or postpartum support groups and a lot of my private clients hire me for yoga or prenatal support. I currently provide private sessions for yoga flow, prenatal flow, postnatal flow, lactation support, postpartum support, and occasionally host women’s circles where I incorporate mindset practices, along with movement and sound. I infuse my reiki background into all sessions and classes and will I will also take private clients who request only reiki, specifically, if they need to work through some deeper shifts.
I find that there are not enough providers offering prenatal yoga or postpartum support for moms in person in Los Angeles and I want to make sure that every mom feels supported during one of the most vulnerable life shifts. I provide a safe space for moms to gather, connect, prepare and relax while also being a resource for them when preparing for their journey into motherhood without any judgement!
I see my role in this sphere as a friend, not just a teacher. So many teachers/doulas out there get caught up in all the information and want to just make sure that their clients/students are as informed as possible. I don’t blame them! We all want to make sure that a student or future mom is informed and empowered, but my approach is more focused on connecting to the individual. I like to really listen to my clients/students and hear where they are coming from, their fears, their joys, their insecurities and build an approach to movement and knowledge that makes them feel empowered, but not overwhelmed. Maybe, its my own history with anxiety, or just working with so many different types of individuals over the years, but every human is different and requires attention in a way that best suits them and I like to approach each class and session from this intuitive space. I work the same when I work with couples, acting as a bridge to connect the two partners, help them feel more confident in their minds and bodies.
My hope is that every future student or client knows that when we work together, I am always fully present with you. I am there to listen, hold space, and create the energy and experience you desire for your time. In my group classes I want to connect people and create a safe space for moms/students to let go and be themselves, even if that means saying nothing.
If you could go back, would you choose the same profession, specialty, etc.?
I think that everything I have been through has led me to this career organically. There are other career options I had considered throughout the years, but nothing has felt as natural as working in yoga, birth education and bodywork. Most of the jobs I’ve had in this sphere have found their way to me, unforced. My nature is very grounded and nurturing since I was a kid so it makes sense that a career focused on supporting families and individuals going through big life transitions or working through challenges is where I would land. I am a huge hype person and I love to make people feel good. I love to remind them how incredible and powerful and beautiful they are! So, I think that even if I would go back in time to pursue another profession, I would still find my way back into this type of work.
Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?
Of course training is important to make sure we are keeping students and clients safe, but more than anything, the most important thing is learning how to truly connect to people. Not just spew information at people, but tune into their needs, their fears, desires, and joys. When you learn to listen to a client on this deeper level, you provide the exact service they were looking for. This becomes more valuable than any yoga pose you can teach or any birth information you can share. When you drop into this level of connection, it becomes easier to see what a client or student really needs on a given day/session. This is a big reason I have incorporated multiple modalities into my work over time. It has allowed me to provide a more well-rounded approach to working with clients/students.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.urthandheartwellness.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/urthandheart/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeeronYoga/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/urth-and-heart-los-angeles-3
Image Credits
Amelie Uchiike (Amelie.uchiike@gmail.com)