July 2022 Ambassador Spotlight: Durga Leela

Throughout the year we feature Accessible Yoga Ambassadors who are doing incredible work in their communities. Are you a current Ambassador who'd like to be featured? Nominate yourself!

Durga Leela (she/her), our Ambassador Spotlight for July 2022, lives in Weed, CA and identifies as a person in long-term recovery.

Durga is an Ayurvedic and Yoga Therapy Specialist and the founder of Yoga of Recovery, a comprehensive program that integrates Ayurveda and yoga with recovery tools for those affected by addiction and self-destructive behaviors. She teaches a holistic approach to recovery, integrating mind, body, and spirit. Durga overcame her own struggles with addiction and is a grateful participant in freely available recovery pathways and yoga sangha for over 21 years.

We asked Durga...

What does Accessible Yoga mean to you?

Accessible yoga means meeting ourselves where we are and accepting an invitation to walk a path with supportive company - creating a space of possibility together, one day at a time.

How did you get started with Accessible Yoga?

I am a long time follower of Jivana through ashram sangha.

Please share about your work and the populations you currently serve.

Yoga of Recovery works with people who have sex addiction, eating disorders, codependents with no substance abuse, and others where substance abuse is present but it is not the primary presenting issue. The program is also open to anyone who wants to learn lifestyle and stress management skills. We form part of ROSC - Recovery Oriented Systems of Care - shifting away from a crisis-oriented, professionally-directed, acute-care approach with its emphasis on isolated treatment episodes, to a recovery management approach that provides long-term supports and recognizes the many pathways to healing.

Connect with Durga via LinkedIn or through Yoga of Recovery's website, Instagram, or Facebook page.