Tess Strand
Studio Founder & Curator
“Every passing moment is another chance to turn it all around…”
- VANILLA SKY
I believe deeply that community is the antidote to much of our suffering - but we’ve been conditioned to accept that connection can be imitated. our innate need for closeness is muted by technology. We are now barely subsisting on meager rations: endless hours of posting, swiping, liking, clicking… barely making eye contact with each other, much less connecting.
Yoga is a wonderful common denominator for this purpose. It’s a language and an experience most people can connect with on some level - the breath, the body - such simple starting points for a deeper work, and with profound impact.
Breathing Room is an experiment in re-building community.
Before launching the studio in November 2024, I spent 20 years as a self-employed consultant. immersed in the worlds of business and politics, I loved the challenge of teasing clarity from chaos, but found myself suddenly exhausted by the emptiness of it all.
At the time, I didn’t have a lifelong dream to own a yoga studio, or even a serious practice - just an ease in knowing that the choices I was making would add up to the best possible future. After living in India for a number of years in my late twenties I had always craved going back, so I signed up for back-to-back 200 and 300 hour Teacher Training programs in Goa and returned for 2 months to eat, sleep, and breathe yoga. A few short months after that, it all made sense and I was working toward opening Breathing Room.
I hold 500 Certified and registered yoga teacher training hours, along with Reiki Level 1 + 2 Attunements, and multiple specialty yoga and meditation certifications - but I am first, and always, a student.
I teach Restorative Yin in the studio, Fridays at 10:30 am. I also offer heart-centered business coaching to women who want to start or grow a business that’s authentic, sustainable, and aligned with their values. You can fill out my intake form here and book a session with me here.