ENJOY A SELF-CENTERED JOURNEY TOWARDS A BETTER YOU!

I’m Christen Berryman, creator and founder of The Self Center. I received a Bachelor’s Degree in WGSS from The Ohio State University in 2015. In my program, I focused my studies on systemic oppression, racism, classism, and the way our intersecting identities impact our lives. Studying humanity at its worst and opening my eyes to the rampant suffering and injustice of the world was heavy, and I had no tools for managing the emotional intensity of it. But I was on fire with passion- that is until I burnt out. Approaching my final semester, running on fumes and having multiple panic attacks a week, I showed up to my advisor’s office to schedule my last dreaded semester of school. “I don’t think I can do it” I told her. And what she said changed the trajectory of my life. She said “why don’t you take a yoga class this semester?”

For one semester, I took a 2 hour yoga class on Friday evenings. In the first hour, we broke down the alignment of the poses and in the second hour, the instructor guided us through a practice incorporating the breath. By the end of the first class I could sense that yoga was shifting things within me. I could breathe. I could feel that the panic and anxiety had lifted from my chest.

I made it through that semester thanks to yoga. I knew the practice had saved me from a meltdown, and I NEEDED to know more. I immediately applied for a 200 hour yoga teacher training. I was still pretty new to doing yoga when I learned to teach it to others.

I began teaching immediately upon becoming certified and have been teaching yoga actively for the 8 years since. Because of my own background with yoga, my classes and programs are designed to support mental and emotional health, the nervous system, spiritual growth, self awareness, deep self trust, and the need to feel safe in our bodies.

After 8 years and thousands of hours of teaching, I took my work outside the yoga studio into 1:1 private sessions. In these sessions, I incorporate so much more than yoga. I bring together ancient wisdom and modern science so my clients have as many tools as possible in their toolbox as they strive to navigate the complexity of human life while maintaining inner peace. I am thrilled to share these practices with even more people by bringing my work online. The Self Center is an online community which gathers people committed to growth and the pursuit of wisdom and peace. Here, not only can they support one another, they have access to a wide variety of practices which guide them in being the wisest, most confident version of themselves.

I am a voracious researcher and lifelong learner. Members of my community and participants in my programs can trust that they are receiving the most up-to-date information and techniques to help them grow and heal - spiritually, emotionally, mentally, and physically. I also embody these practices myself, so all that I share is backed by my lived experiences and practices. The Self Center is a bit like DIY therapy with an expert offering guidance, education, tools, and support.