About Abby

Abby Hatfield has been a devoted student of Yoga for over 20 years.  She was introduced to Iyengar Yoga as a college student in Pennsylvania, where she found that the postural practices brought relief from pain following a car accident.  When she moved to Oregon in 2000, Abby was introduced to Anusara Yoga.  The Anusara principles of alignment, and heart-opening expansiveness that accompanied them, helped Abby to develop a deeper understanding of the heart of yoga; it’s philosophy, purpose, and profoundness.  She began her formal studies as a teacher in 2008 with Sarahjoy Marsh in Portland, Oregon.  Abby received her 200-hour teacher training certificate in 2009. 

In 2012, Abby began a 500-hour Yoga Therapy Training program with Sarahjoy, director of the DAYA Foundation, a non-profit Yoga Therapy Center in Portland.  She completed this program in 2015 to become a Certified Yoga Therapist. In 2017, she began her studies with Jim and Kimberly Carson of Mindful Yoga Works to become certified as a Mindful Yoga for Chronic Pain instructor.

Abby currently holds the following certifications:

Abby believes that through regular practice, we carry the ancient yogic wisdom forward into our lives, reducing suffering, improving relationships, and increasing compassion. Yoga is an amazing tool that encourages us to lead with our hearts. The physical practice gives us a safe place to explore our strengths and our boundaries, to confront resistance with kindness, and to express freedom. When breathing practices and meditation are layered in, the result is a continual unfolding of the heart toward the pure expression of love and wholeness.

Abby’s devotion to the practices, and to her students, drives her to continually study, grow, and learn as a teacher. She draws inspiration from nature, poetry, and her husband and two children.