Meet Katie Young of Tucson

Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Young.

Hi Katie, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I have always loved movement- dance was a big part of my childhood, however during my pre-teen years it led to a lot of insecurity, not enoughness and competition. At age 20 I found yoga and fell deeply in love with the freedom and mindfulness. It was this time I began my awakening process, unlearning so much that I thought I “knew”, and studying myself. I had great yoga teachers and became certified- teaching yoga was so natural to me and something I continue to refine. Over the course of my 20s I deepened my teaching experience and expanded into realms of women’s wellness, specialized workshops, plant medicine and conscious relating. At 25 I had my son, and the motherhood journey cracked me open. It was here that I viscerally grieved the Village and our innate birthright for community support. And so, I devoted my life to building meaningful relationships, guiding my son and continuing my practices. I’ve held hundreds of classes, workshops, retreats and trainings and as I grow in my life process, my work expands. Right now I am currently building on my project/small biz, The Nurture Movement which is an ode to authentic expression, nurturance and community care. I am on year 3 of guiding women’s circles with my co-facilitator and dear friend under the title ReWild Tucson. I still teach weekly yoga classes and am launching a new event, Gather: A Community Ritual, at the end of July.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has been a winding road- I believe that the greatest teachers are willing to start over again and again. Change is inevitable, and when we have that framework we can accept life with greater capacity and compassion. This is something I’ve had to learn in many cycles- from moving from CT to AZ and rebuilding community, to letting my maiden life go completely and allow myself to be transformed by motherhood and all of the sacrifice it requires. 2 years ago I had to make the difficult decision to leave the relationship with my son’s father and become financially independent, while raising my son. The tools I’ve acquired through my yoga practice, somatic work, community wisdom and a continuous willingness to “look deeper’ while embracing what’s here- it has all made a profound difference in how I’ve navigated the challenges. All to say- we are human! We cannot run away from our humanness, our mistakes, our messiness- with it comes beauty, mystery and room for magick.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
You could call me a Community Leader or Nurture Mentor. I specialize in helping humans build healthy, nurturing ecosystems- both internal and external.
Internal ecosystems include our nervous system, mental health, emotional exploration and our soul/the willingness to believe in more. External ecosystems include our bodies, human relationships/community, creativity and expression. When we nurture ourselves in this way, we have the capacity to show up in our lives and allow others to do the same in however they can- this work fosters resilient communities and families, more joy and presence and an ability to face adversity with trust and surrender. We do this through body-based practices, dyadic and group connection, gentle touch, breathwork, boundary setting tools and empathy. And it’s not just what we do, but how we do it- we move slowly, we allow for pause and rest and we believe in authenticity – no needing to force or be anything than who you are able to show up as in that moment.
I am most proud of how my life reflects the effectiveness of this work- my real life friendships are so nourishing, caring and reciprocal. I truly feel I belong to a Village. And I think I set myself a part through my expressions- I’m very grounded and human, you’ll probably laugh at me or with me in our work together- there’s room for error- and I think more people seek these types of teachers because they’re looking for something real, not synthetic or inauthentic

We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I’d like to call it synchronicity or magick more than luck.

4.5 years ago my son, his father and I were living in Connecticut. We were ready to move and make a big change, so after some contemplating I felt drawn to check out Arizona. We already had a couple friends who moved to Tucson, so we decided we would take a trip to feel things out. We set a goal- if, in our 10 days there, we could line up jobs, meet a community and find a suitable home to rent, then we would take it as a sign to leap. Sure enough- everything worked out. His father got a job offer and we met some awesome people when we met up with our friends. The moment that felt most magickal was the house- we had looked at 3 homes, and it felt like a 3 little bears scenario- the first one was too far from town, the second felt like an unsafe neighborhood, the third felt like a great fit. We put our lease application in, and prayed. Some days later we were driving to the airport to head back to CT- we were just a few hundred feet away from the airport garage when we got a phone call- our lease application was approved. It was such an emotional and “lucky” moment that change the trajectory of our lives. So we took it as our miracle sign, went through the moving process in CT and then drove cross country to Tucson, our new home.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://delicate-heart-76726.myflodesk.com/helpfullinks
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.nurture.movement
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nurturemovement

Image Credits
Vanessa Wingerath
Wendy Kane