Meet Cristina! Local Monmouth County mom and owner of Flow to Grow Wellness. Cristina offers 1 on 1 coaching sessions to help with the transition into motherhood and helping you recognize the importance of self-care and boundaries. She also offers postpartum "baby and me" yoga classes at several local studios! Read on to learn more about Cristina and why she's passionate about this work!
Tell us a little bit about your business. What makes you unique? What type of services do you provide that new moms or moms-to-be might need
My business, Flow To Grow Wellness is a beautiful blend of my own journey and the community I wish I had along the way. What sets me apart from others is my holistic approach to supporting mothers. I understand the crucial role self-care plays in nurturing families, drawing from my own experiences as a mom. My focus is on helping mothers prioritize themselves through radical self-love, and connection, knowing that by doing so, they create a more nurturing environment and set a positive example for their children. It’s not easy, but really nothing about this parenting journey is! We’re propelled into this evolution whether we are ready to or not and you have no choice but to bend and mold into a beautiful, new version of yourself. That’s where I come in!
The services I provide cater to the needs of new moms,moms-to-be and really any women on their journey of alignment and integration by emphasizing self-care practices and self-compassion. We spend so much time preparing for our babies, setting the nursery, taking the infant care and breathing classes and then the baby is here and you're sent home with a tiny human that you never even knew you could love so much and all these new feelings and doubts and worries start to arise. It is SO much for us parents, yet these topics are rarely addressed. Why? Things are going to come to light when you become a parent that you didn’t even know existed- setting boundaries, finding balance, and unhealed baggage to name a few. Through coaching sessions, I help shed light on the importance of taking time for themselves and addressing what roadblocks are standing in their way of true alignment. I want everyone to feel like the best version of themselves when they step into this new identity.
I also offer postnatal "Baby and Me" yoga classes. These elevated classes aren't just about physical exercise; they're about creating a safe and supportive space where moms can connect with their bodies and other caregivers in the same season of parenthood, learn tools and stretches for baby and learn tools to nurture their own growth and evolution.
My vision is to empower mothers to embrace self-care and connection as fundamental components of their lives and family nurturing. I aspire to create a community where moms and women feel supported and encouraged to prioritize their well-being without guilt or hesitation. Ultimately, I aim to foster an environment where self-love isn't seen as a luxury but as a necessary foundation for healthy, thriving families. We do this in yoga by having introspective conversations about important topics like our values or support and in the coaching container, we dive deeper into what is really holding us back and misaligned so we can truly flourish in this role.
What did you do prior to opening Flow to Grow Wellness and what made you decide to open up your business?
I went to college to be a teacher and was an educator for a few years. My husband was in the Army so we moved a lot. I didn’t get much time in any one place to build a career so instead I focused on finding a ‘job’ that I could bring with me. I turned to yoga as a way to get to know myself better. I became certified in Multi-Style yoga in 2014 and that was just the tip of the Iceberg. I grew and expanded so much during that training but then time passed and life happened, my yoga practice took a back seat, then a seat in the trunk and then, I must have left it at a rest stop because it was lost for a while.
Without realizing it, I had slowly become so disconnected from myself- from what brought me joy and what lit me up. I had become a mom and it was a really hard transition for me. We lived far from family support, I didn’t have any friends in this season and I felt so isolated and alone. We later moved closer to family and the children got older but they were still my entire identity. It wasn’t until I started working with a Shaman and started therapy that I realized how lost I had truly become. After years of putting everyone else's needs before my own, I started prioritizing my own growth and expansion and something beautiful happened; My family got an elevated version of me. I was more joyful, patient, understanding, connected, aligned. I became my bubbly, outgoing self again and I really missed her. It was the best feeling in the world and I made it my mission to bring that deep connection and self-love to our community. FTGW has gone through a few evolutions in the past 3 years but it is now in alignment with its true nature- love, growth and connection.
Tell us about your family life. Do you have children? What are their ages?
My family consists of my husband, two sons with radically different personalities and 2 dogs. My boys are 6 and 3 and they love teaching me the lessons I still haven’t learned, like how to embrace the chaos and how to handle big feelings. I believe our children are here to teach us the things we still haven’t learned and to remind us of the work we still have to do, and also provide us more love and joy than we ever knew to be possible.
Fun fact: my husband and I have known eachother since 5th grade, we were even in the same class! We were married right after college and traveled quite a bit before we decided to start a family. Now, we have 2 boys who love the beach and hiking as much as we do. We’re explorers and I love experiencing the world through their eyes. We’re beach people and if my husband, Andrew could surf for a living, he would.
What can we find you doing when you are not at work?
When I’m not working you can find me catching up with friends over coffee, meditating and pulling oracle cards, reading personal development books, listening to podcasts, crafting ( I love anything that allows me to get creative), or at the park, hiking, or at the beach with my family.
What are some of your favorite local businesses?
I love to support local businesses any opportunity I can. For myself personally, I will spoil myself with Layer Skincare and yoga, massage or reiki at the Yoga Loft.
For my mamas: I love the holistic support at Embodied Physical Therapy- they have wonderful prenatal and postnatal care and their community and yoga classes are so special.
What are your classes located and how can we sign up?
My classes are in Monmouth County and you can sign up on my website! I offer elevated postnatal yoga classes and small group classes/ birthday parties. I also love bringing all my props to a house or yard for a moms night in event. I also will throw in a workshop for parent-centered classes quarterly- this is a great opportunity to see what the FTGW community is all about!
My coaching can serve a bigger scale since they are virtual. The coaching container is for moms, caregivers or any women who are ready for that radical self-love, connection, expansion and growth. Let’s nurture you, mama!
To learn more about Cristina and her classes/coaching visit her website at www.Flowtogrowwellness.com. Be sure to follow her on Instagram and Facebook at Flowtogrowwellness
xoxo,
Laura