Several years ago, New Albany resident Sara Mershad was at an all-time low.
Her depression and social anxiety were high as her youngest son went off to boarding school, and her three other children were either at college or living out of state. Even though her husband, Rick, was supportive and attentive, she still felt alone and lost. Plus, her anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medications weren’t helping – she needed a new solution, so she started practicing yoga.
Mershad wasn’t a stranger to the world of yoga and meditation, but she wasn’t experienced either – at least not yet. She immediately jumped in and soon found that the poses and mindfulness associated with yoga helped improve her mental health.
“It really got me out of my head,” Mershad says. “I remember the day I finally got crow pose – I remember getting up and feeling like I was in a whole new universe. It was like I froze in time and let everything go.”
Still, she craved more. When a friend mentioned kundalini yoga – a form of yoga that uses physical movements, meditation, breathing and mantra to heighten awareness – Mershad decided to give it a go.
“That’s what really got me hooked,” Mershad says.
But her journey was only starting. Now the personal and professional goals she’s accomplished are making a lasting impact on New Albany.
Finding the Foundation
After moving to New Albany in 1998 for its sense of community, Mershad and Rick decided to start the Mershad Family Foundation in the early 2000s. The organization was created to highlight the arts in the community, but after Mershad discovered her passion for mindfulness, the foundation’s mission evolved into “the art of mindfulness and well-being.”
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From left to right: Rodney Yee, Colleen Saidman Yee, Rick Mershad and Sara Mershad. In April, Mershad was integral in helping bring the Yess to New Albany for a speaker series.
The foundation is now in full swing and provides speakers to the community, works with the New Albany-Plain Local Schools and host retreats.
In April of this year, Mershad and several colleagues were integral in bringing world-renowned yoga instructors, authors and integrative health advocates Colleen Saidman Yee and Rodney Yee to the Jeanne B. McCoy Community Center for the Arts.
“People who are walking around not forgiving themselves for their past or not knowing why they’re unhappy or waiting for the next thing to temperately make them better need to be educated (on mindfulness),” she says. “I feel it’s my duty, almost my mission in a way, to raise awareness.”
Mershad dreams of bringing yogis Deepak Chopra, an author and alternative medicine advocate, and Gabrielle Bernstein, a motivational speaker, life coach and author, to New Albany.
As for living a mindful life, Mershad says it’s all about pausing, breathing, staying present and grateful, and not casting judgment. From the Philip Heit Center for Healthy New Albany where restorative yoga Urban Zen classes are taught; to one of Mershad’s favorite new spots, InStill Wellness for mental, physical and spiritual health, the local options are abundant.
Students K-12 are also feeling the impact of Mershad and her friends. The NAPLS Well-Being Initiative is a collaborative effort that provides resources to help New Albany students’ well-being. Recently, Healthy New Albany implemented an Urban Zen program in the schools and Mershad is ecstatic.
“The best news – it’s happening. The teachers are loving it, the students are loving it,” Mershad says. “There is a mindfulness movement happening and it’s so great.”
The foundation’s retreats also deserve a spotlight. Hosted at her family’s cabin – a cozy spot surrounded by a wooded area, flowers and an all-ages swing set – Mershad hosted a variety of retreats, but her newest idea for spring 2020 is possibly the most novel.
“We’re talking about doing a silent retreat,” Mershad says. “When you sit with yourself quietly and you can’t speak and you communicate via energy, you learn about yourself and nature.”
Mindful of Mindfulness
The words of wisdom Mershad gave during our interview was phenomenal. From being kind to others to the importance of self-love, she has completely restructured her perspective on life.
Mershad adds that her family and the community are huge cheerleaders for her journey.
“How has the community not helped?” Mershad asks. “The community is thriving because we’re all about being conscientious and healthy, and I think everybody here is in support of this (mindfulness movement) happening.”
But the quote that Mershad loves is what ties her story into a nice package with a ribbon on top.
“When you're in the past, you’re constantly having regret; when you’re in the future, you’re constantly having anxiety,” she says. “If you're present, which is now, this is the moment right now that you have a chance for a new opportunity. … And beautiful things will happen once you realize that’s how simple life really is.”
Upcoming Retreats
Mark your calendar for these upcoming retreats and events, all hosted by the Mershad Family Foundation at their cabin.
April 18-24: Urban Zen Level 2 Training with Rodney Yee and Colleen Saidman Yee
May 2: Theme TBD
May 3: Cancer survivors
Fit Five: Sara Mershad shares her mindfulness habits
Favorite yoga pose?
I have two. One is easy pose, which is the cross-legged pose because that is such a quieting pose and that’s when I get into my meditative place. And then cobra pose because it’s heart-opening and I’m all about heart-opening.
Apart from yoga, how do you spend your free time?
I love to go and walks and be apart of nature. I also love to spend time with my husband and my family and our dogs. And I love to travel; I have friends and family all over and we like to see different parts of the world.
Where do you practice mindfulness?
My favorite place is my yoga room at home or going to our cabin and walking on our path. But I also enjoy going to InStill Wellness to see my acupuncturist.
Favorite way to start your day?
We all wake up with thoughts. Whatever thought it is, I recite my mantras and then I chant and then I meditate and then I have my bulletproof coffee.
Best mindfulness tip?
Gratitude. Be grateful for you, for everything around you and for everything that’s happened to you because there is a gift in that. And you can’t forget forgiveness.
Lydia Freudenberg is an editor. Feedback welcome at lfreudenberg@cityscenemediagroup.com.
