Michelle Dortignac

I’ve been a student of yoga since 1991. Like many people, I came to the practice for the physical benefits, and I stayed for the grounding, clarity, and quiet inner strength it helped me uncover.

In 1998, I completed my vinyasa yoga teacher training at OM Yoga Center with Cyndi Lee, and was honored to join the teaching staff there soon after. I taught at OM until 2002, when I left to create something more personal, what would eventually become My Own Yoga. From the start, I’ve been drawn to teaching in smaller settings, working one-on-one or in small groups where I can offer students more direct, thoughtful support.

For 25 years, I taught yoga in New York City and Brooklyn, leading private sessions in homes, studios, and wellness spaces throughout the city. My teaching style is grounded in experience and shaped by intuition—gentle, attentive, and centered on teaching to each student’s unique capabilities and goals.

As my own practice deepened, so did my interest in movement. I began exploring other disciplines from alpine skiing to aerial dance. Those experiences opened new ways of understanding the body: how it moves, how it strengthens, and how it finds rest. That curiosity eventually led me to create Unnata^® Aerial Yoga in 2006—a blend of traditional yoga and aerial support that’s now practiced by teachers and students around the world.

And because I believe a teacher can only guide students where she’s been herself, I continue to study with my longtime teacher, Sri Dharma Mittra of the Dharma Yoga Center, and numerous others. I hold certifications in meditation, Restorative Yoga, and advanced certification in Hatha Yoga. And, I return to my own mat each day with the same curiosity that first drew me to yoga decades ago.

Today, I live and teach in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, offering small, highly personalized classes from my home studio. I’m here to support students as they explore what’s possible physically, mentally, and beyond.