Meet Jamie Lyn Castaño: MSW, RYT200

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jamie Lyn Castaño and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jamie Lyn, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Imagine a world where our children are taught at a young age that they have everything they need within them to be their best…and they learn to believe it. This is Just Breathe for kids. I created Just Breathe for Kids as a safe space where our children come exactly as they are and grow into the best version of themselves. We do this by introducing the practice of yoga and mindfulness to children everywhere, one breath at a time. Our mindful kids yoga classes focus on one thing: being the best version of yourself. There is no right or wrong, no perfection, no one size fits all. It is a path of discovery for our children to understand and learn how to pause, breathe, and look within. We see there are so many places our children are required or asked to fit into a one-size-fits-all box. In our mindful kids yoga classes, every body and everybody is different (and welcome) and that is exactly how it should be!

What should our readers know about your business?
Just Breathe for Kids was born when my, then, four-year-old son left his first yoga class and said “so in yoga, you just breathe.” Since that time, Just Breathe for Kids has been on a mission to lead a kids yoga and mindfulness movement in the South. As it is appropriately named, it is my hope to create a space for children to come learn the power of being present in the here and now which can be found when we learn to “just breathe.” What makes Just Breathe for Kids unique is the combination of my background in social work and extensive work in schools with the practice and traditions of yoga and mindfulness. Every Just Breathe kids mindful yoga class has a theme. Each theme is relevant to a life skill that all children will benefit from learning and practicing. Themes like “I am ready,” or “I am me,” help give yogi’s a focus when working through the yoga poses and practices that transfers into real life for everybody and every body! The Just Breathe for Kids journey has not been easy. In a world where things are constantly changing, my ideas for my business did too. What started as a desire to spread my message through schools and teachers, thinking this was the best way to reach the largest number of kids, turned in to more of a studio and private practice, allowing me to spread my message in a more individualized way. The funny thing is, as I was working to develop my business, I found that I was constantly having to remind myself to “just breathe.” That mantra, which became the foundation for my business for kids, serves more than just kids too! My why is… the athlete who repeats a mantra before a baseball game to help him calm his nerves the comment from a mom who swears her son has never been as happy as he was after his first yoga class the reserved student that asks her teacher if she can help the class “find calm” by teaching them some yoga poses the artist who now practices a mindful minute before each drawing the homeschooler who stands at the door, petrified to meet new friends and try yoga, then smiles when he balances on one foot the anxious student who doesn’t speak for weeks, then leads the class in a yoga flow the teenager who “struggles making friends at the new middle school but lives for her yoga tribe” the yogi that tells his mom that he cried during the last pose in yoga because he didn’t want class to end the gamer who “takes a deep breath when my mom says time is up so that I don’t get mad” the rule follower who “practices tree pose every day to help them remember that its ok to fall” the little sister that asks her family to stop and take a deep breath together before finishing their hike the reserved boy who volunteers to go first in yoga class showing the class his favorite yoga pose the child with lots of energy sitting nervously at a Dr.’s office repeating a mantra to herself to calm her nerves the teachers face when I share what an amazing job the often-labeled student did in yoga and how they lead the entire class the peer that tells another child to take a deep breath to help them calm their nerves My why for Just Breathe for kids…is to create a safe space for children…for all children to come, exactly as they are, where they get to be themselves, feel connected, accepted, enough, included, and special. This is Just Breathe for Kids.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Columbus, GA is such a diverse, thriving, growing city. I feel honored to call it home. There are so many local entrepreneurs, artists, and skilled crafts people here! Here is my list of can’t miss opportunities in Columbus Coffee from @sputnik bar (its roasted here in Columbus…nothing quite like a cup of coffee from beans roasted the day before!) Yoga class @riverflowyoga (be ready for life changing on the mat!) Massage @massagewhisperercolumbusga (no words to describe Dana’s skill at intuitively finding where your body craves work) Breakfast @thefoodmillcolumbus (local, made to order nourishment for our bodies!) Go for a run on the amazing Riverwalk (connecting GA and AL) and a bike ride on the @dragonflytrails Have a picnic @columbus_botanical_garden and a photo sess with @jessicafolwerphotography Bike ride through the beautiful land @Callawaygardens Tour the artwork @bobartletcenter and @museumcolumbus Lunch @11thandbay (we’d sit outside to feel the river below) and @mexigrill for a woman ran, made to order traditional Mexican meal! Sweet treats from @planthustleveganbakery and @thebakeshopcolumbus Dinner @Epicrestaurantga chef’s table (because there is nothing more divine than the chef cooking for YOU, with you, in front of you. And there are no words to describe the taste!) Shopping with local artists @councilstudio @plantmagicmarket @uptownexclusives @katiejacobsonart @bentbycourtney Live theater @springeroperahouse (will move you to tears!)

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Just Breathe for Kids could not have happened without my tribe of supporters and own personal transformation. My husband who, since the day we met, has seen and inspired my wings. My sisters and parents who support and love me no no matter what and my children, Kaia and Cruz who give life to my purpose and reason to soul.

When my family relocated from the Midwest to Columbus, GA five years ago, my life was literally transformed the minute I walked into Riverflow Yoga and Wellness (@riverflowyoga). It was there that I started to truly acknowledge my personal light and gifts and therefore create the opportunity to spread this message through Just Breathe for Kids. The yoga classes at RFY, created by Alee Link (@aleemorrisonlink), are far beyond what many might think is a typical yoga class. They say it best “RFY is truly a living sanctuary, a sacred temple- a space for continual for personal growth, realization, and understanding. We accept every single being exactly as they are, welcoming each person with wide open arms because we understand the power of unconditional love and support” I am forever grateful for the team and tribe at RFY and Alee Link for being a large part of the soul that shines within Just Breathe for Kids. The mission of Just Breathe for Kids would also not be possible without @taravictorial who literally puts life to our work both in print and digitally.

We are all a product of our teachers and guru’s and I am forever grateful for my Kansas and Columbus tribe that continues to support me and our mission.

Website: www.justbreatheforkids.com

Instagram: justbreatheforkids

Facebook: justbreatheandkidsyoga

Youtube: Just Breathe for Kids

Image Credits
Jessica Fowler
Tara Victoria – Art, Design, & Illustration