Today we’d like to introduce you to Tristan Stewart.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
In the fall of 2015, I was a hard-working student at the Berklee College of Music. I would typically clock 12-hour work days, seven days a week, smoking Cannabis to cope with the stress. I was hell-bent on becoming a famous musician. I made few friends because I focused all my energy into myself and my dreams.
Eventually, the bottled stress caught up with me. On the evening of November 10th, I was working at the Boston Public Library when a massive anxiety-attack struck me. In the moment it felt like dying. I was rushed by ambulance to Tufts ER. I’ll never forget picturing everyone I loved and, one-by-one, faring them well. My heart was at 190 BPM when I arrived at the hospital. It took about four hours, but my pulse slowed to 90 BPM and I walked back to the Berklee campus around 1 am.
This was merely the first domino in a series of chronic health issues. I was chronically fatigued, mentally and physically. I couldn’t even walk from my dorm at 150 Mass Ave to the 160 cafes without my heart pounding through the roof. It was all terrifying. I had to drop out of Berklee that November in search of healing. I visited too many doctors to name – some of Boston’s best – yet on paper, every specialist told me I was healthy. I became a medical mystery.
After about four months of enduring my debilitating ailments, my frustration reached the tipping point. I decided I had two options: I could either remain the victim of my wretched circumstances or I could use my suffering as an opportunity to grow. I began teaching myself about holistic healing. I deeply examined my lifestyle and made incremental changes for the better. I started seeing an acupuncturist who introduced me to Chi Gong meditation. Then, at the pinnacle of my healing journey, I found the practice of Yoga. I’ll never forget laying in savasana for the first time and feeling intuitively certain that I needed this practice. From my first class, Yoga has been a paramount part of my everyday routine.
Where medical doctors had failed me, I was able to help myself. I’m now happier, healthier, and more deeply fulfilled than I’ve ever been in my life. To this day, I’m astonished how powerful these practices are. My first-hand experience with Yoga is so profound that I feel utterly compelled to share this practice with the world. Today, I’m back at Berklee, studying music therapy, teaching Yoga, and creating Yoga-inspired YouTube videos.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
My chronic illness was a relentless struggle. The end of 2015, going into the winter, was a brutal time. I was living at home with just my mom and our dog. All my good friends were at college. I was simply alone with my ailments day after day, month after month. Three work-hours a day was the most I could handle. In retrospect, I see those painful months as a gift. Everything shifted once I was able to view my predicament as an opportunity to learn.
I came to develop a deep bond with Rosie, the family puggle. She was an ever-present source of unconditional love in that precarious season of my life. She became a sort of symbol for strong faith. Come late May, when I was seeing subtle improvements with my health, Rosie was struck by a car. I consoled her in my arms and watched that special soul leave behind a broken body. I’m deeply grateful I was there in those last moments of her life; I eased her pain, in the same way, she had so loyally done for me. The sudden trauma tore a hole through me. But the rich value I gained from her short life so profoundly outshines the pain of losing her. I have a commemoration tattoo for her that reads, “Remember to dance.” Yogis believe that everything is meaningful. Even the most radical experiences happen for a reason. Rosie taught me to love deeper than I knew how. And now that she is gone, I try to honor those lessons as if she were reincarnated as a part of me.
Yoga teacher training was another difficult experience. I was the youngest (by a decade) and the most inexperienced of the seven students. But my teachers offered so much support when I needed it. They also encouraged me to lean into the discomfort, as all great Yoga teachers do. Yoga training is not, as you may imagine, merely about physical strength-building and stretching sequences. There is also tremendous mental, emotional and even spiritual challenge in the training process. Every one of us graduated with a richer connection to our spirit; it was one of the most beautiful journeys of my life.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about your practice – what should we know?
When it comes to my Yoga teaching, I’m known for embracing Yogic philosophy. I’m certified in Vinyasa Yoga so I enjoy leading a physically intense flow. I also love Yin Yoga – a style that balances the more active, robust style of yoga with slower, longer-held poses. Yin allows me to make use of my musical background. In the spaces when another teacher would simply hold silence, I prefer to lead my students into a deeper experience by singing musical mantras. But whether it’s Yin or Vinyasa, I ask my students to embrace physical discomfort with the intention of maintaining mental ease. My personal practice is highly meditative, focusing deliberately on therapeutic healing and spiritual growth. I teach through a lens of personal transformation.
However, my main business is being a student. My teacher Marlena Bruno taught me that every teacher is, truthfully speaking, a life-long student. I’m currently pursuing a degree in Music Therapy at Berklee. So far, I’ve completed practicums with autistic middle schoolers and geriatric dementia patients. As of yet, I don’t specifically know what the world is asking me to be as a Music Therapist. But my intuition tells me that I need to combine both Music Therapy and Yoga into a single offering.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention my online presence. I’m known within the Yoga community on Instagram for my unique brand of insightful yet humorous and, at times, downright outrageous content. I do video interviews with my favorite Yoga teachers. These can be found on my YouTube channel alongside my philosophy series entitled “The Nitty Gritty.” My intention with social media is to create an online community of truth seekers who help each other grow
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
I owe the world to my teachers! If it weren’t for the guidance of many rich souls I’d be like a leaf in the wind. There are too many to mention in full. However, the seeds sprouting on my current path were initially planted under the tutelage of Todd Dulin and Meredith Tracey. In junior year of high school, I took their year-long course, “American Thought,” and it woke something latent within me. They introduced me to transcendentalism and challenged me to process what I learned through art exhibitions. They prepped me mentally for a call to action that came after high school.
Yoga was that call to action. It was time to explore a deeper chapter; I was ready and the master appeared. Her name is Marlena Bruno, owner of Mantra Yoga in Danvers, MA. She taught my teacher training and has shown me how to begin embodying this deep well of Yogic wisdom. Marlena’s teacher, Raghunath Cappo, is also another profound teacher I’m continually learning from. These two introduced me to Bhakti (love & devotion) Yoga, of which Kirtan, or chanting meditation, is a powerful component. This is the main type of Yoga I practice. I consider it my duty to offer this rich tradition in a city where it is not well known.
Lastly, I must mention the most life-changing individual I’ve ever studied with. Her name is Deana Bacon and she is a magical human being. Deana exemplifies what Yogis call “heart-centered” and inspires me to live my hearts deepest longing. She helped me realize my greatest fear: the fear of loving people. It has been a long, painful journey of self-realization and one she is still helping me through; but it has been unimaginably rewarding. I’m no longer that indifferent musician caught in his own world, hiding behind an indifferent veneer of false pride. I’m becoming the lover of people I always was deep in my heart. I’m now the guy who will compliment a stranger or if I see a beautiful girl, I’ll let her know it. But most importantly, I can help people with the lessons I’ve learned.
I’ll conclude by sharing something Deana taught me. We were all born free spirits with our souls singing the tune inherently within. But in the process of becoming a civilized adult, our spirit is inevitably broken. The journey of letting go of whatever is standing in the way of our heart might be the most painful struggle we ever dare to undertake. But only through that journey may we arrive at the deepest bliss this life can offer.
Contact Info:
- Email: tstewart2@berklee.edu
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tristantheyogi/
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_11RXlmB3yGmkVB3e0PpQg
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