Melanie Leithauser has been exploring and learning about the body since 2001. In 2004, she graduated from the 230 hour yoga teacher training program at the Asheville Yoga Center under master teacher, Stephanie Keach. After a year in Charleston SC, where she completed her massage therapy licence, Melanie returned to the mountains of western NC and opened her first studio in 2006, BE FREE Yoga & Dance. After two and a half years, her dance teacher partner relocated and Melanie opened The BE FREE Center in a new location. The BE FREE Center had multiple massage therapists and yoga teachers and was open for another two years before Melanie got the heart calling to return to her hometown, Ft. Collins CO, to be near family and find the next incarnation of BE FREE.

Melanie's yoga style is designed to wake you up on all levels. She uses music, breath, and movement/asana in a powerful way to clear the body/mind/spirit of fear, anxiety and body pain. Whether the class is gentle, or a more advanced flow, Melanie believes we can all benefit from breathing BIG and moving the body!

As a major part of BE FREE, Melanie has been practicing massage therapy since 2006. It is Melanie's belief that the breath is the key to truly letting go of tension. She encourages her clients to use their breath as a relaxation tool during their massage in order to release on a deeper level. Melanie enjoys finding the right balance of Swedish, Thai, Deep Tissue, Reiki, and Craniosacral for each client.

In the spring of 2012, Melanie was ordained as a Shamanic Minister and completed her certification as a Shamanic Breathwork Facilitator. This healing modality involves using powerful music and the breath to enter an altered state where the body can release on a deeper level than in normal consciousness. After experiencing the powerful life shifts which came from doing this therapy and healing her own childhood trauma, Melanie is incredibly excited to share this work with the public. Shamanic Breathwork can be experienced one-on-one, or in a group. The word Shamanic refers to the Shaman within each one of us, the inner healer that knows how to connect to something bigger( God, the Universe, etc) and purge what is not needed. Shamanic Breathwork is open to all faiths and lifestyles. We are all human and we all want to BE FREE.
shamanicbreathwork.org

When she is not working as a planetary change agent, Melanie enjoys writing, singing, biking, whitewater kayaking, hiking, cooking, and celebrating friends and family. This life is a beautiful gift.