WHO WE ARE
The Founders
We’re Like You!
We’ve been there, through the struggle, through the pain, and the ups and downs. We used yoga, meditation, journaling, and mindfulness to help us along the way.
We created Orchid Experience in 2018 when the three of us realized we were connected by one difficult [and often heartbreaking] experience – infertility. Through our own personal journeys, we realized how infertility is not an experience many women share but occurs more often than we think.
We aim to facilitate wholeness through a warm, open and compassionate environment where individuals and/or couples facing infertility or non-conventional family building needs will gain empowering mind-body techniques to support them through every phase of the journey.
Jen Bell MS, E-RYT 500, YACEP, C-IAYT (Yoga Therapist)
After a year of unsuccessfully trying to start a family Jennifer and her husband sought help. They ran through all of the tests and were diagnosed male factor infertility. The only way they could have biological children would be through IVF with ICSI. The road was long, full of bumps, and several fertility clinics. Finally, five years after their initial diagnosis they welcomed fraternal twin boys into their family.
Having already had a yoga and meditation practice, Jennifer continued to use that to help ease the pain and stress of disappointment, procedures, and injections.
Jennifer has been teaching yoga since 2008. She has used her own experience to help shape the way she teaches. Along the way she has met others on a similar journey through infertility and has seen first hand how yoga and meditation can help.
Michelle Cawley, E-RYT 200 RYT 500 YACEP
Michelle considered herself quite healthy so she never thought at age 34 trying to conceive would be an issue. She tried everything from giving up coffee and alcohol to no longer dancing on stage, and even seeing an acupuncturist before seeking out help from a fertility specialist. Diagnosed as female factor, Michelle and her husband did three rounds of timed intercourse and injections with minimal results before the doctor said their best chance of conceiving was IVF. Understanding the odds were not good due to poor egg quality, Michelle and her husband paused to consider their options. At this point, Michelle realized the infertility rollercoaster had taken a toll on their emotional and mental well-being, and as a result their relationship was strained. After much consideration they ultimately chose the childfree option.
Faced with accepting the loss of a family that would never be, Michelle found herself on her yoga mat. The healing powers of the asana and meditation practices brought Michelle a sense of inner peace, understanding of self, and acceptance of situations outside of her control.
Michelle graduated in January 2017 with the desire to share the healing effects of yoga with anyone willing to roll out a mat and share their practice with her.
Preeti Vidwans, PsyD, Psychologist
Preeti Vidwans, PsyD is a Licensed Psychologist who has worked in a variety of settings. Through her own journey with infertility, she has recognized even more the importance of support/community, and attention to the physical, emotional, and cognitive aspects of the experience. She therefore hopes to help others explore this within themselves to achieve a greater sense of “wholeness.”
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