Close Up Radio features Richmond yoga teacher Shannon Eastwood

Close Up Radio recently spotlighted Shannon Eastwood, a Richmond-based yoga teacher, Reiki master and founder of Our Lotus Society, in an interview aired Sept. 28. Eastwood’s story ties together cancer recovery, accessible wellness and a growing body of research on yoga’s stress-reduction benefits.

Why it matters: - Shannon Eastwood’s story connects personal recovery with a broader wellness movement focused on making yoga, breath work and sound baths accessible to more people. - A 2025 randomized controlled trial published in OBM Integrative and Complementary Medicine found eight weeks of Hatha yoga postures measurably lowered stress while raising mindfulness and body awareness. - Eastwood’s work in Richmond centers on practices that she says can help people regulate stress, reduce pain and build community.

What happened: - Close Up Radio featured Shannon Eastwood, certified yoga teacher, Reiki master and founder of Our Lotus Society, in an interview with Jim Masters on Sept. 28 at 11 a.m. Eastern. - Eastwood is based in Richmond, Virginia, and leads yoga classes and sound baths through Our Lotus Society. - Eastwood began formal yoga teacher training during recovery after a hysterectomy for cancer. - Eastwood founded Our Lotus Society to make yoga and healing more accessible in the Richmond area and beyond.

The details: - Eastwood experienced severe bleeding and pain starting in 2020. - Doctors first treated the symptoms with over-the-counter medication and hormonal prescriptions. - The symptoms worsened until a five-inch mass released from her body during tree pose at an outdoor yoga gathering. - Eastwood was rushed to an emergency room and later underwent surgery to remove the cancer. - Before opening Our Lotus Society, Eastwood spent 20 years as a corporate strategist. - Her career path included technical design in the fashion industry, work at a Richmond design-build startup, and physical product design. - Eastwood later earned a master’s degree in product innovation at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Da Vinci Center. - Eastwood also returned to the Da Vinci Center as an instructor, teaching graduate students design theory for innovation. - Her classroom approach included music, food and open discussion. - Eastwood’s sound baths use crystal singing bowls tuned near 432 hertz, plus Tibetan bowls, chimes and lavender-scented eye masks. - During sessions, participants lie down while vibrations and tones are intended to guide the nervous system into a calmer parasympathetic state. - Eastwood says clients regularly report physical pain fading during sessions, and some report vivid memories of loved ones surfacing. - One participant described reconnecting with a brother who died in childhood. - Eastwood developed part of her breath-work practice during a study-abroad program in the English countryside with vocalist Frankie Armstrong, who is partially deaf and blind. - Eastwood later became Reiki certified and now layers guided breathing, meditative visualization and chakra-inspired color theory into her sessions. - Eastwood says those practices helped her body recover from cancer. - Eastwood describes yoga as accessible to all bodies, all conditions and all skill levels. - Eastwood builds modifications into every class so beginners and advanced practitioners can work side by side. - She encourages what she calls an intentional pause, saying a few minutes of stillness can reset the nervous system and improve decision-making. - Eastwood’s advice to people hesitating to try something new is to take the first step because fear and excitement can feel identical in the body. - She also said, "You’ll never feel ready. Just take that first step."

Between the lines: - Eastwood’s background in fashion, product design and innovation shapes a wellness practice that blends technique with user-centered design. - Her approach reflects a growing trend in integrative health: combining movement, breath, sound and community rather than relying on one method alone. - The radio feature also underscores how personal illness narratives are increasingly used to frame credibility in the wellness space.

What’s next: - Eastwood continues to offer yoga and sound baths in the Richmond area. - Our Lotus Society is positioned as a practice for practitioners of every experience level. - More information about Shannon Eastwood and Our Lotus Society is available at the company’s website. - The podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, iHeart and Spotify.

The bottom line: - Eastwood’s feature puts a personal face on the idea that structured movement, breath and sound can be part of recovery, not just relaxation.