Early Years

​At the age of nine I was diagnosed with Rheumatic Fever and was put on heavy doses of penicillin and aspirin daily, which doctors said I would continue for the rest of my life. Three years later, at twelve years old, my devoted mother who strongly relies on and trusts her intuition, took me off the drugs without telling our doctor. Mom felt that these daily high doses of antibiotics drugs were not beneficial for my long term health and development. Mom put me on a strict regimen of healthy natural foods, daily supplements and a super tonic beverage that we called "poison" because the taste was so wicked it made me shudder. Around the same time, Mom starting taking yoga classes at our neighbour’s house, and then would teach me what she leaned at home. Friends and neighbors called mom a ‘health nut’ (by the way, this was 1971 and health awareness was new).
 
When I was fifteen, Mom decided it was time to bring me back to the doctor to check up on my health from a medical viewpoint. Doc set me up with all the necessary heart and blood tests, and few days later we returned when the results were in. He said, "I can't believe it, but you no longer have Rheumatic Fever." We explained how we had stopped the drugs three years prior, and made healthy dietary and lifestyle changes. He responded, "That has nothing to do with it. It's spontaneous remission."
 
In high school the typical teen issues took priority and peer pressure led me away from my healthy habits. In 1976 the first MacDonald's was built in our area, not far from our high school, and we frequented this establishment because it was a novelty. Fast Food became more frequent fare than home cooked meals. 

 

With my parents’ divorced at the age of 19, and the break-up of my engagement at the age of 21, I spiraled out of control into drugs, alcohol, and depression. I suffered from low self-esteem, devalued myself, and used mood-altering substances to numb the pain and attempt to escape myself and my situation. This phase of my life lasted some years and took a severe toll on my health. Things progressed in a downward spiral as these traumatic events led me onto a path of self-destructive behavior. I had suicidal thoughts and considered different ways of ending my life on a daily basis.
 
By the age of 24 I was in a do or die position, and had to save my health - and life. I had hit the proverbial rock-bottom, and decided to salvage whatever I could of my health and life. I pulled out all Mom’s well-worn books she had used for guidance and reference when I was 12 (Diet for a Small Planet, Let’s Eat Right to Keep Fit, and many more), and with great motivation and determined focus I fully embraced a healthy lifestyle again. I also started exercising regularly, and put ALL my time and energy into healing myself. Check out my blog: My Healing Journey
 

Spiritual Awakening

At the age of 26 (first week of October 1984) I had a full, mind blowing, spontaneous Kundalini awakening. At the time, I did not know what it was. That night I wrote in my journal, “I feel as if I have awakened from the inside out. My heart and mind and entire inner self feels as if it had been asleep all these years, compared to how I feel now. Even though I have always been very in touch with my inner feelings and instincts, somehow everything is different.” The Kundalini awakening felt and sounded like a hissing snake uncoiling and spiraling up inside, from my pelvic floor to the crown of my head. When it hit the top of my head, all of a sudden my vision switched from where I was standing, to seeing stars and galaxies and energy surrounding me with amazing radiance. It was as if I could see the whole universe. I am not sure how long I was held in this vision or space, perhaps several seconds, but eventually I shook my head and came back into my body, back where I was standing. I said to myself, “Wow, what was that!?” Years later, when reading yogic texts about Kundalini, they described my experience word for word. According to Swami Sivananda, “The speed at which the Kundalini is awakened is dependent upon the degree of purity, the stage of evolution, the amount of purification of the psychic nerves and the vital sheath, and above all, the degree of dispassion and yearning for liberation. In especially pure yogis, it jumps and reaches the Sahasrara (crown chakra) rapidly.”
 
From that day forward, my path began to take shape and become crystal clear. Much like my mother, I had always relied on my instincts and intuition, and now this connection to divine guidance was more palpable.
 

Kushi Institute Years

The following month (November 1984) I met a couple who taught macrobiotics, and out of curiosity took my first macrobiotic cooking class with them on December 23, 1984. Sue-Ann and Steven Foxman were the original owners of Teva on Decarie Blvd in Montreal. I was in their store almost every day asking questions, buying books and learning about macrobiotics. After learning as much as I could from cook books, I became so passionate about it that I needed to do something more. 
 
Between 1988 and 1991 was back and forth between Boston and Becket, Massachusetts to train at the Kushi Institute – world headquarters for macrobiotic studies - where I attended the Macrobiotic Leadership Studies, and eventually became head chef and kitchen manager under direct supervision of macrobiotic author/chef/teacher Wendy Esko. I assisted Michio Kushi, in his health counselling department; and was instrumental in the publication of Nine Star Ki, Michio's book of Oriental Astrology. The KI curriculum includes Oriental Medicine, organic farming and food processing shiatsu bodywork, KI energy balancing, yoga, Do-In, meridian exercises for healing of the physical, mental and spiritual being. The most compelling transformation I experienced was during Michio Kushi's Spiritual Development Seminars (levels 1-6); which refined my natural clairvoyant ability, and laid the groundwork for chakra healing bodywork. Check out my blog: My Healing Journey
 

Vegan Chef & Shiatsu Practitioner Years

My instinct for bodywork came naturally, and at 12 years old would give post-workout myofascial treatments to my best buddy 14 year old neighbour, who was training for the 1976 Olympics as a hammer thrower. He held the Canadian record from his performance at the Canada Games. 

 

When we learned shiatsu and Ki energy balancing at the Kushi Institute, like a fish to water I immersed myself fully. Once back in Montreal I built a following of loyal clients. I would split my time between treating clients, and working with whole foods.

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Cooking was also innate, as a fourth generation of gourmet chefs and pastry chefs. My mother learned the art of pastry chef directly from her father. Both of his parents were chefs to aristocracy in England.  I set out to unite my in-depth macrobiotic knowledge with gourmet cooking. As my experience and confidence grew, I took a position as head chef-manager in 1992 at Ecos Cafe in Toronto, where patrons praised and lined up for my specialties. This led to an exciting top position cooking for the "Stars" at Real Food Daily in Santa Monica, CA during the summer of 1993, and was asked back again when they opened their second-location in 1998.
 
* March 1993 I began offering cooking classes and vegan catering at my home in Pierrefonds under the name of, Karen's Kitchen. A year later, with the prompting of a colleague, I created and hosted KAREN'S KITCHEN, a popular Montreal cable TV cooking show (© 1994 and 1995), with Mom as co-host. Viewer's letters inspired me to write and self-publish my first vegan cookbook, FAST & FUN FOOD (© 1996), with lots of help from Mom in the kitchen testing recipes!
 
* 1996 to 1998 I was co-host of The Food Show with Chuck Phillips at CIQC AM 600 and occasionally co-hosted The Health Show with Jim Fewer. I appeared regularly as a guest-chef on Leslie Robert's popular CFCF morning show, Montreal AM. I was also lucky to be a guest on the CTV Nationally televised Dini Petty Show based in Toronto.

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Yoga, Fitness & Structural Alignment Therapy Years​

* 2000 I started teaching yoga - through Divine Intervention, in the form of my friend Barbara at the Snowdon YM-YWHA. She was inspired by my personal yoga practice and encouraged me to sub when the teacher was going to be out of town to tape his TV show. David Snively has been my fitness guru of many since 1984) and both Barbara and I regularly attended his variety of classes, from Step or Spin to Tai Box, and from Cardio Rhythms to Power Yoga. David was also my personal trainer and was a great inspiration along my path in those years. 

 

After subbing David’s classes for 2 weeks, I made a few phone calls around town to let people know, “I am available if you need a sub for yoga.” This was in April of 2010 at the start of the yoga boom in Montreal. Instead of calls to sub, I got calls to start teaching regular weekly classes in gyms and studios all over Montreal. By September 2010, only 5 months later, I was teaching yoga 7 days a week, 24 classes a week! It dawned on me, “I am now a yoga teacher. I better get certified!”

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* In 2001 and 2002 I attended a 1-week Ashtanga Yoga Teacher Training with David Swenson. I appreciated the tradition, however preferred the creativity and variety in sequencing offered by Power Yoga. I attended several workshops and retreats with Bryan Kest, the creator of Power Yoga. 

 

* In 2002 I was introduced to Anusara Yoga; and in early 2003 completed Todd Norian's 400 hour yoga teacher training based on the Anusara system. Since then I have been devoted to this path, and attended my first event with John Friend in October 2003. In late June 2011 my Anusara Yoga Certification was confirmed. 

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* 2002 started teaching YTT’s. The way it transpired was also Divine Inspiration. Karen Gozlan and Sarah Foxman (coincidentally Sarah is the daughter of the couple who taught me macrobiotics in 1984) frequented my yoga classes at the Snowdon Y. In the 2002 one day after class they came to me and said, “We want you to teach us how to become yoga teachers.” Hence, my teacher training programs were born that fall. I founded, Heaven On Earth Yoga Institute, and began offering full 200-hour Yoga Alliance registered YTT certification programs.

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In 2002 I attendedLotus Palm Thai Yoga Massage Training Level 1 and 2 with founder Kam Thai in Montreal. 

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* 2003 co-host / yoga-teacher in Josee Lavigueur's yoga video 'Initiation au Yoga'

* guest appearances on Josee's television show "Josee, Gaston & Cie" on TVA.

* 2004 host-creator of Yoga with Karen, television series on Canal Vox in Montreal.

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In April 2005 I attended Anusara Therapeutics in Cincinnati and this launched a whole new world of therapeutic bodywork. In the course, the teacher administered transformative life-changing manual techniques based on "Universal Principles of Adjustment" or biomechanical adjustments. He demonstrated on people with long-standing chronic pain and dysfunction, and we saw major functional change and pain relief in real time. This became the foundation of my Structural Alignment Therapy practice. 

 

In 2008 my yoga teacher training students requested to learn further, and were impressed seeing how I used Structural Alignment Therapy to help them and others with a variety of acute and chronic issues. In 2009 my 300-Hour Yoga Therapy Training program was launched, incorporating Structural Alignment Therapy, along with additional guest teachers from Canada and USA. As one of the first programs in Canada, and one of only a few in USA, students attended from all over North America. ​ ​

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New Horizons

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April 2010 we moved to Stoney Creek (Hamilton) Ontario. We love our new location and are very excited about our new facilities, where we continue to offer life enhancing, health promoting, inspiring programs. We would love to see you here! 

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In 2012 Karen created Guide 4 Golfers - an innovation in golf swing mechanics and postural alignment for elite golfers. To learn more about my private and group clinics click here Guide 4 Golfers™

 

In 2013 I launched a new brand focusing on yoga therapy: Integrated Health Yoga Therapy. And in 2014 from March to September I created and hosted my radio show: Integrated Health 4 You, featuring fascinating guests in the health and wellness world including MD, scientists, and health pioneers. 

 

In October 2014 I embarked on a very challenging and demanding, and very exciting, project - I started school to become an Osteopath. ​ In September 2018 I completed osteopathy school, and graduated at the top of my class with Academic Distinction.  Effective October 10th, 2018 Manual Osteopathy treatments are covered by insurance through NMOS

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I continue to evolve my manual osteopathy mastery by attending continuing education courses with top international osteopathy teachers. For more info click here >>

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What I want to do with my life is what I am doing and I understand the monumental privilege of being able to follow my bliss. I was born to do this - to provide space for healing, to teach, guide and support others in making positive lifestyle changes.