Anna Christine Bowden

So nice to meet you! First off, what’s your name? Tell our readers a bit about yourself—where you’re from originally and where you live now.

My name is Anna Christine Bowden and I teach people how to incorporate meditation, mindfulness and nervous system regulation practices into their daily lives. I am currently based in Pasadena, but originally grew up in San Diego County, where I grew up surfing with my dad :) I love San Diego, but by college I was becoming more serious about my pursuit of a professional dance career, and that’s what led me to move to Los Angeles in 2007. I had a beautiful dance career performing with local dance companies in L.A., but retired at age 30 as dance became unsustainable for my body. I’ve continued in the wellness industry teaching a variety of exercise and movement techniques and am currently in my 16th year teaching at the Bar Method Pasadena fitness studio.

Tell us one thing you love about where you live now.

I so enjoy the diversity of Los Angeles. I like that I can drive 15 minutes in any direction and be in a different neighborhood with its own unique vibe. But coming to Pasadena feels like coming home. It’s full of history and craftsmanship and old trees that line the streets. There are nearby trails and wildlife and 100-year-old brick buildings; it’s a city that feels like it has a soul and has a connection to the land that it occupies.

Tell us a little more about what your company does and how it started. How does it help your customers?

In 2016 I gave birth to my beautiful daughter. This was a wonderful new chapter in my life, but it was also a very challenging time for me as I struggled with postpartum depression. I needed help. Traditional CBT therapy was useful, but I desperately needed something more. As Rumi is cited to have said, “the wound is the place where the light enters you.” And that is my story too - out of my darkest time came my learned ability to overcome. And a deep desire to help others, too.

During this challenging time I became a devoted meditator, trying different meditation techniques to help me understand and tame my own mind. I became a pupil of different spiritual teachers and eventually found the teachings of Zen Buddhist master Thich Nhat Hanh, putting his teachings on mindfulness into my own daily practice. I studied somatic techniques and nervous system regulation, adding breath work, vagal toning, tapping, acupressure and sound healing to my learned practices. And slowly, with consistency, I began to change and to heal. I can now say happily and honestly that I feel the most grounded, the most healthy, the most at peace I have ever been. And I deeply want to share that with others. After more education and a handful of certifications, I now do just that with my business, In The Moment Anna.

I have 3 pillars to my personal practice and my business - meditation, mindfulness and nervous system regulation. And I teach people and facilitate events in all 3 of these areas.

Since starting my business, I have coached individuals on their own personal meditation journey, both in person and remotely. I have taught mindfulness in elementary schools, in non-profits, in corporate offices, to church groups and leadership teams. I have led guided meditations and mindfulness walks around east Los Angeles and currently lead monthly mindfulness events at Descanso Gardens. I facilitate nervous system “resets” and sound baths in private homes, at fundraisers, businesses, parks and schools. My goal is to help people live a more conscious, resilient and peaceful life, one mindful breath at a time.

If someone wants to start a business, what advice would you give them?

Like so many success stories, my business has been about personal connections. It’s pretty rare that I book a new client with a cold call or email. I encourage new business owners to look at their current social network and start there. For instance, a few years back I kept asking my daughter’s elementary school if I could lead a mindfulness assembly for some of the classes. Eventually, because I already knew the principal and staff there, they said yes and it was a great success. When I told my other mom friends about the assembly, they started asking their school staff if I could bring my work to their kids’ schools.

What is one piece of feedback from a happy customer or client that you won't forget?

I have a client who is the CEO of a successful company; she’s a very busy person. She told me once that when she would attend one of my guided meditations or sound baths it was the only time her mind would become quiet. It’s so satisfying knowing that what I offer actually helps people better their lives.

Where do you see your company in the future?

In the future I see myself teaching mindfulness more consistently in schools and having more one-on-one meditation clients. I also see myself facilitating nervous system resets and sound baths in more corporate spaces, non-profits and outdoor settings like the Huntington Gardens. Eventually, I’d love to take my offerings to incarcerated people in prisons.

What is the biggest misconception about your industry?

What In The Moment Anna offers falls under the umbrella of the wellness industry, which is vast and varying. Sometimes “wellness” gets the reputation of being frivolous, self-indulgent or just another way the culprits of capitalism try to convince us that we need to buy something to fix ourselves. But I believe true wellness is something that starts from within, as cheesy as that sounds. If we can learn the tools to more effectively handle stress, strong emotions and the suffering in the world, we will all be in a better place.

What has been one of your biggest struggles building your business, and how did you deal with it?

One of my business’s biggest struggles is inconsistent work. What I do is gig work - I get hired for a specific event or a certain length of time, then the job is done. This means that there are times when I am busy and income is flowing in and there are times I’m not very busy and income isn’t flowing. This is still a challenge I am navigating currently, but my most sensible solution to this is putting in more time trying to book repeating gigs with satisfied clients.

Who was your favorite music artist and athlete growing up?

My youth belongs to the 90s, so I grew up on the rebellious music of Alanis Morissette and the poetry-in-motion of surfing legends Kelly Slater and Laird Hamilton.

Any shoutouts you want to make?

I want to shout out Connie Clotworthy and her non-profit Worthy Beyond Purpose, which brings mindfulness and meditation to dozens of schools across L.A. She has helped and taught me along my journey and I believe the work she does is paramount. Check her out at worthybeyondpurpose.org

Where can our readers learn more about you and your company?

Check out my website: inthemomentanna.com or on Insta @inthemomentanna.

You can find my free guided meditations on the world’s largest meditation app, Insight Timer, at: https://insighttimer.com/annachristinebowden