Oneika Mays is a meditation teacher, E-RYT yoga instructor, and author of Sit With Me: A No BS Journey to Mindfulness and Meditation (HarperOne, 2026). She specializes in metta (lovingkindness) meditation and has nearly 15 years of teaching experience with an accessible, justice-centered approach that welcomes all bodies, all identities, and all levels of experience.
Oneika has taught for Yoga International, Kripalu, and Embodied Philosophy. She was a Mindfulness Coach at Rikers Island and helped spearhead wellness programming for NYC Health + Hospitals. Her teaching emphasizes that contemplative practice must lead to real-world action and behavioral change.
Oneika completed her 200-hour meditation teacher certification with the Interdependence Project (IDP), where she also served as a mentor teacher. She has studied MBSR, metta, and trauma-informed mindfulness, and is a guest teacher at the Community Meditation Center in Manhattan. Her accessible style of teaching creates space for people to practice being with themselves exactly as they are. She believes that learning to love ourselves is how we change the world.