Hello there. My name is Elle Teague, and I am a Registered Nurse, who also specialises in holistic postpartum care; specifically traditional Jamu massage, binding and wrapping, and post-birth mental health support. I trained as a Registered Nurse before becoming a mother, and in my beautiful journey of mothering now 3 children, I have grown in so many different ways.

 

My first birth was considered “beautiful” by the attending midwife, but when I left the hospital only 3 hours after I had delivered my baby girl, Lilah, I felt it was anything but. I felt so anxious, even though everyone said I was “doing great”. I was so emotional, I felt so weak, and the pain and discomfort I felt both emotionally and physically was not something I was prepared for. My midwife said to me “you need to leave the house within the first week”, and even though my body was telling me not to, the pressure I put on myself to do this was real. Even though my partner, friends and parents provided all the support that they could, I really struggled with the healing process - from understanding what happened in my birth, to how I physically and emotionally healed postnatally, I didn’t feel held in the space, and with the expectations of society to “bounce back” after birth, it just felt like a lot. I definitely felt out of touch, and very much not myself for the first year of Lilah’s life.

 

I always knew I wanted to have more children, and so when Kurt and I fell pregnant again 3.5 years later, we knew something needed to change - specifically the care post-birth. That was when we were introduced to the beautiful Jackie Gorman, who came to care for me with her expertise in Jamu massage, post-natal binding and the loving support of a listening ear, post birth. The ease into everyday life that I felt after this birth was like no other, and with Jackie’s ongoing support alongside my home birthing midwives, I had never felt more cared for, respected and prepared for my journey with now two little ones. It was this pregnancy and postpartum journey with our second little girl Nora, that I fell in love with learning about everything about birth and postpartum, and where I felt the shift within myself in healing from my previous experience. This knowledge regarding how we should be caring for our birthing mothers, partners, friends and family members in the postpartum space wasn’t and isn’t “the norm” particularly in Western culture - but oh how it should be!

 

It is only now that Kurt and I have had another child, a beautiful little boy - Tobias, that I feel strong enough, knowledgeable enough and truly ready to deliver this care to other postpartum, birthing mothers. It is in my heart to be an integral part of this changing birthing scene, specifically in Australia right now. I want to use my knowledge as a registered nurse to support women in the most loving and gentle possible way as they discover and transition to motherhood, whether it be the first time, or the fifth time - every postpartum is just as important as any other, and every birth is uniquely its own.

 

It would be my greatest honor to care for you and your family postpartum, so please, reach out if you have any questions.

 

With great love, Elle.