Meet Ella
I’m a Feminine Embodiment Practitioner & Somatic Trauma Educator who also specialises in Embodied Business Support for women doing business differently. I’m based on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia, but I travel regularly to Europe and beyond. For the esoteric minded, I’m a Projector, Libra Sun, Scorpio Moon, and Capricorn Rising. I’m also a queer, neurodivergent woman who is passionate about justice and liberation for all.
Originally what drew me to embodiment work was a chance to rebuild trust in the body I felt had betrayed me. I spent decades of my life grappling with sexual abuse, disordered eating patterns, intense and often frightening emotions and mood swings, unprocessed traumatic memories, and feeling slighted by my female form.
Eventually, I followed the intuitive call and jumped into a field of work I'd never heard of before; embodiment. As I became intimate with embodiment work, the practices, and the way of living it encouraged in me I knew that something had shifted in me and the way I related to my body. Somatic work has been deeply reparative for me and it was the missing piece I had been longing to find since I left behind the field of clinical psychology for something more holistic.
I began to dissect the systemic and societal influences that surround us as women and processed them through my body to land in something richer and more satisfying. Part of my healing lay in the awareness that I was not to blame for my brokenness, but that I could play an active role in how I put myself back together.
The field of somatics and embodiment saved my life. I grew up as an undiagnosed autistic woman until I was 26. For me, this meant I suffered severe trauma at the hands of a system that tried to force me into taking shapes my body was not able to bend to. Like most of us, I wasn’t taught how to regulate my emotions or to understand my unique nervous system. I was often thrown into suicidal episodes that would last months or years at a time and had a dependency on self-harm as a way to soothe.
Learning about my body, how to hold my emotions, how to sit in my skin, and how to cope in a very challenging and chaotic world was one very big piece of the puzzle. Equally, learning how to nurture my sensitivity, connect to the unseen, deepen my trust in my instinctual and intuitive self, and learn the language of the unconscious, was the next big piece. I believe in science & spirituality as equally necessary parts of a healthy, happy existence.
Soon after, I realised I had intentionally disconnected from my femininity thanks to internalising the values of the Patriarchy. I thought being soft, sensual, spiritual, and cyclical was what made me wrong. In reality, it was not me nor other women that were wrong, but the system we grew up in.
And so I began to ask, who are we if we peel back the layers of social conditioning, sexism and misogyny, cultural expectations, and trauma? And, how can we draw on the body’s wisdom in order to find out?
The Mission
I am here to build a better life for women. I want women to feel safe in their bodies, both out in the world and inside their own. I want women to feel the beating heart of their sensuality, joy, and aliveness in every corner of their lives. I want to build a world where women are unburdened by the oppressive systems of Patriarchy, Colonialism, Capitalism, and Religion. To build a world where women get to live every day anchored in the truth of who they are and not who they think they have to be.
I want to live in a world where I hear women say “let me feel into that” and “I’m learning to let my body lead”. I want to see women who source their power from within, who no longer need the external world to dictate what is right or wrong for them. Women who can honour the fullest expression of who they are and who they came to be, by connecting deeply to the wisdom within their bodies. Imagine a world where women and mothers feel restored, regulated, nurtured, and powerful. Imagine the strength of that world, the ripples it would create throughout every inch of our lives.
As my business grows, I have plans to partner with organisations I truly believe in. Community engagement is a central part of my values. Not from a theoretical, birds-eye view but from a practical, in-it-knees-deep type of way. Grass roots organisations that truly, deeply care about building a better world for the populations they fights for. I am personally very passionate about the work of The Returning, an Indigenous-run charity designed to bring all peoples of all ages, races and places back to country, and Art to Healing, a charity that utilises a women-centric approach to healing women and children from their traumatic pasts of sex slavery.
I am committed to decolonising every aspect of my life and business. This means I am unplugging my body and values from the systems of Capitalism, Patriarchy, Colonialism, Imperialism, and other oppressive systems. Instead, I draw on the principles of Intersectional Feminism, Trauma-Informed care, and Socialism. Meaning that I believe in a body-first, community-led, feminine approach to business AND life.
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The Art of Breathing. Embodied Philosophy. 2024.
Sensation is Sacred & Shadow Side of the Feminine. Somatic Institute for Women. 2024.
60 Hr Somatic Trauma Educator Training. Embody Lab. 2023.
Qualified Rehabilitation Counsellor. Australian Society of Rehabilitation Counsellors. 2023.
Feminine Embodiment Certification. The School of Embodied Arts. 2022.
First Class Hons Degree in Psychological Science. The University of Queensland. 2018.
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Our culture promotes mindless extraction of both material and intellectual resources. I'd like to give thanks to those who have significantly shaped the lens I bring to my work, as well as the work itself.
Feminine Embodiment & Somatics
Jenna Ward, Jessica Anne, Maanee Chrystal, Peter Levine, Stephen Porges, Deb Dana, Michaela Boehm.
Justice & Liberation
Kelly Diels, Trudi Lebron, Staci Haines, Toi Smith, Ella Noah Bancroft, Kelsey Blackwell, Dra Rocio Rosales Meza. -
To claim my sovereignty back from a system that does it's best to exhaust and burn out women, I actively ensure I do not take client meetings, bookings, or calls during the first day of my period.
I am incredibly committed to the sustainability of our land and it's people. At this point, my business is completely digital and waste free. I do not participate in the "hustle and grind" of our Capitalist culture and will not work myself into the ground in the name of productivity. I adhere to my unique energy structure and encourage my clients to do the same.
I believe money is a resource, as is community, our voice, and our time. I do not prioritise profit over the wellbeing of the people involved in my business or in my personal life.I believe in amplifying marginalised voices. Our society prioritises the reach of those who uphold Eurocentric norms of beauty and I am in a constant dialogue with myself over who's work is prioritised and why.
I do not believe in the gender binary. While I engage with the word "feminine" I do not believe it equates to the female sex. My work is inclusive of trans, non-binary and gender queer folks who feel drawn to working with the feminine or in women's work. While my work is specifically for women, I acknowledge this definition is not as rigid as was once thought in our greater society. If my work resonates with you, it is for you.