An interview with Ellie Young - freebirth, transition phase and polyvagal theory

In this episode we interview Ellie Young. Ellie is an Australian edge-dwelling registered midwife, qualitative researcher and writer. She has worked with women and families for over 15 years within the permaculture and traditional nutrition space whilst supporting women choosing to give birth outside the system. After midwifery training, Ellie went back to attending homebirth within her community, whilst undertaking a research study on women's experience of the transition phase of physiological labour during freebirth. This inquiry led her down the rabbit warren of all things nervous system, somatics and the Polyvagal Theory, whilst exploring women's unique perceptions of peak intensity within physiological labour processes. She's now a self-confessed geek for the rewilding of childbirth through understanding the social nervous system at play during birth and positioning it within a biopsychosocial model. Her work in the world is now firmly centred on supporting women and midwives on their paths to reconnection with self, the body, intuition, female physiology, birth and this precious earth. We discuss all this and more in this episode of cauldron.

LINKS:
Ellie Young: @newmoonmidwife
Blog Post: No Woman's Land
Dr Rachel Reed website