Hi, I'm Anna
I created Grounded Movement as on online space for you to recharge, nourish your body and mind and to reconnect with yourself on this crazy journey of motherhood.
My story with movement starts back in my teen years. I enjoyed long distance running which ultimately led to a number of injuries, my physio recommended yoga and I started going to an Ashtanga inspired vinyasa class. I found that I enjoyed this way of moving my body, and was taken by the combination of the physical and spiritual practice.
Unfortunately my yoga journey was put on hold, as shortly after this I developed anorexia and spent many years in and out of hospital and treatment programs. As I recovered, I rediscovered my love for yoga, finding it a healing way to move my body without a focus on losing weight.
In my early 20’s, my natural interest in human anatomy drove me to study to become a paramedic and a registered nurse, both of which I practice currently. Throughout my uni days, my love for yoga continued to grow, I regularly practiced Ashtanga yoga at home and through a local studio. My practice gave me a space to feel strong, capable and grounded.
At age 22 life threw a curve ball – I found out I was pregnant. Living in a share house and having just finished my first year at uni; this was not something I was prepared for. I was afraid and there was no clear answer to me as to what we should do, but in the end my partner and I made the decision to have the baby, and just like that; life was on a very different trajectory.
Despite the initial shock, I enjoyed being pregnant, and was excited to welcome this little soul into our lives. But I suddenly felt so unsure of what types of movement were safe, and found it difficult to find reliable information. My midwives told me to do prenatal yoga and gentle walking, but having always loved challenging myself physically I suddenly felt a loss of identity and direction with my practices.
I went through the public maternity system and put my trust in the professionals providing my care. Unfortunately, the birth was a traumatic experience, involving multiple interventions that I wasn’t properly informed about or educated on. I was left feeling in shock, and initially quite disconnected from this beautiful little baby that I held in my arms.
Those early postpartum days were tough, I found it difficult to move around with my episiotomy scar, I had a lot of trouble breastfeeding and the sleepless nights stacked up. I felt like I wasn’t cut out for motherhood. Initially, I didn’t want to move, my body felt foreign, I was experiencing incontinence when I tried to exercise and I felt so overwhelmed. I slowly found my way back to my practice and love for movement, and it became the rock that got me through some very dark days.
My yoga practice continued to be the thing that I fell back on over the next few years; with the unexpected death of my mum from cancer, and the breakdown of my relationship, I delved into my practice in a deep way, and was able to find some light in these hard times.
In 2019, after many years of my own exploration into yoga, I felt inspired to share my learnings with others, and completed my vinyasa yoga teacher training. Shortly after that I began teaching at several studios here in Canberra. I became totally obsessed with learning about movement for pregnancy and postpartum, so I decided to do my prenatal yoga certification. I began teaching prenatal yoga classes, which deepened my passion for helping women move their bodies during this season of life.
I became very interested in Movement Culture and began training at Praksis, an Ido Portal inspired gym teaching calisthenics style movement. I undertook a mentorship program at Praksis under the guidance of the founder Tom Emerson, where I was introduced to a variety of training styles including hand balancing, mobility, locomotion, strength work (both weight training and gymnastics) and joint and spinal articulation. I still practiced and taught yoga during this time, however I found that this style of training allowed me to go deep into the specifics of the foundations of movement, and my physical practice improved in leaps and bounds.
My hunger for knowledge in the area of pregnancy and postpartum movement was still strong, I completed a Women’s Specialist Coaching Certification and a Pre/Postnatal Fitness Certification, attended workshops on pelvic floor and core recovery, and started teaching a postnatal class at Praksis incorporating strength, mobility and creative movement. The class became more than an exercise group, it was a nurturing community of women and their children coming together to do something good for their bodies.
When I met my husband 6 years ago, we spoke early on about having children, and whilst I was open to the idea, I realised I still had so much fear around birth. With the help of a birth psychologist, and a lot of deep inner reflection, I worked on healing this wound. This year, we tried for a baby and got pregnant right away, we were thrilled. Unfortunately, at the 12 week scan we were told there was no heartbeat. The miscarriage hit me hard, and I am still learning how to live with this grief. Again, I have turned to my yoga and movement practices to allow this deep sadness the space it needs.
I love sharing these practices through my classes, so that others may find as much joy, challenge, growth and grounding from them as I have. I created the Grounded Movement Studio to reach even more women on the journey of pregnancy, postpartum and pregnancy loss.
Movement can be so much more than just exercise. Building strength can help you feel inwardly strong, improving flexibility and mobility can show you that you can sit with strong sensations and move into unfamiliar territory with curiosity. Creative movement challenges our habitual movement patterns and helps you break some of those deep set beliefs about what is possible for you.
Thank you for reading my story, please reach out if you have any questions or want to share your story with me. I look forward to being part of your movement journey.