Hello Mama

My name is Sacha.

I am a mother of 2, adorable, inspiring (and sometimes exhausting) children, & the focus of my work is supporting mothers through the incredible, intense & profound rite of passage that is matresence: the transitory stage of life we enter as we become mothers.

My joy is to weave together a unique blend of movement, meditation mindfulness based coaching, & sharing circles, all tailored to nourish & support mothers. Empowering mamas to find themselves anew, to feel connected to each other, and to reflect upon and redesign their lives, as they navigate through this unique and powerful metamorphosis.

WHY I DO THIS WORK...

To put it simply my own Matresence hit me like a ton of bricks.

It began with infertility- 4 years of longing for motherhood and thinking it would never happen.

Then as I began to give up all hope, the ecstasy of a new pregnancy, soon followed by the complete destruction of my wellbeing - I suffered Hyperemisis Gravidarum an extreme form of morning sickness where I vomited up to 20 times a day, lost a lot of weight, worried for my life and the life of my babies and couldn't leave my bed for months... So that was the beginning.

Then there were the births. my first was more challenging, and required me and my son to receive emergency treatment immediately after birth, my second more idyllic: into water surrounded by my partner, my son and my best friends.

Then there were the early years. Living on a Greek island, running a yoga retreat centre from our home, far from family support. We welcomed guests from all around the world, and tried to keep it clean and quiet all the time for our guests, all the while caring for first 1 then 2 babies. My gorgeous son faced undiagnosed food intolerances (even through my milk!) that meant he didn't really gain enough weight, he vomited very often and he didn't sleep well- at all. I lived for a number of years on very little sleep, very little food and very little free time.

It was a time of deep love and also pain. A time of profound depth and beauty, a time of chaos, confusion, mess, stress, strength. bliss, falling apart, , breaking down, breaking open, and ultimately breaking through.

In my heart's calling to be there for my children, I disappeared from my work, my friends, my partner, and even myself . I went through a process of re-birth that I now see as an inevitable and key part of the metamorphosis of motherhood... but in my case (and in many cases) it was unnecessarily rough due to lack of knowledge at what was happening to me, and lack of guidance and support.

I kept needing to let go of little pieces of who I used to be. At the time I found it raw and intense, but I now see what a gift this time is when we can do it consciously. All the spiritual traditions I hold dear and have practiced and trained in my whole life are leading one to a state of no-self, of dropping the ego, a being in the here and now. The traditions also speak of the power of cultivating kindness and compassion. And these are all the exact virtues that mothers naturally embody. The key is to understand what is happening, to support oneself as one goes through it, and to navigate the metamorphosis consciously. Only a mother can empower herself to do this, and she must do this in the face of a society that has no clue how to be with the power, the beauty, the practicalities, the mystery, and the magic of this time.

When I discovered the word matresence- it was as though I had stepped through a magic mirror.

Everything looked the same but felt totally different. I immediately understood the inner journey I had navigated, and where through my ignorance I had not been able to fully support myself through this radical shift. I studied (and continue to study) everything and anything I can find on matresence, and the feminine mystery schools and practices that are so wonderful at supporting the evolution of women. I gathered with my sisters, I sat in circles time and time again, and gave space to the deep wisdom that is innate within each of us when we allow ourselves to be vulnerable, and totally honest, and are inspired to look at ourselves, and embrace with humour and humbleness, the suffering, the mystery and the growth. I have found that through this process deep healing and awakening are inevitable.

Once I began to navigate my matresence consciously many things shifted: Huge amounts of my day to day confusion and suffering fell away and have never returned. Huge amounts of joy, confidence and inspiration came in and continue to grow. And a fair amount of very grounded practical adjustments came in- allowing me to support myself and my family how we really needed to be supported. Life and motherhood feels a lot easier and a lot more joyful. (It is obviously still has its crazy moments- this is the nature of the dance!)

As I began the work of integrating and healing, I shared anything useful I found with the circle of mothers around me. This became a tidal wave, a calling so strong that it was born into the work you now find here. Now I am weaving together all the work I did for many years before becoming a mother, and shaping it with love and reverence into a specific pathway to empower mothers moving through their matresence.

It is my great pleasure to share this with you.

I hope you take benefit from what you find here and I send you so much love and respect for all that you are on this incredible path you are walking. Mothers are amazing, and I see over and again that with a little bit of space, support and nourishment every mama can blossom in her own unique and beautiful way.