vaughne geary
Share a little about yourself..
I live in the lovely leafy suburb of Northcote in Melbourne's North, which has now been my home for 6 years since moving here from Queensland.
I was born in Sydney and spent my childhood there before my parents decided to make a tree change to the Sunshine Coast hinterland, which I definitely believe shaped my love for nature, holistic health and feeling most at home when I live in a community driven environment.
I've always been a very independent and adventurous person (hello AQUARIUS!), but am deeply family oriented and as I get older I am feeling the geographical distance from my own family who are scattered up the East Coast. Thankfully a bunch of my close school friends live down here now and alongside my beautiful boyfriend, make Melbourne feel very much like home!
I've always been drawn to people, their stories, learning about others' experiences and actually studied Journalism as my first degree after school, which I finished but totally regretted in my final year. I didn't feel any connection to that work and realised that instead of writing about people who created change, I wanted to BE the person who could support others on their wellness journey, so I signed up to study my hobby which was Naturopathy and the rest is history!
Can you tell us a little about your journey into your naturopathy and doula work ?
I've always been drawn to holistic health and in my late teenage years I felt a deep pull to reading books on herbal medicine and nutrition. As a child I was obsessed with witchcraft and poured myself into making spells with plants, candles and crystals, watching Charmed and making my barbies kiss like they were Piper and Leo (LOL!), so I guess that should have been an indication that one day I would discover Naturopathy and Doula work as my calling. I partied hard when I was younger, to the point that in my final year of my Journalism degree I had to move home because I was on the verge of a booze fuelled breakdown. Thankfully I focused my energy on finding a job that didn't just pay for my party lifestyle and I ended up working for a beautiful Naturopath who took me under her wing, encouraged me to heal myself and start studying my true passion. The shift in both my physical and mental health as a result of eating well, harnessing herbal medicine and nutrients to fuel me, learning from inspiring health practitioners and connecting with people who shared the same interests was life changing.
I began my Doula work in 2016, which unbeknownst to me at the time, came as a domino effect from all of my past reproductive experiences. In 2014 I had an abortion, which I've since realised primed and drew my body towards working with mothers and birthing people through their own reproductive journeys. I recently heard someone say that anyone who has held a child in their womb is forevermore in their "postpartum", which makes my whole body tingle and resonates so much. I'd heard of Doulas through my Naturopathy community and everything back then in my body resonated with being able to emotionally support women, provide them with evidence based education whilst holding space for them in a completely non-judgemental way on their transformational journey to becoming a mother. Both of these roads I have found myself on linked up magically, which I would never have known 5 years ago.
What kinds of support do you offer through your doula work? Do you have any special areas of interest within your naturopathy practice?
I'm a full spectrum Holistic Doula, so I offer birth and postpartum support for birthing people and their families as well as guidance during preconception and pregnancy with my Naturopathy practice. As a Doula, I hold space for birthing people and their partners to feel into all aspects of their journey to parenthood. I offer evidence based education in a safe and non-judgemental environment for my clients to ask all the questions, voice all of the fears and celebrate all of their excitement and growing confidence, which I guide them to build upon over our months of working together as a team. I encourage my clients to know their options, use their voice and feel powerful as they find their own natural rhythms and celebrate their right of passage in to motherhood.
My Naturopathy offerings heavily reflect my Doula work and I love to support women through all phases of their reproductive journey, from menstruation to motherhood. My special interests include period pain, oral contraception withdrawal, balancing hormones, preconception care, pregnancy wellness, postnatal depletion and restoring mamas to their full health potential no matter where they are at in parenthood.
You are also co-founder of Mama Goodness with Jessica Prescott - a wholesome food service in Melbourne designed to nourish Mama's - particularly those postpartum - could you share a little about how this started?
Mama Goodness is the culmination of all my passions! Luckily I have the most incredible work-wife, Jess, who I co-founded Mama Goodness with and who co-fuels me to bring nourishment to new mothers and families every week. I used to follow Jess on Instagram years ago when she lived in Berlin - we shared mutual friends and would occasionally chat but it wasn't until she returned to live in Melbourne that we finally met in real life. I was a student Naturopath and she was pregnant with her second son Jude, so she came to see me at my student clinic for herbal and nutritional support through her pregnancy and postpartum. We clicked immediately and because of my background as a Doula and hers as a mum and cookbook writer, talked regularly about all things birth, nutrition and feeding Mamas! We essentially had the same business idea - to deliver homestyle, nutritionally dense meals around Melbourne, and over the course of a year fuelled each other with creativity and support to birth Mama Goodness! We turn ONE in September which is crazy and exciting and I couldn't think of anyone else in the world I would rather do work-wife life with.
As someone working in a field where you are constantly giving, do you have any rituals or practices that aid you in 'filling your cup'?
I'm a Manifesting Generator by human design, so I'm slowly coming to appreciate the fact that I have naturally high energy and run at a fast pace but need regular, small pockets of time doing something actively relaxing to recharge. I definitely do hit walls, need solitude and thrive off 8 hours sleep every night, but I feel the most grounded, recalibrated and restored when I allow myself time to exercise several times a week, take a walk in nature and breathe deeply each day, share a meaningful and lighthearted conversation with my loved ones, eat delicious and seasonal food, enjoy a juicy glass of wine and allow myself "me" time to read a book, listen to a podcast or watch something. With age and experience, I have also learnt that boundaries are incredibly important, so I say "yes" a lot less than I did in my early 20s. I'm all about the Yin and the Yang in life, so I've come to understand that if I fuel myself with 80% wholesome and 20% treat yourself, then I am one happy and productive camper.
Could you share a bit about your own journey into Womanhood - would you say there have been any defining moments?
The layers of my life experience have helped me step into womanhood in my late 20's. The tools I had walking in to womanhood, sex and bodily autonomy as a teenager weren't great - I took myself to the doctors and put myself on the contraceptive pill when I was 15 to make sure I didn't get pregnant with my high school boyfriend and when my parents found out shit hit the roof. After swapping the pill several times up until I was 22, my body felt horrendous and so I took myself off it whilst investigating herbs and nutrients to get my cycle back in sync, which it now very much is and bleeding with the New Moon each month makes me feel powerful and womanly.
I look back on my formative years and cringe because I now know the detriment of fake hormones on a growing woman's reproductive system, as well as the unhealthy spiral of shame and subsequent actions and behaviours that occur from placing taboo the innately natural desire for and act of sex. I can now stand behind others without judgement and with adoration for them, their strength and their personal choices which aren't mine to judge. On a physical and emotional level, I have endured. I think this feat alone makes me feel incredibly womanly. I have stood beside friends as they attended their own births and abortions. I have attended my own.
Many beautiful women in my life have struggled to fall pregnant or birth their own children, whilst many have also struggled to find reason to continue a pregnancy which I wholeheartedly understand and respect. I think I have stepped into womanhood as a result of this work that I do. Every woman has a story and a reason to feel supported, including myself, and in this community of women I have found I feel my most feminine.
If you had a message for your younger self, what would it be?
Enjoy it while it lasts baby, because like a fine wine, life only gets better with age!
You can reach Vaughne for all things food, naturopathy and birth …
