Shout Out: Harriet McAtee

As many of you will know from my work, I set a lot of store in community as a yoga teacher. One of the things I want to do on this Substack is introduce you to some of the people whose work I value. You’ll probably already know how excited I am about the new book coming out. I thought it was time to introduce you to my dear friend and collaborator, Harriet McAtee…

What is your name?

Harriet McAtee (she/her).

Tell us a little about yourself.

I'm a yoga teacher and writer based in Oxford, where I teach online trainings through my business, Nourish Yoga Training. I'm also currently pregnant with my first child (due in June!).

Tell us about your yoga journey.

I did my first yoga class over 20 years ago now (!) as a teenager, but my practice really became consistent during my time at university. I've been teaching for 10 years, and training teachers since 2017. My teaching emphasises inclusion, joy and empowering my students. Much of my work centres on social justice and accessibility, alongside centring the agency and personhood of our students.

How do you know Theo's work?

Theo and I met at the European Accessible Yoga Conference in 2018 (thank you Jivana!) - I attended her workshop and I think we kind of instantly knew we were going to be working together. There's a game Theo plays sometimes in her workshops (I won't ruin in here for anyone who is yet to attend in person!) but I remember we were all sitting around in quite a big circle and she looked across at me as the person to carry the game on and it was like she trusted me already.

Geographically we're not too far apart, so I was able to host Theo in my then studio space for some workshops. Since then she's been an absolutely vital component of Nourish's offerings, and one of my best friends! Oh, and we wrote a book together!

What is catching your attention at the moment?

Right now as a pregnant person, I'm totally floored by how much total rubbish there is out there in the pregnancy/birthing world! There are, of course, people doing really wonderful evidence-based and justice-oriented work. At the same time, I don't think I truly appreciated before being pregnant myself how much pregnancy and birth is commodified and exploited - how your fear/love/excitement/anxiety all too quickly becomes fodder for late-stage capitalism and the very worst of the wellness industry.

All of this is balanced by a real deficit in terms of most birthing people's knowledge of their own bodies and the process of pregnancy and childbirth - we're really failed by our educational institutions in this regard, and it's compounded by the fact that the social and community support which might normally fill that gap has been eroded for many people (amplified again if you're a birthing person of colour or marginalised/disadvantaged). We're in a real pickle, to put it lightly.

Is there something you're working on that you'd like to tell us about?

Mine and Theo's book! I'm so incredibly proud of the work we, and our amazing contributors, have done. I can't wait to see it out in the world, hopefully acting as a resource and source of solidarity for yoga teachers. I'm sure by the time this finds its way to Theo's Substack we'll have announced the launch events, so if you're keen to support us/the book, it would be lovely to see you there.

Otherwise, I'm taking a break from teaching over the Summer while I birth and adjust to life with a newborn. I'm aiming to return to teaching in the Autumn.

If someone wants to reach out, how can they contact you?

You can contact me via email (harriet@nourishyogatraining.com), Instagram (@harrietmcatee / @nourishyogatraining) or my website: nourishyogatraining.com

…and here’s the link for the book again!