Element Wild with Jacqueline Boudreau

In July 2022, my former college roommate and I attended the Maine Yogafest in Portland, Maine. The site had a wonderful energy with a lovely breeze blowing off the ocean. The view was also beautiful. One of the classes that we signed up for was Yoga Nidra with Jacqueline Boudreau of Element Wild in Saco, Maine. This class was a game changer for me. It put me in such a mindful state and made me realize that I, took wanted to teach yoga.

I reached out to Jacqueline and she was more than cooperative and giving of her time to answer some questions I had about her yoga journey. Here is my mini-interview:

Top 3 Things I Love about Yoga

    a) empowerment/embodiment: an always effective way to come out of the head and fully into the body. It has allowed me to cultivate so much awareness, presence and it is a true gift to be fully present in one’s body.

   b) connection: mind/body/spirit unification and definitely a sense of yoking. You feel more connected/present with yourselves which allows you to be more connected with the rest of the world. Yoga often feels like a mixture of fluid martial arts and/or bodily prayer – either way it always feels very sacred.

  c) resiliency: riding challenges/edges with our breath and focused intention/attention has created so much space in the body/mind where there was contraction/contraction. Yoga often gives me the feeling that I can do anything because of the way the practice has allowed me to navigate challenges with more ease. My body physically feels so strong from the practice over the years that I know I have most likely evaded injuries and issues because of this.

What is Yoga Nidra?

Yoga Nidra is a yogic meditation practice/technique that is vastly ancient in its roots and vastly beneficial especially for the mental and energetic layers of our being. It is such a powerful tool that enables the practitioner to flip the gaze inwards and travel within. It is one of the more approachable/doable meditation techniques in my opinion and experience teaching it to others. It has a way to allow the practitioner to drop so deep and come out the other side feeling incredibly renewed. I always feel it clears the slate and any static/tension. Our modern day world has us focusing on the exterior/drawing our attention outside of ourselves – Yoga Nidra provides the very valuable ability to flip that, which feeds our connection to the outer world as well. It is a systematic and holistic approach that typically involves body scanning, visualization, breathwork, intention setting and working at bringing balance to all the layers of your being; physical, mental, emotional and energetic. It has often been said through modern day research, which has unveiled scientific findings of its benefits especially for mental health and assistance with anxiety, depression, stress, PTSD and more, that 30 minutes of Yoga Nidra charges your brain/body in the same way 4 hours of sleep would do. You feel especially that your mind/brain gets a recharge. It’s a beautiful doorway for people to access well-being and a chance to explore the inner terrain.

What does Element Wild represent?

Element Wild is built upon the intent of providing a pure and powerful connection to Nature and well-being, bridging the natural world in a way that is empowering, inspiring, insightful, inspirational, balancing and supportive. Somewhere along the way, we lost this connection and our sense of wildness. I want to inspire others to be lit up the natural world, to Be a Force of Nature. I believe there is a language in nature and I am always striving at being fluent in this language and teaching others to be fluent in this language as well. All of this drives the programming which involves workshops, events, retreats, trainings, apprenticeships, mentorships, 1:1 sessions and more. Element Wild is all about Rewilding and harnessing wisdom and wellness from nature and various wellness practices. We often work directly with the elements either through nature based practices, immersions and or various wellness practices that base their philosophies upon the premise of the 4 elements; earth, fire, water and air. I aim at bringing the outdoors in, as well as heading outside via nature/wilderness excursions, adventures and retreats. Some adjectives/words that would suit Element Wild would be: primal, ancient and modern, pure, authentic, empowered, vibrant, embodied, ancient + modern, earthy + ethereal, deep roots and wild essence.

Time in Ireland

Oh man – I got so much! If I had one place to travel to for the rest of my life it would be Ireland! Every inch of Ireland is saturated in so much richness. Here is a quoute from one of my own Instagram post about this recent trip:

“Ireland is ancient and modern all at the same time. You can feel the pull and force of nature fully – it infuses the land and the people. There is an untamed, everlasting, evergreen and wildness pervading. In our current day of things not being built to last, these ancient sites and standing stones are still standing and very much alive.
Ethereal and earthly, rugged and beautiful, ancient and alive.

Palpable, visceral, primal.

Emerald mountains, glaciated lakes, bogs, villages, cities, countryside, rolling hills, forests, valleys, holy wells, ever changing weather, rainbows, mists, roiling seas, cathedrals, castles, dolmens, cairns, stone circles, ogham stones, national parks, gardens, islands, rivers, beaches, cliffs, caves, coves ~

Ireland is saturated in such a richness and natural beauty, all of which is not only seen but felt. 

I look forward to being back again soon. 💚”

I also got to connect with where some of my own ancestry comes from by visiting Waterford in the SE corner and that was very powerful! Being on Irish soil was so transformative and felt like home in many ways. I look forward to bringing out retreat groups there next summer!

An Inspirational Quote

I recently came across this poem and it really struck a cord with me. 

“They caught all the wild children,

and put them in zoos,
They made them do sums
and wear sensible shoes.
They put them to bed
at the wrong time of day,
And made them sit still
when they wanted to play.
They scrubbed them with soap
and they made them eat peas.
They made them behave and
say pardon and please.
They took all their wisdom and wildness away.
That’s why there are none
in the forests today.”
Jeanne Willis, from ‘Wild Child’

Jacqueline can be reached at Element Wild. She is starting a new podcast, too! If you are in the Saco, ME area, check out her workshops. It was a pleasure working with Jacqueline.

Element Wild: Be a Force of Nature