Sex Birth Trauma with Kimberly Ann Johnson

What Kendra Shares: Her realization that there is no mythical 'daddy' figure that she missed out on The parts of single parenting that work really well for her The parts of her pregnancies that brought forward wisdom What You'll Hear: Allowing the relationships in your life to be what they are, without searching for perfection When we relate to others as whole human being with histories, bodies, and experiences, we can approach relationships more fully Allowing the people in our lives to shine in their strengths Honoring what you're really good at, while also expanding into new areas and roles Examining how to embody our power as women Holding the role of teacher while also continuing to empower others on their own inner authority Sometimes opening ourselves to our own inner wisdom takes removing the obligation to follow it The authentic power that can come from following your inner wisdom rather than social conditioning Taking your own wellbeing into account when making familial decisions Finding ways to resource yourself and your parenting Unshaming your sexuality and showing up for your own pleasure Embracing humanity in its fullness Improving your relationship with other genders through strengthening your own healthy masculine and feminine Knowing that you belong

What She Shares: The history of women and psychiatry How some medical research data is currently being safely collected on pregnant women Her intention for her new book to be a preventative guidebook to reduce postpartum depression How her new podcast is intended for maternal health and support What You'll Hear: How the scare around Thalidomide affected research into women's mental health for decades to come. Opening research to include women's health finally showed that men and women's health needs often differ The laws that aimed to reduce gender and racial discrimination in medical research A brief discussion on the FDA approved medication for postpartum depression Embarking on research into the causes of and prevention of postpartum depression Making preparations and front loading investments to avoid PPMADs Addressing diseases through the a bio-psycho-social model and a preventative lens Being aware of a biological predisposition towards depression Accessing information about postpartum care from multiple angles Finding camaraderie with other women and their stories in Alexandra's podcast Lovingly examining your own personhood and how it interacts with your new role as a mother Bringing motherhood and traditional feminism together Prioritizing those things you really want, including motherhood

Rachelle Garcia Seliga, founder of Innate Traditions, http://www.innatetraditions.com/ancestral-grief/, shares: What is ancestral grief and how is it showing up postpartum Defining and finding community support as if your life depends on it, because it does How she found her life partner New forms, new paradigms, and new models in partnership and business Her personal story of financial health and transformation, how financial need and breadwinning has not allowed her to hide, and insisted she give her gifts.

Five women share their stories about what changed for them after taking the Forging a Feminine Path course. All of the women mention that understanding women's arousal was groundbreaking for them. Molly Coeling (pronounced Cooling) was able to claim her sexuality for herself, and claim the essence of who she is, through the course. She also found that the course helped her with communication all over the board -- with her mother, with people across party lines. Amy Daniels talks about how the course helped her land back in her body, and helped her work through shame instead of repressing it. Her capacity for pleasure increased, she was able to slow down and create ritual to create more pleasure in her life and honor her body. Maggie Gelineau was able to honor her stories, and be able to share herself more fully with her husband. The course strengthened her relationship. She had an amazing OBGYN appt after the women's arousal class -- she was able to have a healing, present and compassionate experience there, where she felt her own agency. Sarah G talks about how the course informed her work as a pelvic floor PT -- she uses the wheel of consent in her work now, as well as informing women of the power of pleasure. Sarah B shares how she discovered her own self-pleasure and ecstasy with herself through the course. She found the compassion and vulnerability of the group rich and rewarding.

It's possible to heal prolapse and not just "manage the symptoms." Prolapse is an increasingly common outcome of birth and postpartum practices. To work with prolapse, you need to understand the contributing factors. In this episode, Kimberly breaks down how to figure out what's contributing to your prolapse and how to deal with it.

Jenna Furnari works as an Ayurvedic Postpartum Doula in the greater Los Angeles area. She offers phone consultations for families living elsewhere. Jenna hosts an online course to train other doulas, and also offers in-person trainings on Abhyanga, a grounding and gentle bodywork. "The first six weeks after birth really are the foundation behind the way she's going to show up as a human being, as a mother, as a woman." "Birth is going to take everything and beyond that out of her. I know that you want to provide this child with every opportunity in the world; and, in order to do that, you and your partner really need to be on the same page at being strong and healthy. In order to get to that really strong and healthy place, she needs to have the care and support to get her there. She's on going to be able to do it on her own." Resources: www.jennafurnari.com What She Shares: · How she became a postpartum-specific Ayurvedic practitioner · How her care services are structured · How mothers' experiences differ when they receive Ayurvedic postpartum care · Details on both her online and in-person trainings What You'll Hear: · The importance and specificity of food provided during postpartum care · The what and why of postpartum bodywork · The timeline of maternal care · What she teaches mamas for infant massage · Understanding how much work your body is required to perform after birth · Creating vitality and resistance to illness during the postpartum · Creating mind-body awareness and strength through journaling, proper nutrition, and bodywork · The importance of maintaining a connection to Source to be an effective doula · Financially prioritizing postpartum care · Disseminating information to a mother's partner and care team in so that she receives the best care possible · Balancing vata during the postpartum through warmth, nutrition, rest, and grounding bodywork · Building support systems and practical ways to ensure new mothers receive the physiological care they require · Prioritizing sleep, food, and proper herbs as an investment to long-term health · The power of postpartum care to heal physical and emotional birth trauma

What She Shares: How the birth of her son was a psycho-spiritual death experience The rich depth of her postpartum experiences Practicing as a Zen Monk AND parenting About her new course "Write to the Heart of Motherhood" What You'll Hear: Recognizing when you need to surrender, and when you need to stand in your strength Expanding your boundaries to build resiliency Feeling the pain of childbirth as power Pushing yourself out of love, not punishment Birth and postpartum as a rite of passage, and incorporating afterward Re-integrating with society at a new level after a rite of passage Sharing your learning with your community Viewing the interruptions of life as life itself Committing to what resources you Allowing space for creativity and inspiration to come organically Finding ways to interrupt your habits and inner critic Harvesting what is already happening in your mothering Brooke McNamara is a professor at Naropa University, the author of "Feed Your Vow: Poems for Falling into Fullness", and creates dance theater performances through her company Eunice Embodiment. She's a poet, a performer, a zen monk, mother of two, a movement educator, and a mindfulness coach.

What Dr. Claudia Shares: Why the title of her book is actually backwards Her "aha!" moment when she was studying hormones The difference between sex hormones and stress hormones How our spiritual and emotional choices reverberate through our physical bodies What You'll Hear: Understanding that your hormones don't become imbalanced in a vacuum How Western and Eastern medicines support each other to better understand our hormones Viewing hormonal functions through the lens of duality Hormones govern extremes in the body Understanding why imbalances between sex and stress hormones occur Learning how to decrease stress hormones through lifestyle changes Striving for the sweet spot of balance between yin and yang Learning your own body to understand when it needs more rest versus stimulation Why women in their late 30's and beyond require more rest Becoming hormonally rearranged in menopause Learning to balance external stressors to support your health Determining what your version of 'having it all' is, and subtracting what you don't need The interweaving effects of emotion, thought, biology, action, and spirituality on our hormonal balance Embracing the medicine of subtraction and internal wisdom to find balance Why saying no takes so much courage Further resources for learning about hormone balancing and preparing for pregnancy Respecting the hormonal differences between male and female bodied people

What Christine Shares: Her activism centered around the bodylessness present in our culture Translating your physical experience to your social interactions How embracing inquiry and challenges can support your well being How her understanding of the immune system impacted how she runs her psychotherapy practice What You'll Hear: Incorporating somatic work in your daily life for nervous system health Coming to a practice from pressure, pleasure, or inquiry, and how those may affect your practice How a practice changes when you come with some form of self-regulation Integrating mental and physical processes Respecting the 12 different systems in the body as inherently important in their own right Learning to listen to all systems in the body so that you get a fuller picture of your self and your health Approaching the body from a community organizing standpoint with a non-hierarchical approach Creating space for range and nuance rather than a stark dichotomy Approaching your body from a lens of curiosity rather than control Using physical, mental, and cognitive challenges to promote optimal health The immune system learns and becomes toned when it faces challenges The universe of experiences available when you learn to really be in your body The connection between being bodyful and social awareness and ethics Understanding your body from both a physical sense and a poetic sense Using your sense of power to relax into the unknown or uncontrollable

What Lisa Shares: Her journey to understanding female fertility more fully after receiving incorrect information in school How to determine when you're actually fertile The biology of the menstrual cycle and how different birth controls alter this The importance of male fertility in conception and how to boost male fertility What You'll Hear: The recent expansion of scientific literature to more fully include the female body Learning about the biology and physiology of the female body and basing health decisions on science The hormonal cycle is intertwined with the rest of your biology Embracing your body through the lens of pleasure rather than fear Developing personal agency around your fertility decisions The difference between the rhythm method and fertility awareness The importance of familiarizing yourself with cervical mucus, basal body temperature, and cervical positioning The difference between pre-ovulatory and post-ovulatory mucus When practiced *properly,* the efficacy of fertility awareness is up to 99.4% The importance of learning and practicing the method, especially when coming off the pill Understanding the importance of male fertility for natural conception Average count and mobility of sperm has declined in the last century, and ways to improve sperm health Why you might lose your period and the importance of balancing health in order to bring it back Why the menstrual cycle is an important vital sign about your health How vaginal steaming might interact with fertility awareness The long-term health implications of hormonal birth control Being familiar enough with your cycle to notice when more systemic issues are at play How stress affects your menstrual cycle How relating to your body in this way can empower you