Sex Birth Trauma with Kimberly Ann Johnson

Kim Anami is a sex and relationship coach, vaginal weightlifter, surfer and mom. With decades worth of experience in Tantra, Taoism, Osho and Transpersonal psychology, she has helped countless women and men heal and maximize their innate sexual nature. What Kim Shares: How our sexual, emotional and psychological blocks show up in the birth experience The importance of removing these blocks in order to have an empowering birth Orgasmic birth; what it means and how to create the best conditions for having one Preparing for birth with sex; what can orgasms, exploratory sex, and even female ejaculation teach us about giving birth What You'll Hear: Why Kim created her new course on birth "The same blocks that show up in birth…are the ones that show up in bed." Is natural home-birth something that can be taught? How the dominant cultural messages about birth negatively effect women's birth experiences The importance of doing "due diligence" and educating ourselves Birth injuries are being normalized Women are being deprived of a crucial initiation into greater power and embodiment through giving birth Why emotional, spiritual and psychological blocks must be cleared in order to create an orgasmic birth The history of organized and concerted efforts by gynecologists to discredit home-birth "This requires a counter-cultural look." Every hormonal release during labor is perfectly orchestrated to create a healthy birth The "cascade of interventions" and how it effects labor and birth Oxytocin is a shy hormone! Why a woman needs to be in a safe, private, intimate environment to have a successful birth Why women have lost confidence in their ability to give birth "If we trust our bodies, our bodies will tell us what to do." What does orgasmic birth mean? The differences between clitoral, g-spot and cervical orgasms and how this relates to birth Why women need to address their emotional and psychological healing even and especially when they are pregnant The false ideas behind low libido Protection vs. Growth in a relationship "The point when people pass over from pain to pleasure is when they feel fully open, they can trust, they feel safe." Preparing for birth with sex Kim's idea of "demon hunting" The importance of birth being empowering instead of demoralizing The difficulty of trying to optimize the birth experience when our day to day lives are over-productive and highly stressful The danger of overriding our body's signals The need to create ample time and space before and after birth to maximize the potential benefits for both mom and baby Partnership postpartum; an opportunity for "the maturation of what sex is." Kim's perspective on the use of jade eggs How unresolved distance in the relationship becomes the perfect excuse to not be sexual after birth Learning how to push The connection between female ejaculation and the fetal ejection reflex Why the phrase "tight vagina" is a misnomer Why care givers often default to directed pushing during labor Inductions disrupt the natural production of the hormones that create the fetal ejection reflex Learning how to trust ourselves and our instincts; "there's a lot more that can go right than go wrong." Deprogramming and reprogramming during pregnancy Why we must fiercely protect our pleasure, our choices for our births, and our sexual health Sex and birth are opportunities to create the healing our planet needs Using sex and birth to self actualize, to become our deepest, truest selves www/bit.ly/sexymamasalon

In this special episode of the Magamama podcast, my right-hand woman Lynn Wolfbrandt interviews four women who have taken my course Activate Your Inner Jaguar. They share their experiences in the course, from decreased social anxiety, increased intuition and inner knowing, a more comfortable mindset around chronic illness, more congruence between what they desire and what they experience, and a newfound ability to shift from freeze during sex to a more fulfilling intimate relationship with their partner. We also interviewed the partner of one participant, to hear from him around what changed for him during the course. He experienced a profound shift in relationship and intimacy due to his wife's experience in Jaguar. Thank you to Alysse and Dan Doty, Susie Connerley, Stephanie Sandleben and Dorie Silverman for your intimate shares. The next round of Activate Your Inner Jaguar begins Tuesday, October 9th. Register at magamama.com/jaguar

Jaiya, a sexological body-worker, educator, and prolific author, discusses the Erotic Blueprint types and the role that they play in our relationships. In this episode, Jaiya shares how own blueprint has shifted throughout her life and details the different characteristics of each of the five blueprint types. What You'll Hear: What inspired her work on postpartum health How her sexuality shifted after becoming a mom What the Erotic Blueprints are and why they're important How she helps individuals understand, feed, and heal their blueprints through the Erotic Blueprint Breakthrough Course What She Shares: The pelvic floor trauma she endured while giving birth to her son Pressure within the sex-positive community for postpartum sex "We have multiple sexualities." Men and postpartum sexuality What led to her first session with Dr. Ellen Heed How her Erotic Blueprint changed after having her son What she learned from her surveys with postpartum women Talking about sex in contemporary society The difference between her and her partner's sexuality postpartum Finally having sex for pleasure The five Erotic Blueprints Why boundaries are so difficult for Energetics The Sensual's "superpower" Not understanding our partner's Erotic Blueprint can lead to "consent coercion" Culture and Sexuals' Erotic Blueprint Your Erotic Blueprint only shows you where you're limited Psychological vs. Sensation-Based How the Kink Realm helped her find her voice and heal Erotic Blueprints give us a language to understand our ever-changing sexual maps Shape-Shifters, erotic sophistication, and capacity for pleasure Where you can find out more about the Erotic Blueprints and how to find out your own type Her Erotic Blueprint Breakthrough Course How our sexuality as a culture is changing https://missjaiya.com/

Bethany Saltman drafted the nation's first "affirmative consent" policy at Antioch College in the 90s. That means she's been having the #metoo conversion and talking about the politics of pleasure for a good long time. She is now at work on a book about attachment- rejecting or revising the work that has been popularized and categorized as "attachment styles." Recorded right before the Kavanagh confirmation, we talk about the behavior during the hearings- body language and attachment style.

In this episode, "Mindfulness mama mentor" Hunter Clarke-Fields talks about the importance of practicing mindfulness in parenting and how she helps stressed-out moms become more grounded in their daily lives. Hunter also shares about her life as an artist and the role that painting played in own pregnancy and entry into motherhood. Hunter Clarke-Fields is a yoga teacher, "mindfulness mama mentor," podcaster, mama, and artist who teaches mothers how to implement mindfulness into their parenting. Her Mindful Parenting course helps mamas understand and transform their stress and become more grounded and centered as parents. What You'll Hear: All the different hats she balances in her professional and personal lives How she evolved from an art teacher to a mindfulness mentor What parents learn in the Mindful Parenting course What She Shares: What inspired her to begin painting [03:10] How she learned how to paint [04:00] Pregnancy, Predator vs. prey, and painting [6:41] Female bodies vs. male bodies in art [13:30] Gender norms and kids today [14:15] Technology and parenting [20:30] Breaking bad parenting habits [26:15] "...living what you want your kids to learn" [32:27] The role of painting during her pregnancy and entry to motherhood [34:57] Our actions are influenced by our instincts [36:28] We don't choose the triggers to our anger [39:20] Bringing mindfulness into parenting [41:10] How her second child differed from her first [43:48] What's involved in her Mindful Parenting Course [45:47] Her upcoming book [51:20] Where you can find her online [55:10]

In this episode, we talk to astrologer Shannon Aganza for a deeper understanding of astrology: both in your own birth chart, and in the current transits (specifically Mars and Venus retrograde). Often we think that astrology is just our sun sign, and that couldn't be further from the truth. All of the planets—Mars, Venus, Saturn, Mercury, etc—were in a certain sign and house of your chart when you were born. Shannon will tell you how to find Venus and Mars in your own chart, and what that means for you in terms of love, intimacy and sex. Normally, people view astrology as other-worldly, but actually, it can be used as a map of the physical body as well. In this podcast, we'll look at that in regards to relationship and sexuality. What You'll Hear The astrological map of the body: each sign and its corresponding body part How these body parts can unlock a key to a different kind of ertocism How to interpret Mars and Venus in your own chart, and how to find them The current Venus retrograde (October 7 - November 15), an invitation to look more deeply at our internal relationship to love What to do during a Venus retrograde: major cleanup! It's not a time to start a relationship, but the people who appear might be there to teach you something What this Venus retro means for your relationships and breakups She explains the nuances of the planets & their "exalted" placement Juicy astrological tidbits about the meaning of the sun in your chart, the moon, and more!

What Kimberly Shares Her work with sexuality, birth, and the postpartum time How these often misunderstood parts of our lives can lead to our healing and our soul work Practical tools to start exploring these topics in your own life today What You'll Hear: Kimberly's perspective on what helps heal us the most The importance of reestablishing connection and trust The fears that can come up around healing and living a life without feeling your trauma Kimberly describes her unique, multifaceted approach to helping women How often the pelvis and genitals go unattended while the rest of our body is cared for How Kimberly models how a great interaction can happen – slowly, narrated, explicitly consensual, and much more Kimberly's three rules for intimacy How sharing your sexual "code" can build trust What are your absolute no's and your absolute yes's? "If meeting someone is A, kissing them is B and D, and penetration is R…what happens between D and R?" Most people are looking for "great sex" but don't realize that this typical lack in creative, internally generated sexual inquiry is keeping them in their routines Rachael shares a few of her own yes's and no's "The reason we come to connection is to heal, that's the repair." What Kimberly wished the world knew about the postpartum window The "42 days for 42 years" rule that exists in many cultures and the important standards it sets for postpartum care How Kimberly's rules for intimacy relate to the postpartum time How the window of time after birth is an entry point into our soul work, and every birth story has wisdom to offer Kimberly's definition of a physiological birth "If we reclaim birth, as women, the world will change." The body that comes with you into birth affects the way you give birth – your physical injury history, sexual history, family history, etc How practicing exploratory sex can prepare your body for birth How and why Kimberly and Rachael are cultivating the "108 women" in the world Kimberly shares some of the events, mentors, and teachers in her life that shaped her road toward full sexual expression "It takes the smallest step." Start simple, start small. How do you know what to ask for? How do you explore your own interoception? Think of a simple checklist of things you like and want to feel Even when it's heavy, bring some light and joy into your healing process!

"The way to save the world is more embodiment." "Love all of your body just the way it is." What You'll Hear: How somatic experiencing can help us connect to our core self The pervasiveness of "sexuality trauma" in our society The pushback against sexuality in the United States and how it has affected practitioners' training Ariel's unique journey to somatic experiencing and what she has learned from over 40 years of being involved in the healing arts What Ariel Shares: Sexuality trauma and its connection to disembodiment and cultural shame (2:28) Infertility and disembodiment (5:00) Why being sex-positive doesn't necessarily mean being embodied (5:58) "Our definition of trauma is so narrow." (7:30) Birth as a somatic experience (9:40) We are out of touch with our organic, primitive selves (11:08) The role of fear in disembodiment (13:23) The relational aspect of trauma work (20:33) "Sexological body work...everybody needs it!" (23:10) Why is sexuality missing in somatic experience training? (24:00) The pushback against sexuality in the U.S. (31:55) How the collective influences our personal experiences of sexual trauma (38:55) Can trauma and pleasure coexist? (41:10) Somatic experiencing as a guided meditation (46:15) Sexuality work is important for men too! (47:08) The balance between self-responsibility and societal change (52:10) Self-acceptance to change the world (54:38) Her new book (56:49)

Marcia Lopez is the owner of Women's True Healing. Marcia is an accomplished healer serving the Los Angeles communities since 2005. https://www.womenstruehealing.com/ Marcia uses the old ways in new ways and has been achieving extraordinary results in female reproductive health dysfunction, infertility, and sexual trauma recovery. She blends her expansive knowledge and initiations with her own healing/recovery journey to create a space that is safe, profound, healing, and empowering. What You'll Hear: How our social and political environments influence our personal health and healing The importance of healing our relationship to our wombs Her personal journey to healing and embodiment and how it has influenced her work What Marcia Shares: The intersection of personal healing and collective healing (3:15) We first experience life in-utero (4:44) We are inherently connected to our ancestors (5:40) How she knew she needed to heal her relationship with her reproductive system (7:18) What practices she implemented in her healing journey (10:50) Forgiveness is an important part of healing (13:40) Forgiving vs. Forgiveness (18:03) What she learned from her tantra studies (21:33) Sexual energy and sexuality in tantra (24:23) Finding your own way as a student (26:10) The importance of feeling safe and honoring your boundaries (30:48) How politics influence our individual health (37:54) We need to teach people how to take care of themselves (41:16) Financial health is important too! (46:21) Her favorite resources for financial health (49:50) "Fierceness is something that we lose as humans." (54:15) What she wants all women to know (56:08) Where you can find her work online (57:29)

What Racha Shares: -her personal story as a black midwife in the United States, her pilgrimage to South Africa and initiation into becoming a Sangoma -her insights about the systemic racism within health care -the challenges women of colour are facing on their path to becoming midwives -the sacrifices and decisions she has made to make her career work as a single mother -the need for 'passing the baton' and creating a 'seat at the table' for black women to affect change within midwifery and beyond What You'll Hear: -her pilgrimage to South Africa and her initiation into becoming a Sangoma (healer) -her journey as a rite of passage -the revelation she had after returning from black majority population in South Africa to a white majority in the U.S -the shift in the clients who are now hiring her and the connections they are making -the current state of black midwifery & systemic racism in health care -the barriers of becoming a midwife in America as a black woman -meeting the needs of her community with worst birth/health statistics -her commitment to taking on black student midwives & why she doesn't charge for preceptorship -people in power need to relinquish some of their power for real change -reparations & midwifery -racism in midwifery (particularly in the Southern states) and how midwifery is still illegal in the some states -why Racha uses her privilege to speak up for apprentice and beginner midwives -why she chooses to be licensed -the lack of support and abuse women of color are facing during their apprenticeships as midwives -single mothering and the importance of leaning on your community -building awareness, strategizing for change outside of social media and how to continue the conversation