Sex Birth Trauma with Kimberly Ann Johnson

Sabia Wade began her birth work with incarcerated people. A full spectrum doula, she is an educator, doula trainer and activist. She says there's no separating activism and birthwork and wants all people to have access to care. She is the founder of For the Village, a non-profit setting out to address disparities in birth and provide community for birthworkers.

What Gia Shares: How her positive experience receiving sex education from her parents informed her path Differences between sensuality and sexuality What's essential for parents to know Her favorite part of her book What You'll Hear: Defining your reality through language Approaching sex through sense-based experiences Building relationships on the foundation of friendship Teaching youth about the pleasures of sex so that they are able to be more at home and embodied in their sexual relationships Doing self work around sexuality and shame to raise healthier kids The importance of prioritizing your own erotic life Modeling pleasure for your kids Giving kids tools, information, and practice around consent and touch The difference between be taught how to say 'no' and learning to negotiate preferences The importance of entering sexual encounters with goal as the primary intention Supporting your children by maintaining familial and community relationships as the grow Learning to pleasure map your own body

Five very different women share their experiences in MotherCircle: a monthlong dive into the physical, emotional, psychological, relational, sexual and spiritual shifts of becoming a mother.

What Azita Shares: Her own experience with trauma and how it shaped her personal and professional path How she received support to leave her abuser and begin treatment for her trauma How motherhood uprooted her sense of control Her fertility and birth journey What You'll Hear: Understanding that relational abuse and trauma can take many different forms Finding the permission to be kind and compassionate to yourself Listening to the body's experience to finally find healing Becoming an active participant in your healing Giving grief time and space, without allowing it to take over forever Navigating recovery while mothering Softening into self compassion for mothering The importance of pausing and allowing inner wisdom to speak Navigating sexual trauma while trying to become pregnant The difference between processing trauma somatically and intellectually Finding time and space to process while caring for a child Allowing your spiritual practice to evolve as life evolves The community that comes together for you may not be who you expect Truly embodying the idea that community support during parenting is a necessity, not a luxury Getting reacquainted with your body after birth The power of witnessing for healing Allowing our children to live their experiences

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