Herbal Womb Wisdom

Becoming a mother or parent is transformational - no matter what- and there is growth with every pregnancy and birth along the way too. But the journey of meeting, acquainting with and then navigating the world of complex caregiving when your new baby is born with special medical needs is likely hard to understand if you haven't walked the path yourself. Personally I haven't walked that...

Okay, wait what!? Is it actually possible to experience an empowered pelvic exam? If you've ever laid on an exam table with your feet in stirrups awaiting a cold speculum from a practitioner who's giving dozens of pelvic exams each day, you'd probably answer, 'hell no.'  Almost every part of a gynecologic exam feels awkward to most of us. Pants off, feet in stirrups (are w...

This is a first my friends.  I can't always answer Q's, especially in my DM's and emails, from listeners so I thought this would be a great way to share my answers (which always tend to be more nuanced than a quick response, let's be honest). If someone is asking these questions, my guess is that many more of you are too.  So I hope you enjoy this grab bag of Q+A this week. Fir...

I'll be the first to admit that it irks me when people use the term "plant medicine" to refer to psychedelics, or what perhaps could be more properly termed "entheogens." First of all, half of those are isolated compounds that are created in labs (perhaps originally derived from plants, but not always) and others are derived from fungi or animal compounds.  Like, they aren...

We all know loss, grief, heartbreak. But how many of us know how to tend it in ourselves or in those we love? Once we've made it into adulthood, many of us have experienced heartbreak -- a total shattering -- at least once, if not multiple times.  And as we move onward into midlife and beyond, the heartbreaks just compound, don't they?  We begin to identify, for years, sometimes decades,...

Herbs and pregnancy. Let's just say this is a topic with all kinds of perspectives depending on who you talk to. Or what link you click after your google search.  So, how do you know what's safe, what's not, and who to trust when it comes to herbs, like for instance red raspberry leaf, in pregnancy? Well, it's a multi-layered response really, which is why I recorded an entire e...

What does it mean to hold trauma in the wombspace?  And what are some signs that indicate that womb trauma may be present? The topic of "womb healing" is a bit of a buzz these days and sometimes I wonder what people mean by that. I see social media profiles of "womb healing practitioners" and "womb healing" programs and honestly it's a vague concept. It could be...

Follicular, Ovulatory, Luteal, Menstrual.  Inner spring, Inner summer, Inner Autumn, Inner Winter. Waxing Moon, Full Moon, Waning Moon, New Moon. The cycles of nature are tangible in ourselves, and especially for those of us with wombs while we're in our cycling years, we have the option to align ourselves with the phase of our cycle we'e in at any given moment.  For instance, I'm c...

Well, today I decided to go for it and talk about everyone's favorite topic... poop. 😂 But for real, the quality and regularity of our elimination has a huge impact on our overall health.  And unfortunately, we've all but normalized constipation.  Most folks go to the doctor and when they're asked, "Do you have regular bowel movements?" They respond, "yes." Beca...

When you think about the menopausal transition, what comes up? I'm genuinely curious actually...  Is it the end of the cycling years, no more bleeding? Or the hot flashes, low libido, dry vaginal tissues, maybe even need to focus more on bone or heart health? Does it feel liberating or like something you're dreading? I know some folks here are already well beyond their menopausal years (...

Something that always surprises me is how powerful it is to share stories, especially when they relate to "things we don't talk about." It's pretty easy for us to share stories about how our day went awry, or something funny about what our kids did when trying to get them to eat their dinner.  But what we don't talk about are often the things we are socialized to keep quie...

As humans, we love stories. And sometimes physiology can be boring and heady and unpalatable. But what if we tell the story of what's happening instead? What if we see the primordial germ cell that may become an oocyte and may ovulate and then travel from the ovary through the uterine tubes and beyond as an epic tale? Honestly, I've fallen in love with physiology, and the burst of potent...

It's Equinox time! Finally, spring is showing its face... or is it?  Depends where you live, honestly.  Regardless, those of us in the northern hemisphere are likely noticing longer days, and with that increased light, we're reminded that spring is either here, or coming soon. Here in the Wabanaki lands of Maine, we're teetering between cold and slightly warmer days, the ground is s...

There are so many reasons to grieve right now, on the planet, in our personal lives.  Whether it's part of our womb stories or not. Loss is everywhere.  We can't escape it, it's part of being a fully living human.  So instead of trying to minimize it or rush through it, as our modern world would love to have us do, what if we learn to tend our grief? What could it look like to have...

I woke up this morning feeling the spark of spring, and simultaneously felt the excitement of plants popping up. Maybe soon, maybe not.  In those moments, I started to reflect on the multitude of ways we can "be an herbalist." And how I'm really a blend of so many, depending on the day, and how my personal herbal journey reflects this.  I realized I haven't really ever told my...

As humans, we are storytelling creatures... but I think we often overlook how powerful hearing stories of others healing can be.  Especially when they include facing profound debilitation and hopelessness. And show us how we are ALL capable of finding our way from the darkness to the light.  To vitality, vibrancy -- even pleasure.  And that's what I really really love about Julia's story...

Your pleasure is a superpower.  Not metaphorically. Actually.  And I'm not just talking orgasms and clitoral stimulation, though that's certainly a huge pathway to pleasure.  Instead I mean, connecting to what feels good - uniquely, in your body, to you.  And that's different for everyone.  But in starting to pay attention to anything that feels good, you start inviting the possibil...

Tea is a foundational form of herbal medicine.  Partly because it's the epitome of how "plant medicine is people's medicine" because it's so accessible, inexpensive, and familiar.  But also because it's a way we can cultivate real, lasting relationship with the plants. Especially when we work with bulk dried herbs, we see them, smell them, taste them, and can feel the...

I think it's easy to pigeonhole our health - whether that's hormonal, sexual, menstrual or overall health - to being something physical.  Like, yes, we need certain foods, lots of fiber, healthy fats, good protein. And yes, we need to be hydrated. And move our bodies. And get outside. And make sure we're pooping.  Without those things, we can't actually feel integratively well,...

I think it's easy to dismiss the importance of core strength as something only for those who are young or oriented to body image.  But the truth is, your core is the center of your body. And it's actually a place where a lot of your whole body strength (and overall wellness) radiates from.  According to today's guest, Mary Vidal, having a strong core is an essential foundation to bo...

6 days. You're fertile for only 6 days of your entire cycle every month.  That's it!  I imagine you may have heard that before somewhere, especially if you've been on a fertility journey or practiced Fertility Awareness / cycle tracking in any form.  It's probably the most important part of the cycle to be aware of... but what IS it exactly?  What's happening in the body i...

What if your womb was a portal? Well, my beautiful friend... it is.  Our wombs (and wombspaces - even if you no longer have a womb) are power centers in our body. In many ways, they are the literal seat of our embodied power.  And they are also where we create life, experience the life-death-life cycle repeatedly, connect directly to the earth AND hold embodied connection to our ancestral lineage....

It's deep winter now. The time of quietude, slow movement, deep nourishment, and dreaming and visioning. And in the case of gardeners, this is often the time of choosing seeds, planning gardens, considering any shifts or changes you might be considering for your landscape, maybe even learning new skills that can serve you next season.  So it's the perfect time to bring flower and herb fa...

There's a term - body literacy - that's thrown around a lot in Fertility Awareness circles. And it may seem vague, "like, what part of our body are we talking about?" And it's true, you can become literate in any system of your body, technically. BUT your menstrual cycle is a window into your whole health - and has even been considered a fifth vital sign.  However, you can...

Your womb is a place of power, pleasure and possibility. AND it's also a place where we tend to hold deep seated fears, imbalances and trauma - whether physical or energetic. I've decided to take a couple week break on new content creation for the podcast, and instead of just ghosting you, be more creative and intentional in the break time. In this episode, you'll find embodied wisd...