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Birth With Dignity, Joy and Peace of Mind |
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The Greek word for soul is "psyche." In Greek, they are synonymous, and our modern idea of psychology comes from this root. Taking care of your inner life, your soul, is just as important as taking care of your body. In fact, the two are inextricably linked. In therapy, you can learn how to open yourself up to this world and delve into the depths of who you are as a woman. |
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· Life cycle issues · Adjustment issues · Family Integration · Blended family/Parenting issues · Sibling bonding/rivalry · Blending career and family · Past childhood neglect/abuse · Resolving marital conflicts · Healthy communication · Depression & anxiety · Having a baby over age 35 · Vaginal birth after cesarean · Childbearing loss · Traumatic birth · Infertility · Premature labor/birth |
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As women, if we are connected to our bodies, we are connected to our cycles and to the earth. When we become disconnected from our bodies, we become isolated from our inner lives, our emotions, and we start doubting our instincts and our intuitions. You can learn to reconnect to your core and find and follow your own path as a woman. |
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In ancient times, a woman passed through her different life cycles: maiden; mother; crone/wise woman, surrounded by and with the support of other women. These three life stages are rites of passages for women even today, and there are issues that a therapist can help with and facilitate during each of these times in her life cycle. |
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Menstruation comes with the waxing and waning of the moon and connects us with life blood to the earth. In our culture, entering into womanhood has moved from the sacred honoring of the moon blood to a secret to be ashamed of and now is becoming simply a medical event, a biological function to be endured monthly, and maybe eventually (through hormone therapy) erased altogether unless conception is desired.
How would you feel differently about yourself as a woman if your mother, your grandmother, your sisters and friends had honored you through ritual when you first become to bleed and became a woman?
Honor your daughter with a First Moon Ceremony, or gather your friends together and revision your own menarche in a Sacred Moon Lodge Ceremony. |
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PREGNANCY, LABOR & BIRTH Women preparing to give birth often find that people around them don't understand how much they are changing, both inside and out. Their lives, inner and outer, are in turmoil. A therapist can help guide you through this journey and give you the perspective you need as you travel toward motherhood. Giving birth is an incredible rite of passage for women, and instead of (or in addition to!) a baby shower, which focuses on the baby, a blessingway, which focuses on initiating and honoring the mother-to-be, can be a powerful ritual for women as they prepare to move from maidenhood to motherhood.
BIRTH TRAUMA Many women often experience a dissatisfying birth, for many different reasons. In the 1940's, many women were drugged with "Twilight Sleep" and while they don't remember their births, they have terrifying flashbacks. Some women experience deep disappointment and feel like failures when their bodies "betray" them and they end up with a caesarean birth. Birth trauma, whatever the reasons, can have a permanent effect on a woman's self-esteem. A therapist can help you heal and prepare, if you wish, for a more satisfying birth experience. Sometimes just telling your story is healing enough.
This is a serious and often overlooked problem that women face after giving birth. In our culture especially, where women become so isolated after the "newness" of the baby wears off and friends and family go home, women are becoming depressed and anxious in alarming numbers. Unfortunately, it often goes unrecognized and untreated.
INFERTILITY For many women, infertility is a heartbreaking condition that certainly has biological causes. However, there is a strong mind-body connection, and there may be psychological reasons that your body is unable to conceive. Exploring these with a therapist, often in conjuction with infertility treatments, can help both your mind and body become open and ready to conceive.
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In our culture, this time in life is devalued and women feel ashamed and afraid of growing older, losing what they perceived as their beauty and their sexuality. Menopause can serve as another rite of passage, as women move from mothers to grandmothers, becoming older and wiser. A ritual to honor this rite of passage can help a woman understand this phase in the context of her life and embrace her becoming instead of trying to escape from it. As a therapist, I can offer counseling for this life cycle change as well. At this stage of life, many women experience the "empty nest" syndrome that often strikes as children venture out onto their own and women discover that their identities have often been tied up in being mothers. As mothers begin to become parents to adult children, there are often hard adjustments to make as sons often harshly cut the apron strings and daughters carry many of our hopes and dreams of ourselves at that age. As a therapist, I can help you to differentiate these issues, and many more, as you continue to move through these life cycles.
CRONING CEREMONY The Croning Ceremony honors a woman's passage into the third phase of life. Often celebrated at age 50, this initiation into the ancient sisterhood of wise old women involves reclaiming the one-honored designation of the crone, taking a special name, and making commitments to yourself, your community, and the earth. |
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· Menarche/First Moon Rituals for teens · Sacred Moon Lodge Ceremony –rediscover the power of your moon time · Blessingways for new mothers · Croning Ceremony for Wise Women · Newborn Baby Blessing Ceremony · Grief & Loss Rituals · Ceremonies to honor the passage of life resulting from a miscarriage or abortion · Rites of Passage for important birthdays, name changes, and other life-transition times · Birth Story Circle: Share your birth story with others in a group |
