Blog
Musings on women's health, sexuality, and empowerment.
I have more compassion than ever for those who permanently live with a handicap. I was leaving the supermarket the other day, and as I was walking out the door, someone else was coming in. I mistakenly assumed that he would move aside for a moment so I could get through with my crutches, but…
Many women over the course of their lives experience irregular menstrual cycles and, because of this, cannot tell when they will ovulate. This becomes particularly problematic for women when they are trying to become pregnant. The menstrual cycle is complicated. We might assume that it only involves the ovaries and uterus, but actually, it is…
Life is full of the practice of releasing our attachments to outcomes. I was so attached to birthing my baby at home in the tub. The water felt so good, so I was shocked and saddened in the moment when my midwife said, “Honey, we are going to have your baby in the hospital.” We…
After a womb~an gives birth, our society considers it a compliment to say, “Wow, I can hardly tell you just had a baby! You lost that weight so FAST!” This is a symptom of how we downplay how big this experience is. The value in our society is placed on how quickly we achieve our…
The last few weeks, we have begun our journey with Elimination Communication. We have a little potty for our little man, and we pay attention to his signals that he has to go to the bathroom. We respond by putting him on his potty and cueing him with sounds. When we think we has to…
As far as my baby is concerned, he and I are still one being. No one else in the world can provide him with the feelings of safety and comfort than I can. Every time I look at his belly button, I see the place that connected us, and feel the aliveness and vibrancy of…
Tomorrow will be four weeks since I have given birth to my Sun! I am healing from major blood loss, a second degree vaginal tear, and the emotional loss of not being able to hold him for ten whole minutes after he emerged. I am healing well, and feeling the bliss and joy of this…
What a gift and a blessing to feel life growing within! Unfortunately, with this gift, comes some physical discomfort; anxiety related to upward pressure from the baby onto the diaphragm, heartburn, indigestion, round ligament pain, to name a few. We are acculturated to believe that we must live with these discomforts as part of the…
Bellydance originated as a ritual Middle Eastern dance that woman shared to celebrate one another and their bodies, and to prepare for childbirth. The performance aspect now commonly associated with bellydance came much later. As a bellydance instructor, Chaya integrates her knowledge of the pelvic floor, uterine ligaments and reproductive systems with the performance elements…
Welcome to Chaya’s blog. I figure now is as good a time as any to start writing about my reflections and experiences of pregnancy. I have been wanting to start a blog for a long time! I just read a book called Continuum Concept by Jean Liedloff. It knocked my socks off. I had the…