EP 8: Menstruating in a Western Culture [PART 2]

Meet Zara! A Period & Cycle expert, here to chat about the reality of menstruating in a Patriarchal, Western culture. Connect with Zara for 1-1 work and education here.

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Zara likes to keep period tracking simple + practicable, and believes that it should be easeful to integrate this relevant information from your body into your daily life to better plan and schedule your work, play, and rest as well as to better care for yourself.

5:45 the spectrum of internalized period shame; 1990's marketing, commercials, and magazines and the messages we received about how we should feel/be/and do things while on our periods; expected to still behave "normally"; what we learn from our caretakers and family of origin;

10:28 the knowledge & intuition of being connected to our bodies VS all of the things that culture, family, religion have told us we should be/do/feel; feeling "bad" or even apologizing for being on your period, for needing to rest more, for needing to take a break or reschedule plans

14:50 the difference between apologizing for yourself VS a confident, calm informing of your needs; sharing & teaching VS reacting from repressed emotions; "I'll have to schedule the dinner party for the week after,"

"The more that we understand what's happening inside of us & what we need in relation to that, the more natural it is to express that to the people in our lives and who we interact with."

23:25 how to raise our sons and educate them on this important, relevant topic so that they are learning more than the crumbs they are misinformed by on TV; "the more educated that we become, that translates into the next generation."; the messaging from our mothers, coming down from their mothers, all the way through the generations and through any lines and filters of abuse; generational period healing; teaching the young people about their bodies

26:00 internalized body shame; the ironic experience of Church & Puberty; Cosmo & Seventeen magazine and the messaging we receive; the filter of abuse; the experience that abuse has on our relationship to our body; the body & energy body remember;

34:50 the way that trauma affects our cycles, our periods, and our entire bodies; the power of yoga asana (movement) & pranayama (breath work/breathing) to move things through; the possibility for a shift; it doesn't have to stay this way, relief is possible

36:48 a willingness to feel your own body; the disconnect from the body that so many women experience; resistance to being in the body

41:11 a society disconnected from their bodies; the fear of going to hell for using your finger to put a non-applicator tampon inside; the experience of puberty shame in religion; "it's not your body"; body is only for heterosexual marital sex and then only for reproducing; the extremism in religion re: womens bodies; Church and State and Men are in control of womens bodies; heavy religious messaging has an influence on our entire society and culture, not just on those who go to church; the dysfunction in healthy sexual relationships and healthy sexual encounters in our society due to this conditioning

50:00 menstruating in the corporate world; my patriarchal credit union environment, ran by my Mormon Bishop with the same set of standards and expectations on modesty, womens appearance, and behavior that the church holds; "creating more equitable work places and environments is not idealistic"

53:40 period sex - what do you want?; need to re-cent ther convo around what people who menstruate think/feel/want re: period sex; "do what you want!"; orgasm can alleviate period cramps

59:00 "how can I teach others what I need/want at this time of my cycle?"

1:04:00 menstruating is only one phase of your cycle; bringing Zara back for a [PART 3] to explore our entire cycle