While I’ve written countless blog posts and features about endometriosis over the decades, am struck this year by the link Louise Hay made between endometriosis and similar conditions and it feeling unsafe to be a woman.
She associated endometriosis with “insecurity, disappointment and frustration. Replacing self-love with sugar. Blamers.”
While this doesn’t personally resonate for me, 47 year old me remembers how nauseous I felt in my 20s even READING her affirmation for endometriosis because – as with so many affirmations – it felt so impossible for me to even imagine feeling like that:
“I am both powerful and desirable. It’s wonderful to be a woman. I love myself and I am fulfilled.”
And yet, there was something in it that resonated in terms of how I WANTED to feel so I didn’t discount it.
Also personally (and if you take nothing else from this post, I hope you’ll start paying more attention to how YOU feel and what makes sense, what resonates for YOU) I’ve had more healing around this myself in the past year than I ever imagined being possible.
Obligatory, “Oh boy, hope I don’t get murdered now, having written that sentence” thought.
Many women with endometriosis (from my experience, my work as a trauma therapist and research) have survived sexual abuse
And ALL women and girls grow up knowing that Bad Things Can Happen.
We’re conditioned to blame ourselves as far less onus (although this is changing) is placed on predatoey boys and men to stop.
I’m not going to go into any detail here about the hideous stats and societal normalising of male violence against women (Laura Bates is doing amazing work in this area) and I also am very aware that men and boys have their own challenges.
I AM going to encourage you to connect with your body and support yourself in HEALING
Celebrate International Women’s Day with a special self healing guided meditation (more information below)
While it’s designed for people who’ve been born female, all humans can benefit from much of it ~ simply amend the elements that don’t resonate for you.
Celebrate your own body.
Celebrate your own LIFE.
As I dug out the Louise Hay affirmation and diagnosis, I was reminded of my default reaction back then around it being obvious that it WASN’T safe to be a woman.
And I’ve had a MUCH easier safer life than so so many women around the globe.
Louise Hay self published You Can Heal Your Life when she kept facing rejections by existing publishers. Between her late 60s and recent death in her 90s, her vision evolved into Hay House Publishers.
You Can Heal Your Life and the accompanying Love Your Body are a helpful starting point with working metaphorically with any physical symptoms.
But, ultimately, YOU know your body best so some of her diagnoses and affirmations may resonate but others may seem irrelevant.
The point is that YOUR BODY WANTS TO HELP YOU HEAL
Pain is a way or our unconscious mind getting our attention.
This is obviously NOT about ignoring the miracles of modern medicine and getting symptoms checked out by your doctor
But we can support our healing ~ mental, physical, emotional and spiritual ~ by getting curious about our symptoms and wondering how they may be trying to get our attention and heal deeper wounds.
And I’m conscious that if anyone had told me to meditate on my pain when I was in daily pain, having trauma flashbacks as endless intrusive internal hospital tests and ultimately surgery diagnosed my endometriosis back in 2001, I would have wanted to scream at them.
But I wouldn’t have because one of the things I hadn’t yet learned was to use my voice to advocate for myself.
When I had some (free to me through work) therapy and she asked me how I felt and what my ovaries (where I had the most pain) were trying to communicate to me I:
a) thought the idea insane and
b) was so desperate for pain relief that I DID start asking my ovaries what (the f) they needed from me.
Some things that worked for me
Some may appeal. Others may make you want to scream at the suggestion.
My hope is that reading this will help you connect with your inner wisdom and explore the things that doing more or less of will help with your endometriosis (or any other chronic condition) symptoms
Because I was so desperate for pain relief (and I was told I’d need more surgeries every couple of years and hospital prescribed painkillers didn’t work), I turned to complementary therapies.
* logging my cycle and symptoms and becoming a detective into my body even I though I was FILLED with self loathing and wanted to be anyone but me
* learning to use my voice. Changing GPs when necessary. Speaking up for myself. I literally started to feel my left ovary pulsate with pain when I bit my tongue with a loved one. My body coached me to speak up for myself
* using the earth’s support with crystals. They helped with pain relief and the crystal therapy training I did from 2000 to 2004 was my first foray into the world of wellbeing as a practitioner
* I never expected to train as a yoga therapist but poses like Cat / Cow, Cobra and Wheel helped with pain relief way more effectively than the useless painkillers
* attempting to be of service: volunteering for what was then the UK’s National Endometriosis Society’s Helpline introduced me to others with the condition (pre home Internet let alone social media ~ the world is your LOBSTER for support and expertise now) as well as being another pre counselling experience that guided me to this work and life I love
* getting sober in 2001 was hard (so hard) but had the pain not forced me, I might still be abusing alcohol (or worse) in an unconscious effort to self medicate
Special body scan to honour YOUR inherent Divine Feminine nature on International Women’s Day, Wednesday, 8th March at 7pm (Irish time)
To attend live (or, if you can’t make it, to access the recording) this free, self healing guided meditation email I WANT TO LOVE MY BODY to eve@selfcarecoaching.net for the link to join at 7pm on International Women’s Day (Wednesday, 8th March)
Whatever your gender, however your health is, what will you do to honour your body’s wisdom more?
Feel free to email eve@selfcarecoaching.net to let me know.
And please feel free to share this post so others who may find it helpful can read it.
With love,
If you’re enjoying the features, columns, podcasts, TV and radio clips, book bonus videos, mind body practices and other free Be Your Own Self Care Coach resources throughout the site, you might want to check out the Feel Better Every Day online membership programme.
Each week, members have the option to dive deeper into their self care with a special email filled with simple suggestions around the week’s theme. There’s something for everyone (it’s designed to work with different energy levels).
Membership includes a weekly live self care coaching call and unique, relaxing Yoga Nidras to harness the power of the unconscious mind while working with each theme. There are also energy cleanses, other mind body practices and individual support for all who want it.