tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81697400338447888052024-03-12T19:47:17.236-07:00Aiyana Birth DoulaA Doula's journey to empowering birth & women's natureAiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-83930080819644475592012-11-23T22:42:00.000-08:002012-11-24T00:00:08.449-08:00PreMama - Going Natural<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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In the past 100 years our vegetable have gone from coming straight out of the home garden grown with effort and love to being grown in the masses and being spayed with chemicals that destroy the soil, nutrients and poison our bodies. Our grandmothers grandmothers knew of these chemicals and peeled all the vegetables but somewhere along the line this got forgotten. No more did we peel then and then somewhere along the line we even stopped washing them. Today we know that a high percentage of our illnesses are caused by high toxicity in the body.</div>
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I think i may have shocked some of my family members recently by rocking up for a cousins wedding in Thailand with hairy legs and armpits and wacky hippy ideas of how the Universe spirals into excistance. I soon realized we are all wacky in our own little wonderful ways even if we don't show it on the outside. I have a million things buzzing through my mind that i would like to share about making my body more healthy but i feel the most important thing i have done is cut out, almost completely, artificial chemicals and processed products. Folks yes this includes white sugar!!! Now these harmful chemicals are everywhere....in our food and products we consume to smother our skin in. They are even in the air and water. I was struck a few years ago when i was having a conversation with a person close to me who had cancer. This person was told by her doctor that to aid her healing she would have to not expose her body to toxins and harmful chemicals.....as they put strain on the liver and suppress the immune system. This made me wonder if our generation is, everyday, making our liver a toxic environment and keeping our immune system functioning lower than it could be. So i began paying attention to what i was putting in and on my body. Over the years i have slowly transitioned to not wearing make-up or dying my hair, using coconut oil on my skin, natural soap and natural shampoo and eating organic food. I also avoid products with fluoride in like toothpaste and bottled water and use natural alternatives. I feel that it is my responsibility as conscious woman to keep myself healthy and create an optimum environment for life to develop in. I also feel that deciding to become healthy at the moment i fall pregnant is a good effort but i can do so much better.<br />
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In addition to this i practice natural contraception. Charting. This means i follow my menstrual cycle day by day taking my morning waking temperature and observing my cervical fluid. After months of practice i can pin-point my moment of ovulation and predict with an immense amount of accuracy when i will bleed. I learned how to do charting from this book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Womens-Bodies-Wisdom-Revised-Edition/dp/0553386735/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1353737865&sr=8-1&keywords=christian+northup">Women's Bodies Women's Wisdom</a> by Christian Northup. This book along with conversations with friends and experimenting myself taught me the dynamics of women's cycles down to a fine detail. If your interested in natural contraception i would recommend buying a book on it. The information on the web is sometimes very basic and misleading. If you would like any recommendations i am happy to write another post more in depth about this.</div>
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So what have a learned from doing things more naturally? I have learned to be in ways that we have been for thousands of years. More grounded and at one with the earth. I feel that keeping my body as natural as possible i fit more complimentary with the natural harmony of the universe. On a smaller scale i am making less negative impact on the planet and on my cells which will eventually extend into the cells of new life. Making the decision to go more natural is immensely empowering.Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-32542646594210551442012-11-22T19:28:00.001-08:002012-11-22T23:00:22.403-08:00Powerful Intentions<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A world of love and connection to anyone who finds there way musing over this blog in a moment of curiosity, Tonight while sitting listening to the rain from an apartment in Phuket, Thailand i got a spark of inspiration to share. My last post was written about 16 months ago.....I cant believe time has past so quickly and without a strong enough urge to tinkle out some letters here. In a very simplified nutshell i will quickly explain what i have been doing since my last post. I moved away from Edinburgh, in June 2011, to experience living outside my box. My lovely comfortable yummy box where i was surrounded by amazing people, opportunities and love. I spend three months traveling around sound England and Wales exploring the wonderful world of Wwoofing where i exchanged my energy and skills to work and learn with the earth for organic food and accommodation. And splendid it was. I then decided, even though my bank balance was feeling rather sorry for itself, to fly to New Zealand...lets just say my heart yurned for a new land. I spent 8 wonderful months Wwoofing, living, learning, loving and working around amazing people and during that time my visions synced beautifully with a lovely males who i now share my travel with. In love we trusted the universe to guide us and went to an Island not too far away from Australia called Vanuatu. This place was basically tribal until a few hundred years ago and the people still have that real honest un-corrupt love in their eyes. We lived with a tribe for almost a month which was extremely beautiful and challenging all the same. After Vanuatu we flew to Australia where we stayed and healed for a few weeks with friends and then jumped on another plane to south-east Asia. This is where we are still now....months later. Having seen parts of Thailand, Loas, Cambodia i look back and can't imagine being me without all this experience. To trust our heart to guide us is a very powerful thing.<br />
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So here i am. Still passionate about women's things, love, light energy, expanding, contracting, menstruation, creative yumminess just to name a few. What i really want to begin writing about is an intention. An intention of surrendering to creation. It has been a belief of mine for a long time now that certain things in our life require a little preparation and over the past months i have been preparing myself to become a mother. Now this may seem a little odd (and people always give me a puzzled look when i tell them this)....although in a loving relationship i am not married, i don't have an income, i don't have a house, im traveling and i am not yet pregnant. But from the deepest of my heart i KNOW that to wait to put off preparing to become a mother, because i don't yet have those things, would be absurd. So here i am living my life spontaneously and open and preparing to jump into parenthood and i want to share every step, positive and negative, easy and difficult, about preparing the body, soul and mind for the wonderful life changing event of parenthood before it has begun.</div>
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I will post as often as feels right about things i am actively doing. I will take my inspiration for people i have met and will meet, from books that suggest things and from my own intuition. I encourage feedback and suggestions too.<br />
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<i>Warmth and Loviness </i></div>
<i style="color: purple;">B</i>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-81912430127510168952011-06-07T13:59:00.000-07:002012-11-22T19:34:44.083-08:00Finding Peace in Manifesting.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">For a long time now i have understood the power of manifesting opportunities, poeple and things into my life. But only the other day did i realize how often stop myself from getting what i want. I identified this blockage as a voice that always said the same thing... </span><br />
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'not today, no there is nothing special about today'</div>
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<span style="color: black;">I sometimes wake with the question....'i wonder if today something will happen, or i will meet someone special that will suddenly, and dramatically, make my life path alter?' And of course on many days up comes the voice and which overrides that sudden flutter of inspiration and i carry on with my normal day routine. Where's the growth in that?</span></div>
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Well this evening when dreaming up plans of an adventurous summer that same old lack of trust popped up again. However after my insight i have decided to do something different this time, so i drew a picture of the thing i was dreaming about. In my picture i have drawn a shelter made of straw and wood surrounded by thick tree's. My structure symbolizes a sanctuary beneath the sun where i am able to relax and heal in nature. The pillows show the comforting environment and the rose is my passion for love and life. I am the spiral like creature ooozing purple, red, orange and yellow which are the colours of the spiritual, base, sexual and social Chakras. All of which i am paying delicate attention to just now.</div>
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I know that when blockages over power inspiration i am living in a fearful place so i will take it upon myself from now on to be more mindful of when that is happening and to try a ritual or creative practice to challenge where the fear is coming from.</div>
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<span style="color: purple;">Peace</span> xxx</div>
Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-53959345690933754812011-06-06T14:56:00.000-07:002012-11-22T19:34:06.263-08:00Appreciating ends...The Red Tent Novel.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Tonight i finished The Red Tent. Surprising that i was able to hold off getting to the end for so long. But i managed. I was recommended the book months ago and have saved reading it for long luxurious cleansing baths where i have really been able to retreat into the fictional world created by Anita Diamant. I see coming to the end of books as a positive and a negative and often i read little bits so that i can dwell in the world for as long as possible. This particular book has stirred quite the movement in the world and dramatically in myself. I have talked about a Red Tent or Moonlodge in my posts previous and for me this is where my interest began. Since allowing myself to indulge in the healing and flow of my menstrual times i have become a more connected and rounded woman. I am so grateful to women around me who support this belief and the women in the world who inspire each other to heal and gather through their bleeds.</div>
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I have decided i will write a message in the front of this book and give it to another woman in hope it will keep on affecting their relationship with themselves and the world.<br />
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<span style="color: black;">This chapter has just ended but another has already begun. </span><br />
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Blessings</div>
<i style="color: purple; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Aiyana</i> xxxx<br />
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For anyone who is interested you might like to read Anita's blog <a href="http://anitadiamant.blogspot.com/" style="color: purple;">The Red Tent and more...</a>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-72364624433052827922011-04-16T17:03:00.000-07:002012-11-22T19:33:22.316-08:00Wanting to Hear Your Menstrual Story.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3R-G2LuGLgFKoLFbeDJwd_yPQxWptWDyKCtlRGsiXbdttAIN5cOq89qrO6CYk0hePDOn8zsMOKVT9WFPfRU9VsBLWGtaOA8fNRl3GB09UzCp3EHH88z4wWUxuIFugkQGeC31MbQkqqidX/s1600/by-astrobhadauria-ramendra-singh-bhadauria.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3R-G2LuGLgFKoLFbeDJwd_yPQxWptWDyKCtlRGsiXbdttAIN5cOq89qrO6CYk0hePDOn8zsMOKVT9WFPfRU9VsBLWGtaOA8fNRl3GB09UzCp3EHH88z4wWUxuIFugkQGeC31MbQkqqidX/s320/by-astrobhadauria-ramendra-singh-bhadauria.jpg" width="226" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;">Goddess Kamakya during her menstruation.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"> I have recently decided to make a post dedicated to sacred ways to use menstrual blood. I am looking for personal stories that i can share with the world to inspire them to feel their cycle rather than ignore it. My first idea was just to propose this on facebook but i think i would like to open it up to the world now. Please email me at <span style="color: #990000;">aiyana.woman@gmail.com</span> if you would like to share your story.</span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"> Tell me what you think of your monthly blood, do you connect it to the moon and feel powerful when you menstruate? Is your time spent healing and slowing down from your daily responsibilities? Did developing a better relationship with your body help you in other aspects of life? Do any of you link menstruation to pregnancy? Or do you have a bad relationship with your menstruation? Has society put pressure on you to hide it and feel unclean? Do you want your perspective to change?</span><br />
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<span style="color: purple;">I want you to talk about your menstruation. I want everyone to talk about menstruation. I want us to claim back our power through our bleeding. I want to help women do this.</span><br />
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With love and blessings</div>
<span style="color: purple;">Bree</span> xxxAiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-44510108593900957522011-03-22T12:10:00.000-07:002012-11-22T19:32:37.820-08:00Finding My Balance After Being Ill.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivLfgGnn7gXM6-dQKmszY0m4JyI5NZ8tge8Gj_O0byXVOmWuQH_whezRvT6njg-gLYaTgU-XUq4Aom-l11lcEzJbuArOjE5JlqXX7VAlM-QxeW4EXrTWz1iPJBIvW3YCNrXi8t0MpXd-5H/s1600/nature_by_abhishekultimatum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivLfgGnn7gXM6-dQKmszY0m4JyI5NZ8tge8Gj_O0byXVOmWuQH_whezRvT6njg-gLYaTgU-XUq4Aom-l11lcEzJbuArOjE5JlqXX7VAlM-QxeW4EXrTWz1iPJBIvW3YCNrXi8t0MpXd-5H/s320/nature_by_abhishekultimatum.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">environmentalgeography.wordpress.com</td></tr>
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I lost my balance. Being a pretty balanced person in most aspects of my life it was scary to loose it for so long. A mixture of life responsibilities and spending a long period of time stressed tipped me over an edge and i got quite ill. It feels like i need to write about this before i can start writing creative posts again.</div>
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Yesterday was the first day in almost three weeks that i didn't feel pressured to do something and was actually motivated. It felt like a kind of bliss that had been lacking for such a long while. Today i made the decision to consciously find my balance again. This for me is taking time to look at my life from a perspective that isn't so much involved in the day to day drama of everything but rather an observation of whats going on just now and a delicate aim for solutions. Solutions are something i struggle with when im swimming in the drama. What i became really aware of in recent years was that to function as any sort of supportive person (for friends or as a job) i HAVE to take care of myself first. Simple but sometimes difficult. Taking care of myself, i've come to realize, means:</div>
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<li style="color: white;">making sure im eating healthily; whenever i get distracted and eat junk i tend to feel really low and get ill easily.</li>
<li style="color: white;">making sure i've slept enough; i can go through periods in my life when i don't sleep much at all but i have to level that out with a few days rest after to recover.</li>
<li style="color: white;">paying attention to my menstrual cycle; whenever i ignore where my cycle i feel disoriented in my body.</li>
<li style="color: white;">keeping the nest organised; i enjoy organisation and always feel so much more grounded when i am.</li>
<li style="color: white;">keeping my body clean; in and out. Whenever i illiminate toxins from my body i feel renewed and fresh. To do this i have really hot steamy baths, saunas, do enemas and drink loooooads of water.</li>
<li style="color: white;">keeping a good rapor with friends and family; whenever there is tension between friends or family i feel emotionally distressed. Resolving issues and keeping peace is far more soul nourishing.</li>
<li style="color: white;">nourishing my soul; this involves being in tune with what my soul is saying to me (something i get better at each menstrual cycle) this varies massively but usually involves some body movement and/or using my creativity.</li>
<li style="color: white;">connecting with nature; i find nature relaxing, fascinating, beautiful and like a strong validating mothering force.</li>
<li><span style="color: white;">doing something towards a better society and earth; i am a big believer that the world can be a better place if we be kinder to each other and the environment.</span></li>
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It's easy to forget that these wonderful things balance and ground me and it's even easier to forget that without doing most of them i will be a little all over the place. My mind/body/soul connection needs them to feel in good flow with the world. Have you ever wondered what your little personal needs are so that you feel balanced?</div>
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This week is a week of introducing those activities slowly so that i am at my best. As i have been ill i am also giving my immune system a big boost with Echinacea, Vitamin C, lots of raw Garlic and Spirilina. I have almost completely cut out sugar and caffeine (which suppress the immune system) and whenever i feel stress bubbling beneath the surface i walk away to cool off or have a quiet cry to release the emotion. </div>
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Hoping to feel more creative soon and share inspiring stories with the world</div>
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Healthy energy and creative blessings</div>
<i><span style="color: purple; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">A</span></i> xxxAiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-69321066901437626292011-01-23T16:00:00.000-08:002011-01-23T16:02:00.581-08:00Loving and Living in a Yurt<div style="color: black;">Tonight i can see beautiful things. For some reason i woke today with a buzz. Maybe it was allowing myself to sleep for 12 hours after a week of interrupted sleeping or maybe it was the meditation i did before bed listening to rain pouring (via spotify as i didn't have the luxury in this reality) and imagining warm evenings sitting with my feet up and reading a good book, who knows. It's been a positive buzz which has benefited my entire day. Ive been organised, felt confident and best of all been inspired all day. </div><br />
Id like to dedicate this post to my love of yurts. For those of you who may not have come across this word here's a brief explanation; a yurt is a large tent like structure. More permanent than a tent a yurt tends to have wooden post on the inside or some sort of wooden/plastic/metal fencing to keep it in shape. This makes the structure incredibly strong. Yurts will usually have a wood burning stove inside for warmth and cooking. They can be used for holidaying or even living in. This summer my partner and i jumped in our camper van and visited his families land in the west coast of Scotland. We spent one of our nights in the yurt on their land and boy did i love it. Here are some pictures we took:<br />
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It got me thinking...wouldn't it just be lovely to live in yurt. It's atmosphere is cosy and warm. It encourages you to keep your belongings to a minimum and it offers an easy doorway to nature. Another major benefit of a yurt is how inexpensive it is compared to your average three bedroomed house and extremely eco-friendly. At some point in my life i will live in a yurt.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfxBpHXe2KIOQ7NoanZ8AHGfuomxwxF8G-pHRQZWdFJtXdJDdcGY5RsmgcxLr0BtDGfZ1AX6L3ijIEidyv31-GdvsYuMMZ_wQKjKZLVa0Hm9bHW0PJnycYRxwHkp2nOe6d5UgIVp-1soyZ/s1600/IMG_2977.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfxBpHXe2KIOQ7NoanZ8AHGfuomxwxF8G-pHRQZWdFJtXdJDdcGY5RsmgcxLr0BtDGfZ1AX6L3ijIEidyv31-GdvsYuMMZ_wQKjKZLVa0Hm9bHW0PJnycYRxwHkp2nOe6d5UgIVp-1soyZ/s320/IMG_2977.JPG" width="320" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I wondered if this type of life could work with a family so i clicked around for someone living and loving the world of yurts and family life. I found this <a href="http://threejoyfulpixies.blogspot.com/">Three Joyful Pixies Blog</a>. I'm hooked. I have a deep issue with this cultures way of promoting isolation and wish more people would live in smaller communities, maybe yurts, live off the land, be kinder to themselves and the earth and get that essence of community back. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: left;">So what now. Now i explore and listen to my soul when it connects to ideas. Eventually ill be taking myself to New Zealand where I'm going to explore such communities and see what i can learn from them. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Love from this joyful pixie</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">xxx</div>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-85307191691585159142011-01-14T10:26:00.000-08:002011-01-23T13:22:04.678-08:00Pick Your Pace and Let Curiosity flow<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhW96hHC2KP3grh9-hMHZMR73-3yoaRqvehyphenhyphenbUv688TIFIhLIcviCzBXf1IzyprGdVjNELE0zzyEChzMxf7yLoR2C4XHwE1t8OicGv9Hl4SCDYq735sMDk3p-PZcWUdkczG4xjAI9QfA-a/s1600/IMG_3017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhW96hHC2KP3grh9-hMHZMR73-3yoaRqvehyphenhyphenbUv688TIFIhLIcviCzBXf1IzyprGdVjNELE0zzyEChzMxf7yLoR2C4XHwE1t8OicGv9Hl4SCDYq735sMDk3p-PZcWUdkczG4xjAI9QfA-a/s320/IMG_3017.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">textured tree in the Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div style="color: black;"> Something i am reminding myself of daily at the moment is that the pace i pick is ok. Often i would do to much (or stress about not doing enough) with my time and get too worn out. I know my own pace and i know it varies from sometimes staying in a lot and being creative to sometimes being out a lot and very sociable. For me it all depends on where my moon cycle (menstrual cycle) is at and how deeply i retreated within myself for healing around the time i bled. Ive noticed i have less inspiration to make things happen or indulge in creative projects if i ignore the processing so needed to be done when bleeding. When im not stressed or worn out my curiosity feels heightened. I meet more interesting people, create more and have a general sense of being able to accomplish anything.</div><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLcWRJ703NQJRbJ5CmFbfFkgjsS2rYkPq-my3A_Kn8RsLRGuhGvvt7f7QM9qpuxQQesdYH_cU4188n0oAoKeLP9iC5MQWMKRRJVRhWE8OZe9MHNdejepj2mgUOO5RyoRViypqeJyIvc5zY/s1600/IMG_3016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLcWRJ703NQJRbJ5CmFbfFkgjsS2rYkPq-my3A_Kn8RsLRGuhGvvt7f7QM9qpuxQQesdYH_cU4188n0oAoKeLP9iC5MQWMKRRJVRhWE8OZe9MHNdejepj2mgUOO5RyoRViypqeJyIvc5zY/s320/IMG_3016.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">summer 2010 during secret grove project</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="color: black;">I love following my curiosity because it takes me to such interesting places (within myself and outside myself) that i know i wouldn't discover otherwise. I always learn something valid and am flooding with new sense of gratitude. This week while taking some time to appreciate things i got an amazing sense of accomplishment for my growth over the past two years (i will post about this in my next post). The switch in perspective informed me that what i do is worthwhile, meaningful and has the potential to grow into something beautiful. Right now i feel a bit like a seedling...fresh, new and full of curiosity. The magnificent tree that will be my life eventually is making its roots and growing its leaves.</div><br />
This week take a moment to tell yourself that what you do is not only enough, it is amazing.<br />
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<div style="color: black;">Love and other warm things</div>xxxAiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-57173861620651215902011-01-02T17:14:00.000-08:002011-01-23T13:21:30.199-08:00Winter Loveliness<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT7iqYGXQB3y2cvf4HK8SOlmmmLYsFUj9UFCvTmcZL5LuisWhEy_9_TWAH3og0h5XGjzOOKfk5Rogd7QEA29HAIyc0eRXXyiyYtxO_1upNcNONT5J-9bwAuB9RVhSzX7vNkk9W2nTC8GTQ/s1600/IMG_3121.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT7iqYGXQB3y2cvf4HK8SOlmmmLYsFUj9UFCvTmcZL5LuisWhEy_9_TWAH3og0h5XGjzOOKfk5Rogd7QEA29HAIyc0eRXXyiyYtxO_1upNcNONT5J-9bwAuB9RVhSzX7vNkk9W2nTC8GTQ/s320/IMG_3121.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">yummy oat biscuit</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: left;"> This December we spent a lot of time indoors making the most of our cosy house. Some days it was nice to play i the snow then come home have a hot cup of tea and watch a film with flatmates and friends. I live in a communal house and it's lovely when we all gather and cook and meal. Some evenings after dinner we get that urge for something sweet and being particular about not having any refined sugar its not always easy. My partner has perfected the art of oat biscuity cake. It's delicious and massively indulgent. We tend to put in fruit and a bit of honey to sweeten it.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;">One particular evening i was hidden away in my den knitting when my flatmates came through and told me they had been making snow mushrooms. It felt like i was walking into a winter wonderland as i strolled into our back garden. I love it when i suddenly get a glimpse of magic. It fills my heart full of warmth and i get a big urge to create. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBtMofE9eW7E9Prli3DIbsV6aYDwD4gKZ5Asxsbiu8Kvi7zLQg-xnwcismzOZ7_tDcllyu8dQf7OySb7YyFJNoAQzxHHEOygCOzoqFB0jKiJ9nOznIfcA8gNaavqlAgMk2cvIawQ175vtw/s1600/IMG_3130.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBtMofE9eW7E9Prli3DIbsV6aYDwD4gKZ5Asxsbiu8Kvi7zLQg-xnwcismzOZ7_tDcllyu8dQf7OySb7YyFJNoAQzxHHEOygCOzoqFB0jKiJ9nOznIfcA8gNaavqlAgMk2cvIawQ175vtw/s320/IMG_3130.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">snow mushrooms</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">In the lead up the Christmas there was a lot of lovely evenings at my local vegetarian cafe/art collective The Forest Cafe. I've been volunteering at the forest for about a year and a half now and i love being part of the community. When it gets closer to Christmas the place gets very folky and becomes a great venue and dance your bottom off. We are currently working hard to keep The Forest from closing by fundraising to buy the building. If your interested in finding out more about that you can read about it on the <a href="http://forestcafe.tumblr.com/">Forest Cafe Website</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKR_4qA9qtNJcxlajhFG74Oyg7r46fZF5IJhGwcnyouFPzdonMyrcrXTP9d7vfBvsWxSCXqvYza9ffs7c1mklgQxRz9C1eKkhfSd4qmqiCRJhuWOHOaduadbe_7evsHzizZANL4roo06wM/s1600/the+forest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKR_4qA9qtNJcxlajhFG74Oyg7r46fZF5IJhGwcnyouFPzdonMyrcrXTP9d7vfBvsWxSCXqvYza9ffs7c1mklgQxRz9C1eKkhfSd4qmqiCRJhuWOHOaduadbe_7evsHzizZANL4roo06wM/s320/the+forest.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">forest cafe</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">Over the festive period i had flu. Ive only ever had flu once before so it felt a big shock to my system. I don't take any artificial chemicals so it was a purley natural healing process for me. Herbal tea kept me going when i couldn't eat, had a sore throat and was coughing the night away. Thank you herbs! After about 2 weeks of rest and healing i popped up out of poorly land and entered creative mode just in time for New Year. As im not much of a party animal (in the British sense) it was lovely to be at a quiet house party and watching fireworks on New Year. I also didn't stay up all night which my body thanked me for the next day when i woke up before the daylight faded. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">Since entering the New Year i have had a gentle buzz of excitement inside. Ive been planning in my head some projects that can begin this month and adventures that can happen later on in the year. Lets see what 2011 has in store.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Lots of new energy for an opportunity to replenish.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;">LOVE x</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: right;"></div>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-14847121689738942242010-12-13T08:40:00.000-08:002010-12-13T08:40:57.914-08:00Networking in a World of DoulasI recently discovered this great networking site where Doula's can connect and interact with each other. I urge anyone working in this field to consider signing up and sharing your opinions. Its a good way to promote events, share stories, ask questions and learn about new things. Here is the link:<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.fullspectrumdoulanetwork.org/">Full Spectrum Doula Network</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Lovely new wintery post coming soon.</div><div style="text-align: left;">xxxx</div>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-26258740284207064282010-12-01T09:28:00.000-08:002011-01-23T13:21:07.955-08:00A Little About What Brought Me Here<div style="text-align: left;">I'm a woman on a mission. I feel it is my quest to help others and myself connect to each other and nature. My life is full of small projects and situations that help me do this. Here are just some things that buzz around in my little life that i would like to share with you...</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">Natural Birthing </div><div style="text-align: left;">I have recently been initiated into the wonderful world of Doula's. A Doula (pronounced doo-la) is a woman in tune with her sympathetic and empowering nature who assist birthing women. We help demonstrating to women that she has power within herself to work with her natural hormones and birth with ease and fulfillment. Birth can be an event that transforms a woman and we think it is important to make that experience as safe and supported as possible. I trust a woman to access her inner wisdom from within birthing and i will help her create the right environment to do so. Please see my Doula webpage for more information about my philosophy and practice.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">Dance</div>Or even just body movement is something i hold in very high regard. I believe we have a flow of CHI that can build up within us causing frustration, anger, lethargy and depression. Releasing it through dance and movement, or any other creative practice for that matter, can help us connect to our true selves and be a practice we can use when our life feels a bit on top of us. I regularly dance with my partner and sometimes around the high energy of the full moon put on movement workshops.<br />
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<div style="color: black;">Yoga </div>Like many others all over the world i practice Ashtanger Yoga. For me it feels like a meditation of rhythm that can result in a state of bliss. It also helps me be in tune with the inner workings of my body. Yoga is good for most people as it's very much up to you how hard or soft you push yourself.<br />
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<div style="color: black;">Natural Cycles </div>There is something so wondrous to me about a cycle. I became interested in women's menstrual cycles from a very early age and used to pester my mum with more information about the details. Unfortunately in my teens my fascination was not nurtured by my peers and like most other girls in western society i was told to not talk about it, hide it and ignore the fact it was even happening. Once i got into my twenties i broke out of that oppression and began surrounding myself with women who wanted to express themselves through their menstruation. Occasionally ill hold workshops to create a comforting space for women to gather in and relate to each other through their monthly bleed. Cycles are all around us and as a women i feel extremely lucky to be able to experience a cycle through menstruation and pregnancy. We can take so much encouragement from nature who changes with ease from summer into autumn and winter into spring. Cycles help us appreciate change and show us there is good in all situations.Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-77049457653020567232010-12-01T07:31:00.000-08:002011-01-23T13:20:55.591-08:00HERSTORY<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaZ3pmDp03u3Ktcvaz1ZsrISV_E4EJrsstxU6fDS1XbhM65t1DcXtYw22v1FiOyLh1HcPkGJSZwTGnC2OXvC4EG1z0_sK26AAN6uVC1DmhvM_TWR-hxbTrFuZLrvA2iqes15Er7mBX6-fW/s1600/25271_377874821746_514776746_4161219_6268340_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaZ3pmDp03u3Ktcvaz1ZsrISV_E4EJrsstxU6fDS1XbhM65t1DcXtYw22v1FiOyLh1HcPkGJSZwTGnC2OXvC4EG1z0_sK26AAN6uVC1DmhvM_TWR-hxbTrFuZLrvA2iqes15Er7mBX6-fW/s320/25271_377874821746_514776746_4161219_6268340_n.jpg" width="242" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal"><b>History or Herstory? </b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: purple;">Aiyana</span> is a Native Indian word meaning <span style="color: purple;">eternal blossom.</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: white;"><b>This story is about where the idea for this blog came from. About a year ago i finished a textiles degree and planted a seed. Exhausted and confused i decided to not pursue a career in textiles and wait, that's right wait, for a sign wiggle it's bum at me so impossible to ignore. Waiting is fun if you do creative things. As i waited i thought filling my time with stuff i was too busy for during my degree would be a good idea. I started yoga again, i learnt to crochet, i started eating better, sleeping longer, dancing, playing and most importantly reading about things that had always interested me. While reading stages of pregnancy online, which i fund myself reading often, i stumbled across a midwife statement. In this statement was the mention of a Doula. Whats a Doula? Birthing companion! My eyes lit and my heart fluttered. I got the buzz. Within a few days i began my Doula journey and from then trusted and have been blessed with interesting opportunities. This blog is a mash of all the things i have in my life that make me feel all fuzzy inside and i WANT to share that. I spent years feelings alone unable to connect to the idea of community. Adults around me were at war not in harmony. Well now i believe we all are connected whether we want to be or not and this blog is an expression of that connection. As i read blogs i feel inspired and at one with the person behind it without even knowing them. This is me showing you what makes me warm and happy so you can connect to the things that make you feel warm and happy. Enjoy reading about my wonderful little world....i hope the willow trees are swaying peacefully in yours.</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>WITH LOVE & WARM WISHES </b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: white;"><b>plant a seed</b></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="color: purple;"><b>Bree</b></div>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-68158749496567653242010-11-30T05:39:00.000-08:002011-01-23T13:20:37.193-08:00Thanking You<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQVI82qix90KJc4lxiVtprcbqmU63LM6MSGr9IKmyC5_Ap18is5MrV_wh1ymmqUIy_9WajBm-McRw3gOFN47BNhYLbnFzaHQlBwuiOMMZJKlYE92cpWqquP_162zD3KwXRbSjhzdkFWaUv/s1600/being_thankful_card.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQVI82qix90KJc4lxiVtprcbqmU63LM6MSGr9IKmyC5_Ap18is5MrV_wh1ymmqUIy_9WajBm-McRw3gOFN47BNhYLbnFzaHQlBwuiOMMZJKlYE92cpWqquP_162zD3KwXRbSjhzdkFWaUv/s320/being_thankful_card.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Today i want to begin with saying a big thank you to all those who read my blog and have said how much they are enjoying it. To know i have reached just one person makes writing my ideas down worth while. When i'm approach by a total stranger in Edinburgh and they tell me how much they like my blog i blush and get filled with warmth. Thank you all who have inspired me to sit and have the confidence to share my ideas and thank you all that tell me you enjoy what you read. <br />
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<div style="color: black;">With warm wishes and sweet sounds</div>BreeAiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-71957943867396199432010-11-29T08:32:00.000-08:002011-01-23T13:20:14.646-08:00ORGASMS and HEALING<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTzjZLrk0QW1oNG4vLVya_8FcXyFadVhcuSK5IVUlqLP3oMC6Yy-a1GrkXzOfNJUeFWPq74Ox1UhPd19v284VXDWwR45_yggB-x_L22Nppd6AkDhng0kkzpKSyIISK9MBaU24Z1aDgqzFk/s1600/tratricart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTzjZLrk0QW1oNG4vLVya_8FcXyFadVhcuSK5IVUlqLP3oMC6Yy-a1GrkXzOfNJUeFWPq74Ox1UhPd19v284VXDWwR45_yggB-x_L22Nppd6AkDhng0kkzpKSyIISK9MBaU24Z1aDgqzFk/s320/tratricart.jpg" width="188" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Hold your breathe people this might get juicey. Lately all things sexuality have been a big part of my life. Ive been researching a bit about birth as a sexual act and looking into Tantra. In an earlier post i discussed how having an orgasm can help you heal faster when your ill, well that's still true and id like to talk about why. Id also like to explore why sexual sensations in the birth room aren't as welcome as I would like them to be and how we could improve our lives through conscious sexuality.<br />
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<div style="color: black;"><b>The orgasms, pleasure and healing</b></div><div style="color: black;">I wish we had sex education about stuff like this. The 'system' thinks that will only promote sexual activity at a younger age meaning more teen pregnancies and STI's. I think really educating about sexuality at an early age in <b>depth</b> will help youngsters take control of their sexuality and be a lot more conscious of the decisions they make<b>. </b> </div><br />
Ok on with a little about the orgasm. After enough stimulation a man, woman or any gender in between could have the ability to climax. Most of you probably know what physically happens to your bits but did you know you have a sudden release in hormones that create the sensations of an orgasm. Amongst them are Dopamine and Oxytocin. Splendid!<br />
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<div style="color: black;">So Dopamine is connected to the pleasure part of the brain. It makes us feel good, satisfied and happy when released. We release it when we are thinking about a good experience yet to come, while it is happening and after. An orgasm is the highest level of Dopamine me can achieve legally. Oxytocin is a little different. It's the bonding hormone and associated with a lot of different things as well as orgasm.....birth, breastfeeding, eating, love and healing. Orgasms can promote healing and wellbeing. Oxytocin can also counteract any stress hormones we may be releasing. Our savior! Ill do a post soon on the effects of stress hormones on our body. Oxytocin has only recently been discovered and has sent excitement sweeping through many systems including the medical (however you know Orthodox Medicine and its need to make a synthetic version of hormones which actually creates pretty bad reactions) Those of us who are more into the natural way of doing things here is what happens when we release Oxytocin NATURALLY. When a high enough level (not very high at all infact) is released of this hormone it stimulates and regulates the immune system. Stimulation means that it encourages the activity making it work fast and strong. You might all think that your immune system is well regulated....well most often not. Today we are exposed so much unhealthy food, addictive substances, pollution and stress that our immune system is in a constant struggle to work at its average rate. Day after day our body battles with bacteria and virus's (just to name a few) in a dampened state from the junk in out atmosphere and society. It's not all bad here are some lovely ways you can release Oxytocin:</div><ul><li><span style="font-size: medium;">Massage</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: medium;">Touch</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: medium;">Petting</span> animals</li>
<li>Any sexual contact</li>
<li>Orgasms </li>
<li>Hugs</li>
<li>Giving selflessly</li>
<li>Meditaion</li>
<li>Yoga</li>
<li>Exercise</li>
<li>Having close friendships</li>
<li>Working in a community environment </li>
</ul><div style="color: black;">Some more benefits of Oxytocin are:</div><ul><li>Feeling calm and connected</li>
<li>Increased curiosity</li>
<li>Lessens cravings and addictions</li>
<li>Increase in sexual desire</li>
<li>Feeling positive</li>
<li>Facilitates learning</li>
<li>Diminishes pain</li>
<li>Aids sleep</li>
<li>lowers blood pressure</li>
<li>Makes us feel worthy and loved</li>
<li>Bonds us</li>
</ul><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-size: large;"><b>Oxytocin is a very unique neurochemical; the more oxytocin we make, the stronger our body and mind respond to it. Our nerve cells actually sprout more oxytocin receptors, making them more sensitive to its effects. It grows easier and easier to be loving. Oxytocin is the neurochemical basis for the adage, “The more you give, the more you get.”</b></span></div><br />
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Yummy hey? Next time you have an orgasm and your swimming in the sea of bliss remind yourself of all the amazing things happening to you at that moment.<br />
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<div style="background-color: white; color: purple;">Enjoy your bliss</div>xxxAiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-25219968115692258182010-11-07T09:15:00.000-08:002011-01-23T13:19:54.662-08:00A Personal Journey<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcMYwj38_Ayu6C7BCLy_y9ZP00l4mCuj48hCD_bVXvjfXYWq_1eCXZ_g5TyWZgOISIYFuoi5rvPxTywGrsYOEvsBQMIg-x_TRfs43hSlB1uuss_QBz9FZWGl-AzmkSBT5gRpDOKuK9x8TG/s1600/CelticTreeOfLife04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcMYwj38_Ayu6C7BCLy_y9ZP00l4mCuj48hCD_bVXvjfXYWq_1eCXZ_g5TyWZgOISIYFuoi5rvPxTywGrsYOEvsBQMIg-x_TRfs43hSlB1uuss_QBz9FZWGl-AzmkSBT5gRpDOKuK9x8TG/s320/CelticTreeOfLife04.jpg" width="311" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black;">You might of noticed that i haven't blogged in a while. Let me give you a little post about my wonderful months activities. If you live in Edinburgh it's rare not to have heard about Beltane and Samhuin Fire Festivals. In short they symbolize the change of seasons, the earth cycles and rituals we do to honor them, well that's surely my interpretation anyway. The festivals are made up of a community of eager performers and artists from all walks of life (anyone can join). They form groups who bond over a period of a few months and express a particular part of the narrative. There is performance, there is body paint and there are drums. This Samhuin was my third festival and definitely not my last, i was part of a group called the White Hunt who for me meant strength, spiritual wisdom, respect for the earth and alliance with the winter king. We practiced twice a week, sometimes more, did meditation, Butoh, focus walks, embraced our animal side, made costumes, made dreamcatchers, supported each other, found our inner wisdom, played beneath the full moon, performed ritual and much more. Meaningful performance has become a big part of my life and healing process and i feel lucky to have taken part. Here are some pictures of this years Samhuin Fire Festival...</div><div style="color: black;"><br />
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<div style="color: black; text-align: left;">As you can see a wonderful expressive colourful adventure. I am in the second picture from the top. I always tend to put a lot of my attention into these festivals which makes them so much more intense and difficult to leave behind. Luckily with this community you get companionship and support when your suffering from the withdrawal symptoms post festival. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">While preparation for Samhuin blossomed around me most of my other interests were at a stand still. It was difficult not making pregnancy workshops and birth preparation events over the past few months due to clashing times with practices. I think that is why i feel all that more determined to to focus on being a Doula over the next few months. Here are somethings i am going to do to help me on my Doula journey.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">First step: find myself a more experienced Doula to be my mentor. This is a little scary...the idea of ringing someone up to ask for support with the possibility of being shot down (mental note: most people feels like this and thats why being a Doula is so beautiful and necessary in this culture) </div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">Second Step: putting some positive and open energy out to the universe making myself available to women. I so often don't do this and wonder why i don't see a more clear path. </div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">Third step: mingle with inspired women. This is not difficult in Edinburgh. This place is blessed with unique and powerful women....i just have to remember to be present enough to make a connection. </div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">Fourth Step: stimulate my creativity. I have so much creativity around my body and soul that i don't know what to do with it. I need to channel it into making things more often. </div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">Fifth step: cleanse my lifestyle and sort through my things. My lifestyle as in health and food....i feel i want to more structured eating lifestyle. Buying more in bulk, making bigger portions of soups and curries and stews and eating a wholesome breakfast everyday. I own a lot of things, a lot of beautiful things, but i don't seem to be getting the most out of them.... i have an over packed tea shelf where you can't find anything, a basket full of unused wool, a wardrobe full of clothes that need to be altered and so on.</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">Sixth Step: women's workshops. I adore bringing women together to empower them and help them heal through exploring parts of themselves. In the close future my agenda is to put on a vulva workshop and help design a red tent portable structure to make it more accessible to women around me.</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">These are all things i will be blogging about in more detail when they are happening. My heart tells me that doing these things will put me on a positive wave and when i am on a positive wave things really start to shift in my life. Samhuin is, after all, a new year. Its only right to be concentrating on my new journey.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="color: purple; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Blessings</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i style="color: black;">Bree</i></div>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-73281374999655096982010-10-05T11:39:00.000-07:002011-01-23T13:19:42.484-08:00A Natural Birth<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3SRDFEvrSQLWPtjoQBGEJSR3y7aRUgMZuwdAh5uc_aFKYkQRyPexnB7letRqe751GfgmrMd3pIAhTZBgonR0QfxykNmX7mFT7s1rhkC0lPgnoPYIptOMCgZkd_VsGUazcf2YP8BJnD8Qu/s1600/britney.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3SRDFEvrSQLWPtjoQBGEJSR3y7aRUgMZuwdAh5uc_aFKYkQRyPexnB7letRqe751GfgmrMd3pIAhTZBgonR0QfxykNmX7mFT7s1rhkC0lPgnoPYIptOMCgZkd_VsGUazcf2YP8BJnD8Qu/s320/britney.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Hello beautiful souls. Today i feel inclined to talk about natural ways of doing things. I wasn't always exposed to or even encouraged to live my life naturally. I grew up in your average mainstream culture where consumption was all around me so 'naturally' i joined in. It seemed all i knew but being a woman of this earth deep down i also knew that there was something else out there. Another way to live. Another way to love. Struggling in what i now refer to as my old self i was emotionally imbalanced and often very unhappy. The past year and a half of my life i have experienced more stimulating experiences that i didn't even think was imaginable and it all came from that small part of my old self that knew there was something else. In this past year and a half i have discovered and become a Doula. A Doula is a tuned in sympathetic woman who's role often is to help woman feel empowered in childbirth. I once heard a story that hundreds, even thousands, of years ago a birthing woman was considered a Goddess. Pregnancy and birth was not known to be linked to sex in extremely ancient times so when a woman began to bud in her pregnant form her tribe would think she was blessed and worship her inside the temple. In these times birth was easy and extremely well supported. Obviously not every birth would have been perfect but our ancestors understood the natural balance of things. They would have respected any death deeply and thanked the earth when she made the difficult decision to take a life away.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">This is what most of our culture lacks today...support, respect, awe and balance. Our culture rely on a patriarchal system to set out the path and orthodox medicine to fix all our health problems. I do not deny there is a place for both systems however i do believe both system <b>abuse </b>their authority. We no longer work with nature (mother nature and our human nature) and we take take take. We all know from global warming that we have taken more than we should. Not your fault, well yes your half right, a lot of what you believe comes from what you were exposed to in 'your culture' but that does not justify not transforming you ideas now. There is enough educational material just beyond your finger tips for you to reduce your carbon foot print today, begin growing food giving back to the land a proportion of what you take and become a more conscious individual. For me this is vital when bringing new lives into this world. They are the next generation. They will need to be more attuned with the earth and with themselves to fix the problems that we, and the generations before us, have created.</div><br />
It begins at the beginning. At conception. If anyone is reading this wanting proof well please email me and i will send you a list of books, essays and scientific studies that have been written on the subjects i am about to talk about. When we are conceived our cells form and as they form they collect memory which is influenced by all the chemical reactions going on in mommas body. These chemicals are called hormones. We have many hormones that make us feel a certain way. Now we can't help the way we feel....maybe not but we certainly can control the effects of a situation going on in our life. In other words it might not be easy to predict of avoid a reaction to a life circumstance but it is possible to learn how to control how much we let that particular thing effect us in the long term. This is called conscious pregnancy and is important because mommas state of mind could inevitably effect the baby within her while she is pregnant which could make up some of the baby's sub-conscience building blocks affecting that individual for the rest of their life.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbJsKyOg5khaonKsTq8VduJW3sQ-0xNXWwJP_6R-CvTomf7JFymypTluHsk17LwJ7qORQpfgAW4NBWNXns0gS1HCZeJiLcxPqshcNtN1JE8P6O4y2gxFkXT4kjNQPNzarYLh_2pF7XA7FB/s1600/baby_in_hand1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbJsKyOg5khaonKsTq8VduJW3sQ-0xNXWwJP_6R-CvTomf7JFymypTluHsk17LwJ7qORQpfgAW4NBWNXns0gS1HCZeJiLcxPqshcNtN1JE8P6O4y2gxFkXT4kjNQPNzarYLh_2pF7XA7FB/s320/baby_in_hand1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><span style="color: black;">How does this link in with the idea of natural birth vrs hospital births? Well medical births may be the norm and considered safer but do we all actually consider this from all aspects? It's no secret that orthodox medicine is more than prepared to deal with high risk pregnancies but what about normal pregnancies. New research has shown that intervention in hospitals contributes to more problems that ever thought before. A simple way of saying this is that birth happens better if it is natural and when drugs come into the equation they tend to have a negative side effect. So then a momma is given something else to counteract the side effects of the drug before it and the chain goes on. Cesarean rates have zoomed up to an alarming rate which result often in a woman feeling traumatized by her birth experience with a feeling of inadequacy which can effect all aspects of her life. Also a baby who is born drugged up is more likely to be unable to breastfeed, create that initial bond with momma and even have a more addictive personality when they grow up. Keep calm and carry on. Although information like this can be uncomfortable to hear it is also important to note our ability to heal or avoid. With work and dedication trauma can be healed and we can try our best to make birthing scenarios as positive as possible staying sensitive and cool when things do go wrong.</span><br />
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This now brings us to pain. Most women take drugs in birth because of pain. Have these women been exposed to natural pain relief methods? Is her birth room what she wants it to be? Are the people around her supporting and encouraging her? Is she being respected and pampered? Maybe yes and maybe no. What we have to note here is that labor pain exists for many reasons, amongst them; <br />
<ul style="color: black;"><li>birth is a time when a woman is at her most open to the universe and often old memories crop up which have to be acknowledged and let go of. It's sometimes extremely hard and painful to let of old issues that we have clung to for a long time.</li>
<li>labor can give parents an insight into the tolerance and patience needed for the spontaneous nature of a child.</li>
<li>we haven't been informed about levels and types of pain. Some assume all pain is the same where others believe some pain is constructive, informative and helps us grow.</li>
<li>nature knows balance. Where there is lightness there is also darkness. Pain in childbirth can represent our need to take a step back and respect the forces that be. There is a place for pain as there is a place for pleasure.</li>
<li>western women hold in their tummies. Most of us are surrounded by imagery that makes use feel we need to look slim to be beautiful therefore have held in our bellies for years. When it comes to surrendering to the power of natural birth its extremely difficult for a self conscious women to let it all hang out.</li>
<li>we aren't encouraged to be loud. Birth is primal whether we want to believe it or not. If we hold back, in any way, the energy that needs to be expressed has nowhere to go and becomes pain.</li>
<li>we have forgotten how to transform sensations. Pain can become pleasure and pleasure can become pain. Our mind plays such a vital role.</li>
<li>we don't move enough. A lot of midwives and doctors still encourage a woman to lie on their back when giving birth (which is in fact only really convenient for them). Labor is about flow of energy so moving helps.</li>
</ul>This list can go on. It's no ones fault that western culture has forgotten how to take care of our human nature but it's about time women started to get more clued up on what they can actually control. There is masses of opinions about this and masses of research to support it. Most important thing is that you ask yourself what you want and make decisions based on that <b>however</b> don't forget to question why you have that opinion in the first place. Does it come from inner wisdom or were you brought up to believe it.<br />
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<div style="color: black;">If this post gets you blood bubbling a bit then its done it's job. I feel it's important to challenge philosophies and know i also learn something valuable when mine is challenged. If this has inspired you then i encourage you to pass on information of this nature. Ignorance is no longer bliss. It's often violating and disempowering. </div><br />
'Women of earth take back your birth' <br />
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<span style="color: black;">Mother nature loves you x</span>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-84125505480633007232010-09-27T16:02:00.000-07:002011-01-23T13:19:22.166-08:00Red Tents And Bleeding Cycles<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJFyLc8qrAm8qyEp2BPUlxvN0jnUtKTPV9-1eZ_ur_yj1ozEojyHS-rDEPHFxKDKKddkHBwPEkevtljZO9bH2oPUqLHgVu9w5UgBdbL3aQU-Y9bSrQF8yE_UfDNEaSZMsitT0mi2sERsB3/s1600/redtentphoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJFyLc8qrAm8qyEp2BPUlxvN0jnUtKTPV9-1eZ_ur_yj1ozEojyHS-rDEPHFxKDKKddkHBwPEkevtljZO9bH2oPUqLHgVu9w5UgBdbL3aQU-Y9bSrQF8yE_UfDNEaSZMsitT0mi2sERsB3/s320/redtentphoto.jpg" width="240" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This month, during my moontime, i lavished in the wonders of my red tent. The night before i was due to menstruate i got an instinctual impulse to create it in my bedroom. Obsessively i grabbed material, candles, plants, books, cushions and sacred things special to me. I arranged them into a den like structure which took up about 1/6 of my room (luckily i have a big room). My reason for making such an effort is that for some time now i have been really interested in making the time of menstruation something significant. There are many reasons why women can benefit from a space like this. Some, myself included, believe that certain parts of the menstrual cycle have certain purposes (not just preparing us for potential pregnancy). </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: left;">Now i could talk for ages about what happens to our body, mind and spirit during our cycles but i think i will give a brief description and save the details for a later post. From my study i have learned that the day our menses start (first day of bleeding) is the first day of our cycle. I remember being confused about this for years and thinking the first day came at the end of the bleed. Knowing the bleed is the beginning gives it even more meaning in my opinion. It allows us to connect to the ideas that at the beginning of a journey (when we expect past things to be sorted, finished and behind us) there are still things we need to let go of and work through. The menses allow us the physically and emotionally release that of what we wish to leave behind. I feel that when i have been holding on to something the menses allows me to process it by letting go of my connection to it. I also feel that the feeling of exhaustion we can get around this time is our body doing just that (whether we acknowledge it or not), as our body cleanses we feel our energy concentrate and increase in intensity. Ill say more about what can in the menses in a moment. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Lets talk about the rest of the month...instantly following the menses is the follicular phase. This phase is when we are most open to acting on ideas and tend to be more sociable. Our attention is on the world and not so much on ourselves, more about making stuff happen. This phase can differ in how long it lasts...in your average 28 day cycle the follicular phase will last for around 14 days. This i a time we have energy and patience with others and have more urges to create or prepare the ground for our most creative phase. Ovulation in biological and spiritual terms is when we are most open to creation. We have a short window of opportunity while we release an egg to become pregnant and we also are usually on such top form to make incredible things happen around this time even if we don't create life. Some woman can tell they are ovulating by observing their vaginal fluid, feeling a dull pain where their ovaries would be or spotting (bleeding a small amount). Moving on from ovulation we enter into the luteal phase or premenstrual phase....I sense you wince. We all know this phase from a negative point of view but do many of us consider the positive of this phase. Probably not but thats understandable as many of you wont have ever been told what good things happen in this phase....let me share a few. As we enter into the luteal phase our attention shifts from the world outside to the world inside ourselves. We become more reflective upon what was created and what new seeds were planted in the follicular phase and we begin to think about the things that are important to us. We become deeply intuitive and in tune with our inner workings wants and desires. That's a crucial part of being and allows us to plan new paths we may need to take or old paths we need to heal. If we push ourselves to ignore this phase (as society often wants us to) it comes back around and bites us in the ass. That's PMS ladies! Clever body. Seriously, your body knows what it needs and will create symptoms in order to get it. It's all for the sake of happiness and fulfillment. My advice...please please please pay attention to what your emotions tell you here. You might cry and moan more but keep record of what comes up. Start with a note pad and write desires, frustrations, thoughts (often). Talk to sypathetic female friends and be GOOD to your body through massage, saunas whatever makes you feel lovely. Bye bye PMS. Lets just note that bad diet and other illnesses can also cause PMS. Isn't is horrible that our society will accept PMS as an illness but NOT give us time, support and space to prevent it. The things that come up in this stage can be acted upon in the follicular.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;">Anyway now we are back at menstruation. So why a red tent or moon lodge? Well there are so many benefits to honoring a part of ourselves. In ancient times women would gather on their moontimes (new moon) and menstruate together. They would eat lovely food, massage each other, talk and sympathise with each other and most importantly rest and release their blood with ease. As we are exposed to artificial light and artificial hormones now our cycles tend to be out of sync with each other and the moon and we often menstruate alone. That doesn't mean we can't still make our own sacred space. That's what i did. It's comfy safe, red and dark. It allows me to recharge and ground myself. I do art, i read, i listen to good music, play music, meditate, watch inspiring things and do small rituals. I don't intend to sit in it for four days straight every month but i will have to there to retreat to when i need its sanctuary. I live with my partner in a community house so it can be a little tricky getting privacy sometimes but my man is very respectful and is quiet and gentle around my moontime. I find that if i respect myself around this time i get so much more respect from him. There is strength in purpose. Try do something similar.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This post was long overdue so my apologies....i have been in my follicular phase and been a busy bee. Yesterday and today i felt ovulation so i'm feeling pretty good at the moment. Expect more posts in the upcoming weeks as i enter my luteal and feel like sharing more. I hope this helps you lovely women connect and respect your cycles more, beleive me your body will love it and you will see the difference.</div><br />
<span style="color: black;">Warm sounds and swooshing bleeds</span>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-8283706467938782482010-09-11T08:13:00.000-07:002011-01-23T13:19:08.887-08:00Home High Immune Boosters<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr style="color: black;"><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">keeping the balance</td></tr>
</tbody></table> In my last post i mentioned the <b>immune system</b> and that there was a way to boost it through our diet. It's very easy. So why should we boost our immune system? The reason we should aim for higher immunity is because it's our immune system that helps us fight off bad bacteria. If our immune system doesn't have enough little fighters to get rid of the bad bacteria the the bad stuff multiplies and we get sick. Not eating the <b>right things, stress, the cold, alcohol </b>and <b>sugar</b> amongst other things all suppress our immune system. We can also be born with a low immune system but that doesn't mean we can't boost it and make it stronger. My reason for writing this post today is that i have a scratchy throat and for me that means i got some bad bacteria attempting to take control. There are a few things that you might already have in your house will help you do some boosting. I'm doing these today so lets explore some of them...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">keeps the vampires away</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">GARLIC. Raw garlic especially stimulates your white blood cells (the little fighters) and increases the efficiency of your antibodies. I find that garlic is beneficial before i get sick or whilst im sick to help me get well quicker. Here is a garlic recipe i usually use: Homemade Hot Garlic Bread...i get two slices of bread and lightly toast them. I get two cloves of garlic, grate, and mix with a little butter. When the toast is done i spread <b>all</b> the garlicy mixture on the toast and eat. It blows your mouth away a little and the next day there are some garlicy breathe issues but the effect you will feel on your body is worth it. Eating garlic cooked in meals still releases some goodness so don't be put off thinking you only have to eat it raw.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ginger tea</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"> GINGER. Again the rawer the better. Now this is yummy and spicy. Ginger is known for so many good things. If you know anyone who is into herbs you can soon find out the range of benefits it has. Here are a few technically bits; ginger is an antimicrobial which means it kills bad bacteria. It contains two natural antibiotics and it also has loads many vitamins. Recently i went to a health food stand was offered a ginger shot. The guy juiced a raw piece of ginger (a piece the size of 2/3 of my thumb) and poured into a little shot glass. I shot it in two and my insides nearly exploded. The after feeling was so uplifting though i would happily do it again. A more subtle way to have ginger is to cut, a piece the size of two cubes of chocolate on top of each other, into smaller pieces and drinking it in hot water preferably with lemon which helps cleanse the bad bacteria out of the body. If you like baking then put ginger in a cake or cookies and if you like cooking soup ginger is a great addition to a blended mixed veg soup.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikIZMxX9b5_8xlfDflrQOYGCf7hbwYQ96t7xnqdlUktL-5tqgOdtpyR400JoYUgJMuHkm8EW4G9aOSMbyUl9WFPLXSWQWERo7Q5hUz74fTE6Xv-XC99M6OPut-MVNvTRb3Q802BJvP3rwy/s1600/vitaminc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikIZMxX9b5_8xlfDflrQOYGCf7hbwYQ96t7xnqdlUktL-5tqgOdtpyR400JoYUgJMuHkm8EW4G9aOSMbyUl9WFPLXSWQWERo7Q5hUz74fTE6Xv-XC99M6OPut-MVNvTRb3Q802BJvP3rwy/s200/vitaminc.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">orange yumminess</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="color: black; text-align: left;">VITAMIN C. Yep what your grandmother told you was right. But this is a bit of a more extreme version. It would be very hard to eat oranges in the quantity we need them when we are sick so i take a supplement instead. The is in fact the only supplement i take and i only usually do when ive been in the rain and got chilly or when my throat is scratchy. The daily recommended does is said to be 60mg but we think that when your sick its better to up the dose. So the tablets we take are 1000mg and we take one a day. Boy do they work like a charm. Fingers crossed im not too far gone for them to kick away illness this time. Vitamin C helps form new healthy tissue and as another beautiful antioxidant.</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div style="color: white; text-align: left;">All the above usually does the trick for me but only if i keep the rest of my lifestyle healthy as well. That means eating only fresh food, sleeping enough, not stressing my body out, allowing myself to detox and cleanse (sauna, hot bath, shower) and of course not consuming immune suppressors. Before i sign off and wish you happy healthiness there is one more major thing that helps you heal and boost your immune system....PLEASURE!</div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJXhoUxFmK3x85Sb00PE3oI0l4kTDIwhAEld7TtzCBl23KuyM3IfW5bvCNbTuzyGE8Z-pUB-I3QFmNa2-E22tBnCA4E8kg6UaY_bH1COYLLWMO0RG-ZVqztf0tg8-q4l_Reg1z_pob2N9P/s1600/Yoni+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJXhoUxFmK3x85Sb00PE3oI0l4kTDIwhAEld7TtzCBl23KuyM3IfW5bvCNbTuzyGE8Z-pUB-I3QFmNa2-E22tBnCA4E8kg6UaY_bH1COYLLWMO0RG-ZVqztf0tg8-q4l_Reg1z_pob2N9P/s200/Yoni+02.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">pleasured yoni</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="color: black; text-align: right;">PLEASURE can be gained through massage, being warm, eating, drinking warm tea, being stroked, creative practices, relaxation and not to forget sexual play/orgasm. Note you can probably think of more that are personal to you. Through doing these things we release oxytocin (my favorite hormone). Its the love, pleasure, bonding and healing hormone. As a Doula i come across the benefits of oxytocin all the time. Don't deny yourself these pleasures that will ultimately make you a happier, less stressed, healthier and more round human being.</div><div style="color: black; text-align: right;">Ill say more on oxytocin in a post soon.</div><div style="color: black; text-align: right;"><br />
</div><div style="color: black; text-align: right;">Warm tingly lushes pleasurable feelings.</div><div style="color: black; text-align: right;"></div><div style="color: black; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-60400225376677268762010-09-09T09:22:00.000-07:002011-01-23T13:18:53.799-08:00The Way We See<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAmitF0DBcfSwW1dNYXi7GeUGMj-g_x1ISb8U_vcL7FEe29PLAerzTJSgoAXjfyoDP1_Hl5zKjesn-L2MHD4RxJhNKCk0arppLb80VpG-gpspe1F8DGGXpYIAGRld0rGnlwPy_7vu9UleA/s1600/HarmonyPosters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAmitF0DBcfSwW1dNYXi7GeUGMj-g_x1ISb8U_vcL7FEe29PLAerzTJSgoAXjfyoDP1_Hl5zKjesn-L2MHD4RxJhNKCk0arppLb80VpG-gpspe1F8DGGXpYIAGRld0rGnlwPy_7vu9UleA/s400/HarmonyPosters.jpg" width="318" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div> Just walking into the kitchen i heard a snippet of a radio discussion talking about how we view ourselves and the world. The discussion was about not being able to change the fact of some but being able to change the way we perceive it. Interesting. This is something i have pondered about for a few years now. Ive not always able to put it into practice though. So lets observe a simple example....say we are really looking forward to an event (think of something important to you). Something we have been anticipating and been excited about for a long time. Then night before we come down with flu like symptoms. We're stuck! Flu can be so weakening that it requires you to stay in bed for at least a few days until most the badness is gone. What do you say to this situation? Do you moan? Do you get angry at yourself? Do you feel like this always happens to you? The facts are there...you can't go to your event and your so sick you can barely walk around. Pretty rotten! Well yes if you look at i from that perspective. There are, shockingly, other perspectives we might not take into account here. Perspectives that might have benefit to us in the long run. Here's just a few...<br />
<br />
<ul style="color: black;"><li>it could mean you have a low immune system and this is your body telling you to pay more attention to your diet. Note: garlic and ginger are great immune boosters.</li>
<li>it could mean you have pushed yourself too hard lately and a high stress level has suppressed part of your immune system causing you to not be able to fight off all those bad bacteria. Your body is telling you screw the event and take some time to relax.</li>
<li>it could mean your energy zones (chakras etc) are off balance. Yet again your body is being clever and telling you to pay some attention to a different part of yourself. And possible change your lifestyle.</li>
<li>it could mean that the way you perceive the events in your life isn't the healthiest way and thinking this particular event is something you 'had' to go to could possibly indicate your priorities need to be observered.</li>
</ul>The way of thought i am talking about here does not indicate we are doing something wrong but possibly that there is a different more beneficial way of doing things. Isn't that our aim anyway with all other aspect of our life? My reason for raising this is a reminder to take a step back and not get so rapped up in the way we are and instead to observe ourselves and our bodies as intelligent with the ability to signal when things aren't quite going so well. Next time we feel like things aren't going well ask yourself two questions.<br />
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<ol style="color: black;"><li>What is it that i need to pay attention to here?</li>
<li>What active things can i do to put this need for change into action?</li>
</ol><br />
As humans we can get preoccupied with demands of our society and news has it...western society isn't very well at preventing illness or maintain a state of health for that matter. I like the idea of a culture that takes responsibility of themselves more. Have a greater passion for well-being, harmony and health. These are my thoughts.<br />
<span style="color: black;">Warm thoughts and balancing energy.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"> </span>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-6603314023554888332010-09-08T06:01:00.000-07:002011-01-23T13:18:34.669-08:00The Wolf Women<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtjkrfoo2vOTr-kgh98gVtd03ZyQ26_gRTscLYKuhc-TVunFjhyO_GvgsayYzPXfxo4E3zLhn66av_8-IG2_Z2PXLdgzuuY-rCeK9YdnzmXzDGK1VnAvtuy46gE6LG7B48p8NkZeAxAyuR/s1600/women-who-run-with-the-wolves_-contacting-the-power-of-the-wild-woman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtjkrfoo2vOTr-kgh98gVtd03ZyQ26_gRTscLYKuhc-TVunFjhyO_GvgsayYzPXfxo4E3zLhn66av_8-IG2_Z2PXLdgzuuY-rCeK9YdnzmXzDGK1VnAvtuy46gE6LG7B48p8NkZeAxAyuR/s320/women-who-run-with-the-wolves_-contacting-the-power-of-the-wild-woman.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;">La Loba</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;">Good morning lovelies</span>. Today i would like to talk a little about the wolf woman within us. After reading <a href="http://www.radiancemagazine.com/issues/1994/wolves.html">Women Who Run With The Wolves</a> i was hooked on the idea that we all have a wolf woman inside of us purring and waiting in our subconscious ready for us to call upon her. Instead of giving you a detailed description of the book i am going to talk about what the book meant for me as i believe any woman who reads this book will hold a special place for her own individual wolf woman. </span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">My wolf woman is silent and beautiful, she is half woman half wolf. She has ancient knowledge and wisdom. The only way i can currently access her is if i sit and close my eyes in a meditative state and start to work through my power points. There will be many versions of power energy sources and mine have Taoism influence. There are three sometimes called Tan Tiens. Firstly above/in my head is a tree, which changes in image from blooming and barren. My tree connects me to knowledge, spirituality and the universe. Secondly are my two butterflies, which i can only feel in essence and never seem to be able to imagine what they look like in my minds eye. My butterflies represent my ability to heal myself and others, they hover and play around my heart. In my center (area where my stomach is) is my wolf woman, she is my action zone and she is extremely strong and wise. With great speed and agility. Sometimes my wolf comes out when i don't expect her to. When i'm anxious or fearful she nuzzles me to gently convince me she will keep me safe. When i'm bathing in hot water and my heart is booming out of my chest i seem to be able to feel her lavishing in the steam with me. I believe every women has a wolf woman inside of her whether she calls it a wolf or not. It can be your strength, your knowledge, your confidence, your inner wisdom, your love. Some time soon i would like you to sit with a warm drink and a straight back in a quiet place. Close your eyes and let the identity of your inner wolf come to you. Be aware she could take any form. Hold the images in mind and let them do whatever they like. Follow you own curiosity and imagination. She will guide, you can observe and sip tea. Getting in touch with your wolf woman can help you access a primal part of yourself. This is a great way to help you feel more connected to your strengths and help you see a bigger picture. So often we can get caught up in our daily lives and it can actually be a relief to kick back and absorb into deeper parts of ourselves. Have fun with your wolf woman and please share with me your experiences. </span><span style="color: black;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;">Have a lovely day.</span></div>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-62166003299095021482010-09-07T11:02:00.000-07:002011-01-23T13:18:19.736-08:00Chocolate Monkey<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbdlL82i8iNnwbizcSyyfH7eQE7Pqn4PTt2aupxtvVeQ1F_ufj41K34EEqbQGXFgadYI4b-v14yrWmfIAG7HWVWHyRjFXYGJCdtjKHEOwPPehkqNxq-uQNcH4inOCCLSyRExr3O-6KCFgP/s1600/choc+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbdlL82i8iNnwbizcSyyfH7eQE7Pqn4PTt2aupxtvVeQ1F_ufj41K34EEqbQGXFgadYI4b-v14yrWmfIAG7HWVWHyRjFXYGJCdtjKHEOwPPehkqNxq-uQNcH4inOCCLSyRExr3O-6KCFgP/s320/choc+2.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">Today i called my partner a chocolate monkey and that's what has inspired today's post. Chocolate is known for its delicious taste and feel good loveliness so i'd like to take a moment to talk about chocolates qualities. The goodness is really in the Cacao (pronounced co-cow), most of you will know a modified version called cocoa or coco (short for chocolate) which usually has a proportion of the cacoa bean and other things mixed in to make it less bitter. Cacao beans look a little like a coffee bean and when ground become cocoa powder (notice the slight name change there).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEUZTPZgnts8Jei0QN4FdjXwwEdRFsOSotCQSfHSEdFIP9Z2_FgUIISeJJlI08pLBaC4O9vLTujOJVqI2Dc93Js1ajc4uvXjhdJAQQkwsPPVLU73_kod_7LnpWDBzbmMB3DICVdywDKTUa/s1600/cocoabean.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEUZTPZgnts8Jei0QN4FdjXwwEdRFsOSotCQSfHSEdFIP9Z2_FgUIISeJJlI08pLBaC4O9vLTujOJVqI2Dc93Js1ajc4uvXjhdJAQQkwsPPVLU73_kod_7LnpWDBzbmMB3DICVdywDKTUa/s320/cocoabean.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">So what makes cacao so good? Well let me share with you some delicious details. Cacao is partly made up of flavonoids which act as an antioxidant (there are many different types of </span><span style="font-size: small;">antioxidants)</span><span style="font-size: small;">. Antioxidants counteract damaged cells which can lead to diseases like cancer and heart disease. Another amazing quality is that cacao also affects your mood; it contains phenylethylamines which sort of arouse you happy hormones and put you in a brilliant state of bliss. Talking of arousing, cacao also can stimulate your sex hormones. Don't you just love the gifts that nature gives us. The darker the chocolate the more of these amazing things it contains. In fact those of you who are brave enough to eat 100% cocoa (powder) or cacao (bean/nibs) will be in happy land for a pleasant amount of time. Do beware of commercial chocolate though, which can have a minimal amount of cacao/cocoa in it and instead is loaded full of sugar or other additives (which definitely aren't good for you). If your wondering about the effect of refined sugar i will post something about that soon. If your near Edinburgh Scotland don't forget to pay a wee visit to our local chocolateers The Chocolate Tree...Peace and happy feelings.</span><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHwSvZafpgodjLBY1m9gbmrkHd5eGfD6tc1_H5hjck00yowHWJtk8N-mfw8cciEe1tjDjKl-F7v54T5kreAVs0oj1YSH614GTM3AFtpU_iezAKH_E5d-CH411W2fpj47V5SJEHQ1Ma_ndl/s320/may_2009_1802423a.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;"><a href="http://www.the-chocolate-tree.co.uk/">Chocolate Tree Website</a></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-size: small;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbdlL82i8iNnwbizcSyyfH7eQE7Pqn4PTt2aupxtvVeQ1F_ufj41K34EEqbQGXFgadYI4b-v14yrWmfIAG7HWVWHyRjFXYGJCdtjKHEOwPPehkqNxq-uQNcH4inOCCLSyRExr3O-6KCFgP/s1600/choc+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbdlL82i8iNnwbizcSyyfH7eQE7Pqn4PTt2aupxtvVeQ1F_ufj41K34EEqbQGXFgadYI4b-v14yrWmfIAG7HWVWHyRjFXYGJCdtjKHEOwPPehkqNxq-uQNcH4inOCCLSyRExr3O-6KCFgP/s1600/choc+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbdlL82i8iNnwbizcSyyfH7eQE7Pqn4PTt2aupxtvVeQ1F_ufj41K34EEqbQGXFgadYI4b-v14yrWmfIAG7HWVWHyRjFXYGJCdtjKHEOwPPehkqNxq-uQNcH4inOCCLSyRExr3O-6KCFgP/s1600/choc+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbdlL82i8iNnwbizcSyyfH7eQE7Pqn4PTt2aupxtvVeQ1F_ufj41K34EEqbQGXFgadYI4b-v14yrWmfIAG7HWVWHyRjFXYGJCdtjKHEOwPPehkqNxq-uQNcH4inOCCLSyRExr3O-6KCFgP/s1600/choc+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbdlL82i8iNnwbizcSyyfH7eQE7Pqn4PTt2aupxtvVeQ1F_ufj41K34EEqbQGXFgadYI4b-v14yrWmfIAG7HWVWHyRjFXYGJCdtjKHEOwPPehkqNxq-uQNcH4inOCCLSyRExr3O-6KCFgP/s1600/choc+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8169740033844788805.post-74793710823067244272010-09-06T14:40:00.000-07:002011-01-23T13:18:00.662-08:00Moon Note<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpOsNuz1Bu8p-XXF1zqqYXb1squabAVrfN_LNklRSxnuV9z4z97X1QYlCZxJ4j-wKiqE6brw7GWJ2oTNWlCjHYasD9nJy4iLS2MDuaMDXRfga_Bk05liKhi-CVAofG6YJ6ERujd_oRpuOy/s320/illMoonTime.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="240" /></td></tr>
<tr style="color: black;"><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Artwork by Elizabeth Halfacre</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-size: small;">Welcome! Hello beautiful souls. So here I am creating my first blog. Today I would like to dedicate a post to the moon. Those of you who get to know me will soon see that i have a very strong relationship to grandmother moon. While I track her I dwell in her powerful round belly when she is full and surrender to her dark honest guidance when she wanes to dark moon. That's today. Happy new moon! In ancient times tribal women would retire to their red tents to menstruate and release at this time. This was the time of the moon that they could let go of all emotional negative energy they had been holding onto. Nice poetry. Even though, like many others, my moontime (menstruation) does not correspond so precisely to the moon i will use this universal energy to my advantage and let go of something myself. I find the easiest way to do this through ritual and tonight the act of burning seems significant. </span><br />
<div style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;">Blessings to all.</span></div>Aiyana Womanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05307882138280870587noreply@blogger.com