Hands-On Care
FAQs
How is this work different from pelvic floor therapy?
The short of it is – it’s so much bigger. And it asks for so much more space.
Bigger, our sessions are 2-hours long. This allows not only more time for hands-on tending, but more time to hear how your body speaks. To engage with one part of your body, and see what comes up. To see her as a living participant in our work – not something we are trying to tinker with, manipulate, or control. As a beloved friend has said, ‘[in this work], your soul gets to have the microphone,’ and here, your womb is one expression of your soul.
So much more space, in that this work will ask you to get curious about the whole of your life. To see your body and pelvis as a mirror and a reflection of certain dynamics, not in a way that ‘you did something wrong’ and so now you have [this presentation or symptom], no. Rather, something that your body is bringing to the surface for you to be with and work with. To move through in service of your continued evolution and thriving.
What modalities do you use and what is Holistic Pelvic Care™?
I blend together 10 years as an occupational therapist in the women’s health space, as well as the curriculum my own body has offered me as woman. These include womb-centered teachings; engaging with sensation, the nervous system & the fascial system; aspects of ceremony & the elements; and Holistic Pelvic Care™. You can see specific coursework taken here.
Holistic Pelvic Care™ is a framework created by Tami Lynn Kent that addresses the pelvis as a whole, a bridge between our physical, emotional and spiritual worlds. Together, we address where you may hold restriction, story, experience, or emotion in your tissue – as well as the ways your body is expressing herself through symptoms or ‘imbalances.’ The three tenets of Holistic Pelvic Care™ are touch, attention, and breath.
Clients have shared it feels like ‘soul therapy,’ ‘yoga for my pelvis,’ ‘an extended meditation,’ and like a level of care that ‘no one else has ever shown that part of my body, [not me, not my partner].’
What conditions do you work with?
Women often come to me with a physical expression. This could be stress incontinence, pelvic or breast pain, low libido, prolapse, constipation, scar work, feelings of overwhelm, stress or anxiety, or general postpartum care. But beyond this, women come with a desire for something deeper. Different. To be fully seen in an experience in a way that they never received the space to. To move through big transition. To set something down. They come because somewhere they saw a glimmer that it could be fuller, richer, better. They come with intention. To reclaim a piece of themselves.
What does a typical session look like?
Before our first session, I’ll send over an intake form for you to clarify your intention as well as to identify the pieces in your body/story that have brought you here. In our first session, we take ~30 minutes to presence into these and to review any supportive educational components around your female anatomy or physiology. The remaining time is spent on manual care, and may include work around your skull, jaw, breasts, belly, pelvis, feet and womb. Follow-up sessions are similar though may take less time for verbal conversation, depending on what is feeling alive in your body and spirit.
Will you be performing internal work?
I perform internal work typically after ~4-6 sessions if we jointly feel that your body is ready for it; sometimes sooner if a woman has an established self-massage practice, or has received this type of care before. It feels important to not bulldoze into internal care, again not something we are doing to your body, but rather allowing her the space and time to open and receive it.
How many sessions do you recommend?
This work is cumulative and its own spiral. You will see it ripple across all areas of your life. That being said, meeting together 2x/month for 3 months can be a powerful way to make visible shifts. For women investing in a less consistent pop-up offering, my intention is to offer you practices that you can continue with on your own.
What happens between sessions?
I see each session as a mini-ceremony between the overarching ceremony of our time together. You will be offered 1-2 practices to complete between sessions, as well as on-going email support should you choose additional holding. The sessions act as their own upward spiral. You feed your body care; you allow her to respond. You see what comes up; you respond in turn. Said another way, the sessions create a structure or a container; through this, we allow the process [see: magic; physical or emotional expressions, release or changes; knowing, truth] to flow through — trusting the process that is happening between you and your body.
Do you accept insurance?
I do not accept insurance to offer us maximum time, space and creativity in working with your body and all that she holds.
How do I know if this work is for me?
Let this be one of the first conversations between you and your womb. Settle back. Imagine that you are turning your attention inward. Imagine that this is not an answer you have to go searching for, but one that will come to you when allowed space and time. Place a hand on your heart [or anywhere else that feels intuitive to you] and notice. What brings you to this page? How do my words feel in your body? Perhaps turn towards your body directly and offer the question, ‘what is it that you need from me?’ or ‘where do you want to go together next?’
Additional questions? Reach out to me at erica@theartofwoman.co.
