How I stopped worrying and became a dancer Part 2: DANCING FOR BIRTH™

PART 2: DANCING FOR BIRTH™ AND
UTERINE RECONNECTION DANCE

HOW   PREGNANCY   CHANGED   ME   AND   HELPED   ME   DISCOVER   MY   CALLING

When I was a teenager, I took pride in considering myself a very reasonable and scientific person. I was quick to dismiss anything that couldn't be proved by science and I felt deeply annoyed by superstitions of any kind.

As I grew older and I started traveling and meeting many different people with different perspectives, I started to open my mind to recognize that there was a lot of value to intuition and other things that couldn't be measured or scientifically proven.
 
During my pregnancy I was deeply connected to an unexplainable way of knowing. I kept on meeting all the right people at the right times. Some shared their stories and recommended the inspiring readings that helped shape a new vision for my future: I needed to become a birth worker.
 
The birth of my son was definitely the most powerful spiritual experience I have ever gone through. I swayed and sang my way through each contraction and discovered a huge power in childbirth that profoundly impacted me. It was tremendously inspiring.

a   new   perspective   about   the uterus   and   pleasure

After the birth of my son I went back to Mexico, where I became a doula and met Mina To-Tai, a talented tattoo artist and owner of Nieblas de Avalon. She became a good friend and introduced me to the concepts of Women’s Circles and Uterine Reconnection Dancing.

Mina To-Tai leading a workshop for women.

Women practicing Uterine Reconnection Dance during the workshop.

When Mina taught us after a women's circle how to draw an infinity sign with our hips while we visualized our uterus to relieve menstrual cramps and improve uterine health, I kept thinking to myself: “I bet this would feel really good during labor!”
 
Mina’s teachings about the uterus brought to my mind things I had learned during my pregnancy and like pieces of a puzzle, I started putting together a more clear image of why movement during labor often made the pain of contractions more manageable and in some cases, completely go away.
 
I thought of “Birth as We Know It,” a movie I watched often during my pregnancy.

And I also thought about a little book called ‘Pariremos con Placer’ (We Will Give Birth in Pleasure) by Casilda Rodrigañez.  You can legally download it for free, but it's in Spanish and I haven't been able to find any English translations so far.
 
In this text, Rodrigañez goes into great detail about the physiology of the uterus and its key role in female sexuality. She quotes doctors, historians and antropologist to illustrate a very believable explanation for orgasmic birth.
 
Check this out. ​

Image from 'Human Sexual Response' by Virginia Johnson and William Masters.

Image from Childbirth Without Fear, by G.D. Read.

“In 1966 William Masters and Virginia Johnson published their ‘Human Sexual Response’ in which they captured the uterine movement that happens during female orgasms. The authors drew the diagram (see image) and registered the sequence of each movement with intrauterine electrodes. What they found was a succession of contractions-expansions, a rhythmic beating, which is what the uterus has to go through during childbirth. “

“Modern belly dance is a vestige of the sexual self-erotic dances practiced by women in ancient times. The universality of these feminine pelvic dance make us conclude that they weren’t merely a cultural expression of one specific region, but the expression of a common and open sexuality, before the imposture of the sexual taboo and the patriarchal civilization. Girls back then grew up spontaneously moving their pelvis without inhibition or censorship, and were encouraged by their mothers, sisters and other women around them to search pleasure through dance."

- Casilda Rodrigañez, Pariremos con Placer
Translation from Spanish by Marissa Bolaños

Rodrigañez also explained menstrual cramps as the reaction of a stiff uterus to the contractions needed for the cervix to open during menstruation.

LEARNING   TO   MOVE   THE   UTERUS

The basic idea that both Rodrigañez and Mina share about the uterus, is that you can and should exercise it. Like any other muscle, it gets cramped when it's not being used.

Think about how when you sit on your leg and it gets cramped and any movement you make feels painful until your start moving your leg and getting the blood flow going again.

In my ebook, 5 Uncommon Tips for  Fearless Birth, I mentioned how activities like hula-hooping and belly dancing can help you reconnect with your uterus. 

You can learn to feel and move your uterus, and Rodrigañez believed that in addition to privacy and fearlessness, that movement was the key to a painless and even orgasmic birth.

DANCING   FOR   BIRTH™,   ACTIVATING   BIRTH   INSTINCTS

​A year after learning about Uterine Reconnection Dance, I found out about Stephanie Larson’s Dancing For Birth™ classes and training, and immediately felt called to it.

I was initially attracted to the idea of teaching women the importance and benefits of movement through pregnancy and childbirth, but after my weekend training I discovered Dancing For Birth™ classes encompass a whole bunch of elements that deeply resonate with my passions as a birth worker.
 
As a doula and Women’s Circles facilitator, I love the opening circles, the birth wisdom, the confidence boost and the community-building element.

The playfulness and celebratory joy of Dancing For Birth™ classes seems to be the best kind of environment to bond with your baby and with other moms. 

Photo by Kayleigh Stefanko.

JOIN   US   FOR   CLASS!

If you feel like you have two left feet, believe me, I understand you. You can read Part 1 of this blog post to learn about how hula-hooping through postpartum helped me break my inhibitions.

The first rule of Dancing For Birth™ classes is:

Say it with us and believe it: "I'm a dancer!"
Ditch the self-judgment and dance for pure bliss!

So come join us!

Use this link to find a class near you.

If you live in Olympia, WA or surrounding areas and you would like to discover the benefits of Dancing For Birth™ classes, click here to download a coupon to try your first class for free.

Classes are every Saturday from 9am to 10am at Motion In Balance Dance Studio in Downtown Olympia.

$12 drop-in or $60 for a 6 week class series.

Come dance, laugh, celebrate, bond with your baby and meet new people!