27/08/2025
I’ve had to make the difficult decision to leave the menstrual coaching course I was enrolled in. A course that marketed itself as “decolonised,” inclusive, and rooted in integrity. But in reality, it failed to live up to those promises in ways that felt harmful, extractive, and deeply disappointing.
Throughout the course, I witnessed the use of cultural elements (like a Sanskrit word used as branding) without appropriate context, consent, or relationship to the cultures they were taken from. When I raised these concerns, I wasn’t met with openness or accountability.
The course claimed to be inclusive and queer-affirming. Yet trans experiences were barely acknowledged, and when asked about this, the facilitator responded by saying they were “not trans” and “not an expert.” Fine. But if that’s the case, don’t brand your course as inclusive. Q***r and trans people deserve more than rainbow flags and vague promises. We deserve actual inclusion.
What’s most painful is that this course claimed to support people from marginalised communities. It offered scholarships and spoke the language of liberation. But when it came time to embody those values in action, they chose profit and self-protection.
This experience is a reminder that decolonisation isn’t a branding tool. It's not something you sprinkle over your marketing to seem progressive. It’s a deep, uncomfortable, ongoing commitment to dismantling harmful systems, including your own complicity.
I’ve actually learned far more through reading books, making space for lived experiences, and practicing small but meaningful shifts in how I show up in the world.
Im now in the process of trying to get my money back, costing me a lot of emotional labour, trying to see this opportunity to advocate for myself. It is an Australian school, so if anyone has any skills in terms of law, please reach out if you think you can help. I would appreciate it.
I continue to learn through these frustrating moments and my love for this work is expanding, this journey is intertwined with all that is. Seeing the state of the world pushes me to go deeper, to walk towards the scary shadows.
Thank you all for being here 🤍