01/07/2024
THIS!
Women’s bodies have been over-medicalized, over-treated, and discounted for far too long. We’ve been taught to ignore our symptoms, to ignore our intuition, and to listen to doctors over our own knowing. And too often are told there’s nothing that can be done so just ‘take the Pill,” “have that hysterectomy,” or “ it’s time for a cesarean because labor is stalled,” etc.
While I’m so grateful to be a physician and bring that whole world of science and medicine to my patients and to you, as a physician I also want to let you in on a secret too many women have forgotten: there is an innate intelligence within our bodies. She is your inner wise woman, your inner healer. And we need to remember her in order to claim more sovereignty over our health, and peace with our bodies.
It is a recovery of women’s wisdom about healing - and our power to question, trust ourselves, and tap into a wider range of options than most doctors are taught in medical training.
I’ve seen so many times how cultivating this mindset can unleash a powerful internal force that activates the body’s healing responses. One study showed, for example, that in women with endometriosis, the act of simply becoming more empowered about their bodies led to mild to moderate symptom reduction - and even if just mild - most women I know with endo would happily take that win!
As we repair our bodies, we have an opportunity to repair aspects of our inner landscape as women toward reclaiming body literacy and body confidence.
It may at times require being a warrior for your own health—a bit defiant and non-conformist, being willing to break taboos and question the gospel that conventional medicine is the only reliable, effective, or even the safest first option, and having a fierce belief in the power of your own body.
I welcome you to break the spell of seeing doctors as gods having greater power over or wisdom about your body than you do, and I welcome you back to your own inner healer. Believing in her and your own ability to heal is the very first and most important step to empowered health ❤️
xx, Dr. A.
