Here's another part of our site which we are working on.
We are planning to use this area to look more widely at
women's lives and life cycles. While the rest of the site
focuses mainly around pregnancy, birth and parenting,
we are also interested in other aspects of women's life cycles,
such as the menstrual cycle and the menopause.
For many years, women's bodies have been seen as
inferior to men's, which are considered the 'normal'
human form. Women's cycles, especially the menstrual cycle,
are considered to be a tedious burden. Every day we are
showered with advertisements for products which will help us
to "clean up" our vaginas and sanitary goods which will help us hide
our periods from other people. We are taught that our cycles are
a "curse". This has not always been the case. Historically (and in
some present-day societies), menstruating women are known to be
especially powerful and intuitive. They may be separated from
others around them, not because they are unclean (as is portrayed
in some religious texts), but because they are so magical at this time.
In the same way, a menopausal woman in modern Western
society may be seen as "past her prime". In many other societies
and groups menopausal women are seen as the wisest of all people;
those who are given roles such as counsellor and judge.
Their wisdom, experience and knowledge is respected
and revered. These are among the issues covered in our natural menopause workshop.