Ritualizing Rest

*meditation begins promptly*

Welcome to this guided Yoga Nidra, the companion meditation to episodes 18 & 19 regarding Maternal Mental Health in this Western society.

Experience this ancient practice known as Yoga Nidra, listen as often as you like (I encourage four sessions each week, but even once a week is highly profound & restorative).

BE SMART! Do not listen while driving, or while operating heavy machinery.

Before you begin, you are ensuring that you have spoken to your doctor or other health care provider to confirm that you are healthy and able to participate in this deep sleep meditation practice.

TO PRACTICE:

• lay flat on your back, to ensure a deeper meditative state it is recommended to not prop up the head (if you must, do so)
• option to place rolled towel/blanket under the knees for additional support and to reduce low-back pain
• keep a blanket nearby or place one over your torso for warmth (body temperature drops during deep mediation)
• resist the urge to move or fidget, but make any adjustments necessary and then return to stillness promptly
• ask family members and animal companions to keep quiet and not disturb you for the entire duration of this meditation
• enjoy! and please leave a comment, feedback or a testimonial if you feel prompted >^.^<

sensitive content warning: miscarriage; maternal mental health; details of birth & labor, including birth & labor trauma; intrusive thoughts; thoughts of suicide/suicide ideation; thoughts of harming others; self-harm; hallucinations; loss

2:15 Greetings from Di

2:50 What are Perinatal Mood & Anxiety Disorders and why did the term Postpartum Depression get updated?

10:31 “If I would have known then what I know now, my birth experience would have been different” D.B.

24:06 “Why I am on the Board with Thrive Wellness Collective”; running out of medication and not wanting to “bother” the therapist over the weekend; experiencing a wrongful 72-Hour-Hold at the hospital and not being able to leave to get back to babies

27:14 Horrifying statistics re: Maternal Mortality Rates in the US; have a birth advocate, no matter what kind of birth you are planning

30:07 Postpartum Health Alliance to connect to a warm-line (real human) and get help in connecting to support groups and relevant therapists trained in PMADs. If no insurance, call anyway! Can connect with other resources available

31:02 Postpartum Support International for support specific to your needs e.g. support for BIPOC parents, support in another language, support for Queer Families, Single Mothers Groups, etc

31:44 Center for Mens Excellence, with Dr Daniel Singley in San Diego, offering support for fathers

32:02 How can I support loved ones experiencing PMADs? Just assuming that mothers are fine, focus is on baby

33:23 the power of sharing our stories

34:31 the importance of space holding and allowing the grief to be felt and recognized, however it shows up

36:12 Institute of Reproductive Grief in San Diego

39:00 the many jobs we do when being Mother; the importance of finding your Motherhood Community

43:38 Mothers and the importance of being able to express and name real life frustrations in parenting; breaking down the caricature of Mother that our Western Society has created

47:25 “how can this happen to me?” the risk factors of PMADs

49:45 Maternal Sleep Deprivation in PMADs

You can tune-in to my complimentary guided Yoga Nidra meditation for deep sleep rest and support with the sleep cycle. Weekly listening is encouraged. Practice while laying comfortably in bed, on the couch, or on a yoga mat. This restorative rest practice can have tremendous supportive benefits on the body and mind.

Meet Kristina Franziska Haas, @theAncestralHomekeeper, a mother, writer, and creator.

In addition to homeschooling her 2 children, Kristina writes a weekly Substack letter and has a relaxing YouTube channel dedicated to sharing glimpses inside of her home in Northern California where she practices slow living with her family & animals in this modern society.

Kristina is dedicated to blending the wisdom of our ancestors with modern understandings of self-nurturing & emotional health, in order to create an alternative to capitalistic patriarchy for her family.

2:50 craving snow capped mountains & autumn colors while growing up in Nor Cal; slow living - "we’re not Amish!"

5:28 the wisdom our ancestors possessed re: being seasonal and sustainable; co-living and co-working with the land and with nature; teaching my children what I should have been taught.

7:17 born with migration grief; an internal aching for ancestral land; a love for books & stories, escaping to ancestral places through reading; connecting to and/or moving to a climate that is similar to your ancestral home

11:42 the mother I thought I was going to be VS the mother I became the moment my children showed up; fewer techniques in the recipes, consolidating work in the kitchen - simplifying. Utilizing modern conveniences (like appliances!) to support us in a slower way of moving through our day.

18:00 the benefits of simplifying the way we approach food, eating, and nutrition; a history of childhood food scarcity; the unexplained struggle of showing up in the kitchen; “what am I expecting from myself, anyway?” deciding who and how we want to be in the kitchen and in the home; growing up with convenience foods and being a latch-key kid;

23:00 Kristina’s components to a delicious, healthy, easeful mealtime at home with the family

25:38 how does intentionally living slower affect the way that you show up in the world & in your community? Homeschooling in this modern society; remembering to slow down in our day, even when we are blessed with a wealth of opportunities in the homeschool community; incorporating rest into our daily routine; suddenly we’re decolonizing homeschool

30:00 entangled in patriarchal, Western ways; tuning-in to what we truly want & need; disconnecting from hyper-productivity; when capitalism wasn’t a dirty word; by educating our children in a seasonal way, we are being inherently anti-capitalist; learning to value rest

37:47 the stress of always being busy; eating in the car, catching up with the kids in the car, rushing to and from all of the things; where and how am I doing things differently? Am I being an example to my children of a different way of being, or am I just talking about it?

42:08 if we value rest, if we value slower, simpler living, we have to learn how to say NO to things we want to do, to gadgets we want

50:00 to do this work and to be relevant, I have to be authentic and realistic - because this is the reality. We live in a shitty, chaotic world. How the fuck can I have a day where I feel like I had restorative rest, and good healthy meals, so that when the next few days are busy or stressful I can be grounded and intentional?

53:00 keeping it real, and kind, with the kids; teaching by example; pause, breath, move slower; we’re allowed to feel our feelings and we are still going to do the right thing for our family

58:03 connecting with ancestors even when disconnected from living family of origin;

1:05:49 generational healing & breaking generational curses; being the cycle-breaker; preventing the boulder from running over my daughter and all of the daughters after her

1:10:27 reclaiming Homekeeper; closing words from Kristina Franziska

In this yoga nidra meditation, you will be guided through a "Polarity Stretch" practice, where your body will move & stretch gently while laying down, as you breathe through sensation to safely release stored emotions, energy, and stress.

*meditation begins promptly*

Welcome to this guided Yoga Nidra, the companion meditation to EP 13 & 15, with a special focus on reconnecting with Ancestral Wisdom and our Guides.

Enjoy this opportunity to experience Yoga Nidra, an ancient meditation practice, and be sure to listen as often as you like (I encourage four sessions each week, but even once a week is highly profound and restorative).

BE SMART! Do not listen while driving, or while operating heavy machinery. Before you begin, you are ensuring that you have spoken to your doctor or other health care provider to confirm that you are healthy and able to participate in this deep sleep meditation practice.

TO PRACTICE:

• lay flat on your back, without propping up the head (unless medically necessary)
• option to place rolled towel/blanket under the knees for additional support and to reduce low-back pain
• keep a blanket nearby or place one over your torso for warmth (body temperature drops during deep mediation)
• resist the urge to move or fidget, but make any adjustments necessary and then return to stillness promptly
• ask family members and animal companions to keep quiet and not disturb you for the entire duration of this meditation
• enjoy! and please leave a comment, feedback or a testimonial if you feel prompted >^.^<

Autumn is in the air! I feel the magick in the breeze, blowing in this Harvest Season.

I feel my Witchy Ancestors calling to me, reminding me to tune-in...

to tune-in to the Earth, to the changing Seasons, to the Moon and her Phases, and to tune-in to them, to their Ancestral Wisdom.

4:54 Let's take an Autumn Harvest (personal inventory) with these journal prompts/questions to ponder... You can print out this lovely document to follow along or to answer the questions with a friend.

28:14 Tarot Card pull

Stay-tuned for [PART 2] coming in two weeks,

and be sure to practice these restorative #YogaNidraMeditations with Kat D. You can listen for free on EP 5, and when you subscribe you'll experience new, full-length guided #YogaNidra meditations each month.

this is the companion embodiment practice to episodes 9 & 11, but you can listen + practice anytime!

BE SMART! Do not listen while driving, or while operating heavy machinery.

In this yoga nidra meditation, you will be guided through a "Temper Tantrum" practice, where your body will move, shake, and breathe through sensation to safely release stored emotions, energy, and stress.

*meditation begins promptly*

Welcome to this guided Yoga Nidra, the companion meditation to EP 9 & 11, with a special focus on reconnecting with and being present with the body after Friendship Conflict.

Enjoy this opportunity to experience Yoga Nidra, an ancient meditation practice, and be sure to listen as often as you like (I encourage four sessions each week, but even once a week is highly profound and restorative).

BE SMART! Do not listen while driving, or while operating heavy machinery. Before you begin, you are ensuring that you have spoken to your doctor or other health care provider to confirm that you are healthy and able to participate in this deep sleep meditation practice.

TO PRACTICE:

• lay flat on your back, without propping up the head (unless medically necessary)
• option to place rolled towel/blanket under the knees for additional support and to reduce low-back pain
• keep a blanket nearby or place one over your torso for warmth (body temperature drops during deep mediation)
• resist the urge to move or fidget, but make any adjustments necessary and then return to stillness promptly
• ask family members and animal companions to keep quiet and not disturb you for the entire duration of this meditation
• enjoy! and please leave a comment, feedback or a testimonial if you feel prompted >^.^<

In this yoga nidra meditation, you will be guided through a "Breath Holding" practice, where you will gently hold the breath for a few moments, creating space for tension and stress to safely be moved through the body.

*meditation begins promptly*

Welcome to this guided Yoga Nidra, the companion meditation to episodes 6 & 8.

Experience this ancient practice, listen as often as you like (I encourage four sessions each week, but even once a week is highly profound & restorative).

BE SMART! Do not listen while driving, or while operating heavy machinery.

Before you begin, you are ensuring that you have spoken to your doctor or other health care provider to confirm that you are healthy and able to participate in this deep sleep meditation practice.

TO PRACTICE:

• lay flat on your back, to ensure a deeper meditative state it is recommended to not prop up the head (if you must, do so)
• option to place rolled towel/blanket under the knees for additional support and to reduce low-back pain
• keep a blanket nearby or place one over your torso for warmth (body temperature drops during deep mediation)
• resist the urge to move or fidget, but make any adjustments necessary and then return to stillness promptly
• ask family members and animal companions to keep quiet and not disturb you for the entire duration of this meditation
• enjoy! and please leave a comment, feedback or a testimonial if you feel prompted >^.^<

In this yoga nidra meditation, you will be guided through a "Lifting & Dropping the Limbs" practice, where your body will lift a limb several inches above the ground and hold for a few moments while breathing through sensation to safely release stored emotions, energy, and stress.

*meditation begins promptly*

Welcome to this guided Yoga Nidra, the companion meditation to EP 1 & 2, as well as your opportunity to experience this ancient practice & listen as often as you like (I encourage four sessions each week, but even once a week is highly profound and restorative).

BE SMART! Do not listen while driving, or while operating heavy machinery. Before you begin, you are ensuring that you have spoken to your doctor or other health care provider to confirm that you are healthy and able to participate in this deep sleep meditation practice.

TO PRACTICE:

• lay flat on your back, without propping up the head (unless medically necessary)
• option to place rolled towel/blanket under the knees for additional support and to reduce low-back pain
• keep a blanket nearby or place one over your torso for warmth (body temperature drops during deep mediation)
• resist the urge to move or fidget, but make any adjustments necessary and then return to stillness promptly
• ask family members and animal companions to keep quiet and not disturb you for the entire duration of this meditation
• enjoy! and please leave a comment, feedback or a testimonial if you feel prompted >^.^<

Future episodes offering guided Yoga Nidra will be subscription only, enjoy this complimentary full length meditation.

Welcome to the conversation, Clem! A book, film, and musical enthusiast, sharing her experience as a mother living in a Western society...

(TAROT CARD PULL 40:14 )

3:09 Clem shares a bit about her professional life, working full time in a medical environment where she has been supporting cancer patients along their radiation journey for the last 11 years

3:45 How Clem & I met online in a virtual community [focused on slowing down and living seasonally]; we had both come to the realization that we were experiencing burnout and needing to learn a new way of living

5:39 When the world went into Covid19 Lockdown; the shock to the system; feeling postpartum, trapped at home with everyone but also missing community; collective grief; loss of community; grief from death; the many shades of grief; isolation; needing other women to connect with and have deeper conversations with, needing other mothers for support

9:20 Clem sharing about going back to work fulltime during the pandemic and the frightening unknown, staying available and working fulltime while the rest of the world is sheltering and hiding; staying vulnerable and open but also trying to stay safe and secure

11:09 Circling with other women; "How are you really?" having space held for you and holding space in return; creating sisterhood and community online; feeling held; spaciousness and safety to be seen and heard

12:01 To notice what is no longer working and sustainable in our neighborhoods and communities and workspaces; having the opportunity to be faced with what is, and to have to sit with it [in lockdown], and to imagine a new way; things are crumbling down to be rebuilt, how can I rebuild differently?

"How can I be more natural and animalistic, and more seasonal in my rhythms?"

13:53 How are you living seasonally? The ways that we change in the Winter, and how can we embrace the darkness and slowness of winter? What does it look like to "live seasonally" and to embrace "slow living?"

15:35 Life after becoming a Mother, trying to "keep up the pace" even though our world is completely different post-baby; the pressure, the burnout and trying to do it all and be it all; the way that embracing seasonal living and our natural rhythms can bring ease and joy back to our lives

19:42 What was your relationship with REST as a child?

20:08 Clem sharing about her busy household growing up, the hustle she witnessed her mother in around the house with all four children; being an oldest child and the responsibility that comes with that; internalized frenzy; experiencing burnout as a child; letting our children be bored; overstimulation

"It is okay to REST."

22:10 Feeling guilty when not moving forward/achieving or being productive; feeling guilty sitting in the garden VS working in the garden; growing up in a Goal Driven society, having to have an outcome VS the process and the joy of it; "what are you even producing?" Always working for the next thing, the next academic achievement, the next certificate

GOAL DRIVEN VS PLEASURE DRIVEN

24:19 Clem's reaction to my sharing that my mother had six children over a twenty year span :,D

25:08 Kat D remembering the rush of anxiety that she woke up to as a child, feeling afraid like she was going to "miss out" on something if she did not rise and shine and hop out of bed promptly; the anxiety of laying in bed VS waking up and rushing to start the day

26:36 the magick of waking up before the children/the rest of the household

27:17 "I'm still learning how to rest! Maybe I shouldn't start a podcast about resting."

"It's a practice"

28:50 When we realize that it's not supposed to be this hard, it's not supposed to be like this, we're not supposed to be this isolated from our communities and neighbors

29:35 We are animals! All the ways our society has tried to turn us into robots as we forget our roots; trying to do motherhood the colonial, patriarchal way and finally realizing there is a better, intuitive way

In the Summer of 2022 I had the pleasure of being a guest on the Unraveled Life podcast w/ @KelseyMech, here is that conversation!

In This Episode: We chat about the harm inflicted by patriarchal religion on a personal + societal level, & Kat D shares some of her own experiences & stories from her real life upbringing within organized religion.

• We'll hear about her experience growing up within a religion that encourages gay phobia & anti-queerness, and the grief she moved through recently and is still processing around Compulsory Heterosexuality and what that looked like for her.
• Kat D also shares about how she ultimately ended up in a narcissistic abusive relationship at age 19, and how leaving that marriage and life behind saved her and her sons lives & allowed for a better future.
• She teaches practicable mindfulness techniques & awareness tools, and in this episode we’ll explore a few of her favorite, easy to do practices that you can begin at home, with an intention to reconnect to your Self, your body, and your hearts true desires.