Classes Session 2 • September 9-12, 2022
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When you think of the world “Disabled,” what comes to mind: a woman in a wheelchair, a man who is mute, or a crippled child? And yet this word has a longstanding tradition of misinterpretation and alienation. Let’s take a deep dive into the political and cultural history of this word and the people who live in it. We will also dissect the concept of ablelism and learn how we can identify it in ourselves and the world. Finally we will embark on exercises to experience a life with disability.
We all have stories - lots of them. They could be meaningful moments of clarity where we surprised ourselves and upped our game, we might not quite understand their significance yet, or they might be whomping us still, but there is always a gift for us in every life event.
Learn to use writing —with awareness and acceptance—as a tool to tease out these experiences to enact, develop, or share your own transformation.
Sisters Dakota She’haman and Kerin Sloane will be compiling an anthology of works, called Women Gone Wild, Women Gone Wise, for those who wish to bring their story all the way to publication—or, just keep it to yourself. The process itself is powerfully healing, and that is the real treasure.
The lymphatic system is called Rasa in Sanskrit, meaning the river of life. Keeping this river flowing allows our tissues to receive nourishment, which is the secret to being and looking healthy. Our lymph fluids allow hormones to get from one endocrine gland to another and play an important role in our reproductive health. The lymphatic system is also called the Immune system, which we all know is important for fighting foreign invaders and staying healthy. There will be demonstrations on how to map the lymphatic system in your body with an emphasis on breast health. There will be time for Q &A about our breasts and immunity, massage assessments for experiential learning & what tools can support change and prevent diseases. Students will leave having a clear understanding of the lymph system and how to keep it and their breasts healthy.
There is strength in a river that is flowing.
*Breast Checks will be offered throughout the weekend by lottery in the Wellness Tent. If you are interested put your name in the lottery basket by Saturday lunchtime.
In this class we talk about how to work with scars, softening, and helping to repair skin and deeper tissue.
Hydration is the process of replacing water in the body. We will look at the pathophysiology, principles, concepts and risk factors, discuss the benefits and explore the various methods and strategies for proper hydration in this class. We will further learn all about the dangers of dehydration, looking into the various symptoms that can occur, and why and how your body or brain can’t function optimally when lacking adequate hydration. Prepare to learn all the scientific terms like hyponatremia, osmoregulation, and hyperkalemia! We’ll also sample and discuss the MASHH Clinics’ Oral Rehydration Blend that they have been designing and working on for the past decade right here at NCWHS!
The Circle of Light Oshun River Ritual is a sacred gathering for the woman seeking to restore her self-love and her connection to the Divine. Each Circle is a Collective Ritual using traditional herbal medicine self-care practices to heal and activate your Divine Feminine Energy. The Circle is a spontaneous experience and co-created ritual of sound, breath, meditation and movement designed to release, balance and energize the feminine mind, body and spirit. No two circles are the same and each circle is a unique moment curated to address the needs of each woman joined together, holding space in the collective.
In this gathering, Jaguar Womban will lead you in the “calling in” and activation of the Goddess Oshun within your individual womban body, and within the sacred womb waters of the river that move through the land that holds us.
The intention of this shared moment is to deliberately synchronize our creation portals to each other and to Mother Earth we wake up the JOY and BEAUTY that is our birthright and learn how to protect and empower ourselves, our land, and our tribe on a physical, mental, and spiritual plane as a New Earth Consciousness is orgasmically born.
Come dressed in whatever makes you feel beautiful and comfortable enough to move your body. Come ready to lay down your burdens at the riverside with Jaguar Womban and anoint your body with the coconut oil and honey of the Goddess. Be ready to wiggle your body, giggle from your soul, hold silence in your heart, re-connect with your inner child, activate your outer goddess, listen and share the unique songs and stories that let your light shine!
Join Jaguar and learn the history of the WombSteam practice and how it can benefit your body and your beauty. This is a hands-on class. We will make a wombsteam together that each participant can take home to play and practice with in order to have their own personal wombsteam experience on their own. There will also be time for questions.
Human physiology evolved directly from the inhalation and ingestion of plant material. This workshop will discuss how our limbic, endocrine and endocannabinoid systems evolved from our relationship to aromatic plants and their constituents. We will explore terpenoids and their therapeutic properties as found in plants like lavender, pine, cannabis and many more. Western Clinical Aromatherapy and Chinese Medical Aromatherapy will briefly be discussed in relation to treating emotional and physical disorders. Essential oils, hydrosols and resins will be shared.
This class explores the evolution of plants and humans. Our existence and metabolism depends on plants for survival and longevity. But what allowed humans the ability to have abstract thought, create art, music and spirituality? Many believe it was the ingestion and inhalation of certain plants and compounds that opened the door to human consciousness. We will discuss the connection between compounds found in plants and their corresponding receptors in our brain and bodies. We will examine the limbic system and endocannabinoid system and their role in metabolism, cellular regeneration and consciousness. Plants as diverse as cannabis, carrots and lungwort will be discussed. Teas, essential oils, and elixirs will be passed around.
Class will begin with a brief discussion on the Three Treasures (Jing, Qi, Shen). When our Shen (Spirit) is at peace we are happy, content and capable of achieving the Soul’s purpose for this Life. When our Shen is disturbed or unsettled, we may experience anxiety, insomnia, anger and other conditions that hinder our ability to grow into our highest potential. Shen has a strong connection with our Heart and Mind as well as our nervous system. Our class will cover a wide array of both Chinese and Western herbs that nourish blood, anchor yang, calm Shen and more. We will dink tea, sip gem elixirs and explore the depth of our own Spirit. Students who attend this workshop will be able to effectively treat disorders like insomnia and anxiety with Western and Chinese herbs. Students will begin to understand the foundations of Classical Chinese Medicine and apply Chinese herbal energetics to their previous experience of herbalism. Students are given the opportunity to explore the richness of their Soul.
- A look at the world of honey bees and their relationship to natural medicine:
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- How they live, and how they create the colonies in which they live and grow ◦ How these living conditions naturally create many products which are used as medicine by humans and animals (wax, honey, propolis, etc)
- Talk about each medicinal component, what it is used for by the bee, and how it is used by humans\
- Talk about how to extract propolis for optimal extraction
- Talk about using Honey as a menstruum
- Talk about the many uses of bees wax
- Touch upon royal jelly, and other lesser known bee products (stinging, bees themselves, the whole hive, mead, etc.)
This class gives us sacred space to come together and share our collective wisdom on holistic healing from post-viral illnesses such as long Covid. In the first part, Lila will reflect on what she has been learning, practically and spiritually, since contracting Covid in China at the start of the pandemic, and then developing this debilitating life-changing illness. She will share her experiences using a range of holistic modalities for long covid, including Western herbal medicine, traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture, Qi Gong energy healing, meditation, Iyenga restorative yoga, somatic exercise, homeopathy, green smoothies, acupressure mats, and yoga Nidra, among others. We will close part one with a short guided healing meditation. In part two, we will open the circle for discussion and sharing among everyone to share stories, resources, wisdom, and solidarity in healing body and soul from these pandemic times!
In part two, we will open the circle for discussion and sharing among everyone to share stories, resources, wisdom, and solidarity in healing body and soul from these pandemic times!
See part 1 for full description.
Do you have an advanced care directive that will guide loved ones and medical staff in knowing what you want, and don’t want, should you not be able to speak for yourself? If not, this class will give you the tools, information, and support to help you create a legal document of your wishes, values, and instructions at the end of life….
We will use the California Advanced Health Care Directive and The Five Wishes forms as a template to create your personal document.
The traditional Death Cafés are held all over the world. They give participants an opportunity to come together, drink tea, eat cake and openly talk about death. This format increases awareness about death in order to help folks make the most of the life they have left.
The NCWHS Death Café is not a class, it is a conversation. We can ask questions, find answers, share stories, explore fears, and celebrate knowledge, with love!!!!
Join Melanya in a 3 hour yoni exploration and non-sexual yoni massage workshop. Yoni or pelvic massage/myofacial release/trigger point therapy is used by physical therapists, chiropractors, and midwives to help release bands of tense muscles to relieve vaginal pain, pelvic hypertension, and even hip pain to name a few benefits. In this class we will practice hands on skills on ourselves or with a partner. Once back home we can continue practicing these skills on ourselves or close friends in a safe environment.
In part 1 we will discuss what yoni massage is and isn’t, why Midwives and physical therapists use it, how to use it on our own or with help, anatomy of the pelvic and yoni, how to find the cervix with a speculum, and open sharing of stories about our own experiences with yonis.
Join Melanya for a fun filled partner dance class for all levels. Best for teens and adults but anyone is welcome. We will explore consent as well as moving with other people and really listening to their bodies while also sharing a piece of ourselves. A portion of this class is blindfold optional so bring something to wrap around your eyes if you so desire.
Using different plant material, reem will teach the art of nature and alchemy as the fountain of inspiration! Eco-printing is a technique where plants, leaves and flowers leave their shapes, color, and marks on fabric. Plant material bundled inside of cloth is steamed or boiled to release the dye found naturally inside the plant, creating a contact print in the shape of the leaf or flower used. Eco prints are essentially direct contact printing methods, drawing out pigments from plants to make interesting and often surprising marks on paper, cellulose (cotton, linen) and protein (silk, wool) fibers.
Learn traditional drumming and dances from Ghana, West Africa.
Let’s take a peek into ancient Indian science of accessing our ‘inner pharmacy’- working with energy points that profoundly affect the state of our body, mind and spirit and facilitate deepest levels of healing.
In Ayurveda, marma points/marmas are sensitive, energy dense points, little astral portals through which the health of our body and mind & emotional & spiritual wellbeing can be affected. Activating a marma point opens a door to our body’s inner apothecary so the healing can begin.
In this introductory class we’ll learn some basics of Ayurvedic Marma Therapy; identifying, locating and gently stimulating selection of points to balance flow of energies, ease common troubling ailments and nurture inner harmony and wellbeing. Working with a partner we’ll learn to give and receive. We’ll also learn the “Handy Sequence” - a simple ‘to go’ way to nourish health & happiness every day!
Using smudge sticks, sounds, essential oils and herb infused marma oils we will work in a sacred ritual healing container.
Marmas are sensitive points or areas on the body through which the flow of life force can be affected to heal, nourish and rejuvenate the body, harmonize the mind, and magnify the presence of spirit. Using herbal oils, pressure and gentle massage and projecting energy we will be enchanting marma points related to those precious parts and systems that make us uniquely feminine - supporting, beauty, harmony, fertility (in greater sense!) emotional wellness and spiritual vibrance.” Working with a partner you will learn to give and receive healing and love.
Essences are infused vibrational waters that can create subtle, but very distinct, shifts in consciousness, enabling us to meet the moment in new ways. Come learn some of the less-often-heard aspects of making essences~ of plants, trees, rocks, planets, journeys, and more!
We’ll also experience and explore the ways that taking essences can support our bodies and beings in adjusting to and engaging with the shifting energies of these times. Prepare to be dosed!
Come join us for an evening under the late spring constellations. Guided by a green laser wand, you’ll learn to find your way around the night sky and the names of the stars and constellations, while hearing folklore from different times and cultures. We’ll meet the bright shining stars of the Twins, the Lion, Virgo, the Scorpion, and more… You will also be dosed with Essence Elixirs!
Crones
Crones, come share lunch with other Wise Crones. We will discuss loving life after menopause, finding joy, appreciation, and health in our Crone years. We will also discuss our part in the Maiden’s Rites of Passage Ceremony and our own Crone’s Honoring Ritual.
This is time to reflect and share our experiences of Cronehood and our love for our Wise Crone ways and bodies. Past menopause and into memorypause, we will tell our stories. A time to make a ritual Crone Broom will follow.
Crones, come share another lunch with other Wise Crones. We will continue our plans for the Maiden’s Rites of Passage and our own Crone’s Honoring Ritual.
Join us for a quiet honoring of the loss of an unborn child through miscarriage or abortion.
Young Women ages 12-21
Mass media and main stream culture can give the impression that women and girls can’t protect themselves. This is a huge lie! We can if we learn how. Our awareness, intuition and determination combined with knowledge and skills are our most effective protection. In this class we’ll learn basic principles and practices to help keep ourselves safe in everyday and emergency situations. We’ll explore ways of self-care and getting support we can activate whenever we’ve gone through scary situations, so our challenges and fear can be transformed into wisdom resources. Let’s prepare for what may come our way and grow our courage together!
In this part we’ll learn basic principles and practices to help keep ourselves safe in emergency situations.
Welcome maidens, to the Circle of Women! Join us in celebrating the beauty and strength of this phase of your life, the time of your bloods. We will explore ideas and feelings, hear stories, make things to care for ourselves and prepare for the Maiden’s Rites of Passage Ceremony to be held Sunday evening at 6:30 p.m. Any young woman who would like to go through the Maiden Ceremony must attend this class.
Mid Kids ages 7-11
Divination decks are a witch's tool for answering questions, understanding dreams, telling the future, and helping others. Decks can be fun and playful or mysterious and strong. In this class we'll each make our own decks that we can take home to practice our intuition and powers.
This class is also open to aunties and mamas who want a lighter version of the adult Intensive and are willing to share space and assist with the littles.
Avast ye maties and welcome to Pirateology. Put on your eyepatches and your scarfs and join Captain Redwood, as we learn shanties, knot tying, and how to be a pirate. Finally, we will sail the seven herbal seas and find buried treasure by the house of the Pirate Queen. So, board the ship, hoist the jolly roger and set sail with the Captain.
Here’s a fun, grounding way to begin the Symposium! Together we’ll learn how to make a labyrinth anywhere you go, using the natural treasures found nearby to mark the paths. We’ll explore ancient ways of asking for Spiritual help on a labyrinth walk. Those who like can become the “Stewards of the Labyrinth”, tending it so that anyone at the Symposium can walk it, day or night. Grown-ups and kids are all are welcome in this class.
Aikido is the martial art of following Nature's way, the way of harmony. Come explore your hidden powers: sitting like a mountain, rolling like a river, floating like a butterfly, leaping like an antelope and more!
Early Morning Classes
Wear loose clothes and bring a yoga mat if you have one.
The ancient practice of Vipassana, or Insight, meditation is one of observing—and coming into balance with—life as it is. This technique results in a foundational restructuring of the mind, by learning to perceive subtle and profound expressions of natural law (universal truth) through one’s own direct experience.
Long-term practitioners report:
Relief from destructive mental habit patterns
A general sense of happiness and well-being.
Release from addiction.
Greater confidence
Higher productive capacity
A greater understanding of one’s own path and purpose
Developing mental concentration through observation of breath related sensation
Expanding practice by observing sensation throughout the body
loving compassion meditation
Intensives
Lymphatic Breast Health all levels - DeAnna Batdorff
Divination Decks - Ami Wruck all levels - Ami Wruck
sives