03/20/2023
When I was nursing my first little one, we had a black Chevy Nova and there was a whole lot of milk spray on the dashboard. It was clear that milk didn’t just come out from one single hole. You may have noticed this, too.
But years ago, midwives at The Farm in Tennessee, enrolled in nursing school, were told by an OB that milk does come out of just one hole. Amongst them, several were breastfeeding, so they showed him – it’s a spray.
It's easy to be convinced that the person in the white coat knows more about how your body works than you do- even when you know they are plain wrong. This story is a classic example of what I call "medsplaining" -a form of medical gaslighting. But you know your body better than anyone else. You are the expert, you are the authority.
What I love about this story is that it reminds us that it’s the experienced women - the mothers and grandmothers who have done this before - that can often teach us the most. If our own bodies are the library; each other's are the university.
If you are a pregnant or new mama I encourage you to reach out to the experienced mamas, the grandmothers, and aunts, the healers, the wise women and sages in your circle. The women who have walked this path ahead of you - sometimes three, four, five times - so that they can tell you where it gets steep, where the pitfalls are, where to stop, rest, replenish. You don't have to carve your own trail when there are hundreds and thousands of footsteps to follow. I’m here for you, too.
And please continue to turn to the wise women for support and remember to trust your knowledge as well- we each have our own inner wise woman to consult ❤️.
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