People who are giving birth, dying, or going through other transitional experiences often have similar ways of acting, thinking, communicating—they exist in what we might call a “liminal space” which is different than everyday life.

When a Canadian doula collective commissioned me to make this month’s zine I wasn’t exactly sure how I would structure it. I knew there were some very simple (but profound!) ideas I wanted to share for how to take of oneself after an abortion, ideas that i’ve shared with clients many many times, but I hadn’t actually written it down like this before.

Asking for & receiving care can be complicated! This month’s zine, written by full spectrum doula Martha Hoffman, is for people who have chronic pain and want some ideas around how to ask for support—but it’s also for people who want to be a better support person for the people in their life who have chronic pain.

Most of the time, when an egg is fertilized it implants inside the uterus where it can safely become a pregnancy. Sometimes however (but rarely, about 1 out of 100 pregnancies), the fertilized egg will try to make a home outside the uterus: in fallopian tube (most common), on the ovary, in the cervix, or anywhere inside the pelvis or abdominal cavity. these are called ectopic pregnancies.

What do trees have to do with somatics, you may be asking yourself? Well, I’m so glad you asked! Much of this info comes from a zine by the lovely Anastasia Coppola, LCSW and it gives readers a step by step guide for befriending out other-than-human world—including feeling for consent, reciprocity, and co-regulating. sounds pretty somatic-y to me!

Like so many things in our patriarchal, racist, ableist, youth-worshiping culture, perimenopause is misunderstood. Not surprisingly, most of the info on the topic was written by white dudes who saw menopause as a disease to be “fixed” (with outrageous solutions like blood letting and opium rectal douches)—and many of us unknowingly carry this mindset into our menopause journey today. This blog post aims to give you, dear reader, a starting point to feel informed & empowered as you (or those you love) move through this big (but normal) life transition.

Although most birth control methods are made for people who have a uterus / ovaries, the vasectomy, aka sterilization, is birth control for people whose bodies make sperm. It works by blocking the vas deferens, which (before a vasectomy) are the tubes that move sperm from the testes out of the body during ejaculation. It is a very safe and easy procedure that can take place in a doctor’s office, clinic, or hospital. it is meant to be a permanent form of birth control and is very effective (almost 100%!).

Although some people have clear, unchanging feelings about getting pregnant / being a parent, many people find this topic to be complicated! The pregnancy acceptability scale is one way to explore, track, and get curious about your feelings around pregnancy & parenting. The scale starts at 0 (definitely don’t want to be pregnant) and goes to 10 (definitely do want to be pregnant) with 5 as the middle point (not actively trying to get pregnant or to avoid, possibly open to pregnancy but also maybe not).