Belly, Body, Baby and Beyond: Body Image and the Changing Body
Hilary Kinavey, MS, LPC
Dana Sturtevant, MS, RD
Pregnancy is a time of incredible change and personal growth. It is a time when many women encounter a need to trust their own incredible bodies, maybe for the very first time. It is a time when bellies become “legal”, our bodies change almost daily and, as life grows within, we are challenged with letting go of trying to control the external appearance. It can be a liberating time but also a frightening time. There is hardly another time in a woman’s life when she is more aware of the truth about her body: it changes.
We live in a culture that is filled with messages about “get that pre-baby body back” that seemingly start immediately post-partum (or maybe even before!), as if there is a short window of opportunity. Although many ancient societies view pregnant women as incredibly beautiful and the ultimate sign of fertility, our culture does not seem to do quite enough to support the images of abundance and life that pregnancy could represent. Our often thin-obsessed world seems to have nearly opposite expectations for the post-partum body than it does for the gestating body. “Erase the evidence!” The messages about post-partum bodies are more about weight-loss, size and shape then they are about health. These dueling messages can be difficult to process for any woman, much less a woman who is adjusting to new motherhood, and other shifts in focus and identity.
The many emotional and physical changes that women experience during pregnancy can have an impact on self-esteem and one’s overall feeling of wellness. How do we learn to love and respect the incredible journey our bodies have taken from conception through pregnancy, birth and beyond? What are reasonable hopes and wishes? How do we take care of our health when the well-being of our infants is our primary focus?
Be Nourished is offering a workshop entitled Belly, Body, Baby and Beyond that is designed specifically for the changes women experience during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum. It is in this delicate time that we connect with the power of nature to create new life. We watch our body change, prepare ourselves for what is needed, and as our identity shifts, it can impact our ability to care for and know ourselves. Discuss how we can use this time to create a healthy, lasting image of ourselves. This workshop will be co-facilitated by Dana and Hilary (who is expecting her first baby April 20th).
Cost: $125.00
Sunday, March 15, 10:00am- 4:00pm
To register please call 503-288-4104 or visit our website
