christinaeve

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the phrase “She let herself go.” Maybe it was said about a woman who gained weight. Or let her hair go gray. Or stopped wearing makeup. Or traded her heels for crocs. Maybe you’ve even thought “wow, I really let myself go” when you caught your reflection in the mirror and see an older, more tired version of yourself then you remember. I keep wondering, where did this phrase even came from? And what is it asking us to hold onto?

In many ancient cultures, women were the healers and the threads that held the community together. For thousands of years, they have gathered around fires, under trees, on the full moon, and in kitchens. In these circles, wisdom was shared and life cycles were honored. This was a place where grief, joy, hope and power were held and kept alive together.

When spirituality, wellness, and women’s healing keep centering motherhood as the default feminine experience, they leave out a lot of people. It may seem like glorifying the ‘mother’ is reclaiming feminine power, but for many of us, it does the opposite. It reinforces the idea that reproduction is our sole purpose as women. You like one post about “awakening your divine feminine power” and before you know it your feed is inundated with it.