The womb, the mesentery & returning home to your body with Abigail Rose Clarke

What the heck is the mesentery? And why does it matter to you, anyway?Okay, so I know not all of us are anatomy nerds, and we don't commonly get excited to hear about anatomical structures, but this one... well, it's worth checking out. Partly because it's deeply intertwined with all of your belly organs, partly because it has  an intimate relationship with your wombspace, and part of because it is the embryological origin of the uterus......but mostly because it has SO MUCH to teach us. And today's guest, somatic facilitator and author Abigail Rose Clarke offers an in-depth glimpse at the magic and mystery of this"queer" organ - not from the lens of sexual orientation or gender, but from the lens of hard-to-define as one or the other.It's an organ that is both soft and strong, both holding all of our belly organs in and also allowing them to have the ease of adapting to shape and size as needed (for instance in pregnancy). She shares about how to locate this organ inside your body, as well as what it's made of, and why it took until 2016 for people to even realize it even was an organ!We also talk earth connection, ecology, phases of our lives and how embodiment can support us in navigating what's hard in our lives, including current world events. In the end, it's all about "returning home to our bodies" which is also the name of her forthcoming book, which is on pre-sale now and comes out in January. Listen to learn:what the mesentery is and why it matters to youhow embodiment practices can help you navigate hard thingswhy the mesentery was overlooked for most of medical historythe embryological origins of our belly organs, including the uterushow the vagus nerve relates to the mesenterydetails on why Abigail considers the mesentery to be queerResources:Today's shownotes: Get links to Abigails books, instagram and offeringsSign up for my Natural Contraception (FALL 2023) course waitlist!Episode 17: How stress messes with your hormonesEpisode 64: Vagus nerve and sexual arousalEpisode 80:  Cultivating receptivityIf you loved this episode, share it with a friend, or take a screenshot and share on social media and tag me @herbalwombwisdom.  And if you love this podcast, leave a rating & write a review! It's really helpful to get the show to more amazing humans like you.  ❤️DISCLAIMER: This podcast is for educational purposes only, I am not providing any medical advice, I am not a medical practitioner, I’m an herbalist and in the US, there is no path to licensure for herbalists, so my role is as an herbal educator. Please do your own research and consult your healthcare provider for any personal health concerns.Click here to send me a quick message :)