Inner Rhythms

Seriously! Why does my BACK hurt?! 😩
Just a little anatomy love for you…

Your uterus has two uterosacral ligaments that help connect its lower portion to your sacrum—that triangular, pizza-slice-shaped bone at the base of your spine. 🍕

But period back pain isn’t simply your uterus pulling on those ligaments.

During your period, chemicals called prostaglandins trigger uterine contractions to help shed the lining. That cramping pain can radiate into your lower back and even your thighs.

So your back didn’t do anything wrong—it just got dragged into the group chat. 😂

And while period pain is common, pain that disrupts your life deserves attention. You don’t have to just push through it. 🤍

Did you know as a Central Coast Alliance and Medical doula I work with Monterey,San Benito, Santa Cruz Merced and Mariposa
I offer Online education, emotional support and ways to drop into your body to prepare for birth and parenthood

🚨🚨: Alarming ongoing and worsening trend in the US is the closure of maternity care providers. Nearly half of US counties lack ob/gyn care.

Maternity care deserts are counties or regions with limited or no access to OB services, defined by the March of Dimes as lacking hospitals or birth centers offering OB care, and having no obs, certified nurse midwives, or family physicians who deliver babies. These areas frequently exist in rural, low-income, and marginalized communities.

While some of these deserts are served by lifesaving and access providing CPM, traditional, and direct entry midwives, a lack of close access to a higher level of care if needed leads to worse maternal and infant morbidity and mortality.

For some families, this looks like long drives for prenatal care, less than recommended prenatal care, and even no prenatal care.

When it comes to birth, this can lead to plan and unplanned unassisted birth, scheduled inductions, limited access to higher levels of care as needed.

This is a multifaceted issue rooted in medicaid and public health funding, insurance reimbursement levels, malpractice costs, lack of autonomy for maternity care providers due to legislation, hospital system costs, etc.

Studies suggest increasing midwifery care could aid in filling in gaps, improving outcomes, and improving continuity of care. However, we still need access to maternity hospitals, neonatalogisits, NICUs, etc., for those in need of higher levels of care.

👇🏽 Did you navigate a maternity care desert during your pregnancy? Do your provide care in communities lacking access?

I had a love hate relationship with this word SURRENDER especially with having it in my birth space- I took me years to fully understand and redefine surrender
as trust and presence rather than defeat
I’ll leave the links in comments for your listening or reading pleasure 😉🌺

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DdWVXPFCiIb/?stkn=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==

Surrender of Timelines: how quickly the body will heal, how steadily sleep will return, and how seamlessly joy will flow. @‌inner.rhythms.bodywork Want to learn more about Surrendering to the Unknown? Read Ashley’s article! 📄Read the article: 🔗in bio or https://sovereign-magazine.com 🎙 Listen to the podcast: 🔗in bio or https://podfollow.com/sovereign-audio-magazine ♾️Join the community: 🔗in bio or https://community.sovereign-magazine.com #iamsovereign #sovereignwomen #surrenderingtotheunknown #surrender #trustthetiming #divinetiming #lettinggo #thereisnorush

Some of my favorite births to support are VBACS, our preparations look different, from movement, to massage to mindset work-
I’m here for you 💜

Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC) is something many parents hope for. Current evidence supports VBAC as a safe option for the majority of parents who previously had a c-section. Doulas help with VBAC in many ways.

Fear of complications, medical policies, and emotional uncertainty can make the journey to a VBAC daunting.

This is where a doula becomes an important resource.

Doulas support VBACs by providing:

💙 Emotional Support and Confidence Building
💙 Providing Evidence-Based Information
💙 Teaching Advocacy and Communication Support
💙 Physical Comfort and Labor Support
💙 Reducing the Need for Unnecessary Interventions
💙 Partner Support and Involvement
💙 Postpartum Processing and Emotional Well-Being

Regardless of the birth outcome, doulas continue to provide support in the postpartum period.

Whether the birth results in a BAC or another C-section, doulas help families feel heard, validated, and supported.

Read more here: https://internationaldoulainstitute.com/2025/03/how-doulas-help-with-vbac-vaginal-birth-after-cesarean/

Are you planning a VBAC? Have you had one?

The “wait… is this actually labor?” phase. 😂

A few contractions.
Then nothing.
Then they’re back.
Then you’re timing them.
Then you stop timing them.

Early labor doesn’t always announce itself clearly.

Instead of trying to figure out every sensation, get curious. Rest. Eat. Move. Shower. Dim the lights. Put on music. Notice what your body responds to.

You don’t have to figure labor out before your body does.

Sometimes birth begins in a whole lot of maybe. 🤎

If you want to learn more about what to expect in labor join my 4 week Somatic birth class series starting September 19th

https://www.vagaro.com/cl/KdOiUAEHQEhp280NkoQ~a1amH0PxBnECAjSwCDpfpIE=

Birth preparation isn’t only about learning what could happen—it’s about recognizing what already lives within you.


Rhythm & Ritual is a four-week embodied birth-preparation experience for couples, beginning September 19 in

You don’t have to have birth figured out.

You’re allowed to pause.
You’re allowed to ask for support.
You’re allowed to begin again.

Because preparing for birth isn’t only about preparing for a particular outcome.

It’s about preparing your body, your nervous system, your relationship, and the whole person you are becoming.

This is my Rebirth not a rebrand

Inner Rhythms has grown alongside me. What began with massage and skincare has deepened into something that reflects the full body of my work: birthwork, bodywork, and cycle care.

I serve women and families moving through life’s many seasons—fertility, pregnancy, postpartum, motherhood, grief, hormonal changes, depletion, and the everyday need to feel at home in their bodies again.

The forest greens represent how I want you to feel when you enter my space: grounded, sheltered, quiet, and deeply held. A place where your nervous system can soften and nothing is being demanded of you.

The rich orchid represents how I want you to leave: restored, radiant, alive, and more fully yourself.

Why me? Because after more than 25 years of working with the body, I understand that healing is rarely one-dimensional. I bring together therapeutic touch, nervous-system support, abdominal and lymphatic work, skincare, birth support, and the wisdom that comes from walking through many seasons of life myself.

This rebirth gives a truer form to what Inner Rhythms has always been—a place for restoration, regulation, connection, and coming home to yourself. Blooming from your roots- Inner Knowing

Rooted enough to soften. Restored enough to bloom.

Welcome to the rebirth of Inner Rhythms. 🌿