full moon training

Moon Cycle + Pregnancy Yoga

Birth Doula + Postpartum Doula

Training

march-june 2023

Now accepting applicants

“There can be no keener measure of a society than how it treats its most vulnerable.”-Nelson Mandela

how much more peaceful can the world be if more people enter it peacefully?

The time from preconception to post partum has potential for incredible healing and growth. We expand our understanding of our own body’s capability as we grow our child. The rite of pregnancy is mysterious, primal, and loaded, no mater how the pregnancy began. This training comes from witnessing hundreds of bodies undergo the shifts and adjustments of pregnancy, and realizes how vital it is to experience support in order to open up as much as needed. It is no small thing to conceive and then deliver a baby.

It is our belief that in order to bring about a more peaceful world, we are well served to support those carrying the future generations into it. If we can nurture the bodies growing babies, if we can attune ourselves to the very real miracle that is human life, then we can collectively embrace humanity, nature, the planet, and the life giving energy we have access to. To spend time contemplating the sacred stage of gestation can shift a person’s entire relationship to their being-ness.

Each weekend module of the Full Moon training focuses on a different stage of living in a female body. Whether you are looking to deepen your knowledge for your own experience, or hoping to be a support to other pregnant and postpartum people, this training can work.

Module 1, march 10-12: The Moon Cycle

A healthy relationship with the menstrual cycle leads to a healthy relationship with the body and, for those seeking conception, a healthy pregnancy. Learn practices to support a body (your own or others’) throughout a person’s moon cycle, as well as anatomy and natural ways to treat symptoms including yoga asana, vaginal steaming, ancestral menstrual practices, eating for your cycle, seeking or avoiding conception, reproductive justice, and more. We will cover cycling from puberty through menopause. This module is appropriate for all bodies who have or who used to menstruate, whether they want to conceive or not.

Module 2, april 21-23 : Pregnancy

Learn asana-inspired movement with a focus on female anatomy and safe practices for pregnancy. The sequences highlight and then address the constant changes in a body and mind’s experience throughout the trimesters. We emphasize compassionate respect for the choices each person makes about their own pregnancy and birth, and honor the cultural backgrounds and spiritual worldview of each practitioner we encounter. This weekend focuses more heavily on yoga as a lens for pregnancy, and how to lead prenatal yoga classes. As a prenatal yoga instructor, you can help frame a person’s relationship to their body and the baby they are growing. We engender a healthy respect for the importance of language and space holding during this vulnerable time in a person’s life. This module is appropriate for anyone who works (or hopes to work) with pregnant or birthing bodies.

Module 3 may 19-21: Birth

We will cover birth and ways a child can emerge from a body, as well as ways to support both parent and child. In addition to movement practices, we will undergo a blessing ceremony and learn to create ritual and circle up around a parent to be, offering support and love for the transition they are about to enter. This ritual has life long benefits, and will invite a brave space through which an individual becomes a parent. In addition, we will learn universally beneficial ways to support birthing people, whether they deliver in a hospital, birther center, or at home. This module is for anyone wishing to attend birth, either as the actual birther or as a doula or support person.

Module 4 june 9-11: Postpartum and The 4th trimester

The training includes a weekend dedicated to supporting the family in the postpartum time. Learn about physical and emotional recovery from the birth experience, ways to support the birther, baby, and other family members. Nutrition, your own ancestral practices, ritual, rest, perinatal mental health, practical postpartum information, and more will be covered as you learn to create spaces and systems of true support. This module is appropriate for anyone wanting to support after a baby enters a family, whether an expecting parent, friends, or those seeking to work as postpartum doulas.

This training is appropriate for anyone who comes into contact with menstruating, pregnant, and birthing bodies: yoga teachers, group fitness instructors, birth workers, nurses, pregnant people, massage therapists, somatic practitioners, therapists, family and friends who want to offer real support to their birthing loved ones are all welcome to join us.

overview

• the moon cycle: menstruation for a healthy reproductive system

• the hormones of the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, birth, and menopause

• sequencing a prenatal yoga class

• prenatal modifications in a regular yoga asana or group fitness class

• anatomy of the pregnant body

• intro to fetal anatomy

• stages of pregnancy

• trauma informed training in relation to pregnancy and birth

• miscarriage and loss

• history of birth in the US: reimagining a broken system

• inclusivity and birth work

• energetics of pregnancy: the subtle body

• the role of pleasure in pregnancy and birth

• childbirth education

• birth doula training

• marking the transition: rituals for conception, childbirth, and postpartum

• writing your birth story (your own emergence into the world)

• postpartum: practices to support a new parent

dates and schedule

March-June

one long weekend/month

March: Reproductive Health+Self Care Module: Friday 3/10-Sunday 3/12, 10am-6pm

April: Prenatal Module: Friday 4/21-Sunday 4/23, 10am-6pm

May: Birth Module: Friday 5/19-Sunday 5/21, 10am-6pm

June: Postpartum Module: Saturday 6/9-Sunday 6/11, 10am-6pm

Faculty

Kendra Potter, e-ryt + P-ryt + dona trained birth doula + trauma trained + courses in social justice + mother of two, lead trainer

I’ve been working with pregnant bodies since 2010 as a birth doula and teaching prenatal yoga. My relationship with my own two children began before either of them came earth side, and they taught me to listen to the messages from my deepest knowing. My prenatal yoga training came from Summer Deaver, Dr. James Bae, and Sarah Kay, and my doula training is through Debra Pascali-Bonero. Through these skilled instructors, and my own lived experience, I believe pregnancy and birth to be opportunities for sources of extreme healing, sacred connection, and real pleasure. I am a Native American adoptee, a proud member of the Lummi Nation. Becoming a parent made me realize the continuation of a family line, and the significance of becoming a good ancestor. My relationship with my own birth mother has taught me that while pregnancy is not always the same joyful story, wellness can begin at any time during gestation, conception, or even before. Through my relationship with my adoptive parents, I have an understanding of the importance of bonding and attachment in the newborn time, regardless of how baby arrives. We can do so much for the future of this planet by caring for the people growing and birthing the next generations. My classes are informed, clear, compassionate, and most importantly, work to bring support and community to a joyful yet sometimes lonely time in a person’s life.

In addition to my work with Sistermoon Wellness, I also work with Mother Moon Project, a non-profit organization established in Missoula to help new families of all types receive the kind of support they need to thrive. Because none of us was meant to do this work alone.

marisa wright

certified birth and post partum doula + spinning babies parent educator + lactation counselor + qualified mother roaster + courses in perinatal mental health + mother of 2, instructor

owner of Sacred Roots Doula.

Prairie Wolfe

By combining INNATE postpartum care, Sexological Bodywork, and Somatic Experiencing, I bring a unique set of skills to help newborn mothers find health emotionally and physically.  I am equipped to help your body recover from scarring and pelvic floor stress so that it may function more optimally.

I believe in your innate power. By listening deeply to your body- it's boundaries, its no's, its maybes, its yeses- by slowing down and feeling into the pauses, we can work together to release stored emotion, find relief from pain, and re-discover the foundation of your creativity and confidence.

I believe in your ability to heal. I believe that intimacy and connection are possible and vital during the postpartum time.

owner of Somatic Connections

justene sweet

I’m Justene; herbalist, medicine maker and herbal educator.

I was born of the arid hills of south central British Columbia and moved to the mountains and valleys of western Montana in 2011. I work as an herbalist at Meadowsweet Herbs in downtown Missoula.

My primary focus in my practice is women’s reproductive health. I believe that herbs and supplements can really shine when it comes to fertility and hormonal health. Empowering clients to make deeper connections with their bodies is part of the healing process.

Mentors and Credentials

The Science and Art of Herbology; by Rosemary Gladstar

Green Path Herb School; Herbalist Certificate Program & Clinical Program

Apprenticeship at Kootenay School of Herbal Medicine, Nelson BC

Menstrual Cycle Tracking & Herbal Medicine for Practitioners; by Krista Poulton & Pacific Rim College

investment

Menstruation + prenatal + Birth + postpartum

$2200

$500 non-refundable deposit holds your space

For participants interested only in prenatal yoga and birth doula training, or only interested in birth and postpartum, there will be a limited number of spaces for just 3 of the 4 modules needed for that at a rate of $1800

Scholarship opportunities are absolutely available to students requiring financial assistance.

one full scholarship available for an Indigenous or other POC

What’s included

+Full Moon Prenatal Yoga Teacher Training certificate

+Full Moon birth doula certificate

+Full Moon Postpartum doula certificate

+4 training modules (96 contact hours with highly skilled instructors)

+10 additional prenatal yoga classes

+a community of birth workers committed to supporting one another and birthing people

+Full Moon manual, both printed and digital access

+Catered Ayurvedic meal for the 3rd and 4th weekend, featuring foods especially good for pregnancy and postpartum.

+training and participation in rituals for menstruation, conception, birth, and postpartum

A note on covid protocol

Should community numbers shoot up again like last year, it is possible all participants will be required to mask. If this is an issue for you, please let us know so we can come up with a plan that includes community health. It is our most sincere hope and intention that we can meet in person for the entirety of the training; however, should the number of cases surge or a participant must isolate due to exposure, the weekends have been structured to be available live online in the event we deem it safer to keep distant. Community wellness is an essential part of birth work. In the event this is the case, all lectures will be recorded and available for download to enhance retention of information.

The weekends will be held at The Abode, a sacred practice space off River Road in Missoula.