219. The Rage, Grace and Alchemy of Menopause (Tanya Forgan)

For many of us menopause announces itself in our lives through some kind of betrayal. For today’s podcast guest, that betrayal came in the form of a dismantling of identity that provoked one particular emotion on a whole new level - rage.  Our guest today is the brilliant trauma-informed embodiment guide, facilitator, and heart activist Tanya Forgan. She explores menopause as a series of portals which show us where we’re holding power and where we’re not. Her initial ‘betrayal’ phase of menopause rocked her to her core, coinciding with the pandemic and the 2020 Black Lives Matter movement and catalysing a dark night of the soul where she faced the harm she has experienced as a dual heritage woman in the UK.  She goes on to illuminate the healing power of the repair phase of menopause, describing the rituals and community support that helped her to find the grace in the raging fire of the initiatory process. She shares what supported her to alchemise her anger and understand grief as the most exquisite expression of love in the revelation phase, and all she’s discovering in the visioning and emergence portals where she is exploring the kind of grandmother she now wants to become.  We explore: - How cycle awareness helped to prepare Tanya for the dismantling of menopause.  - What helped Tanya when she lost her trust in her body and in society, including her amazing nervous-system-regulating yoga bath ritual! - What menopause taught Tanya about the power of circles for creating belonging, especially when it comes to race, gender, sexual experience, ability in body, power and oppression. --- Join our menopause online course: Menopause: The Great Awakener --- The Menstruality Podcast is hosted by Red School. We love hearing from you. To contact us, email info@redschool.net --- Social media: Red School: @redschool - https://www.instagram.com/red.school Sophie Jane Hardy: @sophie.jane.hardy - https://www.instagram.com/sophie.jane.hardy Tanya Forgan: @tanyaforgan - https://www.instagram.com/tanyaforgan