Growing Into Ourselves: A Conversation on Wise Power

Do you want to know how we change the world? We heal ourselves. And that’s exactly what our goal was when we decided to start the Empowered Femmes book club. Being a woman right now is tough. We live in a world that has been built on us being second-class humans, and it's time to say enough. We believe that by building each other up first, we can return our world to one of peace and community.  One of our members once told me she joined synchronized swimming to be with multigenerational women, and I thought this was such a powerful concept. Now I realize that this is what we have built with this book club. There are women of all ages and stages and careers and backgrounds and stories, and we can all come together to discuss the challenge that connects us all – not being seen for our true worth in this world. I truly believe that there is power in bringing women together, and when we help each other heal, we heal ourselves, our children, our relationships, and our communities.

We chose Wise Power as a book to challenge the normal dialogue around menopause. Our social media feeds are filled with ways to combat aging, all the new symptoms that come with “perimenopause” (a word I am refusing to give to myself – not because I don’t believe it's happening, but because I don’t think it showcases the power that comes with this stage in our lives). Our culture is too focused on how terrible getting older is, but its inevitable, so why not embrace it? Yes, our bodies are changing, but what does that really mean for the spirit of who we are? It means we are shifting our energy away from our reproductive organs and transforming it into becoming knowledge givers for generations to come.  Yes, this stage is messy and wild, but I believe it will end with a newfound sense of wholeness. Wise Power shows us the true power that comes with our menstruation, from our first menses to our last, and all the stages in between. We aren’t falling apart; we are growing into the next amazing phase of ourselves. We are stepping into our purpose and removing what no longer serves us.

We had a packed house for our discussion, filled with a mix of original and new faces. Despite our enthusiasm, the group was divided on how this book resonated with them. For some, they felt it further highlighted the very little knowledge we have on women’s bodies and how frustrating that can be when trying to navigate this time in our lives. Others questioned how the later ages of childbearing are impacting the phases of menopause, as many of us are now in or near our 40s with young kids, and now also trying to spiritually evolve beyond our current selves. Whoa. Who signed up for this?? But all of us agreed that women need to realize the power in taking back time for themselves, resist the idea of perfectionism and people-pleasing, and find more moments to contemplate our lives up until this point and give ourselves grace.

The authors of Wise Power, Alexandra Pope and Sjanie Hugo Wurlitzer, have devoted their lives and careers to reframing the menstrual cycle and menopause as sources of intelligence rather than the inconvenience we have been taught. They opened the Red School where they challenge us to view our bodies not as problems to be fixed, but as teachers guiding us across a lifetime. Whether every part of their message resonated or not, what they offer all of us an invitation to trust the inner authority of our own lived experience. To listen more closely. To question cultural narratives that diminish women’s aging. And to consider that this next phase of life is not an ending, but a becoming.

With love and community,

Courtney