Ground Floor: on vaginismus, vulvodynia, and other ways we brace

Women's bodies were never designed for permanent survival mode. Reasonable women have done the therapy, the books, the pelvic floor work, and still do not feel a sense of home and belonging in their bodies. Vaginismus and vulvodynia are one example: a vagina that closes involuntarily. At the same time, vaginismus is just one way women brace. This podcast is for women who still feel numb, perform, over-function, hold it all. Hosted by Naomi Gale, a pelvic health educator, mother and author. Each episode moves between real conversations, named myths corrected with the evidence behind them, and the deeper question underneath: what happens when a woman stops trying to fix herself and starts trusting what her body's been saying all along . This isn't a conversation on self-help; it's a return to you: a reasonable woman in an unreasonable world. Naomi is the author of Ground Floor and The Reasonable Woman, published by nomestia. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ground Floor: on vaginismus, vulvodynia, and other ways we brace is a health podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 0 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Unknown Host hosts Ground Floor: on vaginismus, vulvodynia, and other ways we brace, a health show with 0 episodes published.

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  Ground Floor: on vaginismus, vulvodynia, and other ways we brace

  Vaginismus & Vulvodynia: It Sometimes Shows Up After You Feel Safer

  Sep 4, 202632 min

  A deep, thorough return to vaginismus and vulvodynia both understood as bracing. Here we discuss why we have to work not just physically but holistically with the body. Vaginismus is held in the pelvis for reasons ranging from sexual assault and childhood abuse to something like an ongoing tension in an unaligned relationship. The insight worth sitting with: pain and tightening sometimes appear only once you're finally safe enough for your body to stop overriding them: which is why "I have a great relationship, so why is this happening now?" is one of the most common and most misunderstood questions Naomi hears. On why dilators and Botox treat the symptom without the holding pattern underneath, and the real place of vagina massage, fascia work, and nervous system regulation alongside, not instead of, medical care. Also: this podcast has a new name, Ground Floor, after Naomi's book was suppressed on Amazon and rebuilt from scratch to escape it. Join our community emails Free meditations, courses and talks on Insight Timer Holding words over on Substack Pelvic Healing Journey Here Postpartum Healing Journey Here Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  Ground Floor: on vaginismus, vulvodynia, and other ways we brace

  When Rest Doesn't Restore You

  Jun 10, 202634 min

  Have you ever taken the holiday, had the lie-in, booked the massage, rested for days and still felt exhausted? In this episode we explore a truth many women quietly experience: sometimes rest doesn't restore. Drawing from my own recent experience of deep rest, nervous system overwhelm, nausea, and a body that ultimately demanded my attention, we unpack the difference between physical rest and nervous system restoration. Through the lens of Polyvagal Theory, motherhood, pelvic health, we explores why so many women remain depleted despite doing all the "right" things. Why does a weekend away sometimes leave us feeling no different? Why can stillness feel uncomfortable? Why do some women feel numb, restless, or disconnected when they finally stop? This episode explores: Nervous system regulation for mothers Why burnout and exhaustion aren't always solved by sleep The connection between chronic stress and the pelvic floor Sympathetic activation, hypervigilance, and high-functioning survival mode Dorsal shutdown, numbness, and emotional exhaustion How the body communicates through symptoms, periods, pain, and sensation Why conventional self-care often misses the deeper issue The role of rhythm, repetition, sensory grounding, and embodied rest How women can begin receiving rest rather than simply doing rest If you've ever wondered why you're tired despite resting, why your body won't switch off, or why your periods, pelvic floor, libido, or energy levels are changing, this conversation offers a different perspective. This isn't about fixing yourself. It's about creating the conditions where genuine restoration becomes possible. Reflection Questions What is your body's default setting when you finally stop? When you land in rest, do you feel relief, numbness, or something else? What actually brings you back into your body? What would your body need in order to truly receive rest? Resources Mentioned Your Vagina Lies to You: The Key to Happiness Gold Standard Pelvic Journey Postpartum Care Journey Insight Timer Meditations Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  Ground Floor: on vaginismus, vulvodynia, and other ways we brace

  Resentment Is Information

  May 14, 202620 min

  What if the tiredness you call fine has another name? In this episode, we meet Claire- forty-three, functioning beautifully, quietly furious, and we follow the resentment she's been sitting on for years, held in her pelvis, gripped in her jaw, carried in shoulders. This isn't about blame, invisible loads, or one more thing to fix. It's about what the body keeps trying to tel us when we do not pause to listen or when we are too busy to listen. What becomes possible when we stop managing our resentment and get curious about what it's truly pointing to. Because the pelvic floor doesn't lie. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  Episode #54

  Why Analogue Feels Like Mothering Myself

  Apr 22, 202633 min

  Connecting to ourselves in the digital world is what this episode explores. Less digital noise and more embodied living. Here we chat all things digital through the nervous system lens and how this links to pelvic floor healing and mothering ourselves. And I keep coming back to this question: What if some of the most regulating, healing, mothering choices we can make are beautifully simple? Technically, analogue transmits through waves, digital through 1s and 0s. But for me, analogue means more than this. For thirty minutes we explore the best analogue tools for digital detox and emotional wellbeing. More holding Found Here:The Vagina Book Gold Standard Pelvic JourneyPostpartum Care JourneySubstack Insight TimerMain Websitehello@thisisnaomigale.co.uk@thisisnaomigale #fannychat Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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  Episode #53

  You’re Surrounded By People- So Why Do You Still Feel Alone?

  Apr 9, 202629 min

  It’s 2026. We’re done with fixing. We understand the solutions. The question now is quieter, but sharper: why aren’t we living what we already know? Women keep saying they want community. “I just want community.” But what if that’s not quite true? We like the idea of community.Connection. Depth. Being seen. But real community? It asks something of you. More holding Found Here:The Vagina Book Gold Standard Pelvic JourneyPostpartum Care JourneySubstack Insight TimerMain Websitehello@thisisnaomigale.co.uk@thisisnaomigale #fannychat Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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