YONI STEAMING... What it is and what it isn't By Erlinda Carter | @girlgangsteaming
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irst things first, all POV shared here is mine, Erlinda Carter, and mine alone. With all things, take what you like and leave the rest.
Yoni steaming, or vaginal steaming, is an ancient wellness practice done all over the world — except in the U.S. The reason for this is a long list that starts off with white men becoming doctors and banishing our healers and holistic practices. If you were to ask your medical provider their thoughts on yoni steaming, you would likely get a bit of pushback or transparency. Our medical system has not studied vaginal steaming, so this practice and the data may not be provided in any medical journal. If you were to google yoni steaming, you would see several articles calling you names for even googling it or telling you your yoni dreams are about to come true. I walk in the gray area, and, for me, the gray area is LARGE. I have been steaming my vulva for seven years. I learned about this practice at a women’s gathering in my friend's living room. On folding chairs in the Mumu Mansion on a Friday night, I intently listened to Keli Garza of Steamy Chick talk about all the things I had been dealing with for what felt like my entire adult life: bacterial vaginosis, yeast infections, postpartum healing, seven-day periods, blood clots, and intense cramps. Since I was little, all the things I was going through were normalized. The pain and discomfort was my lot in life for being born a girl, and there was nothing I could do about it. Then, right there, in that living room, the walls of the box I was put in all came tumbling down. I was SOLD! But I still had lots to learn about 42 | Noire Women’s Wellness
steaming and my body and how the two would work together. After five years of steaming, I became a yoni steaming practitioner, learning from Keli Garza. My ego loved the title, but I was quickly humbled. In 2018, I met a dear business partner and friend who invited me to lead a steaming circle. She was gathering a group of womb-bodied women for a three-day fall retreat. I hadn't even steamed with one client, let alone a group. The first night of the retreat was led by Pamela Samuelson of Embodywork LA in her Taking Back the Speculum workshop. I can tell you right now I did not want the darn speculum! But that offering changed my entire life! When I used the speculum on myself, I could see down my vaginal canal and my cervix. Around my cervix, I could see what I knew instantly but was in denial about was blood. I was on day 11 of my cycle. I stopped bleeding on day four. Sitting there was old blood! That day I had an odor that was, as we all know, very embarrassing. I knew that night I would be taking back a damn speculum and cleaning myself up. I’d had no idea I would find old blood: humbling moment number one. On my journey, I have met a handful of women who steam with their aunties and grandmothers. This tradition has been passed down to them. They took no class and got no title, but they know the benefits and risks and can speak of it just as well. I have sat in a circle with these women side-eyeing me and my “title.” Let’s take a quick moment to honor generational wisdom: humbling moment number two.
