Land Acknowledgement: I currently reside on the land colonized as Portland, Oregon. This land rests on traditional village sites of the Multnomah, Wasco, Cowlitz, Kathlamet, Clackamas, Bands of Chinook, Tualatin, Kalapuya, Molalla, and many other tribes who made their homes along the Columbia River. Indigenous people have created communities and summer encampments to harvest and enjoy the plentiful natural resources of the area since time immemorial.
Catherine Braxton, LMT, CFSD (Licensed Massage Therapist, Certified Full Spectrum Doula)
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers & They/them/theirs
Hi there! I came to the calling of movement, body awareness, wellness & reproductive justice at a very young age. A birth center baby delivered by a midwife in the 90’s, my adventure into the world was initially one of an organic and curious nature. My lineage is rooted within African peoples from Virginia, South Carolina & Georgia, Tsalagi peoples from Georgia, and Irish & German indentured servants. The first birth experience I remember being present for was at the age of 7 years old. I engaged in dance and body movement from the age of 5 to 18 in New York City at both the Harlem School of the Arts and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. In undergraduate studies at Wheaton College and Brown University, I chose Africana Studies and Theater, with a concentration in Ritual & Birth in the Antebellum South.
In moving through life, I found myself teaching theater, yoga and meditation to young people, children, adults and elders in my community, holding space for birthing people in the variety of Reproductive Choice and gathering large amounts of knowledge across ages and learning styles. In 2019, after obtaining a Massage Therapy license from East West College of the Healing Arts, and multiple certificates in Birth, Postpartum, Abortion care, and Herbalism, I founded In Search of A Garden: Birth & Bodywork LLC and began the journey of combining Full Spectrum Doula care with Bodywork, Yoga, Dance & herbal knowledge.
The way in which I approach this work is with deep reverence and care for the human in a holistic manner. My priority in this work is to encourage resilience and community care within groups of the global majority to help heal the hurt of colonialism.
My Approach
In engaging with me, I offer a safer space that is informed with kindness and love. As a survivor of trauma with Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder who has engaged and continues to engage in much education on the subject, I am highly knowledgeable in regards to mental, physical, emotional and spiritual wellness. I build spaces that are centered on trauma conscious wellness and awareness. I am focused on cultivating a space that authentically centers YOUR needs and wants while also incorporating communicative boundaries and awareness.
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What Knowledge Seeking Have I Done?
Wheaton College & Brown University on Wampanoag Land (Providence, RI) Concentrations: Theater & Africana Studies - Ritual & Pre-Antebellum North America including Viewpoints & additional Dance Composition Techniques
Trinity Repertory Company - Education Internship
And Yoga Studios/Anya Yoga - Yoga Internship
Jai Yoga Arts - 200HR RYT Yoga Certification
Planned Parenthood: Volunteer Abortion Assistant
Indigenous Women Rising - Advocacy Trainer/Blogger
Birth Advocacy Doula Training - Full Spectrum Doula to assist in the Full Spectrum of Birth, Abortion, Bereavement & Postpartum.
Be Abundant Bodywork - CranioSacral Apprentice
The Temple of the Intersection for Mankind - Initiates Path 2021-22
East West College of the Healing Arts - Massage Therapy
Grandma's Hands: Pregnancy & Postpartum Herbalism in the Southern Tradition: Certification of Completion
Conferences:
Born Into This 2020
Decolonized Unconference 2019
Let’s Talk About Sex Sistersong 2022 Presenter
Black Maternal Health Conference BMMA 2022
Organization Affiliations:
Northwest Reproductive Justice Collective
Bridgetown Baby
Community Doula Alliance
In Addition to having read numerous books and having engaged in numerous conversations of self and collective study.