The Water We Swim In

Both Things Can Be True At Once: Chanti Castaño on navigating complexity, touch, and trust

In this powerful conversation, we’re joined by Chanti Castaño —artist, healer, and founder of Soluna Medicines—to explore the realities of healing from childhood sexual trauma. Together, we name the often unspoken: the overlap of pleasure and violation, the confusion it creates in the body, and the long process of rebuilding safety, trust, and agency. This episode offers language for experiences many survivors carry in silence, while grounding them in the intelligence of the nervous system and the body’s instinct to survive. We also dive into the role of radical personal responsibility in healing—what it means to reclaim choice without bypassing harm. From celibacy and somatic work to plant medicine and relearning touch, Shanti shares the practices that helped her rewire her relationship to her body, sexuality, and self. This is a conversation about moving beyond survival mode and into sovereignty, where healing becomes embodied.Gentle disclaimer: the nature of this podcast is conversations about edgy stuff. Listen from a grounded, regulated place. 👉Topics Covered Healing from childhood sexual abuse Pleasure and trauma (and why they can coexist) Shame, confusion, and survivor validation Nervous system responses to sexual trauma Rewiring the body and sexual patterns Radical personal responsibility in healing Hypersexuality and survival strategies Learning safe, non-sexual touch Boundaries and reclaiming sexual agency Celibacy as a healing practice Plant medicine and trauma integration Parts work and self-awareness Moving from survival to sovereignty Learn more about Chanti's work [https://www.solunamedicines.com/] Follow Chanti on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/solunamedicines/]Follow The Water We Swim In on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thewaterweswimin/] Follow Ashley Waverley on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/ashley.waverley/], or learn more about her work here. [https://www.ashleywaverley.com/] Follow Samara Valentina on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/samarahealingandawakening/] or learn more about her work here. [https://www.samarahealingandawakening.com/] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thewaterweswimin.substack.com [https://thewaterweswimin.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

It Really Was That Bad: Clementine Morrigan on incest, invalidated trauma, and recovery

Gentle disclaimer: the nature of this podcast is conversations about edgy stuff. This episode contains mentions of self-injury. Listen from a grounded, regulated place. In this episode, we are joined by writer and activist Clementine Morrigan for a thoughtful conversation on how early relational harm shapes identity, attachment, and survival strategies. Together, we explore how family systems organize around silence and blame, how chronic invalidation impacts the nervous system, and why many people struggle to recognize their experiences as harmful. Clementine offers insight into dissociation, truth-telling, and the long, nonlinear work of recovery, inviting listeners to consider healing as a process rooted in context, relationship, and embodied self-trust. 👉 Topics Covered ▪️Scapegoat dynamics & cancel culture ▪️Clementine’s abuse history & family system ▪️Structural dissociation ▪️Neglect, attachment trauma, and mothers’ roles ▪️How to notice and intervene around children ▪️Attachment patterns in adult relationships ▪️CSA as the #1 political issue ▪️Spirituality, underworld journeys, and healing 👉 Learn more about Clementine Morrigan: Long-form writing [https://www.clementinemorrigan.com/] Buy her book F*cking Magic [https://www.revolutionaries.com.au/books/p/fm] Listen to her pod: F*cking Canceled [https://www.fuckingcancelled.com/] Follow her Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/clementinemorrigan/] The End of Scapegoating and the Beginning of Wholeness as the Ground by Darananda [https://www.dara.energy/blog/the-end-of-scapegoating] Follow The Water We Swim In on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thewaterweswimin/] Follow Ashley Waverley on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/ashley.waverley/], or learn more about her work here. [https://www.ashleywaverley.com/] Follow Samara Valentina on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/samarahealingandawakening/] or learn more about her work here. [https://www.samarahealingandawakening.com/] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thewaterweswimin.substack.com [https://thewaterweswimin.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Wombs Are Ungovernable

A spacious, survivor-centered conversation about birth control, fertility, and bodily sovereignty. Through personal stories, ancestral context, and lived experience, we explore how hormonal birth control and medicalized pregnancy prevention can reinforce dissociation, freeze, and the outsourcing of safety for many survivors of se ual trauma. Rather than offering prescriptions or medical advice, this episode reframes the conversation entirely. What becomes possible when fertility is approached through agency, intimacy, choice, and relationship with the body, the womb, and the cycles themselves? Gentle disclaimer: the nature of this podcast is conversations about edgy stuff. Listen from a grounded, regulated place. Topics Covered in This Episode How dominant birth control narratives shape fear, control, and disembodiment Personal birth control journeys, including the pill, condoms, ab rtion, and IUDs The emotional and somatic impact of gynecological care on survivors Outsourcing safety vs cultivating embodied agency and self-trust Fertility awareness and cycle tracking as a relational practice, not a rule set Free bleeding, reclaiming menstrual blood, and repairing shame around menstruation The role of trauma, dissociation, and freeze in fertility decisions Ancestral loss of herbal and cycle wisdom and its impact on women’s autonomy Plant allies and non-hormonal approaches to pregnancy prevention Intent, ritual, and conscious choice in se ual intimacy Inviting men into cycle awareness, responsibility, and relational intimacy When celibacy can be a reparative and empowering choice Reframing fertility not as a problem to manage, but as power to steward Resources mentioned in this episode: 🌿 Learn more about Lauren and her education on fertility tracking and natural birth control [https://www.instagram.com/wombrewilded/] 🩸Learn more about Chaya and her womb work [https://yoursacredpelvis.com/] 🌺 Our favorite natural birth control cream: Wise Women's Choice [https://wisewomenschoice.com/?coupon=water] 🌙 Our favorite period underwear: Wild Moon [https://www.wildmoonunderwear.com/?ref=water] 📖 Taking Charge of Your Fertility: [https://bookshop.org/a/119492/9780062326034]The Definitive Guide to Natural Birth Control, Pregnancy Achievement, and Reproductive Health by Toni Weschler [https://bookshop.org/a/119492/9780062326034] 🧶 Birth control tapestry by Alexandria Masse [https://www.instagram.com/alexandria.masse/] 🌊 Follow The Water We Swim In on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thewaterweswimin/] ❤️‍🔥 Follow Ashley Waverley on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/ashley.waverley/], or learn more about her work here. [https://www.ashleywaverley.com/] 👁️ Follow Samara Valentina on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/samarahealingandawakening/] or learn more about her work here. [https://www.samarahealingandawakening.com/] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thewaterweswimin.substack.com [https://thewaterweswimin.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

When Desire Isn't Choice: Trauma, Intimacy, and Power

Gentle disclaimer: the nature of this podcast is conversations about edgy stuff. Listen from a grounded, regulated place. In this episode, we explore how se ual tra uma can shape desire, intimacy, and relational patterns in ways that often go unseen. Rather than prescribing what sexuality should look like, this conversation centers on discernment—how to tell the difference between true choice and patterns formed around survival, conditioning, and early relational confusion. Through personal storytelling and nervous‑system‑informed reflection, we examine reenactment, agency, and the ways intensity is often mistaken for intimacy. Topics Covered -Trauma and the nervous system -Reenactment vs. conscious choice -Intensity, intimacy, and attachment -Trauma bonding and relational patterns -Agency, boundaries, and embodiment Read Ashley's writing on celibacy. [https://thisisthething.substack.com/p/everything-ive-learned-while-celibate-for-two-years] Follow The Water We Swim In on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thewaterweswimin/] Follow Ashley Waverley on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/ashley.waverley/], or learn more about her work here. [https://www.ashleywaverley.com/] Follow Samara Valentina on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/samarahealingandawakening/] or learn more about her work here. [https://www.samarahealingandawakening.com/] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thewaterweswimin.substack.com [https://thewaterweswimin.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

The Relationship Between Trauma, the Body, and Food

Gentle disclaimer: the nature of this podcast is conversations about edgy stuff. Listen from a grounded, regulated place. (The audio on this episode is admittedly subpar, but we are rolling with it! Please bear with us. Upgraded audio coming next week!) A slow, honest conversation about the relationship between trauma, the body, and food. Ashley and Samara share parts of their own lived experience, and name what so often goes unspoken: how control, restriction, and disconnection can become ways the body tries to stay safe. Rather than treating these patterns as problems to fix, the conversation stays with what they protected, what they cost, and why they make sense. There’s no prescription, no diagnosis, and no promise of transformation by the end. Instead, the focus is on listening, on learning how to be in relationship with the body again after it’s felt unsafe to inhabit, and on letting go of shame without rushing toward solutions. It’s an episode for anyone who has ever felt at odds with their body or their relationship with food and is curious about what becomes possible when that struggle is met with honesty and care. Why This Episode Is Different • It’s led by lived experience, not theory or diagnosis• There’s no moralizing food, bodies, or coping strategies• Control is named as intelligence, not pathology• Trauma is discussed through the body, not just the story• Shame is addressed without using fear or urgency• There’s no “fix,” program, or promise at the end• Complexity is allowed: gratitude for survival strategies and readiness to let them go• The conversation moves at a nervous-system pace, not a productivity one• Listening is treated as an act of healing, not compliance Join us for a monthly Survivors Circle [https://www.eventbrite.com/e/womens-circle-for-survivors-tickets-1668776157409?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl] Follow The Water We Swim In on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/thewaterweswimin/] Follow Ashley Waverley on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/ashley.waverley/], or learn more about her work here. [https://www.ashleywaverley.com/] Follow Samara Valentina on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/samarahealingandawakening/] or learn more about her work here. [https://www.samarahealingandawakening.com/] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thewaterweswimin.substack.com [https://thewaterweswimin.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]