Most of us carry body shame. Yet, we don't always know where we picked it up. In this episode we go a little deeper into the roots of shame — because understanding where it came from is one of the most powerful steps toward healing it. And what we find, when we look honestly, is that this shame runs deeper than any one experience or teaching. It's woven into our language, our culture, and even our anatomy textbooks. Here's one example that stopped me cold: the Latin word for vagina — pudendum — liter...
Most of us carry body shame. Yet, we don't always know where we picked it up.
In this episode we go a little deeper into the roots of shame — because understanding where it came from is one of the most powerful steps toward healing it. And what we find, when we look honestly, is that this shame runs deeper than any one experience or teaching. It's woven into our language, our culture, and even our anatomy textbooks.
Here's one example that stopped me cold: the Latin word for vagina — pudendum — literally means part to be ashamed of. That word has been in medical textbooks for centuries. It's in the name of the pudendal nerves — the very nerves responsible for much of a woman's sexual pleasure. And somewhere in our collective history, we absorbed that message into our bodies without ever being told it outright.
That's what shame does. It doesn't always arrive loudly. It seeps in quietly — through language, silence, the absence of good education, and the distance between our spiritual lives and our physical ones.
But here's the good news — and there is so much good news in this episode.
God has a different word for your body. Tov Meod. Very good. Beneficial. Lovely. Harmonious. Flourishing. Fulfilling its purpose.
That was his declaration over you when he made you. And it's still true.
In this episode you'll hear what it looks like to begin replacing the language of shame with the language of the garden. Including one surprisingly tender and powerful practice: renaming the parts of yourself you've been taught to be ashamed of.
A few key terms defined in this episode:
Embodiment — living connected to and aware of your physical body, not just operating from your head.
Tov Meod — Hebrew for "very good" — God's original declaration over his creation, including your body and your sexuality.
Befriending your body — choosing to treat your body with curiosity and kindness instead of shame or avoidance.
Come as you are. This is a journey, not a destination — and you are welcome here exactly where you are.
Ready to go deeper right now?
Back to the Garden is the guide I wrote for exactly where you are — a married woman's guide to pleasure by design. It's the most honest thing I've put together, and at $18 it's the easiest yes you'll make this week. → here
Questions? Find me on Instagram or at franciewinslow.com
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