Honouring the Womb Space through Ceremony and Connecting Energetically Through the Hysterectomy Process
- Beth MacLeod Gardner
- Mar 25
- 5 min read
We may think of ceremonies revolving around birth, marriage and death however the ritual of ceremony can be created for any major life event or rite of passage.
There are many moments in our life where we can experience loss and grief, and holding a ceremony or carrying out a ritual can help some people come to a place of acceptance of a big life change or a health crisis.
I was recently asked to create a womb ceremony for L, a woman who had found out that she needed to have a preventative hysterectomy. Although she had come to terms with being childfree, this impending surgery had an imposed finality to it that brought fresh grief and she was also anxious about losing her femininity and sexual power.
L is a deeply spiritual person and so it made sense to work closely with her on the rituals and the order of the ceremony. After an initial meeting, where she briefed me, I created a process to help her both come to terms with the idea of the surgery and to help her connect with her womb so she could guide the ceremony creation.
I do not claim to be a healer, my skills lie in the creation of a ceremony and then leading it and holding the ceremonial space. However for a life change like this, I felt that some healing and connection with L’s womb was a necessary step before I started crafting the ceremony and any associated rituals, so I connected L to Chloe, a sacred womb guide, who is dedicated to empowering women and womb bearers on their journey of self-discovery and transformation.
What does a sacred womb guide do?
Chloe supports women and womb-bearers navigating the journey of hysterectomy by helping them connect with both the energetic and physical aspects of their womb space.
Even as the physical womb is removed, its energy, wisdom, and power remain. This process offers a unique opportunity to listen, heal, and receive guidance from the womb space. It is an invitation to experience its presence in a deeply visceral and intuitive way.
The Purpose:
- To connect with the womb’s energy, even after its physical removal.
- To honour and embody the enduring power of the feminine.
- To listen, heal, and receive guidance.
- To step into empowerment through this transformation.
Through energy work and journeying, Chloe guides individuals to reconnect with their womb space, allowing them to access its wisdom, embrace healing, and move forward feeling whole, empowered, and deeply supported.
L had a session with Chloe, and she found it incredibly powerful and afterwards she wrote up all the emotions it brought up as well as the intense visualisations she experienced. We then had a debrief session where she shared her experience with me as, well as her writing, and we discussed a structure for the ceremony. I had already suggested a flow and some rituals, and the womb space connection session led to further ideas for rituals she could incorporate to acknowledge and release her emotions of regret, shame, guilt and grief.
Once we had agreed on the key elements for the ceremony I was able to start crafting it, incorporating her intense, personal visualisations of her past, current and future womanhood. The final ceremony was very much an honouring of the death of her physical womb as well as a very intimate and personal rebirthing and transformation.
On the day of the ceremony the weather was typically English, cold and wet with spells of sunshine, and given she was going to step into a waterfall it was not ideal. However at the pivotal moments in the ceremony (the waterfall cleanse, the energetic womb imprinting and the final blessing) the sun shone brightly, illuminating L and blessing her with sunbeams in the sacred space we had chosen. Both of us felt the magical power of the sun as it witnessed and celebrated her transformation.
L said about her experience:
“I wanted to engage with my hysterectomy as an opportunity for spiritual, physical and psychological healing and transformation. Beth created a ceremony which brought together the different elements of this process in a powerful ritual of release and rebirth, which we did together in the beautiful setting of the Ashdown Forest. She brought such care, creativity and professionalism to the process, listening to my experience and wishes, which she skillfully interpreted to design a unique and beautiful ceremony with lots of special touches. I have been able to turn a very difficult life event into an experience that holds meaning for the rest of my life, and working with Beth has been a huge part of that. I would highly recommend her as a celebrant who creates magical ceremonies for any of life’s turning points, rites of passage, crises and joys.”
L chose to do a private 1-1 ceremony with me. Other people may wish to gather their close friends around them to join in the singing, poems or rituals and to be both witnesses and supporters.
I am available to create a fully bespoke womb ceremony, similar to what L had, including a sacred womb space connection session with Chloe. Alternatively I can provide an affordable and beautiful womb ceremony for that that wish to simply honour this rite of passage.
If you would like to gather friends to join you then I can recommend a beautiful sacred space in Sussex where you can enjoy food and drink afterwards in a cosy cabin by a natural swimming pond.
Prices start from £200 for the simple and beautiful womb ceremony.
Please enquire for details of the bespoke ceremony with a sacred womb connection session, as well as the catered ceremony for a group of friends.
About Beth
Beth MacLeod changed her career after decades of working in events and communication and through her own experiences of grief and loss she was drawn to become a funeral celebrant, training with the Celebrants’ Collective, before extending into creating beautiful wedding ceremonies and other bespoke ceremonies to mark life’s momentous moments.
Beth lives in the Ashdown Forest and can hold ceremonies across Sussex, Kent and Surrey.
About Chloe
Chloe Isidora is a sacred womb guide, author, and practitioner dedicated to empowering women and womb bearers on their journey of self-discovery and transformation.
For over a decade, Chloe has supported hundreds of women to reconnect with the knowing of their hearts and wisdom of their wombs, embracing their sacredness and living with purpose, joy, and reverence.
Author of Sacred Self-Care: Everyday Rituals for a More Joyful and Meaningful Life
Founder of MYMOON Power, botanical essential oils for menstrual and cyclical harmony.
Sacred Womb Awakening & Tao Tantric Arts Facilitator, guiding one-on-one, group ceremonies and retreats.
Through her teachings, she inspires women to live authentically, align with their truth, and cultivate a profound connection to their bodies, emotions, and the natural world.
Chloe lives in Somerset and offers online sacred womb connection sessions.
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