Vaginal Steaming After Birth—and Forever:
Honoring the Womb with Ancestral Care
In many traditional cultures around the world, vaginal steaming has been practiced for generations as a powerful form of postpartum and lifelong womb care. Today, thanks to the work of teachers and practitioners like Rachelle Garcia Seligaof INNATE Traditions, we are remembering this wisdom—not as a trend, but as a sacred return to the understanding that women are worthy of care throughout every stage of life.
What Is Vaginal Steaming?
Vaginal steaming, also known as yoni steaming, is a practice in which a woman sits or kneels over a pot of gently steaming water infused with herbs. The steam rises and surrounds the perineum and vaginal tissues, offering warmth, herbal medicine, and energetic attention to the womb space.
This isn’t just about physical cleansing—it’s about energetic release, grounding, and reorienting the nervous system. It’s about presence. It’s about honoring the deep wisdom of our bodies.
Why Steam After Birth?
In the postpartum period, vaginal steaming can support:
Uterine healing and involution
Lochia release (clearing remaining fluids)
Tissue repair and toning
Pelvic floor integration
Emotional and energetic processing after birth
Rachelle Garcia Seliga teaches that “postpartum is forever”—not because we are forever recovering from birth, but because the imprint of birth stays with us. Steaming after birth is a way to close the body with intention, warmth, and support, instead of leaving it open, depleted, and uncared for.
Why Steam Forever?
Just as we care for our teeth, our skin, and our hearts—our womb and pelvic space also deserve ongoing attention and care. Steaming can be integrated into a monthly or seasonal rhythm as a way to:
Regulate or ease the menstrual cycle
Support fertility and hormonal balance
Reduce stagnation or pain
Connect to your cycle with reverence and intention
Restore after miscarriage or trauma
Simply offer warmth, rest, and grounding in a fast-paced world
It’s not just physical—it’s deeply emotional and spiritual. The womb is a place of memory, creativity, and intuition. Vaginal steaming is one way we listen to her.
A Simple How-To
If you’re called to begin this practice, start gently.
Choose Your Herbs: Common herbs include mugwort, calendula, yarrow, lavender, rose, and motherwort. You can purchase a pre-blended steam mix or gather your own. Avoid essential oils.
Prepare Your Space: Boil water and pour over the herbs in a heat-safe bowl or pot. Let steep and cool slightly.
Set Up Your Seat: Use a bowl and simply wear a skirt, get on your knees and lean on a couch while the bowl is under your vagina. You can also use a specially designed yoni steam stool or a sturdy chair with slats. Wrap your lower body in blankets to keep the steam enclosed.
Steam Gently: Sit or kneel for 10–30 minutes. Breathe deeply. Be with your body.
Rest Afterward: Always follow a steam session with warmth, rest, and hydration.
Do not steam during pregnancy, active infection, or if you have an IUD. Always consult your midwife or pelvic care practitioner if you have specific conditions or concerns.
A Return to Innate Wisdom
As Rachelle teaches, "Every culture on Earth, that has not been destroyed, cares for postpartum women." Vaginal steaming is part of that care. It is a reclamation of the sacred feminine. It is healing that is ours by birthright. Whether you are one week or 40 years postpartum, your womb is worthy of warmth, softness, and deep listening.
Inspired by the teachings of Rachelle Garcia Seliga and INNATE Traditions.
Visit INNATE Traditions to learn more.