A safe space for women’s health in Petaluma

Most people understand the word “community,” but it’s so difficult to define that in 2001, the CDC co-founded a study to define what the word means. The results, published in the American Journal of Public Health, found that the majority of Americans share two core tenets about what defines community: location/sense of place, and sharing.

It makes sense in that context that Nicole “Nika” Fugo Zibelman, owner-founder of The Luma Center Acupuncture & Wellness in Petaluma, has become so interested in creating a community. In 2014, Nika – a trained acupuncturist, yoga teacher, massage therapist and a host of other healing arts – was living in Marin and training at the California School of Herbalism in Forestville. With every drive through Petaluma, she found herself drawn more to the town.

“It’s so family-oriented,” Zibelman says, explaining what originally brought her north.

Having a young child herself, she saw a need to start building a safe and healing place for other women.

“There is a shame culture,” she said, echoing a common observation about women’s reproductive health in American society. “It’s important not to work against each other. We want to be a bridge in the community.”

Zibelman highlights the dual importance of the center’s prenatal yoga classes as an example of what she is helping to build. Such classes are for helping the mother’s (and father’s) body recover faster and to build strength for all the new lifting, holding and everything else that comes with being a new parent.

Beyond the physical benefits, though, she points out after giving birth, it is difficult to find the time, energy or motivation to reach out to social networks, find friends or speak to others who understand the issues they are now facing.

“The more community you can build now,” she points out, “makes it so much easier to reach for support postpartum.”

Such a community is essential, Zibelman notes, because there is so much isolation in our society when it comes to things like menarche, peri-menopause, postpartum depression, infertility, miscarriages, and stillbirth. However, even the parts of women’s reproduction we as a society do speak of can still feel isolating.

“There is a judgment zone that is alive and well,” Zibelman says.

That “judgment zone” often arises around debates regarding natural birth versus C-section or breastfeeding versus bottle-feeding.

“The reality is that no one is doing things as perfectly as they look like they are doing on social media,” she says. “We are all figuring this out. We don’t have to be perfect. Breastfeeding doesn’t have to be easy. You don’t have to give birth in a specific way. Community is what’s important. We should lean into each other. The most important thing is to hold space and know what we know.”

Elaborating on “know what we know,” Zibelman speaks not only of the different traditions she was trained in but also the traditions of Western medicine and the traditional practices of other therapists at the center.

“There is a lot of crossover in many cultures about how women should care about their bodies,” she says. “We gather wisdom from the teachers and lineages that have come before. It’s common to have women undergoing IVF and coming in for fertility-focused acupuncture or massage.”

Regarding women dealing with miscarriage, loss or stillbirth, Zibelman says, “Acupuncture and herbal medicine can be extremely helpful at recovering from these events, both physically and mentally-emotionally. For those trying to conceive again, we help manage the stress and fears around another loss.”

Under such circumstances, Zibelman has found that an acupuncture session can be extremely supportive for a client’s nervous system and body in general.

“There are some people afraid of acupuncture because of the needles,” she allows, emphasizing that she always creates a safe and comfortable environment during the center’s acupuncture sessions, that the needles used can be as thin as a human hair, and that most people barely feel them.

“The patient is in control, not the acupuncturist.”

That environment of safety and respect, Zibelman suggests, is part of why Luma Center has frequently been named on North Bay ‘best of’ lists, including the Argus-Courier’s annual People’s Choice Awards. Such acknowledgments are not just good and positive exposure for the center, though.

“It lets people know there are resources, especially those who have been down these journeys,” Zibelman says. “It tells them there is support and where to find it.”

In keeping with Zibelman’s determination to build bridges in the community, she has collaborated with numerous other specialists and organizations. At the center, she works with seven other practitioners, ranging from acupuncturists to massage therapists, midwives and EDMR counselors. She has also collaborated with mother’s groups, the Botanical Bus and notably with Doula Bethany Gurrola’s Sister Moon retreats, aimed at allowing mothers to discuss menstrual cycles, consent and all the other things young girls need to learn in a nurturing environment.

“I deeply respect Bethany’s work,” Zibelman says, adding, “She is a force and a gift for the girls and youth around period education.”

Collaborations with and support for groups like Gurrola’s are representative of how Zibelman is working to build bigger and stronger networks. It all comes back to her belief in community.

“Community is essential, especially around transitions,” she says. “Our bodies have a language that is important for us to learn, especially for women and people with uteruses. Learning to shift the narrative even a little is especially important.”