Service Description

Closing the Bones is a traditional postpartum healing ritual, best known through the Mexican rebozo tradition and practiced worldwide. Each lineage varies, but the shared purpose is to honour birth as a rite of passage and to support physical, emotional and spiritual integration. These ceremonies offer deep rest, reflection and care. Trained by Mexican midwife Naoli Vinaver, we offer Closing the Bones with reverence for its traditional origins and healing wisdom. Pregnancy and birth leave the body open. Closing the Bones offers the gift of being gently "closed" again. Through massage, heat, stillness and rebozo wrapping, the body releases tension, the mind slows, and the nervous system softens. It soothes and restores a body that has endured much. What happens during the ceremony (3–4 hours): Welcome circle and tea; space to share and be witnessed. Nourishing food and drink are served. Full-body oil massage to ground, warm and release. Heat or steam (herbal bath or sauna) to aid circulation and release. Cedar or rosemary, or pouring herbal water, awaken the senses. This is a moment to name grief, voice burdens, pray, or be silent. Some share stories, cry or groan; all expressions are welcome. This "fire" helps move through what needs cleansing. Deep rest: after the bath/steam you’re wrapped in blankets to sweat, release and settle. Rebozo wrapping at head, shoulders, ribs, womb, pelvis, legs and feet; the holding offers containment, integration and closure. Shared meal to close the space. The ceremony focuses on listening, witnessing and attuning to each person's needs. It's less a script and more presence. The experience can be tender, powerful and transformative. When to receive: After any birth, even years later. It's never too late. When complete with childbearing, as closure. After loss, miscarriage or abortion, as honouring and release. During transitions like menopause, grief or relationship endings. Closing the Bones is about returning to yourself, reclaiming body and spirit stretched by caregiving, birthing or surviving. These transitions should not go unacknowledged. These traditions remind us of the power of being held, witnessed and cared for in community. Our practitioners attend each person with compassionate care offering tailored support, gentle guidance and suggestions for at home integration. Ceremonies offered with informed consent, cultural respect and sensitivity to pace and expression.