Sacred Metabolism with Carla Wainwright

In this episode we’re talking with Carla Wainwright, a Midlife Alchemist, Coach, and Sexual Awakening Facilitator with over two decades in the healing arts. She bridges the science of the body with the sacredness of life experience—helping women 40 and beyond reclaim vitality, balance hormones, and reconnect with pleasure and power. 

In this episode, we explore what she calls Sacred Metabolism—how our bodies process stress, emotion, and pleasure—and why so many of us unknowingly choose stress over joy. Carla’s work invites us to shift back into energy, ease, and the deep aliveness that midlife is meant to hold. 

Transcript

Today we’re talking with Carla Wainwright, a Midlife Alchemist, Coach, and Sexual Awakening 

Facilitator with over two decades in the healing arts. She bridges the science of the body with the sacredness of life experience—helping women 40 and beyond reclaim vitality, balance hormones, and reconnect with pleasure and power. 

In this episode, we explore what she calls Sacred Metabolism—how our bodies process stress, emotion, and pleasure—and why so many of us unknowingly choose stress over joy. Carla’s work invites us to shift back into energy, ease, and the deep aliveness that midlife is meant to hold. 

“This conversation is pure nourishment 

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Welcome in, Carla. I'm so excited to talk about sacred metabolism. This is such a wonderful topic. But before we dive in, please tell our audience a little bit about yourself and how you came to this point in your life? 

Speaker Carla 

Absolutely, I would love to… Darla. So my story, I always begin my story by just really emphasizing that as a child, I was so connected to nature and the mysteries of life, the seen and the unseen worlds, and that really led me on the path that I am today. So I started as a young person being very connected to the biological world. I'm trained as a wildlife biologist, which really allowed me to channel my passion for nature for a long time, but in my 20s, I experienced some two sexual assaults that really turned my world upside down. And I just found kind of day to day living becoming very, very difficult because of that trauma. And so I really embarked upon a healing journey that brought me into first yoga practice, and then tantric practices, and then sexual awakening practices. And as I began to really dive into that healing journey, I realized that working in that area or supporting other women in that area was really my true calling. So I gave up my life as a wildlife biologist, and really completely surrendered myself into this path of healing and the sacred feminine embodiment and all of those various really wonderful esoteric aspects that have so much potential and power to support women. And then I as I was moving through my own perimenopausal journey in my 40s, I really felt a strong pull to come back to some of my scientific roots, to really understand the biology of the body and how to allow a body to thrive as you're moving through this really powerful initiation in perimenopause to menopause, which had a lot of its own challenges. So, you know, I returned back to my scientific roots to really study metabolism and understand more about optimal lifestyle, so that, you know, I could really move through that transition in the best way possible myself, and also support the women that I was working with. And so I know we're going to talk about sacred metabolism here in a moment, but where I'm at today is really a fusion of my scientific and sacred backgrounds, and this is really, it feels, in some ways, I've come full circle, and I really love the capacity of being able to bring both of those aspects of my life experience together. 

Speaker Dar 

Thank you. Thank you for sharing that and it seems so appropriate to call yourself a midlife Alchemist with bringing all those things together. So let's jump into sacred metabolism, maybe first defining some terms for us and then telling us all about it,. 

Speaker Carla 

So this is a term that I've come up with because it really feels like it encompasses the two energy bodies that we all have. So of course, metabolism, as most people are familiar with, is really the ability to take food in and convert that into energy, and the energy that we live our lives with. And so most people are familiar with metabolism, from that standpoint, our physical metabolism. But of course, we also have another energy system in our body, which is the energy that is harder to quantify, the energy that really is much more etheric, but just as important. And that energy body in our modern world has, in large part, really been dismissed or just repressed in many ways, but like I said, it is just as important as our physical metabolism. So the sacred metabolism is really this, in my view, a holistic approach of supporting the body and these two energy systems, and it's when we do this, when we support both the physical and the energetic. This is where we come into really the fullness, the vibrancy of who we are. And really are able to expand into life from a place. Of, yeah, authentic and full and complete energy. So that's this, like I said, it's a term that I've come up with, but I feel like it really does speak to the importance of tending to these two very important aspects of our life. 

Speaker Dar   

Yes, and I love that you say it's a holistic support with that etheric energy and the physical energy. Could you give us a little bit of an example of how you work with your clients? 

Speaker Carla  

Yeah, absolutely. So of course, every client is different, and everyone's needs, you know, are unique and individual. Sometimes I begin more with the lifestyle piece so around metabolic health from a physical standpoint. So really looking at diet, looking at circadian rhythms, sleep, detoxification of the body, all of the things that we would associate with just a healthy lifestyle from a physical standpoint, and some of those changes, you know, they can lead to radical shifts in how a woman feels and the energy that that becomes available to her. But at the same time, I always want to really honor a woman's energy system as well, so I weave into my work with women these sacred feminine practices, many of them coming from the wisdom traditions from around the world where there was a deep acknowledgement of the power, the innate power that is within primarily a woman's sexual energy body, and beginning to help a woman access that, often for what feels like the first time, and To be able to use that energy as a source of deep intuition, wisdom and healing. So we we move between, you know, what feels often like the concrete, physical Chase changes that we might make with for with a lifestyle, but then we also weave in the practices that help a woman become more finely attuned to that deep, intuitive knowing, to the energy moving in her body, to her expansive capacity to channel that energy into creative endeavors, into the way that she lives her life, her relationships, all of those various pieces. So it is, as you know, we just said, like a holistic approach of really weaving these two very important ways of living together. 

Speaker Dar  

That's wonderful, how you honor the energy systems of both of them, and kind of weave it together. Can you give us some examples of maybe some client transformations? We want to keep the client information confidential, but perhaps you could give us a few examples of the changes that you've seen happen with your clients. 

Speaker Carla  

Absolutely. So you know, unfortunately, we live in a time in our history where people, men and women, are profoundly unhealthy. So the statistic that comes from the US is that only 8% of people are metabolically healthy. And so of course, that also includes women. And because of this, many women are really struggling with lack of energy, poor sleep, very poor digestion, lots of brain fog and just not feeling like themselves. And this, actually, as we move through this perimenopausal transition, is all unfortunately heightened because of the shift in our hormones, and we don't have some of the protective effects of estrogen and progesterone in the way that we did when we were younger. So it can be a really, very turbulent time. And so when women come to me, they're often really struggling with the things that I just mentioned. And so what happens when we start to really support the body's natural healing capacity, first through lifestyle and then additionally, adding these, these practices of the sacred feminine, what happens is that not only do women start to feel much better in their body. So I've had over and over again clients who've just are completely stunned by how much more energy they have, that their symptoms reduce, that they sleep better, that they feel clearer, that they feel more able to really express what it is that they want and need in their lives, and then the energy practice. What women tell me, is that, and it's been my own lived experience too, is that the capacity to really feel into our deep, intuitive knowing, particularly you know, what we could call the womb voice. So whether or not you have a physical womb or not, there is a deep inner knowing that comes from this place that really becomes like a compass. And so when we, when we support the body, and we allow ourselves to tap into the understanding and the feeling of that energy within ourselves, it really does become this place, not this place rather, but this part of us that is able to guide and direct our lives in new and expansive ways. So I would say that the testimonials are quite remarkable, because instead of living life from a place of being depleted or feeling that you're in a decline, women tell me that they now feel like they're stepping into the most powerful time of their lives, which I truly believe I feel that menopause, it is a portal. It is a portal and a rite of passage into this incredibly powerful and potent time. And what my clients say is that they feel ready and able and excited about stepping into that place.  

Speaker Dar  

WoW! Thank you for those examples, and I really like that you articulated that womb voice that many women start to discover. It's one of the wisdom gifts of growing older, I believe, is being able to really tune into that womb voice. I also think that's very interesting, the 8% only 8% are metabolically healthy. 

Would you talk about that a little bit more? 

Speaker Carla  

Yes…I mean, it is, it is quite the staggering statistic. Yeah. I think that we will. I know that after decades and decades of our food supply being so compromised, processed food being, you know, for many people, the large part of what they typically eat within a day, we're not moving our bodies. We're not getting sunshine. We're not getting natural light, which is impacting our circadian rhythms. So there's kind of this perfect storm of all of these different things that are happening within our modern lifestyle that are really destabilizing the human body. And I think many people might realize that, you know, they don't feel quite right, but they might not realize how metabolically unhealthy they are. And the other thing I'll add to this is this, the just the sheer amount of stress that the average person, and particularly women in midlife, really, really endure, also has a massive effect on our metabolic health. So cortisol, which is, of course, produced when we're, you know, in a stressful situation, it is actually the hormone of movement. You know, we have cortisol going through our bodies, and we're, you know that that's a good thing, because it's meant to keep us safe. But when we experience stressful events over and over and over again, and that cortisol is rising in our bodies, and we're not able to really discharge it properly, it really creates a cascade of negative metabolic effects in the body. So what that means is it makes us more insulin resistant, so it's harder for your cells to be able to take in that insulin and manage the glucose levels that you have in your body. That is a huge contributor to being metabolically unhealthy, and it also absolutely impacts our sex hormones as well, and our thyroid hormones. So, you know, in addition to all of the poor lifestyle experiences that so many of us have, just the you know, the sheer amount of stress that we're dealing with in our modern lifestyle is one of the huge contributors to being so metabolically unhealthy at this time. 

Speaker Dar  

Thank you. Thank you for that clarification. And I know you just briefly mentioned suppressing the pleasure. Would you talk a little bit about women and pleasure and power, 

Speaker Carla 

I would love it to be one of my favorite topics, thrilled that you asked. So what's interesting, of course, is that, as women, we are hardwired biologically to choose stress over pleasure. And this is, this is, you know, an evolutionary strategy. It kept us safe for, you know, 1000s of years. However, in our modern life, again, because we have so many stressful events each and every day, it really actually becomes something that is a big detriment. So we consciously choose stress over pleasure. The paradox, of course, is that pleasure is the antidote to stress. And one of the beautiful things about being a human being is that we have the capacity to make conscious choices. And even though we might have a, you know, a biological drive to choose stress, we actually can make a choice point and choose pleasure instead. It's an imperfect system, and I will be the first to admit that I am not able to do that all the time, but I am aware enough that when I have that choice point, I could choose to invite pleasure in. So what do I mean by that? I believe that every woman needs to have a minimum of five experiences every day to choose pleasure. So instead of, let's say, scrolling on your phone, instead of, you know, perhaps worrying about a conversation that you had that was challenging, perhaps like getting to your to do list and just kind of numbing out, or whatever that is, can you instead invite in five pleasurable moments, or just even if it's just one at that time, but over a day having five of those experiences? Because what pleasure does is it releases oxytocin in the body, and oxytocin is the antidote to cortisol. So remember, cortisol is the stress hormone, oxytocin, the love hormone, the connection hormone, the pleasure hormone, is the antidote. So it lowers that cortisol in the body. It makes us more insulin sensitive, meaning our bodies metabolically, metabolically work better, and it also helps to balance and even out our sex and thyroid hormones. So we have to be intentional about bringing in oxytocin, rich pleasure, rich moments each and every day. And so that number five, I feel like is the bare minimum, but if we are conscious to bring five moments in our day, we will begin to notice the impact that that has on how we feel and how we function throughout our days. 

Speaker Dar 

Oh, that's an interesting challenge to put out there five pleasure moments during the day. I'm going to take you up on that. Carla, excellent. Would you share an activity with our audience? I just can't wait. 

Speaker Carla   

Okay, so I would love to. And the one thing that I'll share just before we begin here is that sometimes we equate the word pleasure with just needing to be related to sexual pleasure. And of course, it can be that, but pleasure can be so many different things, so I encourage your listeners to be creative in ways that they experience pleasure. So always be guided by your senses. That's always a great place to begin. Like, what can I see that gives me pleasure? What can I hear that gives me pleasure? Touch, all of those sorts of things. And so what I'd like to guide you through now is just a very simple pleasure practice that I often do myself, especially when I notice that the stress is creeping in, and maybe I'm even in a public situation where I want to give myself some of that antidote of pleasure, but I want it to be very discreet and that nobody would really notice what I'm doing. So I'm going to invite you, if you're listening and it's safe to do so, to close your eyes, and if you're sitting, just maybe have both of your feet on the ground and just taking a couple of breaths, just some easy, cleansing breaths, just letting yourself arrive in this beautiful body of yours. 

Speaker Carla 

Now I invite you to, with one hand, take your thumb and just very gently and very sensually rub the index finger and middle finger, the top of the finger, like the pads of the finger. See if you can slow down and just allow yourself to know. Notice what it feels like to connect with your body in this very simple yet a powerful way. So noticing the different sensations.  

I'm noticing what the different part of the fingertip feels like. Maybe there's softer places, maybe there's places that feel a little bit denser, and then your thumb can even just sort of run down towards the palm of the hand, up and down the finger.   And just being curious, what am I noticing?   There's no right or wrong way to feel it's just a noticing, and then you can just bring that to a close, so just letting the hand relax and taking another couple of breaths. And I always invite women to really scan the inner landscape of your body, so just be aware of how we just did this, probably for under a minute, what's changed or shifted as a result of you just being present with touch in your body. In this way, do and then that's it. Yeah, that's a really simple pleasure practice that you can do of coming back into your body and just touching and it's so discreet, nobody would notice what you're doing, of just coming back into yourself and connecting with your body 

Speaker Dar   

That was terrific. Thank you for sharing. 

There's something else I'd like you to share too. You have a gift for our audience, and I'd love to have you talk a little bit about how they can move forward and work with you. 

Speaker Carla  

Absolutely I'd love to, so I've created a gift that will help every woman really support her sacred metabolism. And so I know from experience that it's all about creating some momentum with small, easy, doable steps. So I created something called the Vibrancy Guide, which features five steps, all very, very doable, and they can build upon one another, that a woman can start today, and includes pleasure Absolutely. It includes some metabolic suggestions. As well, and you can just go to vibrancy reset.com and it's absolutely free, and I would love for women to enjoy that. 

And then in terms of getting in touch with me, you can also get in touch with me there that will take you to my website. So vibrancy reset com, and I run group programs, a great group program called feel great in your body. And I do one on one work as well as retreats for women as well. So if anyone has any questions or is just curious, I love, love, love having authentic, heartfelt conversations with women. So please reach out, and I would love to continue the conversation with you. 

Speaker Dar 

Thank you. Thank you so much for talking to us today about sacred metabolism. I know we just touched the surface, but how wonderful that they can get hold of a vibrancy guide and reset right away. Thank you, thank you. Thank you. 

Speaker Carla 

Thank you so much. This has been great. Thanks 

Transcribed by https://otter.ai