Women have always used cleansing as an act of reclamation. From burning sage to clear a space, to salt baths that release what no longer serves, to water rituals symbolizing new beginnings; these practices are far more than decorative. They are deliberate acts of sovereignty over your body, your energy, and your story.

As a holistic wellbeing expert and longevity specialist, I’ve spent over 25 years studying how intentional rituals support emotional, physical and energetic balance and there is no practice more powerful than the ancestral wisdom women have passed down through generations.

For Women’s History Month, I invite you to honor the women who paved the way for you by embracing the feminine in all its dimensions. We are soft but strong, multi-faceted, radiant, intelligent and beautiful.

Our ancestors carved paths that allow us to love ourselves, our bodies and our energy fully and the rituals they left behind are tools for us to reclaim that freedom today.

Two foundational practices to start with this month are salt cleansing and sage smudging.

Salt Cleansing

Create a bath infused with Epsom or sea salt, and layer in heart-opening elements like rose petals or lavender. While the salt pulls toxins and stagnant energy from your body, your intention is the true catalyst: imagine washing away self-doubt, shame, or the weight of external expectations. You’re not just bathing—you are actively clearing space for your vitality, your joy, and your sovereignty.

Sage Smudging

For a daily or shorter practice, light sage and move it through your space and aura while consciously releasing what no longer aligns with your highest self. This simple yet profoundly grounding ritual helps you anchor in clarity, focus, and energetic alignment, connecting you to the lineage of women who practiced these acts of purification long before us.

Rituals for women are simultaneously personal and political. They are acts of resistance, self-love, and reclamation of agency. Whether it’s a morning grounding practice, a full moon circle, or a journaling ceremony, these intentional practices allow us to honor the women who came before, celebrate the woman we are today, and claim the woman we are becoming.

This Women’s History Month, choose a ritual that speaks to you and let it serve as a bridge between ancestral wisdom and your modern life. Your cleansing is more than symbolic; it’s transformative, empowering and deeply aligned with the lineage of strength, resilience and love that comes through every woman who has walked before you.

Happy Women’s History Month. Honor yourself. Honor your lineage. Honor your power.

Photo by Ron Hill