I can’t believe I’m talking to you about my period!
So taboo in our modern world.
I’m on a mission to make-over the stigma of our periods because it’s one of our greatest gifts as women.
You might be reading this and think I’ve lost my marbles but also intrigued by how you can also learn to love your period – or at least not hate it as much.
I went on birth control in high school for irregular periods not knowing that this was a sign from my body that something was off. It wasn’t until I tried to get pregnant that I was initiated into a 4-year deep dive into learning about my cycle.
At first, all I wanted to know was how to get pregnant – outside of just when I ovulated.
Men’s hormonal cycle lasts 24 hours (like the sun). Women’s hormonal cycle lasts about 28-29 days ( like the moon).
We live in a culture that values being ON and DOing.
But as my yoga teacher, Bryan Kest, always says, “the harder you are on something the faster it will burnout.”
There is wisdom in our cycle, a natural ebb, and flow that lends time for doing and resting.
I realized after having conversations with family and friends, that outside of trying to get pregnant, they wish they didn’t have a period — they see it as an inconvenience.
After having my son and nursing him for a year, I was surprised how excited I was to get my period back. I was ready to have the cyclical, wisdom back in my body.
Your monthly (moonly) cycle is a way to bring more self-awareness, acceptance, productivity, creativity, intuitive guidance, and health into your life.
There are 4 phases of your cycle and each one has gifts that will help you manage your time, energy and sanity.
First phase: Your bleed time (aka your moon time). Day 1 is the first of bleeding.
Why it’s awesome: Your intuition is at its peak during this time. Your right (creativity) and left (analytical) sides of your brain are synced giving you a vortex of intuitive guidance if you allow yourself to get quiet and listen. It’s time to do less, get quiet, meditate and journal on what you’d like to bring into your life over the next month. This phase has the energy of winter.
Second phase: Follicular. Your body is growing an egg and you’re biologically and hormonally wired to take action toward the intuitive hits you got during your bleed time. This is action taking phase. You might find you have lots of ideas so make a list and go one at a time. This phase has the energy of spring and you will have more energy and creativity during this phase.
Third phase: Ovulation. Your body is dropping an egg of potential pregnancy and it’s a potent time to bring your projects to fruition or launching a program. It’s also a time for communication, celebrating, connection or releasing anything that’s getting in the way of us reaching our goals. You might feel lighter and sexier during this phase of your cycle and some women have a bit of fatigue and bloating the day they ovulate. This phase has the energy of summer.
Fourth phase: Luteal. At the beginning of this phase, you will be drawn to organizing, cleaning and finishing up projects and on the later end your energy will decrease so rest more and boost up your self-care. It’s a time to stay in and say no to extracurricular activities. It’s been coined as the PMS phase because people will irritate you more than usual because our wired not to deal with any BS the days leading up to your cycle. Your brain might feel a bit foggy so it’s not a time to push. It’s a time to assess what’s working and not working and letting what’s not working die. The energy of this cycle is fall.
By understanding and getting curious about how you can work with your cycle vs. against it will have a positive impact on your health, productivity, energy, resiliency, and happiness.
Here’s how to love up on your cycle.
Track your cycle along with your energy, focus and any symptoms your experience during that phase. See if you notice any patterns and give yourself a break when your energy is down, trusting that it will rise up in just a few days, especially if you honor the time when your body and mind are calling for rest.
Did you have any questions or did this spark some curiosity in you? Hit me up via email and ask away – I LOVE helping women understand how to work with their wise bodies for greater ease, wholeness, and peace in their lives.