I want to talk to you about a very sacred thing that unites us all as women and with the cycles of nature and the planets. It’s something I’ve been studying and diving into on my own journey over the past several years, and I’ve been a little nervous to talk about here. 

I’m talking about your moon cycle, or period.

Perhaps when you read the word “period”, you shudder or want to click off this page. Maybe it brings to mind the feelings of pain, embarrassment, frustration, and messiness.

I’m here to tell you that I get it.

In this society, we are taught that periods are a nuisance and something to be “managed” as much as possible.

I have a friend who calls it her “monthly hell”. 

I have another friend whose high school boyfriend said she smelled weird and was a “lunatic” when she was menstruating.

But I’m here to tell you that, after years of hating my period, I have come to see it as a beautiful and sacred part of being a woman.

Something that represents our connection with the monthly phases of the moon, the tides, and symbolizes our fertility as beings who create life (which is a dang miracle if you ask me).

In many ancient civilizations, a woman’s moon time was treated as a sacred moment each month where she would take pause from her usual duties to tend to her bleeding body and pamper it in its tenderness. Are you familiar with the book, The Red Tent? It’s a good read.

I didn’t always feel that my moon time was a special thing.

I was put on birth control early in my teenage years (to treat acne), which resulted in irregular bleeding, unpredictable hormonal swings, and intense physical pain. My doctors jumped me from birth control option to birth control option to try to get “ahead” of my symptoms, and finally settled one that eliminated my period altogether. I was thrilled at that idea. No more monthly misery and messiness for me to deal with.

For the next 7 years of my life, for the most part I relished in the fact that I didn’t have to deal with the nuisance of bleeding every month.

I was a free and modern woman…until I started to feel strange.

Disconnected from the magic of my feminine nature, like a limb had been cut off from me.

I found myself in conversations with woman around fertility and moon cycle care, and I had nothing to say about it. I didn’t bleed every month. I had no idea what phase of my cycle I was in. It saddened me. I suddenly longed to feel like a fully-embodied woman. One who could feel her connection to the moon and the ebbs and flows of the different phases of her cycle.

via

So I made a decision to go off hormonal birth control and delve into a journey of self-discovery with my moon cycle.

I’ve been studying everything from herbal remedies to alternative birth control methods to nutritional methods for reducing PMS. I have been learning about ancient rituals to honor one’s moon time and meeting incredible women who have made it their life’s work to help sisters make peace with their periods once again.

I have naturalized my monthly cycle in a way that feels beautiful and honoring of my individual feminine body. I feel more intuitive and more centered as a woman. I have deepened my connection to my body, to the planet, and to my fellow women all around the world. 

I love talking about this stuff, and have found so many women are dying to have the conversation too. To share their experience with their period and their hormones.

A few weeks back, I made a video asking my newsletter subscribers to share their experiences with their periods and what questions they had about it. Some of the comments I got were:

• I’ve never had a good relationship with my period and I don’t know how to change it.
• I have very heavy flow so finding a way to handle that has always been a problem.
• I have heard tampons aren’t good for you, and would like to know about alternatives that really work.
• My periods have always been painful with intense cramps and I’d like a more natural way to deal with it.
• I’ve heard eating certain foods can help with my periods and I’d like to know more about that.

Welcome to the Moon Cycle Series on The Dabblist.

For the next two weeks, I’ll be covering different aspects of your moon cycle – ranging from nutrition to herbal care to healthy menstrual products to celebration rituals – all with the intention of healing your relationship with your period. I’ve asked several experts to chime in with their advice and expertise, which I’m super excited about.

It’s time to change the story on periods. Tune in on Thursday, when we’re going to talk about the 4 phases of your cycle and how to leverage them in every area of your life from energy to sex to productivity.

What’s your relationship with your period? Have you found any tips that have been super helpful to you? Share them in the comments below so we can keep the conversation going.