Menstrual Cycle Magic (part one)

I recently ran a workshop about our magical menstrual cycle and I wanted to share some of it with you in my online journal. If you are like most women you might be thinking, magical? Is she mad? Bear with me and trust me when I tell you that there is magic to be found in your monthly menstrual cycle. If you don’t have a cycle due to illness, pregnancy or menopause then still read on as you can create cyclical awareness with the moon. There is so much magic here that I will break down the cycle over 4 parts so today I am just going to talk about the first part of the cycle after your bleed ends.

I first developed a heightened awareness of my menstrual cycle when I was trying to get pregnant. At that time I learned about fertility awareness and my key learning was spotting signs of ovulation to know when I was most fertile. Then, I would spend the two weeks after that obsessively checking for signs of pregnancy until my period started. My approach at this time was purely physical, I had not yet sensed the energetic aspect of my cycle.

During a Bowen therapy session the wonderful therapist told me about the feminine and masculine (or yin and yang) aspects of the cycle. She guided me to honour the yang half (the more energetic and outgoing half of the cycle) and then slow down and turn inward on the yin half of my cycle (the more feminine and grounding energy). This was a revelation to me. I had become very masculine in my approach to fertility as I wanted to become pregnant so badly. So bringing more feminine into the cycle felt good.

I had my baby late in my 30’s and soon after was into my 40’s and within a couple of years starting to experience peri menopause symptoms. My periods were painful, I was always hot and felt exhausted. This is when I started exploring cycle awareness and cycle tracking.

Cycle tracking is simply knowing where you are in your menstrual cycle everyday and noting how you feel physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. Once you track for several months you will start to see patterns emerging. You might notice your energy is always higher mid cycle and low premenstrually. You might notice your libido is higher, or that you feel more confident at certain times. Once you have this knowledge you then can plan your life to fit in with your energies wherever possible. You can start to feel more aligned with your natural rhythms rather than trying to fit in with the masculine societal norms.

You see we are cyclical beings living in a linear society created to suit the needs of men. Trying to be a superwoman every day, maintaining the same energy and momentum every day is not good for us as women. We need to honour our waxing and waning energy cycles and align ourselves with them where possible.

Since I began cycle tracking my period pain has reduced by at least 80%. I no longer push through the fatigue of my premenstrual phase. I turn down invitations and plan my work around my low energy and high energy phases and it makes life flow so much easier. I’m more aligned with my body’s natural rhythm. Not only this, there are superpowers to be found in each cycle which, once you know them you can put them to good use to be more creative, more communicative and more at ease within yourself. As I explain each of the 4 phases of the cycle this will start to make more sense.

So for part one let's look at the first part of your cycle, the time after your bleed stops when you are pre ovulation. If you don’t have a cycle this is the waxing moon after the new moon.

Seasonally, we would call this your inner spring. The archetype of this phase is The Virgin. Your energy is starting to return after your menstrual phase and just as the buds begin to poke through in spring you are maybe feeling dynamic, bubbling with creative ideas. This is the time to start creative projects and begin socialising. The magic of this phase is your creativity and dynamism. You may feel self assured and able to move projects forward.

Just as spring can have some turbulent energy so can you in this phase so, if you feel a little unsettled use calming practices such as meditation or grounding essential oils such as cedarwood or fir oils. Or you may just use all that energy up on a high intensity work out or a good run. 

So a good idea is to know when your inner spring is (either by tracking your cycle or knowing the moon phase) and if you have activities such as project planning, parties, meeting or creative projects, schedule for this time if you can.

Next time I will share all about the summer phase and its magic so look out for the next instalment. My hope is to provide you with a full picture of your cycle by the end of the series.

Please contact me via the contact page of my website if you would like my Menstrual Harmony Masterclass and cycle tracking chart for just £10.