EMBRACING SHIFTS IN YOUR PERIOD AND ALIGNING WITH THE CYCLES OF THE MOON
Back in 2018, I wrote a blog post about syncing your period to the moon cycles. At the time there wasn’t much conversation taking place around our periods, when we have them, and what they mean. Fast forward 5 years and women’s reproduction is front and center, and Go With The Flow has become our most popular blog post.
Over the years, I have received many emails from people about this post. Most expressed gratitude for learning something new, many with questions on things they can do to align their periods with the moon, and some sharing stories of trauma and stress surrounding their cycles. I am extremely grateful that this topic has been so beneficial for so many, so much so that I figured it was time to revisit it.
If you haven’t read the original post, you should do so, but if you’re pressed for time and only want the cliff notes, I got you.
Women go through four distinct hormonal cycles every month, just like the moon, which also has four phases. During each of these times, there are weeks when we’re more creative; others where we can plan and execute, while some call for rest and retreat. Although they don’t always sync up, knowing what phase you are in can be helpful and can help you better harness your energy. For more insight into moon phases click here.
The four phases are:
1. Menstrual (New Moon): Rest, reflect, and set intentions
2. Follicular (Waxing Moon): Begin taking action, initiate creative projects
3. Ovulation (Full Moon): Present, be in front of people, and collaborate. Shine.
4. Luteal (Waning Moon): Complete tasks, stay focused, finish projects
In terms of periods, the two most common cycles are:
New Moon (White Moon) Cycle
The New Moon is viewed as a time of reflection and introspection. Women who have their periods around the new moon have historically been linked to having strong intuition and the urge to withdraw from the world. They feel that they’ve already given the world all they can give, energetically, over the past month and choose to withdraw for the week, focusing on themselves and their needs. If this is you, you follow the natural cycles of the earth. Your body and spirit withdraw into rest and inward focus when the moon goes dark, and when the moon is full and bright, so are you.
Full Moon (Red Moon) Cycle
Women who get their period around the full moon are on the Red Moon cycle. Historically, the Red Moon cycle belonged to the medicine women, the midwives, and the wisdom keepers of the community. If you bleed with the full moon, your energy is focused on self-actualization, and on using that self-actualization to empower others.
As a woman who is closer to 50 than I was when I wrote the previous post Go With The Flow, a lot of things have changed.
For one, my period has shifted. Historically, a white moon bleeder, suddenly my period moved so that I was bleeding with the full moon. At first, I was concerned, (why the change?), but then I realized that it must just be nature communing with me and perhaps, there was a message there. Instead of going inwards, I was being nudged to be more outward facing, which in all honesty, was a bit of a challenge for me.
You see, I’m more of an internal kind of person. I can spend a week at home by myself, puttering about, not answering my phone, reading, gardening, piecing meals together out of scraps, smoking pot, and reorganizing my cabinets and I’m happy doing so. Inward is a good place for me. But this new shift made me pay attention, and I realized there were a lot of things being brought to light and I needed to listen and observe. I was being pushed to turn outwards and show more of myself.
I find it no coincidence that the almost year of me bleeding on a full moon led to many big changes. The first was that some health challenges were revealed. I realized that my periods had been depleting me, and I was suffering from severe anemia. The shift in my cycle, made me realize that the lethargic feeling I was associating with a new moon cycle, wasn’t accurate and that I was literally out of sync. So I got to work correcting the issue, embraced my new cycle, and learned a lot while I was at it.
Because you see, much like nature itself, once the seeds are planted, there will be a time for harvest. My body was literally pushing me into the harvest zone after spending years in seed-planting mode. Along with that push came the realization that my period and I could have a different relationship. I didn’t need to view it as this depleting thing, I could be empowered by it and use it as a force to propel me forward. I decided to listen.
During that time, we moved the needle forward on some big projects here at Highbrow Hippie. I started dating someone, enrolled myself in a pottery class, learned more about tarot and how to offer readings (coming soon!), and was able to cross some pretty big personal goals off my list. All in all, not a terrible place to be and as I look back, all the intentions that had been created were being manifested - I'm reaping my harvest.
Now, just as it did before, my period has shifted and I’m bleeding with the waning moon, which is fitting. Guess it was time to switch it up and now it's time to move into yet another cycle.
So if you’re like me and your period is shifting around, don’t fret about it. There is nothing wrong - you are exactly where you are meant to be. Lean into it and see what messages might be there for you. Go with the floe, spend time connecting with the moon cycles despite when your period is coming, and see what comes out of it!
