The power of your menstrual cycle
If you have a menstrual cycle, I believe you have a great power. I am so thankful that I can experience a cycle every month - with every season owning its own quality.
The wisdom of your bodies’ signals
I’ve worked years against the stream, tiring myself and eventually ending up in burnout. There are multiple factors that contributed to this of course, and one of the most powerful ones I’ve learned to work with is my bodily signals. Either ignoring them, or working with them.
As women, we have an amazing signalling system: our menstrual cycle. All life goes in waves, up and down, eb and flow, in and out. Life is never only ‘on’ or ‘off’. Live transitions from a seed into a growing branch, into a blooming flower, into a dying leaf, into a formless hummus that can become anything. And the cycle goes again.
Working with or against the stream
Since I started working with my cycle, listening to my bodies needs - I noticed more flow and ease in my life. It’s like swimming in a river down-stream versus up against a powerful current.
In my work I try to follow the qualities of every phase:
Phase 1 (bleeding) | Reflection & rest
Phase 2 (follicular) | Beginning and creating projects
Phase 3 (ovulation) | Expressing and communicating about my projects
Phase 4 (luteal) | Getting things done, finishing up the month
Where to start
It all starts with awareness. If you have no idea where you are in your cycle, and how you should recognise these phases, it can help to start tracking your cycle. Notice the subtle changes in mood, motivation, in- or outward focus, lust, overwhelm. And connect these to the moment you are in your cycle. If you do this for a few months, you’ll start to notice the influence of you amazing cycle doing its work.
And then starts the fun. Follow the lead of your womb and give your body what it needs.
For example,
If you feel overwhelm and you notice it’s a week or a day before you should bleed - give yourself some slack, take a stap back and treat yourself on nourishing food and rest. Be gentle and allow yourself to feel enough, by just being.
If you get excited and want to create in an amazing flow, a new project coming out as soon as your pen hits the paper. Let yourself flow! And, if you know you are in phase 2 or 3, catch yourself before you cross your boundaries. It might be a bit easier to get in over your head while you are so excited and enthusiastic.
If you plan an important meeting that feels challenging - plan it around your ovulation, when you’d probably feel more powerful and centred then on the other phases.
Get to know your unique cycle
All that said, this is what the phases of my cycle mean for me. I’ve practiced and experimented for many years now and found that these ways of working are aligned with my body. For your body, it might be different. So don’t copy my interventions, but use them as inspiration to test how it works for you.
And enjoy this beautiful proces of working with this super power we have as women! 🌻