4) YOUR MOON TIME IS MEANT FOR CULTIVATING YOUR CREATIVITY AND INTUITION.
“The menstrual cycle governs the flow not only of fluids but of information and creativity. We receive and process information differently at different times in our cycles.” – Christiane Northrup M.D.
This might get a little woo woo for some of you, but I believe this lost wisdom is important to understand.
At one time, when humans were living in communities and tribes, all the women bled together, in sync with the cycles of the moon. There is an intelligence to the bleeding process and it is very connected to the moon and its cycles (many of you might already understand this). The whole community or tribe used to honor women who were bleeding because they understood how valuable their insights were to the whole group. Women would retreat to their sacred spaces with other women when they were bleeding and come back with their visions that would support and guide the whole community. Everyone knew the power of a bleeding woman. This changed when the society shifted into more of a patriarchy and certain religions made claims that bleeding was dirty or impure. Hence our ideas about periods in modern times.
“When women started to bleed, they left their homes and families to go to the sacred introspective space of the Bleeding Lodge. The Lodge was honored and respected by the entire community, for the dreams and visions of the bleeding women brought vital survival information such as planting and healing knowledge and guidance on community relations. When there were questions that needed to be answered, the women would go to the Lodge and ask the Ancestors. All questions were always answered by the Ancient Ancestors. The entire community benefited through the powerful gifts of the women’s bleeding cycle.” –Songs of Bleeding by Spider
5) YOUR BLOOD IS GOLD.
Our blood was never meant to be hidden away with synthetic drugs that stop our cycle, and bleached, toxic tampons that inhibit the flow. We are not supposed to keep pushing on through our days despite our bleeding pussies and aching bodies telling us to slow down and listen. At one time, our blood was seen as a gift. It was used to fertilize the plants and the earth, and celebrated when a girl entered puberty. It is packed full of precursor and stem cells that research is finding to be beneficial in some cases. The consumption of blood was seen as a sacrament and done in rituals to conjoin with the Gods(ess) and spirits (if you think this is gross or weird just remember that Christians drink Jesus’ blood). It represents the life/death cycle on the most primal level. The beauty of constant change and renewal and rebirth, flowing right from your uterus every month is an opportunity for growth and letting go of that which does not serve you. Feel it. Feel all of it. Welcome it, and it will requite you in the most marvelous ways.
I get it. Periods aren’t exactly beneficial for our masculine principles of forceful work, productivity, schedules and deadlines. I still believe that women can fully embrace their bleeding and be highly productive and auspicious co-creators of society. As a matter of fact, I think listening to the natural rhythms of the body and slowing down to give reverence to that which is inherently you would have it be that our society would receive and experience more of what it is missing and in desperate need of. So no, it might not meet the needs of a world run by machines, but it will meet the needs of love, intuition, inspiration, connection, and vulnerability that we are all dying to experience. We cannot have that with others if we are not willing to give it to ourselves. How do you celebrate the power of menstruation?
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE POWER OF MOON CYCLES AND PRACTICAL WAYS TO ACTIVELY LOVE YOUR PERIOD, SIGN UP FOR CHANTAL’S FREE WEBINAR ‘MOON CYCLE MAGIC.’
Chantel Quick is a wellness educator and an expert in plant-based nutrition. In 2013 she completed a coaching program and is now a mentor for women in helping them experience more pleasure in pregnancy and into motherhood. As a trained birth doula, she is passionate about empowering women with evidence-based birth information so that we can collectively change the way we view birth. She is a work-at- home mom to a 2.5 year old son whom she gave birth to in the comfort of her own home. Chantel lives in Austin, Texas. You can find her blog at Earth Based Mom.
