Moon Time Relief

This post subject was suggested to me by a friend a few days ago, and it seemed all too appropriate when my moon time arrived this morning!

This first thing I want to talk about, is loving your menstrual cycle. For me, one of my ways of embracing it is to call it “my moon time”. Because that’s exactly what it is. It’s not “that time of the month”, it’s “that time of the MOON“.

A few years ago, I stopped using the word “period” to describe my moon, and used the term “moon cycle”, then just this past year started calling my “moon time”.

A friend recommended a book to me last year called, Her Blood is Gold, by Lara Owen. It has since become one of my favorite books of all time. The subtitle to this book is “Awakening to the Wisdom of Menstruation.”

Interesting that my moon time came this morning, it was a couple of days early, but the New Moon is on Monday, so I’m fine with that. I think for me this time around, had a lot to do with my activities. Yesterday I watched two women talking about the book “FLOW, This History of Menstruation,” on the show The View.  I was really excited to hear these women speak, and the subjects that came up were very interesting. They spoke of birth control pills being synthetic hormones that give you a false period, which I knew, but for a mainstream audience, it was probably news to them.

Originally, when doctors and scientists were inventing “the Pill”, they were debating whether or not to give the women a “period” or not. Because the pill basically keeps you from having a regular period, but instead gives you a “mini-abortion” each month. If the egg has not been fertilized, then it is just giving you a “false period”. The doctors and scientists decided that it would freak women out too much if they were to not have a “period” at all, hence forth the “false period” was put in.

Ugh.

Thank god my mother flipped out on me and said Never! (When I asked if I should go on the pill).

At the time, I had a boyfriend (my first boyfriend) who said if I went on the pill, then my skin would clear up, and all the girls are on it. Lucky for me, I knew about the potential weight gain that came along with it, and because I was a dancer, I was all too hesitant. Then, when I asked my mother, she said “Absolutely Not”, and we threw them out before I even took one.

Ok, got a little sidetracked, back to Moon Time Relief.

If you haven’t read Her Blood is Gold, no matter your age or gender, I highly recommend it. She gives many stories of different women’s experiences around their periods, many stories of how the indigenous cultures celebrated it, along with her own life stories, and much much more.

The first step to Moon time relief is this:

LOVE YOUR MOON TIME!!!!

Savor it. Look forward to it. Create a ritual so that each time it comes, you look forward to those few days.

Some women prefer to be alone on their moon time, and some women prefer extra cuddles. Mostly I prefer the extra cuddles. I love when my husband rubs my lower back as well, that is something to look forward to. In some cultures, women were sent away from the men when it was their bleeding time. Either they had to hang out on the outskirts of the villages and wait, or in most cultures, there was some sort of a “bleeding lodge” put into place. That part sounds like the most fun to me. A whole separate teepee that is away from the others, where all the women get to hang out and have girl time!!

Usually, the women all bled together. Have you ever noticed how when women live together, they start bleeding together? Or even, when women are around each other, they start bleeding together. Last year, I had an experience, where 7 women were around each other for a weekend (3 of us were sleeping in the same hotel room), and we all began our cycle together that weekend. Only 2 of the 7 were due to begin their cycle that weekend, the other 5 were early. How powerful is that?

This isn’t just our minds tricking ourselves either. This is an actual thing that occurs. If you need to start your moon time, hang around a woman or women that are bleeding. It works, trust me.

The official term for this is called “Menstrual Synchrony”, or the “McClintock Effect”, or the “Dormitory Effect”.

Basically, the gist of the whole thing, is that women’s pheromones (the menstruating ones) trigger other women’s menstruation. I personally also believe that straight energy has even more to do with it. Our bodies really respond to things like this. Imagine what else it responds to? Woah! That thought is either a bit scary, or exciting…

Ok, so back to the Moon Lodge. A moon lodge was a sacred introspective space. The lodge was honored and respected by the whole community. The women would experience dreams and visions that could bring vital survival information for the entire tribe. When there were questions that needed to be answered, the women would go to the Lodge and ask the Ancestors.

That’s a bit backwards from how people treat it these days, eh? Before women were granted the right to vote, it was said that “Women couldn’t make proper decisions due to their  behavior during menstruation.” Ha! Well, they seem to have forgotten that women used to call the shots! Same thing goes for most of the reasoning why there has yet to be a female president…

There used to be Ceremonies to honor the moon cycles, celebrating the cycles of the Earth and Moon. There were also rites of passage for young women beginning the journey. At some point, most people (women and men) forgot all of this.

I have heard of some mothers giving their daughters a Blessing Way when they begin their moon cycle. I remember my mother being sooooo excited when I first began. She couldn’t stop smiling, and saying “You’re a woman now”, but I could not understand why she was so excited. Within 24 hours, I had already figured out how to use a tampon (so I could get to dance class, and not miss a beat).

So, besides honoring the cycle of the moon, there are many other things to do for Moon time relief. The next on the list:

Stop using Tampons. The word “tampon” means “plug”. So the action of a tampon is to plug your womb up to stop the flow. When you stop the flow, the cycle doesn’t occur naturally. Not to mentions the disgusting and alarming amounts of chemicals used in the unnatural tampons. It’s enough to make me sick, personally. Same goes for the unnatural pads. However, pads are a much better option! Pads allow your body to do it’s natural action – flow. If you envision the flow of energy that goes down with your bleeding, into the earth, and then the earth in return gives you life!

Pads that are made of natural materials are a great options, even better are reusable pads. I had always been hesitant to use reusable cotton pads, because I thought they’d be messy, but boy was I wrong. They are by far the most comfortable option I have ever experienced of any moon time anything. I purchased Organic Cotton Moon Pads from a local company in Vermont, and they are absolutely amazing. Because they are not immovable by adhesive to your underwear, they flow with your body and shift with you. I also had the expectation that they would messier than disposable pads. Wrong again. Instead of putting my sacred blood in cellulose materials that end up in a landfill (uhhh…what?), I soak my pads in a bucket or bowl of cold water. Then after a few days of pads soaking in there, I feed the water to my plants. When we have our garden in the summer, I’ll feed the water to those plants.

Sacred moon blood is probably the best fertilizer for your plants ever! Think about it… All of the amazing wonderful food and water you eat, comes out in concentrated forms in your moon blood. How cool is that… Our blood is meant to fertilize the earth.

Other things to help with moon time relief:

Herbal Teas – a Red Raspberry Infusion is probably the best (and my favorite). Red raspberry is a uterine tonic and helps with discomforts in the womb/cramping region. The best way to prepare an infusion is to pour hot or boiling water over the herbs in a mason jar, and let steep for 4 or more hours. This gets the most nutrients possible out of the herbs. I usually put mine in the fridge after straining, and with a little stevia, it’s a lovely refreshing drink. Also, the Women’s Herbal Infusion that I carry in my shop is formulated by me, and is an excellent moon time relief drink. The combination of herbs is great for overall daily nutrient intake, as well as being comforting at any time.

For heavy bleeding, excessive menstruation (menorrhagia), there are a few things to do. An herb that has proven to be helpful numerous times for me, is Shepherd’s Purse. I usually take it in tincture form, when it’s necessary. Other things that are great are mega doses of Vitamin K. Which can be taken through Nettles tinctures or tea infusions. Other causes of the excessive bleeding can be hormonal imbalance (estrogen dominance) and anemia. For me, it was a combination of both. I used to have quite intense 7 to 8 (sometimes 9) day cycles. These also came every 21 to 24 days. Since my mother also had excessive bleeding, I thought this meant I always would as well.

Well, since balancing my hormones in the last year more and more, my cycles have spaced out to 26 to 28 days, and only last about 5 or 6 days and aren’t nearly as heavy.

I know quite a few women who experience intense chocolate cravings around their moon time, and swear that it helps with cramps. I’ve recently read that a magnesium deficiency is cause by an estrogen dominance, which makes sense why it is such a common thing. I experience less and less chocolate cravings at any time, I really think it has to do with the hormone balance. However, in the meantime (;-), the magnesium will help with cramping.

I’ve also had some experiences with using a hot water bottle, which feels really nice. A heating pad works too, but then you have EMFs right on top your womb, and that’s not really great. The hot water bottle filled with really hot water is definitely a great one.

Lastly? Relax!!

You are experiencing this monthly or moonly intense time for a reason. It helps us to remember to slow down and take a breather. Many women are running around and staying super busy all month, and in their case, they need a day or two to relax and calm down. There actually are reasons why we might be moody and scare others off. Because we need alone time to relax and reflect. There are reasons why we may not feel at our best, our strongest, or even good at all, this is a clue for us to slow down, do very little work, and relax.

Usually on the first day or two days of my cycle, I barely leave the house. I may go outside to sit in the sun for a bit, but that’s about it. I don’t go on walks, and I try not to go anywhere in the car. It is my little retreat for myself. I’ll have my tea, and I’ll relax. I still can get computer work done if necessary (like today), but I try to limit my time on the machine. Sometimes I will lay in bed and read, but I like to keep out of the bedroom. Other times, I’ve created a little day bed for myself in the sunniest part of the house (with pillows and blankets), and I will lounge here or take a nap. Don’t let anyone guilt trip you into thinking you should be working harder or even working at all. It’s not true. You work plenty hard all month, you deserve one or two days rest. And if they (might be a male) had any idea what it felt like or knew how challenging it can be to be a woman, knew that this is a sacred time, or just felt some compassion, they would not say a word.

For example, today I’ve decided not to “get dressed”. I have clothes on, they’re just my home clothes. And I’m soooooo comfortable. I have on my hemp/organic cotton bathrobe made by Aum My Goddess, along with cozy hemp/organic cotton pants also made by them.

By day 3, I usually have energy again, and actually crave to be outside as much as possible. Walking, hiking, etc.

This isn’t always possible, if you work in an office or a job outside the home for example. If this is the case, make a time in the evening to connect with your moon time. Or save a day for your day off to lounge and connect with your body. If you want it enough, you’ll make it happen.

Where you can find Moon Pads:

Luna Pads

Glad Rags

I always go for the Organic Cotton ones myself, which I highly recommend.

Please share your experiences with your moon time below. What do you call it? I would love to hear from you! What kind of mood (mood and moon look so similar….) are you in? How do you feel when see it arrive? When you feel it coming on?

Love to the ladies…

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