Menstrual Empowerment
Ladies, it’s time to proactively educate ourselves, our sisters, and our brothers on the power of the menstrual cycle. Men it’s time you are educated on a woman’s monthly rhythm so you can equally enjoy the pleasures of a healthy sex life while honoring your temple and your partners. Education is power. By normalizing the conversation of menstruation we provide more clarity and consciousness around ecstatic pleasurable acts versus a time to reproduce and bring forth a desired new soul to earth. Yes, I bolded desired because as individuals of the new paradigm we are choosing to heal the imbalance on planet earth; therefore, it is up to us to bring awareness into all areas where we as humans can fall asleep.
The concept of ushering in new life in a conscious way is vital. Epigenetics plays a major role on the health of a baby, and future generations to come. Therefore, what we eat, how we sleep, our emotional and physical stability, the desire or lack of desire for a child, even the plant medicines and herbal allies taken all have effects on a baby fetus just as much as recreational drugs and pharmaceuticals. The more we understand this and how the menstrual cycle works the more we can offer a clean field for egg and sperm to unite and procreate at the most appropriate time. The importance of empowered cycling is not to shame nature rather to harness its power and utilize it for greater pleasure and consciousness.
Normalizing menstruation allows women to honor the powerful temple that their soul resides in. It helps to eliminate the shame and oppression that women have faced for hundreds of years regarding this life giving process. Without it there are no humans whether male or female right? So why is this most potent portal being denied honor, reverence, and care? Learning the phases of the menstrual cycle and how the body expresses through each one of these phases can give women a sense of control over their own body without relying on birth control pills or IUDs with potentially long-term side effects. The shifting paradigm calls for women to stand firm in their sovereignty, and emotional intelligence, and no longer depend on a governing profession to tell them what is right for their own body. With this shift comes a new understanding of what it means to cycle and how it plays one of the most important roles in a woman’s life. By normalizing menstruation and eliminating shame around hormones cycling monthly, women will take power back over their bodies. So let’s dive into understanding the menstrual cycle and how it can be used to empower you!
What is the Menstrual Cycle?
The menstrual cycle is the natural process in which a woman's body prepares for a possible pregnancy each month. The average cycle lasts 28 days but can vary from 21 to 35 days or even longer in some cases. The hormones associated with the menstrual cycles are estrogen, progesterone, luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), prolactin, testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), oxytocin, and melatonin. These hormones work together to help regulate a woman’s body so that she can experience ovulation and menstruation throughout her life.
The Four Phases of the Menstrual Cycle
The menstrual cycle is divided into four phases: the follicular phase, ovulation phase, luteal phase, and menstruation phase. Each one plays an important role in preparing a woman’s body for a potential pregnancy or menstruation if conception does not occur. The follicular phase is when estrogen levels increase as her body prepares for ovulation; this usually occurs around day five to fourteen of the cycle. During this time the uterus will produce eggs that will be released during ovulation around day 14 or 15. Ovulation is the fertile window of the cycle. It lasts about 12-24 hours and is the only time an egg can be fertilized. To note semen can live up to 6 days inside therefore having unprotected sex prior to the fertile window can lead to conception during the fertile window. The luteal phase follows as progesterone rises to prepare the uterus for implantation should conception occur; this usually occurs from day 16 to 25 of your cycle. If conception does not occur then progesterone levels will drop off around day 25 or 26 leading into the next stage—menstruation—at which point a woman will begin to bleed. Menstruation can be seen as a cleansing time when the body resets itself for the next month’s cycle at the start of the follicular phase. It is most important to rest and allow space for this process to occur without much stress on the body or mind.
How knowing Your Menstrual Cycle Empowers You
Now that you have a better understanding of the complexities of the menstrual cycle it is important to recognize how knowing your your menstrual cycle will empower you or you partner. Being aware of when you or your partner are most fertile allows you to make informed decisions about contraception without feeling like you have to rely on a governing profession pushing reliance on birth control pills or IUDs if they don’t feel right for you (more on this in a future post). Additionally, being aware of where each phase falls within your own unique 28-day cycle enables you to plan activities accordingly. You may feel more energized and able to exercise and practice a stronger yoga practice in the first half of your cycle, and the second half of the cycle life may need to slow down as menstruation gets closer. This is due to fluctuations in hormones. For example during the ovulation window or premenstrual window emotions may be extra high and require you to be more nurturing and supported. This would be a great time to schedule in more down time and leave the other parts of the month for high performance work meetings, high intensity exercise, social gatherings, etc.. Knowing your own unique rhythm allows you to create space for self-love and schedule in self care rituals to nourish and balance the cycling monthly hormones.
By normalizing menstruation and eliminating shame women will naturally take power back over their bodies by learning about their own personal cycles and how it affects them on an individual basis! Instead of solely relying on external forces such as birth control pills or IUDs try out some natural methods such as fertility tracking through apps, tracking body temperature, etc. so you can get in tune with yourself and what feels right for your body! Knowledge truly is power when it comes to our bodies so let's use these temples wisely. We all have different needs so find what works best for YOU and honor yourself every step of the way.
With Prem,
Sharee Nicole L.Ac.
Owner of Living Prem Acupuncture & Ayurveda