Conscious Cycling: Menstruality + Menstrual Cycle Awareness

Welcome to Episode 1 of Conscious Cycling! In this talk I am sharing about the term Menstruality, as the initiatory journey towards Self for those of us with menstrual cycles. I also share how you can become conscious of this initiatory journey through the practice of menstrual cycle awareness. Join me to connect with your cyclical body.

Transcript

Welcome,

Beautiful souls,

To our first episode in the Conscious Cycling series.

Today I'm going to be sharing with you all about the path of menstruality.

Menstruality is a word that was coined by Jane Catherine Severin to describe this inner compass that people with menstrual cycles experience as this inner awareness unfolds throughout our life development.

Menstruality is an archetypal journey towards the self,

The true divine self,

Through a series of initiations,

Or rites of passage.

There are four stages along this path of initiation.

The first initiation comes at Menarche,

Your first bleed.

This is the time when you are awakening to your body as cyclical and into your cyclical nature.

The second initiation is your cycling years.

So all of the years from your first bleed up into menopause.

This is where you are discovering your own natural rhythm.

Each bleed you are invited to journey deeper into your awareness of self.

This is a small initiation that happens each cycle.

The third initiation is menopause and the time leading up to menopause.

As your cycle begins to shift and change and your hormones begin to wane,

This is leading you into trusting in the unknown.

And the fourth and final initiation is crossing over from menopause into post-menopause and your mature years.

Your hormones have stopped cycling and as the outside world falls away,

You unfold into a deeper sense of that true divine self within.

This whole process of menstruality from your first bleed through to your mature years is an awakening to your power.

You don't need anything outside of yourself.

This power is being initiated through you.

You cannot stop the process from happening.

It is something that happens to you.

This pathway,

This journey is holding you in its cyclical nature as you are building your spiritual muscle to really hold the conscious awareness that you yourself are divine.

This path of menstruality will unearth that wisdom and that power when you approach it with conscious practice.

If you are still in your cycling years,

Menstrual cycle awareness is the practice that will bring menstruality into your conscious awareness.

So what is menstrual cycle awareness?

This is becoming aware on an embodied level of where you are in your cycle on any given day and how that is affecting your physical,

Mental,

Emotional,

And spiritual landscapes.

Learning the language and the flow of your body and its natural rhythm.

Practicing conscious menstruation,

Resting and doing spiritual practices while you are bleeding to create the channel of wisdom and power from your divine self.

So how do you practice menstrual cycle awareness?

Charting your cycle.

You can download a specific cycle chart that is usually in a circle and you can connect it to the moon cycles,

To the seasonal cycles.

You can get a journal.

You can even do it in an app.

Each day you take a few minutes to write down your cycle day.

Day one starts at the first day of full bleeding,

Not the spotting that you may have beforehand.

And then you count from day one until the end of your cycle,

The beginning of your next bleed.

And then you can write a word or two about how you are feeling physically,

Mentally,

Emotionally,

And spiritually.

Make it as easy or as elaborate as you want,

As long as you can keep it consistent.

Practice this for at least three cycles to begin seeing your natural ebbs and flows.

You will notice similar energies on the same days of your cycle.

You will learn where in your cycle your strength lies and where you are vulnerable.

So let's take a minute right now just to check in with your cycle.

What day are you in your cycle today?

Physically,

How are your energy levels?

Are you experiencing any physical symptoms?

What is the quality of your sleep?

How is your appetite?

How does your body want to move?

What physical sensations are you experiencing?

Just taking a moment to check in with your physical body,

Writing down a word or two or a phrase or sentence that connects to the energy of your physical body.

And then your mental landscape.

What thoughts are emerging today?

Are you focused or distracted?

Is your head clear or foggy?

Are you playing around with your thoughts and using your imagination?

Were you serious and assertive in your thoughts?

Are there any signs of your inner critic?

What is a word or phrase that can capture your mental landscape today?

And then emotionally,

How are you feeling today?

Which of your needs have been met or have not been met to result in these feelings?

Are your emotions feeling constrictive or expansive?

What is your emotional resiliency level?

Are you feeling sensitive?

Can you recognize any of your triggers today?

Are you feeling carefree and playful?

Are you feeling the full spectrum of feelings or are you feeling one more intensely?

Taking a moment,

Checking in to this emotional landscape that you are holding today.

And then spiritually,

Do you feel connected to yourself,

To this divine nature within?

Do you feel connected to the universe,

To source,

To your God,

Your goddess?

Have you experienced love today?

How is your connection with the earth and nature?

Have you noticed the quality of your intuition today?

Have you done any of your practices and how connected did you feel to them?

Are you getting enough me time to really fill your cup?

So taking a moment to check in to that spiritual landscape within.

The last question that I like to ask is,

What are you grateful for today?

Just finding a word or two or a short sentence to describe your physical,

Mental,

Emotional,

And spiritual landscapes.

With this awareness,

You can move forward in your life in this menstruality journey,

Aligning to the energy of your unique cyclical rhythm.

And as a result,

You will be creating more ease,

Flow,

And love for your magical cyclical self.

I'm sending you blessings as you continue on your path of menstruality.

Reviews

Wonderful! I am not new to practicing cycle awareness, but still found this valuable, especially the questions at the end which I will be coming back to again and again. Thank you for sharing your wisdom and enabling more people who menstruate learn about their cyclical nature and how to live in flow with it.

❤️ i have a question as i been listening to menstrual cycle talks, from you and other IT’s teachers and a thought stumbled upon me that Is our menstrual cycle is what we identify with, our inner seasons are mostly responsible for our day 2 day feelings, moods and productivity etc BUT how we can leverage our cycle to optimise it at best.

I am a newbie on cycles and this divine knowleis very new to me, i am in process of learning my cycles and hence these questions.

How we can not only be identified by our cycles. I hope i have been able to clearly put out my question. Your thoughts are most welcome. Love ❤️

Thank you very much for this beautiful awareness talk, and questions that are asked differently than how I would ask them. It is refreshing and very helpful. Thank you for your support 💜

Thank you🤗

Thank you Meghan for helping me learn to connect with myself 🙏🏼💚✨

Amazingly helpful. The questions you asked were so intuitive and meaningful for me. I wish this information was not generally hidden and unspoken! Thank you dear Meghan 😘🦋🌿

This is amazing!

So clear. No foggy stuff. Just pure. Thank you Meagan. Didn’t know, as I am very much post Menopause, that I am still cyclical. I want to know more about this phase.

This podcast includes a version of the live cycle check-in, with MANY questions to support self-inquiry. SO helpful! Thank you, Meghan! 🌺