How to Find the Superpowers in Your Menstrual Cycle
For so many years women have had to ‘push through’ in life, and inwork, when it comes to their period. It was certainly not something I even considered when I was employed, or for the first ten years of running my own business. But in the past few years - thanks to my own menstrual cycle issues - the benefits of working with your period instead of trying to ignore it or pretend it doesn’t exist have been really highlighted to me.
I have to admit, if you had said to me five years ago that I could drastically improve my productivity, improve success levels and have more energy in general simply by working in a more clever way with my period - I would have thought you were bat sh*t crazy.
BUT there is truth in this suggested madness I tell you!
Why is this subject so close to my heart?
Let’s go back a few years ago… to when I was running my PR and Marketing agency. I was the girl that ‘got sh*t done’ and I was very proud of that fact. However, underneath my productive outer shell I was emotionally depleted, flat, numb, exhausted and totally disconnected from my body. There were many things that did not feel right, but it was actually my menstrual cycle which was the part of me that shouted the loudest and eventually got my attention!
When I was in my late twenties my periods became less and less regular, I was told that I had Polycystic Ovaries and told that as long as I had three a year it was OK!
Then they simply stopped and I didn’t have a period for 4 years.
The short version of this story is that after trying many different methods of getting them to return, I slowly started to realise that losing them was most likely to be down to chronic stress. Stress that was just ‘there’ for years and years and I didn’t even realise it. On a physiological level my body was in a constant state of fight or flight and it didn’t see my menstrual cycle as a priority - it thought I was under constant threat and that it wasn’t ‘safe’ to reproduce.
I soon realised it wasn’t just me that was being ‘woken up’ by my menstrual cycle.
More and more women I spoke to were experiencing similar problems, other menstrual irregularities, fertility problems and more.
Changing the paradigm
There seems to be this ‘acceptance’ that this is just how things are but I STRONGLY disagree.
Women can THRIVE as a business woman, as a mother, as a partner, as a friend, as a colleague, as an employee… as all of the things that they wish to be - but there does need to be a little shift in lifestyle.
One of the people I LOVE learning from is Lara Briden - she enforces the belief that women are not small men! And I love that. We work completely differently to men and instead of this being seen as a weakness, it needs to be a super power! The world needs both men and women to work in their most energised and aligned state of being and that means making some adjustments!!
So how can we supercharge our success using our cycle?
Using the analogy of seasons to reflect the various stages of our cycle is a beautiful way of understanding the process our bodies are going through. We have our inner seasons and our outer seasons, and you can also look at this in terms of the stages of womanhood from our teenage years until we are post menopause. Each season has it’s own beauty and magic if we allow it.
Winter - the time when we bleed.
ENERGY OF THE SEASON: REFLECTIVE
Just as the environmental season of winter expresses- this phase of the cycle calls for gentleness, as much rest as is possible, slowing down, spiraling inwards, getting cosy and generally retreating a little from the outside world. It is the time we release all that doesn’t serve us - physically and emotionally if we let it.
It is also the time where we are at our most intuitive and we will be in our deepest darkest truth, so any ideas or insight that you receive now is to be listened to. If you have a tricky decision to make this is the time to tune in and listen for the answer.
Do… evaluate what feels aligned still, what has been working well for you, and decide what needs to be let go of.
Do… Get reflective and journal. question and explore what feels intuitively right for you.
Do… schedule a day for working from home, take a day time bath, and when you need to work make it as cosy as possible.
Do… fuel yourself with nourishing, warming foods and keep your womb and feet nice and toasty. Think soups, stews and delicious hot cacao.
Don’t… schedule back to back meetings, calls or clients for a few days at the beginning of this phase.
Don’t… book in extrovert activities like lots of social events, speaking gigs or presentations.
Don’t… ‘push through’ if you are feeling exhausted. If you take things a little easier now it will make the rest of your cycle more productive.
Don’t… choose hardcore exercise regimes, opt for more gentle ‘Yin’ activities instead such as walks and restorative yoga.
Spring - the follicular phase.
ENERGY OF THE SEASON: PREPARATION
Gradually as we finish bleeding we move towards ovulation (summer) and there is this time of the cycle where we are slowly emerging. It isn’t quite time to go all out, but the energy is rising. Think about the spring externally as the bulbs start to poke their head up through the soil, green shoots start to appear on the trees, nature is waking up. This is the time where we can slowly let momentum build and prepare for the season ahead.
Use this time to set your goals, plan, strategise, organise and use that increasing energy to get excited about the things that are on the horizon.
Do… Get the diary out and start to schedule in action steps for your summer phase.
Do… Use this time to become clear on what your priorities are for the approaching season.
Don’t… rush to get to summer straight away! You may still be craving gentleness so don’t be tempted to go all out straight away. There is plenty of time!
Summer - ovulation.
ENERGY OF THE SEASON: EXPRESSION
This phase of the cycle is when we are at our peak energy, we are at our most fertile and at our most vibrant - nature does this at a primal level in order for us to attract a mate and reproduce - it is the time when you will often find yourself feeling most confident, most attractive and ready to take on the world.
Do… use this time to do the things that are maybe out of your comfort zone and involve extroverted activities - think launching a new product of service if you are in business, book in a speaking gig, ask for a pay rise - be brave!
Do… schedule your big social events at this time, your energy will be highest and you will feel most confident and vibrant in this phase.
Do… utilise your energy and enjoy some more ‘yang’ forms of exercise… go for a run, lift weights or book a power yoga flow.
Do… communicate your message at this time. You will be more persuasive and empathetic at this time so make the most of this open channel of communication.
Don’t… Be tempted to over schedule during your winter phase because you may feel invincible now - but in 7 - 10 days time you might not be feeling quite so perky!
Autumn - luteal phase - pre menstrual.
ENERGY OF THE SEASON: COMPLETION
The phase that many women dread - yet if we see it for what it is then it can be really powerful. Some of the less desirable emotions often come up at this time - irritation, anger, sadness - however this phase shows us the parts of ourselves we need to be gentle with and the areas of life in which we need to let go. When we use the premenstrual phase to start to slow down, shed expectations and get a little bit quieter we can be rewarded with amazing insight and powerful reflections. If we allow a little rest in this phase we are much more likely to have a gentler winter.
You might find that you naturally want to wrap things up and bring projects to a close. Use this time to find completion in your tasks preparing a blank canvas for the start of your cycle to begin again when winter arrives.
Do… allow yourself some space and time once you finish projects to replenish yourself before the next phase begins.
Do… use this time to get ahead and prepare for your inner winter - if you get organised you can gift yourself some time to rest and slow down when your bleed arrives.
Do… communicate honestly to people around you that you are approaching your inner winter and may require some extra support at that time.
Don’t… Add extra things to your to do list just because you have crossed some things off.
Don’t… dismiss any feelings that arise - even if they are not deemed to be desirable. Not only are we completing practical things in our external life, but this phase offers us an opportunity to express any truths that we need to purge and complete our emotional cycles as well.
My two top tips
GET TRACKING…
Of course these are generalisations and may not be entirely true for you. You might find that on the last day before you bleed you have a spike of energy, or you might find that when you ovulate you actually feel more drained.
Our cycle gives us a beautiful inner map that we can use to supercharge our work, relationships, friendships and wellbeing, but you do need to spend time getting to know your body.
You can do this using apps or specific diaries, but I personally find that a simple journal is enough. Put the day of your cycle (day 1 is the first day of your bleed), look at your mood, your energy, your emotions and your physical body - note down a few words each day and slowly after a few months you will probably begin to notice some patterns.
TAKE THE 1% APPROACH
I do understand that we can’t all take a week off, or even a day off, when we are bleeding, but by bringing awareness to the cycle and the seasons and simply knowing a little bit more about how you function it can drastically shift how you feel throughout it. I love Red School’s approach to working with your cycle - and that is to give yourself 1% of what you need.
So if you are exhausted and need to lie down but can’t because of the demands in your life - give yourself just a fraction of what you need is better than giving yourself nothing at all. Lying down with a hot water bottle on your womb for 5 minutes is better than not doing it at all if you crave that.
DON’T PUT PRESSURE ON YOURSELF TO DO ALL THE THINGS AT ONCE, BUT MAYBE CHOOSE ONE THING FROM EACH SEASON TO TRY FOR A FEW CYCLES AND SEE HOW YOU GET ON. I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU IF YOU DO.
Lx
