August 07, 2014

First moon, full moon, and everything in between.

Moons but not mooning | La Vie en Orange

Do you remember your first period?

I’ve been thinking about periods a lot lately. And my relationship with them. Our collective relationship with them.

I had a false alarm in 7th grade. I have no idea what it was or what happened, but one afternoon Flo came to visit, just like I’d heard. I freaked out. Went to the office, got a pad as thick as a phone book. Wore it home, and never saw my period again until I was 15.

What was your talk with your mom like? Did you even get one?

I remember 5th grade health being super embarrassing because when I submitted my burning question about where the egg went in anonymous ballot form, Mrs. Krauss recognized my handwriting and made sure the visiting nurse was looking in my general direction as she answered.

What’s stuck with you about that time in your life?

For me, it was the shame of being a late bloomer along with gratitude for not having to deal with all that “mess” my friends were moaning about.

But now, through making my Period Panties (I just got my first wholesale order!), and talking with clients and friends, I’m coming to understand just how much collective shame we all have around our periods. How we feel “dirty” or at the very least “unclean.” How “that time of the month” can be synonymous with “misery” or “total inconvenience” or “completely disregard me, I’m clouded-by-hormones.”

Have you ever referred to yourself as a “biohazard”? (Maybe that’s just me?)

The thing I’m learning is, a healthy period means everything is a-ok and all systems are go. What’s more, even if our periods aren’t the healthiest and really take a lot of out us, there are so many ways we can work to help our bodies get back in balance.

And that is a beautiful thing. Can you even believe our bodies?!? So worthy of gratitude!

This summer, I’ve been burning through what is basically a holistic anatomy book and/or owner’s manual for being a woman called, Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom, by Dr. Christiane Northrup. It's 900 pages of amazing, and I'm pretty sure you don't have to read it cover to cover like I did. :) WomanCode by Alisa Vitti is another excellent (and much shorter) resource specifically about maintaining hormonal health through food.

Did you know our menstrual cycles are tied to the moon? For real! That’s why so many of us sync up in close quarters. Some Native American traditions even call menstruation "moon time." And the way our hormones vary throughout our cycle means that parts of the month are way better for creativity and trying new things and meeting new people while other parts are better for turning inward and reflection?

So you can actually plan your life around harnessing the flipping power of the moon and your hormone levels and be a much happier camper than working against nature…

If it all sounds a little “woo,” believe me, I feel you. But the more I learn and pay attention to what’s happening with my body, my moods, the more it seems like such a no brainer. So my first step was education, and my current step is observation. Next, I’ll be working on baby steps like trying to calendar creative work at the beginning of my cycle to see what that feels like. And then maybe trying to eat specific foods during specific times of the month. And on and on…

Until I’m pretty much the lady in the moon. :)

And ohmygosh, as if all this weren’t amazing enough, the folks at Hello Flo have recently released another fabulous video advertising their services. Camp Gyno was last year’s belly laugh, while this year they’re peddling “First Period” boxes so your preteen (or 15-year-old late bloomer) is ready for anything. But seriously. Check out this First Moon Party ad they made. You’ll love it.

And if you have a special girl in your life who will be welcoming her First Moon eventually, here are a whole lotta resources A Mighty Girl recommends.