Latest / Healing Her Story with Riva Jean-Paul / Moon Phases & Feminine Power: Your Weekly Cycle Sync | Feeling Drained Lately? The Waning Moon, Eclipse Season & Your Body’s Need for Space

Transcript

Moon Phases & Feminine Power: Your Weekly Cycle Sync | Feeling Drained Lately? The Waning Moon, Eclipse Season & Your Body’s Need for Space · Healing Her Story with Riva Jean-Paul

• 1:38
  SPEAKER_00: Hello, and welcome to today's episode of the Healing Her Story Podcast.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: As always, so delighted to spend a little bit of time with you today.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_00: If you are new, welcome.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_00: I trust that you have found your way to today's episode in your perfect right timing and way.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_00: And if you are returning, welcome back.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_00: So lovely to have you here again.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_00: I truly do not take your time and your energy and your focus for granted.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: In a world where we have so many choices, so many options, it really means a lot to me that you choose to tune in with me here in these episodes.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_00: And I do need to acknowledge I'm coming in maybe a little late again today, and right on time.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: And it's been really beautiful.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: It's been really full and fulfilling and also has its challenges because there really is almost only so much time in a day.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_00: And I really have, you know, a certain amount of energy that I can work with.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: And so it can be tricky really trying to get everything in while not losing myself in that process.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: And so sometimes an episode that comes out on Monday afternoon is what allows me to not lose myself in that process.
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_00: Because I maybe could have recorded yesterday.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_00: And, you know, I really needed that day to rest and to prepare for the week and to do what I call set myself up for success.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: So anyway, I am intending to get some support and to create a bit more efficiency in my systems so that these can come out at the same time every week.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_00: So I just offer or rather ask for your grace during that process.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_00: And I trust that within the coming season, that that rhythm will start to become a bit more steady.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_00: Having said that, I do want to warmly welcome you to today's episode.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_00: If you are new here, my name is Reva Jean-Paul.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_00: I'm a trauma-informed somatic therapist, a menstrual cycle coach, and interdisciplinary artist.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_00: I wear many other hats as well, but those are the hats that I'll share for now.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: And this truly is a place where we begin to reclaim and rewrite our stories, where we begin to reconnect with our bodies or maybe begin connecting with them in a deeper way.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: And where we remember the wisdom that we maybe weren't taught.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_00: And yet, I believe is something that we have always carried, something that all of the women that have come before us have always carried to.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_00: And so it's just a matter of bringing more of an awareness to it.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_00: And that's what we do here every week in these Monday episodes, where we really attune to the rhythms and cycles of the natural world and more specifically of the moon, because I find this is a rhythm that we can all kind of collectively sync up to.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_00: We also explore the seasons and the menstrual cycle as well and explore how all of those relate to each other.
• 6:16
  SPEAKER_00: And this week we're tuning to the energy of the waning moon.
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_00: And before I go a little bit further into what our opportunity is this week, I want to invite us into a place of more presence.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_00: And that can be whatever it means to you today.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe you're driving and you just want to bring your awareness to maybe your hands on the steering wheel or your back against the chair.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_00: If you're on a walk, maybe you want to really sense the air on your skin, or maybe you've got the sun shining, and you want to sense that warmth on your skin.
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe you're doing some chores or some things around the home.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_00: And if you are, maybe just bringing your awareness to whatever might be in your hand, noticing your feet sort of moving around your space.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_00: And in this place of presence, you are invited to really sense into yourself and to see what kind of information you can gather about your overall state of well-being in this moment.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe you're feeling tired or drained, or maybe you're feeling overwhelmed or a bit unsettled.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_00: Or maybe you're on the other side of the spectrum where you're feeling excited and joyful, grateful.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_00: Wherever you are is perfect.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_00: It's not about right or wrong, it's just a matter of really meeting ourselves with this loving presence for just a moment here.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're able to, maybe you want to take a couple of slower, deeper breaths.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe you want to come into a place of stillness.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_00: And we're gonna do this for a minute here.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_00: And our minute will begin now.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_00: And then the timer went off.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_00: I am cycle day twenty-seven today.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_00: So I'll be starting my bleed within the next couple of days, and I can definitely feel this downshift, this slowing down, slightly less interest in the outside world and just desire to be more in my inner world.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_00: And it's interesting as that aligns with the shift of uh the seasons and the energy here that I'm experiencing in Northern California.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_00: It's a beautiful sunny day with almost clear blue skies, and this change of the seasons is really warmly welcomed.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_00: It's been a nice change from the gray.
• 11:02
  SPEAKER_00: Can definitely feel myself ready for the change of the seasons and also really honoring my inner season and my desire to rest and go inward in the coming days.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm looking forward to that.
• 11:24
  SPEAKER_00: It's been a very fruitful cycle for meme.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_00: I've gotten a lot of clarity on some of the health issues I've been having over the last probably, in all honesty, a year.
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_00: But it's only really been within the last few months where I've started to dig deeper and to put more effort into getting answers and to actually get some tests run.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm not just guessing.
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_00: And that whole process has been very illuminating.
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_00: And it feels exciting to know that I'm on the trajectory of where I want to be.
• 12:08
  SPEAKER_00: Um and I'll share just really briefly, it turns out I have some food allergies that I wasn't aware of.
• 12:16
  SPEAKER_00: And I believe this is what's been causing the inflammation that I've been experiencing in my body.
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_00: And in addition to the inflammation, there's also been elevated histamine levels, which I found out mine are through the roof.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_00: And histamine and estrogen interact with each other in this really interesting way where they kind of feed into the other.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_00: And I've sensed that perhaps I've been experiencing some estrogen dominance, really kind of tracking the signs and symptoms that are arising around my inner summertime.
• 12:58
  SPEAKER_00: And while it definitely could be that, it could also be these elevated histamine levels.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_00: So I still need one more allergy panel ran for allergens in the air and in the environment.
• 13:14
  SPEAKER_00: And I've got that coming up this week.
• 13:17
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but I've eliminated the foods, and I know my next steps for starting to bring those histamine levels down.
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_00: And I also just ordered my Mira Hormone Tracking, and I'm super excited.
• 13:35
  SPEAKER_00: I'll definitely be sharing more about it as soon as I get it and as soon as I start testing.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_00: But essentially, this is a way to test your hormone levels throughout the cycle at home because I found once I went into the healthcare system that I was not really able to get what I was looking for, unfortunately.
• 13:59
  SPEAKER_00: There's a lot of missed opportunity in the Western medical system that really does not support hormonal health for women specifically.
• 14:13
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and I had a doctor outright recommend that I just get some at-home tests because they would not be able to provide the answers for the tests that I was wanting.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_00: And these are the tests that show you the patterns, not just necessarily giving you a snapshot.
• 14:34
  SPEAKER_00: Because if you go to the doctor and you get just a snapshot of your hormone levels, it's not giving you the full picture because our hormone levels are always changing anyway.
• 14:48
  SPEAKER_00: More on all of that to come.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_00: But I'm very excited and I'll uh definitely be sharing more about that.
• 14:55
  SPEAKER_00: But for today, let's get back to the energy of the waning moon.
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_00: This phase of the lunar cycle mirrors autumn in the seasonal cycle and the premenstrual or the luteal phase in the menstrual cycle.
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_00: It's a time of slowing down, reflection, and release.
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_00: And by the way, this isn't just any waning moon.
• 15:23
  SPEAKER_00: We've just moved through the second eclipse of this eclipse season.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_00: Yay, you made it.
• 15:29
  SPEAKER_00: And eclipses really tend to accelerate change.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_00: Astrologically, they're often associated with endings, revelations, and turning points.
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_00: Moments when something hidden becomes visible, or when a dynamic we've been tolerating suddenly becomes impossible to ignore.
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe some of you are already resonating with this.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm curious to know how was that for you?
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_00: Many people experience this full moon eclipse as intent.
• 16:01
  SPEAKER_00: At least that's those are some of the words that I've been hearing.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_00: There's been these themes of cleansing, releasing, and also this theme of illuminating, because the light of the full moon can bring things out of the shadows, especially with the eclipse.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_00: And sometimes that means confronting patterns and relationships, habits, or dynamics in our lives that are ready to shift.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_00: And I'll have to say for myself, it was very confronting this past week.
• 16:33
  SPEAKER_00: I feel like I'm just finally on the other side of it today.
• 16:37
  SPEAKER_00: And as I spoke with others about it, many say the same thing that this one felt especially powerful.
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_00: And don't they all?
• 16:49
  SPEAKER_00: So wherever you are in that process right now, I want to pause for a moment and really honor that.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe something surfaced that was uncomfortable.
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe a truth became more clear.
• 17:06
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe you're still processing.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_00: And all of that belongs here.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_00: And on top of that, we're also moving through a Mercury retrograde, which is traditionally associated with slowdowns, delays, and miscommunications.
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_00: You may have noticed this energy showing up in your everyday life.
• 17:28
  SPEAKER_00: For example, my husband was traveling recently and experienced multiple delays at the airport.
• 17:36
  SPEAKER_00: And just the other day, we received a toll violation notice from the Bay Area, which seems strange because we hadn't traveled there recently.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_00: And when I looked more closely, the photo wasn't even our car.
• 17:49
  SPEAKER_00: The license plate was off by one letter.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_00: So if things have felt a little scrambled lately, missed messages, delays, plan shifting, please know that you're not alone.
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_00: And there really is something happening here.
• 18:07
  SPEAKER_00: And even if you personally aren't experiencing this, chances are someone around you might be.
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_00: So this can be a moment to really offer yourself and others a little extra patience and grace.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_00: Because energetically, like we said, this isn't just any waning moon.
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_00: It's a waning moon after a powerful eclipse as well.
• 18:33
  SPEAKER_00: And it's happening during a period that invites us to slow down.
• 18:41
  SPEAKER_00: And because of that, you may notice your energy feeling a little lower this week.
• 18:46
  SPEAKER_00: You might be feeling a stronger pull to rest, to reflect, or perhaps to create some more space.
• 18:57
  SPEAKER_00: Interestingly, research on the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle shows something similar happening in the body.
• 19:05
  SPEAKER_00: As progesterone rises after ovulation, the nervous system tends to become more sensitive to stress, which we've talked about many times here on the show.
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_00: And many women report increased introspection and emotional processing during this phase.
• 19:23
  SPEAKER_00: Some researchers even suggest that this phase supports a natural sort of evaluation process.
• 19:30
  SPEAKER_00: And I can really speak to this from my own lived experience as well.
• 19:35
  SPEAKER_00: And what it does is it helps us to notice what isn't working so we can make adjustment before the new cycle begins.
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_00: Like if right before you bleed, you've ever felt like you hated your boyfriend or you wanted to blow up your life or that your husband was the worst husband in the world.
• 19:54
  SPEAKER_00: As ridiculous as some of these things can be, you know, there can be a little bit of truth in that as well.
• 20:05
  SPEAKER_00: And you might say that, you know, this is a really part of the design that this doesn't just happen just because that this happens, because it gives us the opportunity to really evaluate.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_00: And so this week's invitation is not just to create space for the sake of space, but to create space for what actually matters to you.
• 20:37
  SPEAKER_00: The waning moon, just like the premenstrual phase, carries this quality of refinement.
• 20:44
  SPEAKER_00: It invites us to distill things down, to get closer to the essence of what is truly important.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_00: Hello, Liz.
• 20:59
  SPEAKER_00: Because as we move toward the spring equinox, life will begin to pick up again.
• 21:04
  SPEAKER_00: It will, if you you're not already feeling it.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_00: The energy is rising, life is returning here in the northern hemisphere, and our calendars will slowly begin to fill.
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_00: I know mine has.