Latest / Healing Her Story with Riva Jean-Paul / Moon Phases & Feminine Power: Your Weekly Cycle Sync | The Dark Moon Phase Explained: Why Slowing Down Is Essential for Your Nervous System

Transcript

Moon Phases & Feminine Power: Your Weekly Cycle Sync | The Dark Moon Phase Explained: Why Slowing Down Is Essential for Your Nervous System · Healing Her Story with Riva Jean-Paul

1:38
SPEAKER_00: Hello, and welcome to today's episode of the Healing Her Story podcast.
1:45
SPEAKER_00: Today we are gathering for our weekly cycle sync episode.
1:50
SPEAKER_00: And admittedly, coming in a little later than I would have liked today, and trusting that that is okay, really giving myself some grace as I am beginning to navigate a fuller season in life and still in the process of bringing on some support for the show.
2:10
SPEAKER_00: I mentioned this last week too, so I won't spend too much time getting into it, but just really asking for your patience and your grace over the next several weeks while that transition continues to happen.
2:24
SPEAKER_00: If you are returning, welcome back.
2:27
SPEAKER_00: It's so lovely to have you here again.
2:31
SPEAKER_00: And if you are new here, welcome.
2:34
SPEAKER_00: I truly believe that you have found your way to today's episode at the perfect and right time for you.
2:43
SPEAKER_00: For today, we are going to be attuning to the energy of the dark moon.
2:50
SPEAKER_00: And I'm really excited to dive in.
2:53
SPEAKER_00: However, before we do, we are going to take a moment of pause, which interestingly enough is the theme for this week's invitation, and it's the theme that we'll be exploring today.
3:08
SPEAKER_00: So I really invite you, if you're able to, to lean into this pause.
3:14
SPEAKER_00: This is how we start each of these episodes that we air on Mondays.
3:19
SPEAKER_00: And there are several reasons why I do this, and I think that you'll probably gather your own sense as we go into this moment of pause.
3:30
SPEAKER_00: And I will share a little bit more about the power of pause as we go further into the episode.
3:39
SPEAKER_00: So taking some time here, if you're able to come into a place of stillness, if you are doing something in the background, can you maybe put it down for just a moment?
3:54
SPEAKER_00: If you are driving, maybe you're not able to pull over, maybe you are able to pull over for a moment.
4:03
SPEAKER_00: Or if you're just getting ready to hit the road, maybe you can stay part right where you are.
4:09
SPEAKER_00: And if you're already on the road, maybe you can just find something to focus on in your eyes view.
4:21
SPEAKER_00: And maybe taking, yeah, a sigh.
4:24
SPEAKER_00: I know I just took a big sigh there, just in that gentle invitation.
4:31
SPEAKER_00: So if that feels right for you, maybe taking a breath in, a sigh out, taking as many of those as you'd like, and then eventually coming into this place of stillness for about a minute.
4:50
SPEAKER_00: And that one minute will begin now, that concludes our minute of silence.
6:03
SPEAKER_00: I hope that you found that.
6:06
SPEAKER_00: Well, really, I hope it was whatever you needed it to be, and whatever you wanted it to be, and whatever was most supportive for you.
6:18
SPEAKER_00: I found myself settling into the stillness pretty quickly today, as it's been, you know, not too long of a day.
6:27
SPEAKER_00: And as you might be sensing in your own world, whether personally or whether just things that you're observing in the people around you, or maybe what's happening collectively, there's just a lot going on.
6:43
SPEAKER_00: Uh, where I work part-time during the day as a teaching artist and program specialist.
6:50
SPEAKER_00: The schools where I work are currently on strike.
6:55
SPEAKER_00: The whole district is currently on strike.
6:57
SPEAKER_00: And so that's been very interesting to navigate.
7:01
SPEAKER_00: It's been quite chaotic in several classrooms, some a little bit less, but overall there is this sense of unease and just an overall sense of dysregulation, for lack of a better word.
7:21
SPEAKER_00: Things are not normal.
7:25
SPEAKER_00: And the kiddos can really sense this.
7:28
SPEAKER_00: And so it's been challenging to navigate those waters.
7:34
SPEAKER_00: And then when I open up the perspective collectively as well, there's so much happening here in the United States where I live, and things that are going on all over the world, really, but especially in the Middle East, and with all of the just all of the things that are happening that like I giggle because it's it's so unreal what we are going through right now.
8:08
SPEAKER_00: These types of things, through my perspective, through my understanding, really shouldn't be happening.
8:15
SPEAKER_00: We shouldn't be having to witness such atrocities.
8:20
SPEAKER_00: We shouldn't be having to navigate these political environments.
8:26
SPEAKER_00: We shouldn't have to be fearful for our lives and for our safeties, not just here in the United States, in these other countries as well.
8:36
SPEAKER_00: So I really just want to honor and acknowledge how intense things really are right now.
8:46
SPEAKER_00: And I think sometimes our own personal lives can feel so insignificant when we look at those bigger pictures.
8:54
SPEAKER_00: And you matter, and your experience matters, and your feelings matter.
9:02
SPEAKER_00: So just holding both of those really lovingly and really tenderly, and holding all of that within myself as well.
9:11
SPEAKER_00: As I am also going through my own personal challenges while still also having to show up in these environments where I'm offering support to people.
9:24
SPEAKER_00: So, and I know many of you are parents and caretakers, and you may find yourself in similar situations.
9:32
SPEAKER_00: So just honoring and holding the complexity of the times that we're in.
9:39
SPEAKER_00: And I think this week really offers us a beautiful opportunity to lean into these themes specifically.
9:50
SPEAKER_00: This week we are tuning to the energy of the waning moon and more specifically, the dark moon.
9:58
SPEAKER_00: I've done a few episodes on the dark moon in the past, and it's honestly one of my favorite phases to talk about because it's one of the most passed over phases of the cycle.
10:10
SPEAKER_00: And yet I believe it offers some of the most potent medicine.
10:16
SPEAKER_00: You'll know it's the dark moon because when you go outside tonight and try to look for the moon, even just a tiny sliver, you won't see it.
10:26
SPEAKER_00: During this time, there is no light being reflected back to us.
10:31
SPEAKER_00: So it appears as if there is no moon at all.
10:35
SPEAKER_00: This lasts for about three to four nights, and then we move into the new moon, which technically begins when you see the first tiny sliver of light returns.
10:48
SPEAKER_00: We have our new moon arriving on Wednesday this week.
10:52
SPEAKER_00: What time depends on where you are in the world.
10:56
SPEAKER_00: And this is one of the regular, if you will, new moons.
11:00
SPEAKER_00: Not a new moon eclipse, so we're in the clear there.
11:04
SPEAKER_00: My sense is that by Friday you'll see that first delicate sliver of light reappear.
11:11
SPEAKER_00: So the days leading up to the new moon are really a period of pause.
11:17
SPEAKER_00: And I want to remind you that we're still moving through Mercury retrograde.
11:24
SPEAKER_00: Mercury will station direct on Friday, and there will still be what astrologers call a shadow period for another week or so.
11:35
SPEAKER_00: So things may not feel completely back to normal just yet.
11:40
SPEAKER_00: And interestingly, Friday is also the spring equinox here in the northern hemisphere.
11:49
SPEAKER_00: So there's a lot of fresh energy and forward momentum beginning to build.
11:55
SPEAKER_00: And before we rush towards that new beginning, the dark moon offers us an invitation.
12:04
SPEAKER_00: Pause.
12:07
SPEAKER_00: As I was feeling into the themes of this week's episode, an acronym came to me.
12:15
SPEAKER_00: P A U S E.
12:20
SPEAKER_00: Each letter represents something that can be incredibly supportive on a healing journey or on a path of reclaiming reclaiming, excuse me, feminine wisdom and rhythm.
12:33
SPEAKER_00: Let's start with P perspective.
12:38
SPEAKER_00: When we allow ourselves to stop, to truly pause, we create space for perspective to emerge.
12:47
SPEAKER_00: When we are constantly moving, striving, or working towards something, it becomes very difficult to see clearly.
12:57
SPEAKER_00: But stillness creates space.
13:01
SPEAKER_00: If you're familiar with internal family systems, which you may have heard, or rather, excuse me, you may have heard of the idea of the capital S self.
13:15
SPEAKER_00: In IFS or internal family system, or sometimes called parts work, the self has several core qualities, and one of them is perspective.
13:27
SPEAKER_00: When we step out of our reactivity and into the self energy that is only really accessible in the present moment, not when you're thinking about the future or reliving the past, we're able to see things more clearly.
13:47
SPEAKER_00: It's like walking through a dense forest.
13:51
SPEAKER_00: When you're among the trees, you can't see very far.
13:56
SPEAKER_00: But when you step out of the forest or climb to a higher vantage point, suddenly you can see the entire landscape.
14:05
SPEAKER_00: And from that place, you can re-orient, you can redirect, you can see yourself and the situation you're in from a new vantage point.
14:17
SPEAKER_00: Which brings us to a adjust.
14:21
SPEAKER_00: Once we gain perspective, we can then begin to adjust.
14:26
SPEAKER_00: And here's something I love to remember.
14:30
SPEAKER_00: Even tiny adjustments can create massive change over time.
14:36
SPEAKER_00: Think about a ship traveling across the ocean.
14:40
SPEAKER_00: If that ship changes its trajectory by even just two degrees, it will eventually end up in a completely different destination.
14:51
SPEAKER_00: Smaller adjustments matter.
14:55
SPEAKER_00: So maybe this week the question becomes: where might a tiny adjustment be supportive?
15:01
SPEAKER_00: Not a big overhaul, just a subtle shift.
15:08
SPEAKER_00: Which brings us to you, understanding.
15:12
SPEAKER_00: When we pause long enough to reflect, we often gain a deeper understanding of ourselves, of others, or of the experiences we've been moving through.
15:23
SPEAKER_00: And this is important because the brain loves understanding.
15:28
SPEAKER_00: The brain loves to know, I always tell my clients.
15:32
SPEAKER_00: Research in neuroscience shows that when the brain can make sense of an experience, when something becomes coherent or understandable, it helps to regulate the nervous system and reduce stress responses.
15:47
SPEAKER_00: In trauma work, we often talk about meaning making of an experience.
15:52
SPEAKER_00: When we understand the body softens, the nervous system can begin to relax, especially after an intense period like eclipse season.
16:03
SPEAKER_00: Understanding can help us integrate everything that's been unfolding.
16:10
SPEAKER_00: The next word is sustain.
16:14
SPEAKER_00: The truth is, most of us are moving at an incredibly unsustainable pace.
16:20
SPEAKER_00: We are constantly moving, striving, producing, achieving, and it's not surprising that we're seeing rising levels of anxiety, depression, loneliness, and burnout across the world.
16:34
SPEAKER_00: Many psychologists and sociologists are now naming what some call hurry sickness or chronic time pressure as a major contributor to modern stress.
16:45
SPEAKER_00: How wild is that?
16:47
SPEAKER_00: We're simply moving too fast, we're in too much of a rush.
16:53
SPEAKER_00: And so the dark moon, honoring it, working with it, begins to offer a different rhythm.
17:01
SPEAKER_00: Imagine if every four weeks we collectively all allowed ourselves three to five days of intentional slowing down, reflection, integration, rest, quiet, stillness?
17:19
SPEAKER_00: Or even if there was just one minute of pause during the day throughout the whole world?
17:23
SPEAKER_00: Can you imagine if everyone just paused for one minute during the day?
17:32
SPEAKER_00: How might life be able to reorganize in the most brilliant and beautiful ways?
17:41
SPEAKER_00: And I do want to be clear that a pause does not mean grabbing your phone and consuming more information.
17:49
SPEAKER_00: Pause literally means sit, breathe, be.
17:58
SPEAKER_00: This is something I make my students do at the beginning of every class, especially right now, while we're navigating these times that are a bit more chaotic and wild than usual, we'll say.
18:13
SPEAKER_00: I literally make them all stop and breathe.
18:18
SPEAKER_00: And it truly does allow the nervous system to excel.
18:22
SPEAKER_00: Within a few moments, I'll be getting, I'll begin to see yawns and keto sort of like relaxing a little bit.
18:34
SPEAKER_00: Which brings us to E.
18:37
SPEAKER_00: Evaluate.
18:40
SPEAKER_00: Finally, we arrive at evaluate.
18:44
SPEAKER_00: Once we've paused, gained perspective, made some adjustments, and cultivated understanding, we can then ask the deeper questions.
18:55
SPEAKER_00: What is actually right for me right now?
18:59
SPEAKER_00: Where might I need more support?
19:03
SPEAKER_00: Where do I need to say no?
19:07
SPEAKER_00: Where am I being invited to say yes?
19:12
SPEAKER_00: What needs to shift?
19:14
SPEAKER_00: What needs to be released?
19:17
SPEAKER_00: This is the kind of evaluation that allows us to step into a new cycle with greater alignment because we always have the chance to begin again and to start fresh and to renew.
19:32
SPEAKER_00: When we honor this phase of pause, we enter the new moon and the coming season with more clarity, more alignment and less friction, more harmony and less stress, more ease, more flow.
19:56
SPEAKER_00: Because we're no longer forcing ourselves to live according to a rhythm that isn't ours.
20:03
SPEAKER_00: We begin interrupting the patterns of a culture that tells us to constantly produce.
20:10
SPEAKER_00: And I will tell you, in these times, that is truly an act of revolution and reclaiming your power, your sovereignty, and your autonomy.
20:22
SPEAKER_00: And when we do that, we slowly begin to return to something more ancient, more natural, more true, our own unique rhythm and this rhythm, this pulse of life.
20:42
SPEAKER_00: So this invitation, excuse me, the invitation this week is simple.
20:48
SPEAKER_00: Pause even for a moment, even for a breath.
20:53
SPEAKER_00: And if you'd like support with that, I've shared a trauma-informed donation-based meditation for you in the show notes.
21:02
SPEAKER_00: Looking ahead, when we meet again on Friday, we'll be releasing our first guest episode of Airy Season.
21:09
SPEAKER_00: Airy season starts on Friday.
21:11
SPEAKER_00: And I have to say, I'm really excited about our next guest and solo episodes that are becoming out over the coming months.
21:20
SPEAKER_00: Our first guest episode is incredible, and she's really going to drop us right into these themes of Airy Season, which I'll share a little bit more about on Friday.
21:32
SPEAKER_00: And by the time we meet again for our next cycle check-in, we'll officially be in a new season, a new astrological year, and the beginning of spring in the natural world.
21:44
SPEAKER_00: So I'm really looking forward to diving into all of that with you.
21:48
SPEAKER_00: I'll meet you on Friday for our first Aries season guest episode, and next week we'll explore the new moon and the energy of spring together.
21:58
SPEAKER_00: Until then, take care of yourself and remember that sometimes the most powerful thing you can do is to simply pause.