Period.

Periods: they aren’t gross, weird, or some sort of taboo; they are normal which is what makes them such a beautifully feminine gift. I am learning to embrace my menstrual cycle more than ever before because I have come to realize it connects me to my higher self, the women in my life, and my womanhood as a whole. Embracing these facets of my life has become a tool to help me feel strong, supported, and powerful. 

This weekend I got my period. Earlier in the week, I was dealing with lots of PMS symptoms. I was so fatigued and grumpy - it felt like I was dragging myself through each day. I initially figured this was just coming from sleep deprivation and stress. A few days later, I started getting crampy and achy, which is when I began to put the pieces together. And finally, the day crept up on me. In the past, I have felt negatively towards my period. It felt like an added stressor to the rest of the craziness in my life. As if I was involuntarily overexerting myself every time my cycle started, which felt unfair. But this time around I didn’t feel this overwhelming sense of burden - I felt empowered.

I felt like I was on top of the world; I am a woman and I am connecting with my body! I wanted to run to my friends and tell them, “Wooohooo I got my period!” like I was a middle schooler all over again. I felt so satisfied that I knew it was coming; that I read the signs and predicted its arrival. 

I know we’ve all heard someone say something along the lines of “men are so lucky they don’t have to deal with this,” but this time I feel like the lucky one. This summer I really stepped into my womanhood. I started to see little signs showing me how beautiful and empowering it is to be a woman. This is the first time I’ve seen my period as one of those signs.

It is a 6th sense - we can sense any subtle change in our bodies, especially as we begin to get to know our cycles. We “deal” with our menstrual cycle every single month but it’s almost like each month we are privileged with the opportunity to get to know ourselves better and better. 

This occurrence is a special one that we experience together - women even sync cycles because we are meant to be in this together. Connection is one of the things that makes the human experience so special. It is also one of the beautiful gifts of womanhood. To undergo intuitive and unique bonds with the women around us, who are also beginning to discover their divine feminine, is almost a sacred phenomenon. We are connected through our menstrual cycle but also through our sense of self and womanhood that our period presents to us. 

Whether your cycle is light, intense, regular, or all over the place, you are nonetheless deserving of being empowered by the changes your body experiences, such that those changes are a natural part of womanhood. Oh, what a beautiful experience it is to have a period and be a woman.