Preparing and Celebrating Puberty and Periods with your Child
You’ve been learning about your menstrual cycle and how to attune to its changing daily strengths, vulnerabilities, and self-care needs – and it’s been life changing to finally learn what you should have learnt as a child. So imagine how powerful it would be for our children to learn this knowledge and wisdom now – rather than having to figure it all out after many years of being disconnected to their body, their cycle and therefore, themselves. If you’d love to share what you now know with your child or any other child for that matter but aren’t sure of when or how to start, I’d love to give you some ideas to help you do that confidently in a way that feels gentle, age-appropriate, and empowering for you and your child.
Many mothers have traditionally thought that children aren’t ready to learn about their body, how it changes, what menstruation is, or anything else associated with puberty until they have their first period but when we leave “the talk” until this time, children already have a lot of feelings, thoughts and confusion about what’s been happening to their body and sense of selves for a while, and they question what these changes mean about them if they are left in the dark.
Children in the playground talk and share information that’s usually incomplete or inaccurate, leaving children to piece the story together themselves. Schools deliver education that’s most often squashed down in one or two hours total to combine information on what periods are and how to manage blood, anatomy and how reproduction works which sends children the message that having periods means that falling pregnant is something to fear, and that when they begin their periods, they’re ready to have sex, which is not the case at all from a developmental point of view.
When talking about periods is so uncomfortable, it continues the menstrual taboo that we have been victims of for millennia. So how do we cultivate a period positive culture?
Intuition: When to Say No and Love Yourself First
Did you know that on average, Australian females experience between 450-500 periods in her lifetime, with the average cycle spanning between 21-35 days, and the average bleed lasting between 2-7 days?
Once we begin menstruating (at menarche – pronounced “men-ar-kee”) which occurs anywhere these days between roughly the ages of 8-15, and commonly around ages 12-13, we begin our monthly bleed (menstrual cycle) until we reach menopause which occurs approximately at the age of 50 (although again, this can occur much earlier or later as it is do individual).
After menarche our periods will be irregular for most of our teen years until the rhythm is established and our hormones settle into their natural, beautiful cycle. You might notice that some months you bleed for longer, or more heavily than other times, or that your cycle isn’t the same length each time. This is all ok – everyone’s cycle is different.
Why You Should Track Your Menstrual Cycle And How To Do It
Did you know that on average, Australian females experience between 450-500 periods in her lifetime, with the average cycle spanning between 21-35 days, and the average bleed lasting between 2-7 days?
Once we begin menstruating (at menarche – pronounced “men-ar-kee”) which occurs anywhere these days between roughly the ages of 8-15, and commonly around ages 12-13, we begin our monthly bleed (menstrual cycle) until we reach menopause which occurs approximately at the age of 50 (although again, this can occur much earlier or later as it is do individual).
After menarche our periods will be irregular for most of our teen years until the rhythm is established and our hormones settle into their natural, beautiful cycle. You might notice that some months you bleed for longer, or more heavily than other times, or that your cycle isn’t the same length each time. This is all ok – everyone’s cycle is different.
4 Ways to Boost Confidence in Girls
Did you know that on average, Australian females experience between 450-500 periods in her lifetime, with the average cycle spanning between 21-35 days, and the average bleed lasting between 2-7 days?
Once we begin menstruating (at menarche – pronounced “men-ar-kee”) which occurs anywhere these days between roughly the ages of 8-15, and commonly around ages 12-13, we begin our monthly bleed (menstrual cycle) until we reach menopause which occurs approximately at the age of 50 (although again, this can occur much earlier or later as it is do individual).
After menarche our periods will be irregular for most of our teen years until the rhythm is established and our hormones settle into their natural, beautiful cycle. You might notice that some months you bleed for longer, or more heavily than other times, or that your cycle isn’t the same length each time. This is all ok – everyone’s cycle is different.
What does the colour of your flow tell you?
What does the colour of your flow tell you? Did you know that the colour of your blood can vary from person to person and even between cycles?
What age is best for girls to attend a First Moon Circle?
Did you know that on average, Australian females experience between 450-500 periods in her lifetime, with the average cycle spanning between 21-35 days, and the average bleed lasting between 2-7 days?
Once we begin menstruating (at menarche – pronounced “men-ar-kee”) which occurs anywhere these days between roughly the ages of 8-15, and commonly around ages 12-13, we begin our monthly bleed (menstrual cycle) until we reach menopause which occurs approximately at the age of 50 (although again, this can occur much earlier or later as it is do individual).
After menarche our periods will be irregular for most of our teen years until the rhythm is established and our hormones settle into their natural, beautiful cycle. You might notice that some months you bleed for longer, or more heavily than other times, or that your cycle isn’t the same length each time. This is all ok – everyone’s cycle is different.
How to create a Spiral Ritual to honour the Winter Solstice
Winter Solstice….Archetypes of the Crone, Midnight, your bleed. In the Peak darkness, and the cusp of new light. The void, liminal space, the in-between, neither here nor there. A time of having one foot in the past and one in the future. The end of the cycle also brings with it new beginnings. The start of the new cycle ahead.
What happens in women’s circles? beyond the magick and mystery
Spells, crystal balls, and black magick: that’s what happens in circle, isn’t it? if you’ve not been to one yet, you might have some curious ideas about what really goes on at a women’s circle, your imagination running amok thinking of wild women letting loose, conjuring up all kinds of magic. so if you’re curious, intrigued, but unsure, and a bit wary, then i’d love to bust some myths and clear up what it’s all about, because circles are joy, and you deserve to join one.
Women have come together to share stories, wisdom, support and encouragement in circle for thousands of years, before slowly our way was lost, eroded, hidden. Modern women’s gatherings might look more like meetings in cafes, to sewing circles, mothers groups or going out for dinner and drinks. But recently, there has been a huge reclamation of women’s circle in its original sense. Now circles are coming back into the mainstream, you’ve got the chance to join us at your local circle here in the Southern Highlands NSW with me, Charlotte!
Because I know that we aren’t raised knowing what circles are, what happens, and how to simply be in circle, I want to help you feel confident and ready to attend your first one. So let’s get into it, let’s bust some myths and get to the heart of what circles are…
Finding Our Inner Nature Inside The Wheel Of The Year
the wheel of the year asks us to pay close, meaningful attention to the ever-turning seasons of the year, and invites us into a mindfulness practice of observing the 8 traditionally honoured sabbats.
Occurring every 6 weeks all year long, it’s amazing to realise that we don’t just have four seasons, there are actually 8 different energies at play. And where I live, the traditional custodians of the land, the Gundungurra people know there to be 6 seasons in the year.
In ancient times and traditional cultures, people lived in alignment with the 8 seasonal sabbats (festivals) of the year. Its how farmers knew when to plant, harvest and leave the earth bare. It’s how people knew when to tend the land, harvest fruits, and preserve stores ahead of a long winter. Nowadays we have lost this connection to the land because we don’t need it to survive: instead we can get food all year round, flown in from anywhere, so we never have to care for the land and what we need.
Traditional ways like this have been eroded by industrialisation, in search of what’s cheapest and most convenient. But this comes at a great cost. The soils are depleted, we are not getting the nourishment we need, climate change is almost at the breaking point of no return, and we are seeing extinctions at an unbelievable rate.
All because we forgot that we ARE nature: inside and out.
When we lose sight of ourselves as nature, we forget that we have inner seasons, we change everyday, and that this is a biological process necessary for our health and vitality.
When Burn-out Bites, Stop and Smell the Roses
When Burn-out Bites, Stop and Smell the Roses. I’ve come to the end of a major cycle in my business after wrapping up my First Moon Circle Facilitator Training, 3 months with a 1:1 client, and holding what might be the last circle for the year – all within 3 days of each other.And instead of feeling elated, on top of the world, so incredibly proud and CELEBRATING the hell out of it all, I’m finding myself in forced isolation at home due to COVID, experiencing broken websites and now a broken phone, feeling flat and frustrated. You see, I’ve been journalling today and unravelling why I’ve been finding it so hard to celebrate my amazing achievements. I’ve received the most amazing feedback from the facilitators and I seriously couldn’t be more delighted with how its all gone. BUT I’m feeling myself stuck in that lull phase between projects.