A Sangha or “Spiritual community” is just as important for Yoginis (women and non-binary people who may have/had a cycle) as the solo time on the mat or cushion.

The process of storytelling (listening and sharing) in a non-judgmental space normalizes that every woman’s body-mind-spirit is experiencing a unique and yet similar journey. Stories about being a Mmenstruating person can impact the energy, mood, and attitude one might approach in a regular yoga practice. Being aware of your “exercise needs” on day 1 of your cycle vs. day 21 is a huge aspect of “Svadyaya” or self-study for Yoginis. A community of female-bodied practitioners helps normalize challenges, and boosts your desire to stay disciplined yet self-compassionate. 

An example of this important “yogic approach” is something that happens in our mommas retreats and other circles when women gather and freely tell their stories. One women who might think she’s crazy for having mood-related hormonal symptoms at day 18, might find out that many women experience mood dips and drops at different times of her menstrual cycle and that she is not alone, nor crazy. Another example is the free-flow of information on how to menstrual cycle (or lack thereof if perimenopausal, exercise and meditation might all intersect uniquely for women. Mental and emotional and even psychic states of awareness might drastically differ from day to day but may have a monthly pattern that others share. (I.e. it might be juicy and enjoyable for you to have a fast, powerfully strong physical yoga practice during your ovulatory time period, but excruciatingly dragging 2 days before you menstruate as your body is telling you get ready to slow down and internalize for a few days.). 

Prioritizing Sangha as a part of your yoga practice helps normalize the shared experiences women might experience (I.E. “hungry week” aka the 7 days before your bleed as a friend calls it),  AS WELL AS honoring that your BodyMindWomb might be different from the Yogini next to you, yet not pathologically different in the least. To shine light on these historically taboo topics (such as the menstrual cycle and peri-menopause) is to begin to empower yogini’s to see the vast array of what’s real, true, and happening in bodies around them. 

This element is key to unlocking a menstrual cycle awareness practice that is rooted in a crowd-sourced approach to information. When we unlock knowledge about female bodies from the vaults of “medical practitioners” alone, we are set free to find answers using a mixture of mindful self-witnessing, collective wisdom and deep trust of our own intuition.

In our final blog post in this series, we explore the place of nature connection in all of this. So stay tuned!