An introduction to the Inner Seasons

The building blocks for embodying ALL aspects of who you are

Hi everyone

It dawned on me that we haven’t covered one of the key parts of Menstrual Cycle Awareness yet - the inner seasons! As the building blocks for embodying all aspects of who you are the inner seasons are pretty important, so let’s spend some time together exploring them.

The inner seasons of the menstrual cycle are your own personal guides, providing valuable support and direction through the rise and fall of your hormones each menstrual month. Think of them as your allies in self-care, stress management and inner work, helping you to:

• Pace your energy

• Calm your nervous system

• Get insight & feedback on your overall wellbeing

But before we get into specifics, a good place to start is addressing the fact that, by nature, we are all cyclical beings (yes, even men!). While people who menstruate have a 28-ish day cycle to work with (the menstrual cycle), men follow a 24-hour testosterone cycle which affects their energy levels, mood and metabolism.

In western culture, somewhere along the road to modernity and capitalism, the patriarchy prioritised the male-dominated 24-hour cycle and left the menstrual cycle largely unrecognised. It’s important for us to know that historically one cycle has been prioritised over the other, because when we recognise that treating the menstrual cycle as secondary is simply a choice that was made, we can decide to take back our authority and choose to see the menstrual cycle as meaningful, rather than something secondary or inconvenient.

The idea that our menstrual cycle is inconvenient only makes sense within the confines of patriarchy and capitalism - two interconnected systems which hold productivity as a top priority. If we get curious for a sec and dare to believe that we aren’t here to simply be productive and die, suddenly our 28-ish day menstrual cycle and the inner seasons are pretty interesting…

Performing sameness

Before the industrial revolution, our ancestors lived in accordance with the land, seasons and nature. They trusted and abided by the ever changing physical environment and adopted a cyclical way of living. Just like the seasons of the year, through your menstrual month you move through an inner winter, inner spring, inner summer and inner autumn and back to winter.

If we have an in-built cyclical system which impacts our energy, mood, and even creates optimal moments for rest and connection, why do we expect ourselves to perform sameness? Why do we try to ignore our ever changing inner environment?

The act of tuning into our inner rhythm by practicing MCA breaks the illusion that people should be the same every day. Just as nature is complex with its ebbs and flows, so is human nature and the body. Making the effort to notice the rhythm of your own body is a free tool that will create profound ripple effects in how you relate to yourself, others and life.

A world built on productivity has seduced us into the idea that we can and should blindly crash forwards instead of listening to our inner cues. But eventually the body catches up, gets louder and demands our attention.

Unlike the fast-paced go-go-go of the modern world, the menstrual cycle is a relational practice - meaning it requires us to stop and relate to what is happening within us, to trust and work with the experience we’re having on any given day instead of ignoring it or trying to change it. The inner seasons are the ideal antidote to fast-paced, blind productivity.

The inner seasons are your own personal guide, providing valuable support and direction through the rise and fall of your hormones each menstrual month

When working with the inner seasons as a neurodivergent person, it’s important to understand: