Hello beautiful,
As we journey along with the exploration of the amazingly wild inner landscapes of our menstrual cycle, I can’t help but wonder how it became so foreign and misunderstood to us.
It also gives me such a huge drive to contribute to this much-needed re-education…
so, without further due, let’s get to it!
In this blog, I am going to dive into the physical, emotional, and energetic manifestation of our Ovulatory Phase, our Inner Summer. I will also share with you a few tips on how to best harness this potent energy and sync with this major moment of our monthly rhythm.
Enjoy...
THE PHYSICAL MANIFESTATION
While in the Follicular Phase (your inner Spring) your ovaries were getting prepared for ovulation by growing and maturing eggs inside the follicles, your Ovulatory Phase is when the egg (or sometimes eggs) is fully released through an extraordinary process in your womb.
This phase usually starts 2 to 3 days before your ovulation and lasts between 5 and 6 days.
After menstruation, your estrogen levels start to rise, and your Inner Summer is the phase in which estrogen reaches its peak.
This huge rise in estrogen causes the mucus plug at the entrance of the cervix to dissolve, and mucus will start to discharge from the vaginal opening, getting wetter and wetter as you reach ovulation.
Another hormone that comes into a spike at this point of your cycle is the Luteinizing Hormone (LH) which triggers the follicle to tear and release a mature egg.
LH is produced by the pituitary gland.
As the egg enters the fallopian tube, it’s carried towards the uterus by a sea of undulating cilia (finger-like structures) that lines the fallopian tube. This is such an amazing process, if you’ve never watched a video on it, I recommend you to you-tube it and be amazed, once again, by the beauty of our bodies.
Now, at this point, with your egg out-n-about, if sperm is present, the egg will get fertilized and pregnancy will start. So, needless to say, that - YES, in your Inner Summer, you are fertile!
After ovulation, it takes a few days for the mucus plug at the entrance of the cervix to reform. Your fertile window starts 3 days before ovulation and ends about 3 days after.
Unfortunately, through lack of education and the huge amount of misinformation out there, we are not taught to be aware of our fertility, and/or we are made to believe that we are always fertile.
Sperm can live in mucus for up to 3 days, and that's why, if you are not trying to conceive, it’s better to use contraceptives for the full duration of your Ovulatory Phase and a few days into your Luteal Phase, Inner Autumn.
WHAT HAPPENS ENERGETICALLY
Inner Summer, when balanced, is when our energy is at its highest.
Through the hormonal orchestration happening in our body and not to forget the fact that we are releasing our egg (!!), we feel a sense of vitality, openness, and expression… it’s summer sista!
The sun is hot and shining (our basic body temperature literally increases throughout this phase), vibes are high, nights are long and full of adventures with endless dates, parties, and gatherings… in our Ovulatory phase, we feel ready to expose ourselves to the world in all our glory.
The internal physical changes happening inside the womb match the external manifestation… our cheeks are a little rosy and blush, our lips a little fuller and so are our breasts.
Animalistically speaking, this is the time in which we are in heat...
looking to mate.
In Chinese medicine, this phase of the menstrual cycle is considered the most Yang (expressive, active energy).
In this time of my cycle, I feel electric, empowered with my artistic gifts, ready to take on bigger tasks.
This is the perfect time to be seen, as it is the most expressive phase of “me”. Because we feel energetically juicy and full of vitality, in this Inner season we also feel emotionally stronger.
BALANCING ENERGIES
Our task in this phase is to handle this high, electric energy wisely, as we can easily overextend ourselves.
Yes, this is the time to show your full splendor, and pack your calendar with things you were not ready to engage on through your other phases… but remember to keep some energy for yourself, as it will serve you wonders to get through the shift of season when Autumn starts knocking at your doors.
The way we interact with each Inner Season affects the rest of the cycle.
When we bring awareness to each phase and monitor our energy, our heart, and how we feel in our body, we are able to distribute our energy evenly and feel more balanced with each cycle.
So, in your Inner Summer remember to take some healthy breaks from the hot sun to avoid burning yourself.
GETTING PRACTICAL
Now that you have a deeper understanding of what's going on in your womb at this time of the month, and how it affects your energy, let’s talk about the best way to integrate it.
Here are a few tips to best embody this expansive inner season:
Connect to your heart. This is the time in which following the heart comes more easily. Say yes to what you desire, which date you want to go on, friends you want to meet up with, places you want to explore. You hold strong energy right now, direct it to things that nourish you.
Do the heavy lifting now. If there is a big project pressing, right now it’s the time to tackle it. You might have scheduled this when you planned your month in your Inner Spring...so now, the big day is here, go get them, girl!
Ground yourself. Take time to ground this high energy. Perhaps take a calming bath a night and a few moments to be in complete stillness and silence. It will feel so nourishing throughout this phase and will keep you going throughout the rest of the cycle.
As we explore each Inner Season, we truly are touching on the tip of the iceberg in terms of how much re-attunement we can practice for ourselves in order to regain more balance and appreciation of our cyclical way of being.
The Lunar Chart is a beautiful, simple chart I created to help you keep track of your inner seasons and understand more intimately your personal relationship with each phase of your cycle. It's free to download and a great practice for cycle awareness. Click the link below to get your chart...
There is so much more to dive into… I offer this to you as a simple introduction to this powerful Inner Season.
Stay tuned as we continue to explore the magic of the other phases of the menstrual cycle and reclaim our knowledge and connection to the most sacred cycle of life.
With love and devotion,
Gloria
