Holistic Cycle Awareness: Why we forgot the Sacredness of the Female Cycle and What it means for us

Holistic Cycle Awareness: Why we forgot the Sacredness of the Female Cycle and what it means for us

This is a topic that is very close to my heart—one I wish had been introduced to me in this way when I was a young girl: cycle awareness and the sacredness of the female cycle.  

What power and wisdom does nature hold within my own body?  

And how do I take responsible care of it?  

How do I guide myself attentively and lovingly through the phases of my cycle?  

The sacredness of it lies in the understanding that all life follows cycles, that everything is interconnected, and that no life could exist without these natural rhythms.  

On exhalation follows inhalation, and exhalation, and inhalation…  

On expansion follows contraction, and expansion, and contraction…  

Going outward is followed by retreating inward, before expanding outward once more.  

Life is followed by death, and from death, new life emerges.  

Transformation happens in cycles.  

This is how nature works. This is how life works.  

We can observe this everywhere in nature—this principle is omnipresent.  

The seasons: After winter’s rest comes the awakening of spring—everything begins to grow, sprout, and bloom, reaching its peak in summer’s ripeness. Then, in autumn, everything begins to wither and decay. Energy slowly returns to the earth until winter appears still and barren.  

The moon cycle: A new cycle begins with the new moon. The moon waxes, reaching its peak in the full moon, and then wanes again until it disappears completely—only to begin growing once more.  

Day and night: At dawn, a new day begins. The sunlight increases, reaches its peak at midday, and then gradually fades until nightfall brings darkness, growing deeper until the earth turns again toward the sun.  

It is so obvious that all life (including our human bodies) is organized in cycles—and that these cycles influence our lives.  

Yet we live (still) in a society that has almost entirely forgotten and unlearned this truth.  

This late-patriarchal, performance-driven society is almost exclusively linear in its orientation.  

It upholds the idea that we must always be equally productive—at work, in school, in our studies, and in our personal lives.  

Every single day. (And then, we even extend our days with artificial light.)  

We have collectively normalized the habit of hustling—constantly pushing beyond our own healthy limits, staying active, doing more, producing more. Because only then do we seem to have value.  

We live in a society addicted to stress, where exhaustion is normalized.  

We all carry these patterns within us because they have been modeled to us in some form—whether by our families, schools, media, or social environments.  

But it is clear that this way of living does not serve anyone. No one.  

The rise of both physical and mental health issues in our modern world is undeniable proof.  

And we, as women—beings with female bodies—who experience the cyclical nature of life so profoundly within ourselves,  

we suffer when we force ourselves into this rigid system.  

Because that is not how our inner system works.  

That is not how our bodies function.  

(And to be clear, this does not mean that men do not suffer under this system. They do. But in this piece, I want to focus specifically on the female perspective.)  

The female system is not designed to be equally productive every single day, week after week, month after month, year after year.  

To function the same way every day.  

To be equally present in the external world at all times.  

And then, perhaps, to have a weekend off—or two or three weeks of vacation.  

We are not machines.  

We are cyclical beings, and in the long run, living against our innate nature makes us sick.  

Being kept in a subtle state of struggle and conflict with ourselves and our bodies.  

With the spread of patriarchal cultures over the last millennia (a fascinating and complex topic—I highly recommend the work of matriarchal researcher Heide Göttner-Abendroth for deeper insights),  

we, as a collective, have forgotten what a sacred gift our female bodies and menstrual cycles truly are.  

We have forgotten—over generations—how much power lies in reconnecting with our feminine nature, our cycle, and living in harmony with this inner rhythm.  

Instead, negative beliefs about our female bodies and our monthly bleeding (as well as about nature and life in general) have become deeply ingrained in our collective consciousness.  

- “The female body is weak, sinful, and the root of all evil—after all, Eve picked the apple, so women are to blame for everything, and it’s only fair that they suffer.”  

- “Menstruation is dirty and impure.”  

- “Menstruation is painful, exhausting, and annoying.”  

Something that needs to be endured, controlled, and concealed.  

It pains me every time I hear or see women speak about their own bodies in a way that unknowingly diminishes themselves.  

And at the same time, I understand this perspective.  

Of course, menstruation—along with everything that comes with it—feels exhausting and burdensome in a patriarchal, performance-driven, capitalist, stress-addicted, linear system.  

A system that is in no way designed to understand and honor feminine power, feminine essence, or the female cycle.  

For centuries, dominant societies and religions have conditioned people to devalue, exploit, suppress, and persecute women, their bodies, and everything feminine—in themselves as well as in others.  

If we, as women, wanted to survive in this system—and still want to "keep up" today—it’s only logical that we often struggle with our bodies, ignore their needs, and suppress their signals.  

As if saying: “Don’t be a burden, don’t make a fuss.”  

Logically, these signals only grow louder—until we find ourselves in bed with migraines, colds, cramps, or other physical/psychological symptoms, unable to continue.  

Yes, our bodies protest—forcing us into rest, regeneration, introspection, and change through these symptoms.  

But how often do we truly listen?  

Or do we just take a painkiller, grit our teeth, and keep going?  

“Because we have to. Because everyone else does it too.”  

I want to emphasize: This is not about judgment.  

It’s about understanding, compassion, and education.  

Hardly any woman of our generation—or our mothers’ and grandmothers’ generations—was given a healthy, appreciative, and truly holistic education about her own female body and cycle.  

This topic has long been shrouded in shame, fear, and misunderstanding.  

Very few young girls are truly initiated into the deeper meaning of their first menstruation.  

What does this cycle mean—biologically, psychologically, and spiritually?  

What power and responsibility lie within it?  

How do I navigate it?  

How do I care for myself lovingly?  

How do I trust and honor my needs?  

How do I nurture my connection to my intuition?  

For most, the conversation is brief and awkward—maybe with a quick explanation of how to use a pad or tampon.  

That’s it.  

In many cases, not even that.  

So, it’s no surprise that we have become so disconnected from our feminine essence when, for generations, we have been taught nothing else.  

It is now up to us—our generation—to bring healing.  

For ourselves, for the generations of women before us, and for those to come.  

We have the opportunity to remember, to reconnect with the wisdom of our wombs, and to honor the sacredness of our bodies and cycles—rather than dismissing this as trivial or ridiculous.  

Because it is not.  

Learning to live with our natural rhythms, rather than against them, is essential for our overall well-being and a fulfilling life.  

(And we —who have the privilege of living in a time and place where we can do this safely— can embrace this change.)  

We can follow the deep longing within us (step by step) and create a life that aligns with our true nature.  

A life of connection—to ourselves and to the universe, for we are a part of it.

Lots of love to you,

Pauline Käthe

In my next post I dive a bit deeper into a holistic understanding of the female cycle and its phases, you can find it here.