If you missed the first part of this series, be sure to check out my post using the phases of the moon to feel more balanced pt 1 here!

In that post I shared the different phases of the moon and a bit about how the feminine and masculine energies exist within us all – as well as how more linear masculine ways of living have been seen as the social norm for a long long time.

So how do we use the phases of the moon to balance the feminine and masculine ways of being and tap into the cyclical and abundant nature of the moon to feel more balanced?

If you look at the moon phases, each one has a particular energy which is reflected in so many parts of nature. One easy way to look at this is to think of them like seasons:

• New Moon – Winter – rest, introspection, silence, restoration
• Waxing Moon – Spring – growth, emergence, excitement, picking up the pace
• Full Moon – Summer – full bloom, fertility, being on show, work and play
• Waning Moon – Autumn – letting go, winding down, tying up loose ends

Each season has its own energy and flowing more with this energy is something that can help you feel more grounded and connected. Just being more in tune with the seasons is something that has helped me immensely when it comes to balance – check out my quarterly seasonal journal if that’s something you’d like to explore more of!

But when it comes to the moon phases, there’s ways you can use the energy of each phase to support your balance in really practical ways. The moon phases remind us we all need periods of rest and periods of being ‘out there’ so when we observe the moon phases and take small steps to embrace those energy shifts we create more balance.

For example, if you’re currently struggling with feeling overwhelmed and overbooked perhaps you install an app on your phone which tells you the moon phases and use that as a reminder to cancel a few social engagements around the time of the New Moon. Maybe during the waning moon you cross a few items off your to do list – and hopefully fostering that connection with the moon will help you be more kind to yourself when doing those things!

If you feel the woo woo vibes you can use the New and Full Moons to set intentions and let things go that no longer serve you – again I write more about this in the quarterly journal. This is a reflection of when farmers would plant new crops at the time of the New Moon and harvest at the Full Moon.

For me, I keep track of the moon phases in my journal and online calendar (if you use Google Calendar you can add the phases of the moon to your ‘other calendars’ section) and I just use them as a gentle reminder to either slow down or speed up as needed.

I find that alongside really listening to my body and tracking my menstrual cycle this stops me feeling like I have to be go go go all the bloody time. It makes me more forgiving of myself if I skip a workout…or 3, because I know the time will come back around when I really feel like I want to exercise.

Quite recently we had a Full Moon that a lot of women in my Facebook group felt was making them feel out of sorts – and how useful is it to be able to make that connection when otherwise you might have been really judgy about how you were feeling and acting?

I’d love to know, do you follow the cycles of the moon? Would you give this a try to bring more balance into your life?