Yoga for your Menstrual phase

It’s 4 pm, I’m tired, I’m hurting, bleeding, and despite eating and snacking all day, I’m ravenously hungry. Just another day in the life of a menstruating woman. I feel the reminder to use yoga for your menstrual phase It’s not a light tampon kind of day.  It’s a dark red soak. It clumps and leaks. It’s a shooting pain in the butt, an aching throb in my cervix, and an uneasy tenderness in my gut. Maybe it’s from my endometriosis, or maybe I’m just endowed with a special kind of moon-time magic that commands my full attention. The kind that requires rest. I take my rest in the form of restorative yoga.

Restorative yoga for your period

Why yoga for cramps is helpful.

Each posture provides different benefits to my body, from compression of the abdomen, relieving pain and encouraging healthy digestion to improved circulation, deep soothing stretches for the hips and pelvic floor, and an overall balancing of my emotions. Sometimes my moon time practice lasts an hour or more, but I can only sneak in 8-10 minutes other times.  I feel the after-effects immediately, and I’m grateful for this practice because I lived most of my life without it. I wonder why we aren’t taught these incredibly soothing, helpful positions from the start or why my mother wasn’t ever taught this kind of self-care. Rolling up my mat, I vow to teach my daughter. Yet another way I’m breaking the cycle and finally equipping my bloodline with tools that work! 

To help you try out a few poses for yourself, I’ve written them below, and you can see the pictures. Comment below with what felt supportive to you during your menstrual phase.

Legs Up the Wall Pose

Place a folded blanket under your hips. Wrap a thin blanket around your legs to keep them from falling over. Place something over your eyes. 8-15 minutes

Supported Child’s Pose

Kneel in front of a stack of folded blankets. Widen your knees and bring your hips back toward your feet as you pull the blanket stack underneath your torso.  Lay the head and chest forward onto the support you’ve created and surrender into the pose. 8-15 minutes. If there is discomfort in the knees, try rolling a washcloth and placing it at the inside crease of the knee. 

Supported Prone Twist

Bring both knees to one side using the same blanket stack you used in the child’s pose. Fold your upper body over the blanket stack and rest for 4 minutes before taking the same posture on the other side. 

Move slowly between postures to keep any feelings of relaxation you’ve fostered.

Have you tried restorative yoga for your menstrual phase? If you’re wondering where to start, you can join Margie Tuesday nights at 8 pm CST on zoom.

Click here to learn more about why knowing our bodies and menstrual cycle is helpful.

Author: Margie Sanders, owner of Bliss House Yoga

Margie Sanders has a passion for peace. Her love of yoga began 21 years ago in her hometown of St Charles, MO. She has studied with dozens of teachers and pulls inspiration from them all. Her teachings weave ancient practices with modern-day science and technology for a deeper understanding of what it means to care for ourselves. Margie attended her first yoga teacher training in 2015 and obtained her 500RYT cert in January 2020. She considers herself a lifelong student and is presently in pursuit of her yoga therapy license. Margie’s classes weave mindfulness, optional challenges, and classic alignment into creative harmony while encouraging playfulness to make yoga fun for all levels.