mission and philosophy

Moon Cycle Sanctuary’s mission is to provide mindful and integrative menstrual cycle education to support menstruators in living healthier and more conscious and connected lives.

When we understand how we work, mind, body, heart and spirit, we feel safer, more empowered and more connected to ourselves, other people, and the essence of life itself.

And yet, for most of human history, the menstrual cycle has been shrouded in mystery and stigma, leaving modern day menstruators painfully unaware of their body’s natural rhythms and the ways it impacts their everyday life and sense of self.

From energy levels to sleep and breathing patterns, appetite to sex drive, emotional swings to experiences of pain and pleasure, the hormones of the menstrual cycle and the interconnected network of your body, mind, heart, and spirit are constantly ebbing and flowing, and taking you along for the ride, whether you’re aware of it or not!

We are not our hormones. Yet the human mind has a natural tendency towards overidentifying our sense of self with a situation, especially when it means there is something wrong with us (or someone else!). When we are unaware of the hormone cycle and how it impacts us, it is far too easy to misinterpret or overidentify a simple hormonal shift as some core fatal flaw or serious illness. Ironically and tragically, this lack of awareness actually leads to more suffering and pain, at the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual level, as we don’t know how to listen to our body’s signals and respond appropriately.

Luckily, with a bit of information, some practice, and an awesome and supportive community, it is possible not only for individual menstruators to develop deeper, healthier and more conscious relationships with their bodies and selves, but also to expand their sense of connection, with self, others, the natural world and spirit, through menstrual cycle tracking and awareness. You can reclaim the power and wisdom of your body’s natural rhythms. However that looks for you.

We live in a world that values the qualities of the mind, the logical and linear, and the surface level, instantly gratifying, above all else. Yet the reality of the menstruating body, and the nature of life itself, is cyclical, fluctuating, deep and ever evolving. Moon Cycle Sanctuary believes there is room for both the linear and the cyclical, the fast and the slow, the light and the dark. And that connecting with your menstrual cycle is an opportunity to become aware of, connect with, and integrate these many varied parts of the self.

The original “surrender and open,” circa 2012, that now serves as the inspiration for the MCC logo and general guiding philosophy

MCC encourages students to explore cycle and self through a variety of techniques including journaling, artwork and music.

MCC coursework integrates a diverse array of disciplines and philosophies to support students in developing a deeper, more nuanced, and more balanced understanding of their menstruating body and self.

Coursework draws from disciplines ranging from neuroscience and mental health to Buddhism and Taoism, from fertility and health tracking to psychological foundations and frameworks, from wilderness and outdoor education to the inherent lessons of the natural world itself, and more.

All coursework also applies a historical and multi-cultural framework to our understanding of the menstruating body and self, and examines how these broader stories enter our daily ones and impact us at every level. Through careful construction, research, and training, courses are designed to provide just the right balance of new information, self-exploration, and group processing to support your growth, learning and fun!

Ultimately, MCC is a collaborative and community-oriented space, and works with experts in their respective fields from backgrounds including those listed previously, as well as ayurvedic and herbal specialists, fertility, fitness and nutrition experts and coaches, movement, yoga and dance professionals, farmers and outdoor and wilderness educators, breathwork specialists, artists and musicians, pleasure and sexuality experts, and so much more!

We are an inclusive community, and while our coursework and community are primarily aimed at serving those who currently have, have had, or will have a menstrual cycle, ultimately all life mirrors the ebb and flow, yin and yang, masculine and feminine, seasonality, of the menstrual cycle, and all people can learn from this flow. So please! If you are excited about participating in any way, be it as a student, instructor or otherwise, reach out and we will find a way to fit you in:]

**If you are a professional in your field and believe your approach/expertise could be incorporated into MCC’s community and curriculum, please contact moon.cycle.sanctuary@gmail.com. If you are a student looking for a particular approach to understanding yourself and your body, check the course list. Each course invites a special guest expert and brings that nuanced focus to the coursework. If there’s something you’re interested in and not seeing, let us know!

core values

Moon Cycle Sanctuary seeks to embody and deliver these core values

  • Education and Empowerment

    When we understand how our bodies work, we feel safer and more confident in ourselves. Moon Cycle Sanctuary seeks to provide a foundational education and understanding of the menstrual cycle and how it interacts with our physical, mental, emotional, social, cultural, spiritual (I could go on) selves. The more we know, the more we build trust with ourselves and bring together all these parts to live our most authentic and fulfilled lives.

  • Openness and Curiosity

    How do we apply new knowledge to who we are now while remaining curious and open to the change yet to come? Learning the science of the menstrual cycle is important, but equally so is learning to embody the ebb and flow of the menstrual cycle, and life, with openness and curiosity. Moon Cycle Sanctuary seeks to provide tools and community to support participants in grounding in their knowledge of the now while simultaneously developing a practice of mindful curiosity for all the future cycles of life, one step at a time.

  • Connection, Play and Balance

    Neurologically, we learn best when we feel safe, connected and are having fun. We live best that way too! And yet, as the menstrual cycle teaches us, everything is a balance of ups and downs and ebbs and flows. Moon Cycle Sanctuary seeks to create spaces that encourage learning through play and connection, while also honoring (and not hiding from) the reality of the challenges and inherent pain present in life. Whether daily, menstrually, or throughout the stages of life, we are always cycling. We make these realities sustainable by finding our own balance and connection in it all.

  • Giving and Receiving

    Moon Cycle Sanctuary seeks to create spaces that encourage participants to be open to the many gifts of life that are always available to us through the practice of finding joy, gratitude, and opportunities to give and receive within community.

about me

Hello and welcome! My name is Rae [or Rae Rose, depending on the day;)] (she/her), and I am the founder and lead educator at Moon Cycle Sanctuary.

I have been studying the menstrual cycle from a variety of perspectives for over ten years now. I first became interested in the menstrual cycle in 2012, when I stumbled upon a hormone tracking app one fateful fall evening. Learning that my body was on a monthly hormone cycle that affected every part of me differently at each point in time, not just that I had a period and then it was over (as I’d thought before), was revolutionary to me. I was hooked, and immediately turned every research opportunity I had (I was getting a BA in Neuroscience at the time, so there were quite a few of these) towards the subject of menstruation and hormones in the hopes of getting a better understanding of how this previously unknown and ever-present force was impacting me and other menstruators.

Starting with the most zoomed in understanding of how the hormones of the menstrual cycle interact with the structure of our brains and psychology, my interest quickly broadened to topics such as the long-term effects of birth control and altering our hormonal cycles, menstrual cycle hormones and development, the menstrual cycle and experiences of pleasure and pain, the history of the menstrual cycle, menstrual cycle hormones and mental, physical, emotional and spiritual health, and so much more.

Once I started tracking my cycle, it became clear to me it was showing up in, and dominating, so many areas of my life, and had been since its onset.

Gaining this new knowledge was exciting and inspiring, but, at the same time, I was also confused and angry. Why had this information not been available, or even mentioned (!!!), to me before? I began to wonder how I might have approached myself differently over the years since I started menstruating if I had known this cycle was present from the start.

This curiosity led me to one of my primary research questions, and motivations for doing the work I do now. This being: what is the psychological and developmental impact of having a menstrual cycle but not knowing about it. As had been true in my life, and is the norm in our modern world. And, on top of that, the impact of having a menstrual cycle, not knowing about it, and living in a culture that, on one end of the spectrum, values the always perfect, always productive, linear model of life (aka passively unsupportive of the menstruating body), and on the other, still holds and communicates deeply rooted messages of shame and stigma to people with menstruating bodies.

In addition to wanting information on my cycle, I found myself craving a teacher or mentor to guide me, and a community in which to explore my cycle and self more deeply. Where were the experts on the menstrual cycle and the female body? I’m sure they were/are out there somewhere, but I couldn’t find any! And I could feel deep in my bones and body that this was something that was needed, for myself and other menstruators as well.

Over the years, I have come to believe, through my personal tracking, academic research, and professional work with other menstruators, that these pieces - the reality of having a menstrual cycle in combination with not knowing it exists, and the presence or lack of a menstruation community - are hugely integral pieces of the puzzle, and largely responsible for the majority of menstrual issues (and beyond) that menstruators are facing today.

Life is complex, the body is complex, the human experience is complex, and the menstrual cycle and everything else we pile on it is even more so. As much as our western culture would like it to be, life, and especially a meaningful one, is most often not about having the right answer, but instead about engaging with the questions and the process in a way that feels authentic and sustainable, and allowing our paths to unfold along the way. So, while I cannot claim to have clear answers to all the questions I have explored around the menstrual cycle, I can say, both as a menstrual cycle educator and menstruator myself, that the act of asking the questions and the process of tracking and observing are transformative, and I am beyond excited (and nervous!) to bring this work into community with all of you!

~~~

Beyond my ever-present obsession with the menstrual cycle and its intersection with just about every part of our lives, my education and professional experience land primarily in the fields of psychology, mental health, outdoor and wilderness education and leadership, and small-scale farming/agriculture. I am passionate about education as a tool for empowerment, and believe that delivering educational content that is relevant, engaging and meaningful is equally as important as delivering well-sourced and accurate information. I also love music, singing, art, dancing and all things expressive and flowy in the world, and actively seek to incorporate all my areas of expertise and exploration into my work.

If you have any questions about my personal story or professional background, please do not hesitate to reach out to mooncyclesanctuary@gmail.com or fill out a connect form on the website.