Menarche – Becoming a Woman

The way that menarche and menstruation are dealt with in our culture, our families and our communities clearly influences how a young woman understands what it “means” to be a woman, a cyclical sexual fertile female human being.

What is Menarche?

The Apache Native Americans held ceremonies for days with the whole tribe present to celebrate girls entering their Womanhood. The Nootka tribe had a party to honour a girl’s menarche after which she was taken far out to sea and left to swim back to the land. Once she had done this she was recognised by her community as a woman, strong and brave and ready for the responsibilities of womanhood – marriage and rearing children.

In modern times, some families acknowledge the menarche with a gift for the young woman, a celebratory dinner, even a party. Sometimes this happens within a circle of women who welcome the newly fertile woman, the initiate, to their sisterhood. They share stories of their own experiences of menstruation and make wishes and blessings for the new woman’s future life.

And for others the menarche is not acknowledged at all.

Few of us were treated with celebration and honouring to welcome us to our next phase – Woman. So few of us know what to do with our daughters. We need to welcome our daughters to womanhood and teach them that they are special and valued. We need to tell them it’s important that they honour their cycles. However first we must do that ourselves, and heal any wounds from our own menarche rite of passage.

Why wouldn’t we do everything we can to help our girls as they embark on their journey into womanhood? Often the answer is that we don’t know where to begin because we ourselves have very little knowledge or positive experience of our own menstrual cycle. I myself have three sons and so my own healing of my menarche I felt was crucial to their growing up and observing what it is like to like live with a woman – a cyclical, fertile human being. Whether we have sons, daughters or none at all I believe that the basis of our experience as women began at menarche. By preparing to re-write and therefore re-set your own menarche experience we are paving the way for our own self-care, creativity, sexuality and calling. Consciously taking this vital step begins the healing in our individual mother-lines – forward and backwards through time – and ends the taboo, shame and secrecy surrounding a woman entering into practising her power.

Booking Your Menarche Rite of Passage Sessions

I would love to help you in restoring the honour to your womanhood, re-setting your connection to your cycle – then you can fully support your daughter / niece / young woman in your community, welcoming her to a lifetime of growing into her power.

I charge £120 for two one hour online sessions at agreed times each month. On the third month you will embody this work by creating your own unique private or shared ceremony.