We just passed the darkest night of the year here in the northern hemisphere - the dark moon before the solstice, and it feels like a good moment to explore how cycle awareness can hold us during dark times; personally, collectively, and seasonally. Like many of you, we’re grieving the suffering and conflict in the world, and doing what we can to educate ourselves, take meaningful action and contribute to building peace. So, as Sjanie says beautifully in this episode, the menstrual cycle is such a profound teacher in the mystery and the darkness - and if you’re going through a dark night of the soul personally at the moment, or are needing sustenance as we navigate these dark times collectively, we hope this episode is balm for your heart. We explore: What Alexandra learned from painful encounters with her inner critic just before menstruation. (She would always find herself sitting in the bath with her inner critic at the other end tearing strips off her! And feeling strong self-rejection just before the ecstasy of her bleed). How the wisdom of the second half of the menstrual cycle held Sophie through a recent time of personal grief and hopelessness. How we can each yield to this phase of darkness as we complete the cycle of this year, so that we can be deeply regenerated and receive new visions at the beginning of the next annual cycle. ---Please join us on for our free New Year retreat: Your Menstrual Cycle: Your Oracle on January 11th  https://www.redschool.net/oracle---The Menstruality Podcast is hosted by Red School. We love hearing from you. To contact us, email info@redschool.net---Social media:Red School: @redschool - https://www.instagram.com/red.schoolSophie Jane Hardy: @sophie.jane.hardy - https://www.instagram.com/sophie.jane.hardy