Erica Hoke, an infertility coach who conceived four children after 35, explores whether moon phases sync with menstrual cycles and ovulation. She shares her own sensitivity to lunar cycles and Mercury retrograde, notes that research is mixed, and points to circadian disruption, birth control, and hormone disruptors like laundry product off-gassing as factors that can throw off natural rhythms.
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Hey, hey everyone! Happy Monday! I am going to be talking about something today that I don't know a ton about, but I'm interested, super interested in learning about. So if you don't know me, I'm Erica Hoke. I'm an infertility mentor and empowerment coach, and I got pregnant with my 4 boys after 35 and after I was told that we had less than a 1% chance. So that's me in a nutshell. We are We're talking today about moon cycles and moon phases and how it affects your menstrual cycle and your ovulation and all that kind of good stuff. So when I was actually going through my infertility journey, this wasn't something that I followed, but I find it fascinating because I have found in recent years especially that I'm really, really affected by the moon and by— the cycles of the moon and how it affects my mood and my body. And the way that I came across this was by repeatedly noticing something called Mercury retrograde. And so it makes me feel a little bit off, both physically and emotionally. And so I would never go looking for it. I would never go and like track when Mercury retrograde was, but I would just start feeling a little crazy, honestly, and wonder to myself what in the world— sorry— what in the world was going on. And so then I did start to track it a little bit and pay more attention to it. So it got me thinking about the whole moon cycle. I know that people track their cycles in relation to the moon, and I'm curious to know if that's you and if you do that and what you found, what your experience has been. When I was doing my research, I found, in case you don't know, you know, we have 4 phases to our menstrual cycle and there's also 4 phases to the moon cycle. So new moon, waning moon, crescent moon, but during the full moon, the full moon is known for for ovulation. Supposedly, that's when women that are synced up to the moon cycle ovulate. So, when I did my research, I found that there was completely conflicting information. There were studies done that said, "Yes, 100% that your period cycle is linked to the phases of the moon." and others that took control, um, populations and did studies and 100% said no, there is no correlation whatsoever. So I would really love for you to drop in the comments if you feel, um, affected by the moon in any way, but if you notice a syncing with your cycle. Um, so here's the other thing that is very interesting to me. So things that could be affecting why we as women and mammals are not synced to the moon cycle anymore, as far as our menstrual cycle, is things like— I'm trying to remember what it's called— light at night. Not just light, but, you know, our circadian rhythm being disrupted so that we're not sleeping with the sun and the moon setting and rising, if that makes sense. And then just our exposure to light on a continual basis. Birth control, of course, even if you have been— of course, if you're on birth control, that's going to affect your cycling. Not being synced with the moon, but also just disrupting that rhythm in any way. Let's see. Also, hormone and endocrine disruptors. Y'all, I get on here, I've got to take notes because otherwise I'm like, boom. The thoughts just go out of my head. So hormone disruptors and endocrine disruptors, especially you guys, I talk about this. Okay, I wasn't gonna say this, but I talk about this a lot in my Facebook group, Infertility Empowered, and I even have like a whole toxin-free training in my guides. That's the word I'm looking for, training in my guides. But I talk to a lot of women who, have a lot of sleep disruption, and in the end, we link it back to their laundry products because you're in your clothes or on your sheets 23.5 hours a day, right? And so they're all off-gassing and things like that, so it causes a lot of toxicity, a lot of hormone disruption, a lot of endocrine disruption, and things like that. So anyway, full moon tonight, full moon alert. So, um, It has not been a stellar day. It's been a very disruptive day. We've had to pivot multiple times. It's not even— it's just noon now. But we're going with the flow. And I would love to hear what your experience is. If you have noticed that your cycle syncs with the moon, or if you notice that you're affected by the moon, go ahead and drop it in the comments. Hey, and if you're watching on YouTube, go ahead and hit that like and subscribe if you like this content. We're going to be talking more about, um, more about things like this. So health and blessings to you guys. Bye-bye.
