Every 28 days or so, the moon reaches full luminosity and becomes a bright circle lighting the sky. This only lasts for a short time before the shadow of the earth starts to block the sun's rays and the moon moves slowly towards darkness once again.

Working with the Full Moon can be a powerful monthly experience. Though ritual can get complicated, it doesn't have to.

Here's some simple ways that I like to work with the Full Moon:

Get extra rest. The time of the Full Moon is one of only two times in a lunar cycle that the shape of the moon ‘pauses’ for a short time. This pausing of the moon is a great reminder to hit pause in the hustle and bustle of your life, even if for a few minutes or hours. You might do something like draw a bath, take a slow walk, allow yourself time to read, or just get some extra sleep. Plus, taking time to rest helps to prepare you for the next practice.
Take Time to Reflect. Though the New Moon is a great time for initiating a project or setting an intention, the Full Moon calls you to reflect on the past few weeks. If you set an intention at the previous New Moon, you might ask yourself look back on what you've accomplished toward your goal so far and what you still have left to do. If you didn't set a specific intention, you can also look back and acknowledge what lessons you've learned recently. By paying attention to what life brings you instead of moving onto the next thing immediately, you have a greater chance of integrating the lessons you've learned. It's also good to create a list of what you are grateful for as well as what you're ready to forgive, both within yourself and in others.
Do a practice in letting go. Since the Full Moon is the moment in the lunar month where the moon will begin it's process of waning and becoming darker as it moves toward the New Moon, it's considered a great time for release. Depending on what you reflect upon in your life at the time of this Full Moon, you may do a simple practice to physically let go of what you're ready to release. This could take the form of creating a list of the things you want to consciously remove from your life (i.e. limiting beliefs, unhelpful behaviors or habits, relationships, etc.). Write these down on a piece of paper and burn, bury, or tear up in little pieces and throw into the trash. Though you’ll still need to do the work of removing these from your life, seeing yourself actually letting go of the ideas that are no longer serving you can help you continue that work into the following weeks.
Be easy on yourself. The moon always reminding you that a gentle approach to how you speak to yourself is key in your healing. Working with the moon isn't about getting it "right," but instead about reminding you to take time to focus on yourself and your own needs. There's too much in this world that's telling you that you need to be better in one way or another. The moon's message is always to just be.

So, I'd love to know:

What are your favorite activities for the Full Moon?
If you're using one of my Essential Oil Moon Kits, what oil did you get for the Full Moon and how does it speak to you?

As always, feel free to tell me about it in the comments and leave any questions you might have there.

If you'd still like a Essential Oil Moon Kit, we've got a few more available at Gaze Yoga.

If you'd like to practice working with the Moon in a group, Kelly Watson and I are now offering a monthly Full Moon Circle. The first is scheduled for Tuesday, January 18th at 7:30pm. Details and sign up are now available here.