Moon mentor Kirsty Gallagher shares her passion for lunar living, and how setting our sights to the skies could actually reinforce the connection to ourselves
Over the past year, have you found yourself tuning-in to nature more than you did before? Have you found yourself really hearing the birds, noticing each morning becoming a bit lighter, and summer energy making its way into your life?
Since the beginning of the pandemic, many people have developed an increasingly positive relationship with the natural world. Lockdown restrictions have shown us all how strong the pull to the outdoors can be, especially when there are limits on our time in green – or blue – spaces, and the amount of people walking, cycling, and wild swimming has increased by epic proportions.
Moon mentor and soul alignment coach Kirsty Gallagher says that there’s been an astronomical increase in people interested in learning more about the moon, and living by its natural cycles, too. It’s a practice Kirsty has been passionate about for more than 10 years.
“I teach people, predominantly women, how to live in alignment with the cycles of the moon,” she explains. “How we can come back into a natural rhythm with nature, how we can find a more cyclical way of being. I do this by using the wisdom of the moon – lunar guidance – and through movement of the body, yoga, and meditation.”
Photography | Courtesy of Kirsty Gallagher
In April 2020, Kirsty published her first book, Lunar Living: Working With The Magic of Moon Cycles, which became a Sunday Times bestseller.
“Honestly,” she beams. “When I think about that, I can’t keep the smile off my face!
“People asked me why it was so well-received, and I think that given what we’ve all been through, we’re looking for something to believe in – something bigger than ourselves. Just as our ancestors looked to the skies for answers, we’re doing the same.”
"In astrology, the moon is seen as our soul, as our inner world of our emotions, dreams, and the call of our heart. Who we are when no one else is watching"
The timing of the book’s release, as the UK moved into the first lockdown, was fortuitous. “Lunar Living came at a moment to really help people tune back in to a cycle, a flow, or a rhythm, and to look up at the sky because we weren’t rushing around so much any more,” she explains.
Kirsty has now penned a companion book, The Lunar Living Journal: A Guided Moon Journal to Help you Find Joy, Clarity and Purpose, to help people positively work with the moon cycles by prompting self-reflection on each new and full moon.
Kirsty is unwaveringly dedicated to taking others on a journey of lunar discovery, like the one she embarked upon herself more than a decade ago. Here, she shares thoughts on self-reflection, and explains key reasons behind the power of aligning with the moon.
An opportunity to be accountable
We tend to make resolutions in January. It’s cold, dark and grey, and we often struggle with the motivation to stick to them – by February they’re probably forgotten. It’s easy to see why, when the year draws to a close, we feel like we haven’t made much progress.
Twice a month, on the new and full moon, lunar living gives you an opportunity to be accountable and ask: “Am I following the direction of my dreams? If not, why not?” We get to drill down and become really self-aware. It’s important to get honest with ourselves, and back ourselves – even that in itself can be immensely life-changing.
A fresh approach for all
The idea of aligning with the moon might not be up everyone’s street, but I really love sceptics, because I think they have the opportunity to experience lunar living for the first time, and with fresh eyes. If all a sceptic takes from the practice is that twice a month they check-in with themselves, that in itself is hugely powerful!
The return of a feminine way of being
If we look back at our ancestors, women were gathered together to bleed each month, and to support each other. We’ve moved away from that, and sadly over time society has often prompted us to see other women as competition, more than sisters. I really believe that it’s time to come back to a more feminine way of being – and that applies to whatever your gender is, as we all have a feminine aspect within us.
That feminine way of living is cyclical. It’s not expecting us to be the same all day, every day, or imagining that we live life in a linear fashion. It’s not glamourising pushing ourselves to burnout, or going against our intuition.
Reclaiming our power
Last year, I created a group called Aligned, which is all about bringing women back home and into alignment with themselves. We work on lack of self-belief, procrastination, people pleasing, saying yes when we mean no, and all those things we’ve historically done as women. It’s time to take our power back in many ways, and I’m so passionate about that. A woman in her power is unapologetic, owning herself, proud of herself, showing up authentically, and being able to speak her truth without fear. That, to me, is just one of the most magical things in the world.
Aligned blends beautifully with lunar living, because, in astrology, the moon is seen as our soul, as our inner world of our emotions, dreams, and the call of our heart. Who we are when no one else is watching.
We’re all under the same sky
While everything seems to have changed over the past year, our moon remains one of the only constant things in the world. We all see the same moon, in the same sky, in the same phase, at the same time. That’s beautiful.
‘Lunar Living: Working With The Magic of Moon Cycles’ and ‘The Lunar Living Journal: A Guided Moon Journal to Help you Find Joy, Clarity and Purpose’, published by Yellow Kite, are out now.
Listen to Kirsty share more about lunar living on Happiful’s podcast ‘I am. I have’.
To learn more about lunar guidence or explore other forms of complementary therapy visit www.therapy-directory.org.uk/
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