Follow This Mindful and Healing Ritual Every Night to Get the Most Out of the Lunar Cycle
How often do you go outside at night to look at the moon?
Personally, we try to do this as often as possible, not just because it's a beautiful natural wonder, but because paying attention to the cycles of the moon can also help us keep an eye on cycles within our own lives. The moon typically takes about 29 and a half days to go through its eight different phases, and by watching them, we can stay in touch with the natural rhythms of the world around us while curating our own mindfulness and self-care.
Whether you use an app or calendar to track the phases of the moon or just keep an eye on the night sky, you can do the same. Below is a small ritual to follow each night of the lunar cycle to make the most of it.
Night 1 – New Moon
The new moon is the start of the lunar cycle in which the moon is completely shaded, and only visible if you look very closely.
It symbolizes new starts, and we recommend setting aside this evening to rest and relax, preparing your mind, body and spirit for everything ahead. You might be tempted to spring to action, but instead, channel any inspiration you feel into a to-do list. You're better of bringing them to fruition in the coming days.
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Night 2 – Waxing Crescent
With the waxing crescent moon, the moon becomes lit up again, starting with a fingernail-shaped sliver on the right side. This will continue to fill over the next few days.
The waxing crescent moon is typically considered a period of planning. Take any notes you wrote down during the new moon and start making a more concrete plan to solidify any habits or projects. Get as detailed as possible before you leap in to have the best idea of your goals and the steps it'll take to get to them.
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Night 3 – Waxing Crescent
As you continue working on your plans, kick things off with a deep cleaning of your space, whether that's just your room or your entire home. With your space decluttered, you may find yourself thinking more clearly and sharply as well. You're cleansing away the old and making room for the new.
Night 4 – Waxing Crescent
With your goals in mind, think about a small change you'd like to make in your life and how to build it into a habit. It should be a small, actionable step toward your objectives that you can make every day. Then, do it.
Night 5 – Waxing Crescent
Repeat this habit. Try tying it to your routine in some way, whether that's in the morning, during a break from the daily grind or in the evening, so that it, too, becomes part of your daily routine.
Night 6 – Waxing Crescent
Repeat this habit along with your routine at the same time as the previous day. It can also be helpful to link the action to a specific location, so that it becomes almost automatic when you go there.
Night 7 – Waxing Crescent
Keep the habit going at the same time and place, and take time to analyze how it's going so far. Are there any pain points you can anticipate that will prevent you from regularly engaging with this habit in the future? If do, jot down a few solutions that might make implementing the habit even more seamless.
Night 8 – Waxing Crescent
As you continue to maintain this habit, take a look at its difficulty. If it's challenging to keep it up, remember your goals and do what you can to stay invested. If it's been a breeze, consider adding to the habit in some way, investing more time or energy, to make it even more beneficial for you.
Also read about: What the Full Moon of Your Birthday Month Symbolizes
Night 9 – First Quarter
The first quarter moon occurs when the right half of the moon is illuminated.
It's a period of reflection, as well as reminding yourself of the importance of persistence. This is the perfect opportunity to reward yourself for what you've accomplished so far, as well as motivating yourself for everything to come. Jot down some of the reasons the habit is important and relevant to your goals, so you can refer to it later if you're ever tempted to give up.
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Night 10 – Waxing Gibbous
The moon is in its waxing gibbous phase when the moon continues to become more illuminated, filling in from right to left.
The waxing gibbous is a period of honing skills and making adjustments, so this may be the time to change up your approach to the habit you're building. Write down the benefits of the building this habit and reflect on whether there are tweaks you can make to angle more toward these things.
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Night 11 – Waxing Gibbous
Persistence is key to maintaining healthy behaviors, and it's not always easy to self-motivate. Seek our a movie or show that follows a character who inspires you. Track their goals, and let their journey remind you how important it is for you to stay on top of your own goals.
Night 12 – Waxing Gibbous
Start journaling regularly about the habit you're building. How easy or hard was it to practice the habit today? Was there an obstacle or distraction that got in your way? And how can you work around these challenges in the future?
Night 13 – Waxing Gibbous
Continue the practice of your habit and reflecting on it through journaling, then build on the idea. Are there other small changes you can be making alongside the habit you've already implemented to feel even happier or more accomplished? Have you already made other tiny adjustments to your life in a positive way without even realizing it?
Night 14 – Waxing Gibbous
As you build your habit and your journaling practice, also begin to track your emotional states each day with your habit. Feelings can range from joyful and excited to melancholy, annoyed, angry or frustrated, depending on the day. Be honest, and pay attention to what these emotions are telling you about the process, how far you've come and where you need to go next.
Night 15 – Waxing Gibbous
If you have a friend with similar goals, consider telling them about the habit you're working on building and see if they'll join in on the process. They, too, can follow along with this daily ritual. From there, you can both hold each other accountable—and possibly have more fun in the process of you work toward your shared objective.
Night 16 – Waxing Gibbous
With the moon nearly full, it's time for even deeper reflection on this journey. Open up your journal to past entries to see how the process has gone and how your impressions have changed since you started taking those notes. Then, write a bit more in depth about how the journey has gone so far.
Also read about: A Guide to Every Full Moon in 2025
Night 17 – Full Moon
We're all familiar with the full moon, when the circle of the moon facing the earth is completely illuminated in the sky.
The full moon is associated with reaping rewards, so don't forget to remember how much you've invested so far and look at your progress. Again, revisit your journal, comparing your expectations to the reality and difference a few days can make in building something new. Pay attention to the results and benefits you're seeing, and allow those to continue to motivate you even as you keep an eye out for new opportunities. Pat yourself on the back and celebrate yourself as you look to the future.
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Night 18 – Waning Gibbous
In the waning gibbous phase, the moon begins to darken again after the full moon, with shadow falling over the right side.
The waning gibbous marks a period of appreciation. Add further to habit tracking in your journal by practicing gratitude. Each time, write down one new thing you're grateful for today—whether it's related to your goal or not—and allow that to keep you inspired as the work continues.
(via Shutterstock)
Night 19 – Waning Gibbous
Keep going, both with your habit and with writing about it. If you haven't already done so, start tracking the habit itself. Is there any type of measurable progress you can track on this routine, whether it's something you're improving at, or simply the number of days in the row you've kept it up? Doing this will further hone your appreciation for everything you've done.
Night 20 – Waning Gibbous
Continue focusing on appreciation during the waning gibbous by looking outward. Is there a person you admire who's worked hard to keep up their own goals and dedicate themselves to good habits? Think about them and list the traits they have that you admire. From there, work on incorporating one or two of those things into your own life.
Night 21 – Waning Gibbous
When was the last time you took time to really appreciate yourself? Today, keep yourself motivated toward your goals by celebrating some past wins and writing about them. Think about challenges you faced that were difficult but allowed you to find the strength to overcome. What habits did you practice then that led you to victory? What skills do you still hold with you today but typically go ignored?
Night 22 – Waning Gibbous
Another great way to hype yourself up and demonstrate self-appreciation is through music. Build a playlist around your habit featuring songs and artists you enjoy, whether it's something you'll listen to during your routine or just something to curate the right mood in general. Return to it whenever you need a bit of motivation or a reminder of why you're doing what you're doing.
Night 23 – Waning Gibbous
Building habits can be tricky, and if you feel like you've been pushing yourself to much, it's time to focus on creating balance in joy. Supplement the work you're doing with something fun, whether that's hanging out with people you love, treating yourself to a nice meal with dessert or indulging in your favorite film or TV show. Create a little slice of happiness, and think about joyful daily tasks you can add to your routine to make the entire experience worthwhile.
Night 24 – Last Quarter
The last quarter moon arrives when just the left half of the moon is illuminated.
This represents a period of preparation for the next cycle. It's all about making long-term plans, upping the ante and working to make a habit automatic, rather than something you have to force yourself to do every day. It's also the time to forgive yourself for any slip-ups along the way as you focus on always moving forward. Take this time to make to-do lists and decide if you're going to fully commit to continuing the venture into the next moon cycle.
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Also read about: 12 Instagram Captions for All Your Full Moon Posts
Night 25 – Waning Crescent
The final phase of the moon, the waxing crescent, appears as the left half of the moon also loses its light, until it disappears again in a few days into the full moon.
The waning crescent symbolizes a release of baggage, and we suggest the cathartic process of dump journaling. This essentially means dumping out all of the thoughts that have been bugging you, including stresses, worries and fears. It's less about processing them than letting them all out. Once they're on the page, feel feel to scribble them all out and leave those ideas in the past as you step into the next phase.
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Night 26 – Waning Crescent
Still holding on to some emotional weight? Keep the habit and journaling going, and then spend the evening indulging in a bit of self-care, however that looks for you. It's all about feeling pampered and soothed, so take that bath, do those yoga stretches and give yourself a break in order to find your equilibrium and see what's most important to you with a fresh pair of eyes.
Night 27 – Waning Crescent
Another great way to let go of anything pent up is by expressing yourself creatively. Of course, this can mean different things for different people. Maybe you're a musician who sings or plays an instrument and you want to channel some of your time there. You might be a writer or poet whose self-expression comes to life as words on a page, or an artist who crafts images, structures or textiles out of nothing. Even if you just do a quick doodle on a sticky note, this type of communication is important and can help you make sense of what matters most to you on your journey to self-improvement.
Night 28 – Waning Crescent
With the lunar cycle coming to a close, this night of the waning crescent is a great time to launch your mind into the next phase and envision your future self. What type of person do you want to be, and are you on the path to getting there? How is this habit you're practicing an important part of the future you'd life, and how does that manifest for them? This consideration might help you see any discrepancies between your actions and your wants, and consider changes you want to make before the new moon.
Night 29 – Waning Crescent
Finally, the last night of waning crescent concludes the process of release, whether that means letting go of old behaviors holding you back, or even the way you're currently practicing the habit you've worked for a month to build. Maybe you need to make big changes to your approach to ensure it actually fits into your life or moves you closer to your desires, or perhaps it's one that just doesn't suit your lifestyle and needs. Reflect on this carefully, and decide what you want to bring into the new moon.
Eager to learn even more about the moon and its cycles? Click HERE to learn about what the lunar phases during your birth says about you.