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If you’re not familiar with the concept, it’s like sunbathing but with a full moon.

I soak up some full moon energy. And it’s helpful for my soul.

I am a night owl and a sky watcher. I am a mix of several parts, and part-vampire can be added to the list. I get a wake-up boost after the sun sets, and sunrise reminds me I need to try to sleep. I take advantage of full moon nights. Yes, I am one of those people who bask in the moonlight.

This is a good time for me to recenter, reconnect, do yoga, meditate, and check in with my chakras and myself. It can be as simple as looking at the moon while taking a couple of deep breaths, embracingly welcoming a new cycle with open arms. I take a moment to stand there and feel an “ah” of air come in, filling up my lungs and traveling through my body.

As I feel the breath traveling in, I notice spots of soreness or discomfort. I move with my breath as it travels. My shoulders will move back and down. As my chest expands, my back will shift and straighten. Often, just doing this will get a spot or two or more along my spine to pop.

When the air hits the bottom of my diaphragm, I pause half a second to let it settle. Then I exhale, feeling the filtered, recycled air reversing along the same path.

While expelling the air, I pay as much mind as I did while taking it in. As the air leaves again, I notice any spots of discomfort. There are my usual trouble spots—behind my lungs, my neck, and at my spine’s base by my hips. I relax into those spots and pause a second to give these areas some extra love and attention.

I was doing my moon-bathing and chakra check during a recent full moon, when I noticed my throat hurting (I am not a doctor and do not offer any kind of medical advice. This is something I do to keep myself balanced).

Speaking of chakras, throat relates to voice.

What have I been silent about? How am I holding back my voice? Is my voice being restricted in some way?

I quickly identified what it was. I was holding back a conversation I wanted to have with someone. This was a conversation that had been weighing on me. I wanted to have it, but I kept putting it off and chickening out of it. Yet, I continually played out possibilities of this conversation in my head.

After making this connection, I realized putting off this conversation was taking a toll on me physically. I felt it in my throat.

So, I put on my big girl panties and balled up courage to have the conversation. And yes, my throat felt better afterward.

Having my bare feet on the ground while moon-bathing adds a little extra punch. I’m connecting with both Earth and the moon simultaneously. I already walk around barefoot as often as possible.

The soil feels moist and like memory foam that hugs my feet as I step. I feel how my heel and toes blend with it to know how to distribute my weight along the fresh, earthly ground.

This is also referred to as earthing or grounding.

I will do this on concrete or asphalt too if that’s what’s available or safer. It’s solid and hard. If I step too heavily, it can hurt. There’s a different rhythm to my walk when I’m barefoot on such surfaces. I can still feel a sense of grounding on this kind of surface, so it can be helpful for me, especially during times of a full moon.

Of course, all of it intertwines. Being mindful of aspects of my environment—how the wind is blowing, where the moon is rising, which birds I hear, the color of the grass and flowers, to the air passing through me and the trees—gives me the opportunity to be present and appreciate the facets of life around me.

So the next full moon, you’ll find me watching it rise across the sky while doing any, all, or a mix of things to satisfy my moon-bathe cravings to benefit my soul and welcome a new cycle.