Stages of your menstrual cycle you NEED to know.

There are different stages of your cycle where you’ll experience different emotions due to the hormones that are at play.

Knowing this can help you better manage and navigate your thoughts and your feelings throughout the month.

A healthy cycle is anywhere from 21-34 days.

Notice how in the last 2 weeks after ovulation (luteal phase) there is a whole lot of hormonal stuff going on that can leave you on a roller coaster of emotions, increased hunger and cravings and water retention.

This is typically the time I receive negative feedback from clients about how they look and feel, and all it takes is looking back at where they are in their cycle to remind them of that.

It’s at the late luteal phase where it’s important to be kind to yourself, practise self-care, register your feelings and allow the body to do its thing, knowing you’ll be back to a more balanced state of mind next week.

Some months you may just hit day 1 of menses without any issues; other months, you may experience all of these symptoms in huge waves.

Keeping a written record of all these things and on what day of your cycle will really help you get to know your body better.

I use Natural cycles to track my period and use the thermometer each morning to check my waking body temp. In the app, I’ll note down any prominent symptoms I’ve had that day... crazy fatigue, increased appetite, hip pain.

Remember day 1 of your cycle is the first day of your bleed. Not spotting. Spotting is still residue from your last cycle.

Ovulation occurs around day 14.

A healthy period starts with healthy follicles. It takes 100 days for your follicles to mature from dormant to ovulation.

So if the follicles were unhealthy at any point in their maturing stage, this would only show up months later.

So if you experience period problems now in your current cycle, it’s likely caused by something that happened months prior... like a stressful event.

Which explains why your cycle may vary from month to month.

It’s worth just noting here that the pill bleeds are not periods. They are pharmaceutical-induced bleeds.

The pill switches off your hormones.