The menstrual cycle is the series of natural body changes that occur in a woman for the preparation of possible pregnancy. In simple words, the process of ovulation and menstruation in women is called the menstrual cycle. During the cycle, hormonal changes in a woman’s body prepare her uterus for pregnancy and the uterus lining becomes thicker. When the process of ovulation starts and the egg isn’t fertilized then the uterus lining sheds through the vagina that leads to bleeding or menstruation.
When does the menstrual cycle begin?
The menstrual cycle is counted from the first day of the female menstruation period to the first day of the next menstruation bleeding. The average cycle is 28 days long but each woman is different. The length of a woman’s menstrual cycle might differ from month to month. The cycle is often less regular at the beginning and end of a woman’s reproductive life.
Phases of Menstrual Cycle
There are four main phases of the menstrual cycle: menstruation, follicular phase, ovulation phase, and luteal phase.
Menstruation:
The shedding of the thickening line of the uterus from the body through the vagina causes bleeding in menstruation. In this phase, old blood and tissue from inside the uterus are shed through the vagina. The menstrual cycle starts with menstruation. A period is the normal shedding of blood and the lining of the uterus through the cervix and vagina.
Follicular Phase:
The follicular phase starts on the first day of periods and ends with ovulation. In this phase, estrogen rises as an egg prepares to be released. During this phase, a small area at the base of the brain that makes a hormone called the pituitary gland produces hormones called follicle-stimulating hormone. It tells the ovaries to prepare an egg for ovulation. Throughout the menstrual cycle, there are multiple fluid-filled sacs containing eggs in each ovary at different stages of development. About halfway through, just as the period is ending one follicle in one of the ovaries is the largest of all the follicles at about 1 cm. This follicle becomes the dominant follicle and is the one prepared to be released at ovulation. The dominant follicle produces estrogen as it grows, which peaks just before ovulation. For most people, this phase lasts 10-22 days, but this can vary from cycle to cycle
Ovulation:
The release of a mature egg from the surface of the ovary is ovulation. It usually starts in the mid-cycle, around two weeks or so before menstruation. In this phase, an egg is released from the ovary into the fallopian tube. The dominant follicle in the ovary produces more and more estrogen as it grows larger about 2 cm but can be up to 3 cm, at its largest right before ovulation. When estrogen levels are high enough, they signal to the brain causing a dramatic increase in luteinizing hormone. The spike is what causes the release of the eggs from the ovary. Ovulation usually happens 13-15 days before the start of the next period
Luteal Phase:
The luteal phase happens after ovulation and before the start of the period. At this time the lining of the uterus gets thicker to prepare for a possible pregnancy. In this phase, the sac that contains the egg produces estrogen and progesterone. Once ovulation occurs the follicle that contains the egg transforms into something called a corpus luteum and begins to produce progesterone as well as estrogen. Progesterone level reaches its peak about halfway through this phase. The hormonal changes of the luteal phase are associated with common premenstrual symptoms that many women experience.
Effects of menstrual cycle on your health
Hormones in the body fluctuate throughout the cycle and it can cause you to have various physical and emotional changes. You can face problems in your health before your period that refers to Premenstrual Syndrome:
- It makes women feel irritable and sad or we can say it as having mood swings.
- It also makes you feel like your abdomen is bloated.
- You can have tender breasts.
- You can have acne or oily skin.
- You can feel more tired than usual.
- You can have painful period cramps, feeling pain in your lower and upper back.
- You can crave food, especially sweets.
- You will get a clear or white vaginal before the arrival of your periods.
- You can lose interest in sex.
- Constipation or diarrhea.
- Bladder pain syndrome, you may experience regular bowel movements.
Abnormal Menstruation –
Women mostly have periods that last four to seven days. Menstruation periods that occur less than 21 days or more than 35 days apart are considered abnormal periods. Some examples of menstrual problems are:
- Oligomenorrhea refers to the irregular occurrence of periods. Periods that last longer than 7 days. When you have 3 or more periods in a row.
- Dysmenorrhea refers to painful periods that are accompanied by pain, cramping, nausea or vomiting. Some discomfort during the cycle is normal for most women.
- You can get abnormal uterine bleeding. It makes you have a variety of irregularities that includes heavy periods, bleeding or spotting between periods, after sex or after menopause.
- Amenorrhea refers to an absent period, in which women’s periods completely stop. The absence of a period for more than 90 days is considered abnormal unless a woman is pregnant, breastfeeding or going through menopause.
Causes of Abnormal menstruation cycle are:
- Stress & lifestyle – It can affect the level of hormones. It can make you lose or gain weight and have an impact on your regular menstrual cycle
- Smoking – Smoking can affect the cycle of your period.
- PCOS – Polycystic ovary syndrome is the most common hormonal endocrine disorder that affects women in their reproductive years.
- Endometriosis – It can cause spotting or bleeding between periods as well as heavy periods.
- Birth control pills – they can control the regularity and flow of your periods.
- Pregnancy – It pauses the cycle, though it can cause spots that may cause spots to look like a period.
Diagnosis & Treatment
If you face any irregularities in your menstrual cycle then consult a doctor immediately. You should keep an accurate menstrual record to know the abnormalities of your period. When your period begins or ends, including the amount of flow and whether you get large blood clots. You need to keep track of any other symptoms. The doctor can ask you about your menstrual cycle so you have to know all the necessary information about yourself. Your doctor can perform a physical examination and test to plan the necessary treatment. Certain tests include:
- Perform blood tests to rule out anemia or other medical disorders.
- Vaginal cultures to look for any infection.
- Do a pelvic ultrasound exam to check for uterine fibroids, polyps or an ovarian cyst.
- To perform an Endometrial biopsy a sample of tissue is collected from the lining of the uterus to diagnose endometriosis, hormonal imbalance or cancerous cells.
- Endometriosis or other conditions may also be diagnosed using a procedure called a laparoscopy, in which the doctor makes a tiny incision in the abdomen and then inserts a thin tube with a light attached to view the uterus and ovaries.
Treatment of abnormal menstruation depends on diagnosis such as:
- To regulate the menstrual cycle, hormones such as estrogen or progestin might be prescribed to help control the heavy bleeding.
- To control the mild to moderate pain of periods an over-the-counter pain reliever is prescribed. Such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen. Taking a warm bath or keeping a heating pad on your lower abdomen may also relieve the pain.
- Uterine fibroids can be treated medically or may need surgery. Most fibroids that are causing mild symptoms can be treated with over-the-counter pain relievers.
- If you experience heavy bleeding an iron supplement might help or treat anemia.
- Low-dose birth control pills or progestin injections may help to control bleeding caused by fibroids.
- Although Endometriosis has no cure, over-the-counter or online pharmacy Canada has pain relievers that may help to lessen the discomfort.
- Hormone treatments such as birth control pills may help prevent overgrowth of uterine tissue and reduce the amount of blood loss during periods.
- Other procedural options may help heavy menstrual bleeding. A five-year contraceptive intrauterine device called Mirena has been approved to help lessen the bleeding.
- It can be as effective as surgical procedures such as endometrial ablation.
