My Spiritual Awakening Diary

Menstrual/Moon Cycles

The female body is such a magical and powerful thing with the ability to create life. None of us would be here if women did not carry and birth a baby. Although pregnancy is still possible before a girl even has her first period and during perimenopause or after, it typically occurs within a person's menstruating years. The onset of menstruation, also known as menarche, marks the beginning of womanhood in many cultures. Menstruation usually starts during puberty between the ages of 9 to 14 and ends with menopause that often happens around the ages of 45 to 55. During that time, a female undergoes the process of shedding blood and tissue from the lining of the uterus monthly. Similarly to the lunar cycle, the average length of a menstrual cycle is 28 days. However, the actual bleeding commonly lasts between 3 to 5 days. Unfortunately, there is still a misconception that women only experience mood swings and endure internal changes during their period. It has actually been recently discovered that girls/women experience drastic hormonal shifts throughout each month. In fact, their hormones, mood, and energy levels fluctuate weekly. Like the moon, women experience a new phase each week that impacts all aspects of life including their brain function, physical features, mental health, and academic or work performance. It also interferes with their interpersonal relationships even on a subconscious level. Their communication and motor capabilities are affected as well. Researchers acknowledged that there is “evidence of a cyclic variation in which performance on some visual–spatial tasks improves when estrogen and progesterone are low, and verbal fluency, speech articulation, and manual dexterity improve when these hormones are at high levels” (Lips, 2016, pp.72). There are four menstrual phases–the follicular, ovulation, luteal, and menstruation phase–that will be explored in this paper. Everyone should be educated more on menstrual cycles regardless of gender or sexual identity, considering nearly half of the world's population has experienced menstruation at some point. Not only does it affect the lives of those who do, but the people around them too.  

The Menstrual Phase (Days 1-6)

The first few days of a period could be quite unpleasant for most women. It can even be excruciating for some with reproductive issues such as endometriosis, a chronic condition where tissue like the lining of the uterus grows outside of the uterus, causing pelvic pain, infertility, heavy vaginal bleeding, and other debilitating symptoms (Chauhan et al., 2022). Many girls/women often feel fatigued and irritable at the beginning of their period. Blood and iron loss along with menstrual cramps can cause cognitive difficulties that impact academic or work performance. Not only do some women experience cramping in the lower abdomen, but the lower back and inner thighs as well. Severe pain can even trigger vomiting, diarrhea, or fainting. Understandably, it is harder to focus on completing tasks while experiencing such physical discomfort. The color of menstrual blood also reflects a person's physical health and can determine how long blood has remained in the uterus. For example, fresh bright red blood and old dark red/brown blood are normal signs of a healthy body, whereas pink blood indicates iron deficiency, and gray or orange blood may signal an infection. During this menstrual phase, estrogen and progesterone levels are both at the lowest. However, women tend to feel relieved towards the end of their period as estrogen begins to rise. Similarly to spring, a season of renewal and growth, women also feel revived and more balanced. They are now more motivated to fulfill responsibilities that require a certain amount of energy and attention such as cleaning, exercising, or completing assignments.  

The Follicular Phase (Days 7-13) 

Estrogen levels continue to rise, causing the uterine lining to grow and the wall to thicken. “Gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) from the hypothalamus signals cells in the pituitary gland to secrete follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). The FSH signals a follicle (a sac that holds eggs) in one of the ovaries to secrete estrogen and bring an egg to maturity, while responding to FSH, both the follicle and the egg secrete estrogen” (Lips, 2016, pp.104). During these internal shifts, a woman builds up to her peak. Her productivity, creativity, attractiveness, libido, and strength increases. Her concentration and ambition improve. She may even get the urge to bring some creative ideas into fruition. This is the time when women tend to be the most social. They often desire and can have engaging conversations with friends, family, colleagues, customers/clients, and their romantic partner. Their increase in energy also allows them to participate in high intensity exercises. Just like summer, women and their perception of the world becomes very vibrant. Their skin clears and glows as the face appears more symmetrical, which increases their confidence as well as the chance of attracting a mate to impregnate her. Unfortunately, this euphoric state only lasts for a few days.