Monthly frequency. Monthly cycle. Menstruation - why, how and for what

The female body is a great mystery! And like inexplicable events in nature, changes in the phases of the moon, a woman’s life also changes. Many scientists have noticed that the cyclical nature of the heavenly body is reflected in a girl’s menstrual cycle. But sometimes there are storms, and a woman’s health is susceptible to changes from the outside and disturbances occur in the body, which can bring a lot of inconvenience to a woman’s life, and most importantly, deprive her of the opportunity to experience the joy of motherhood!

Let's figure out what a normal menstrual cycle is

A regular menstrual cycle is a sign of a healthy female body.

This is a cyclical, monthly period in the life of every healthy woman, except for the period of pregnancy and breastfeeding, starting from the first day of the appearance of bleeding (menstruation) and until the first day of the next period. Normally, this period ranges from 21 to 35 days, plus or minus 3 days. If the cycle is shorter or longer, then we can already talk about pathology and sound the alarm. The menstrual cycle plays a huge role in a woman’s reproductive function and is necessary for the ability to fertilize, bear and give birth to children.

A girl becomes a girl with the onset of her first period (menarche), which usually begins between 11 and 14 years of age. They may be irregular at first, but after a couple of years the cycle becomes established. And throughout life it is stable, until the period of premenopause, somewhere around 40–50 years.

From birth, a girl’s ovaries contain up to 2 million follicles; by the beginning of menarche, there are up to 400 thousand of them left. One menstrual cycle “uses” one ripening follicle to release an egg.

Cyclic changes normally in women have a two-phase cycle and are clearly controlled by the hormonal mechanism of influence of the endocrine glands.

Normal parameters of the menstrual cycle:

• The duration of the cycle is from 21 to 35 days. On average 28 days.
• The duration of menstruation is from 2 to 7 days. On average 5 days.
• Conditional blood loss is from 40 to 60 ml. On average 50 ml.

Cycle phases

• The first phase, or follicular. During this period, the follicle grows and matures in the ovaries under the influence of hormones from the pituitary gland and hypothalamus (follicle-stimulating hormone or FSH). An egg is released from a mature follicle during ovulation (the middle of the menstrual cycle), ready for fertilization.
• The second phase, or luteal. During this phase, again under the influence of brain hormones (luteinizing hormone or LH), the corpus luteum matures, releasing the follicle egg. If, nevertheless, pregnancy occurs during ovulation, then the corpus luteum of pregnancy is formed from this follicle, producing progesterone for up to 16 weeks, the high level of which helps to maintain pregnancy. And at 16 weeks, the placenta takes over this function.

In parallel with the ovaries, the endometrium in the uterus is also subject to cyclic hormonal influence.

The endometrium, as is known, consists of several layers, the superficial layers are represented by the functional and intermediate layers. The basal layer is not rejected during menstruation, but ensures the restoration of the rejected layers. The intermediate one, being rejected, comes out in the form of menstruation.

Cyclic changes in the endometrium are distinguished in the form of the following phases:

• Proliferation (follicular phase). The active hormone in this phase is estrogen. It lasts from the 5th day of the cycle for 12–14 days. During this period, the surface layer of the endometrium grows with tubular glands up to 8 mm thick.
• Secretion (luteal phase). During this phase, both progesterone and estrogen levels increase and lasts approximately 14 days. During this period, the tubular glands begin to produce secretions, the peak of which is reached on the 21st day of the cycle. Blood flow to the endometrial arteries increases on the 22nd day of the cycle, creating favorable conditions for zygote implantation.
• Menstruation. When pregnancy does not occur, due to the low amount of hormones produced by the ovary, blood supply to the endometrium decreases, blood clots and spasms form in the vessels, and then their sharp expansion leads to endometrial rejection. This is observed by the 24th–27th day of the cycle. Menstruation itself consists of the following phases:

1. Desquamation (rejection of the functional layer).
2. Regeneration (healing of the functional layer). This phase begins immediately after the endometrial intermediate layer is shed. The basis for this, as mentioned above, is the basal layer. And on the 4th day, epithelization of the entire surface of the endometrium occurs after its rejection.

The continuous cyclical process of friendly reproductive organs - glands, ovaries and endometrium, throughout the entire menstrual cycle contributes to the maturation, release of the egg from the ovary and its fertilization, attachment to the already prepared endometrium (thanks to a two-phase cycle) and the further development and maintenance of pregnancy to a greater extent by ovarian hormones . If fertilization does not occur, then the functional layer (necessary during pregnancy for the embryo to attach to it and ensure its vital activity) is rejected in the form of menstruation.

The process of regulation of the cyclic process is carried out by the neuroendocrine system through direct and feedback hormones, i.e. when some hormones decrease, others increase and vice versa. There is the following hierarchy of levels of regulation of the menstrual cycle:

1. The first level is the cerebral cortex, limbic system, hippocampus and amygdala. The influence of the highest level depends on its initial state and the action of external factors. Therefore, menstrual irregularities often depend on the mental state of the woman, and sometimes a delay in menstruation can be observed after suffering stress.
2. The second level is the hypothalamus. It is influenced by the feedback principle of sex hormones coming from the blood.
3. The third level is the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland, which produces LH and FSH, prolactin, adenocorticotropic and thyroid-stimulating hormones.
4. The fourth level is the ovaries, thyroid gland and adrenal glands.
5. The fifth level is sensitive to the action of hormones (uterus, endometrium and mammary gland).

But, unfortunately, not all women have a regular menstrual cycle and work like a clock. All violations are divided into the following categories:

• Irregularity of the cycle.
• Pain when releasing menstrual blood.

Reasons why the menstrual cycle is disrupted

• Impact on the body from the outside - stress, overwork, malnutrition, change of place of residence and climate.
• Internal factors - concomitant diseases (pathology of the ovaries, central nervous system, adrenal glands, endometrial diseases, curettage of the uterine cavity and abortions, liver diseases, impaired hemostasis, etc.).
• Under the influence of medicinal substances (hormones, anticoagulants, drugs used in psychiatry, etc.).

Types of menstrual irregularities

Algodysmenorrhea, or painful menstruation, is often not the norm, but one of the types of menstrual cycle disorders.

Menorrhagia (hypermenstrual syndrome)– cyclical heavy menstruation. It in turn is divided into:

• Polymenorrhea is prolonged bleeding that occurs cyclically with an interval of less than 21 days.
• Proyomenorrhea – increased menstruation.
• Hypermenorrhea is a large amount of menstrual flow.

Hypomenstrual syndrome– external manifestation of decreased menstruation:

• Hypomenorrhea – scanty menstrual flow.
• Oligomenorrhea – duration of menstruation up to 2 days.
• Opsomenorea is an interval between menstruation of more than 5–8 weeks.
• Spaniomenorea - mensis is observed up to 2-4 times a year.
• Amenorrhea is the absence of menstruation for more than 6 months.

• – bleeding that began a year or more after the cessation of menstruation in older women.
• Metrorrhagia is acyclic bleeding that is not accompanied by endometrial rejection.
• Intermenstrual bleeding – occurs between periods.
• Algodismenorrhea – painful menstruation.
• Juvenile bleeding is profuse bleeding in teenage girls.

Treatment of menstrual disorders

After a complete examination of the woman, including a medical history, a detailed general and gynecological examination, ultrasound, smears, clinical and biochemical blood tests, coagulograms, hormonal examinations, hysteroscopy, and sometimes MRI, treatment can begin.

1. First of all, it is necessary to exclude the influence of external factors.
2. Treatment of concomitant diseases.
3. Hemostatic therapy is provided for bleeding.
4. Surgical treatment (curettage of the uterine cavity, removal of the uterus).
5. Hormonal therapy. Combined oral contraceptives, gestagens, and GnRH agonists are used.

Self-medication is extremely unacceptable! This is dangerous for a woman's life. In case of menstrual irregularities, it is necessary to seek help from a medical institution, since delay can, in mild cases, lead to inflammation, endocrine disorders, infertility, and in extreme cases, death. Take care of yourself and your health - it is priceless!

A 28-day menstrual cycle is considered ideal, which means that exactly 28 days pass from the beginning of one menstruation to the beginning of another. But under the influence of the environment, the state of health and the reproductive system, a woman’s lifestyle changes: for some women it is 25 days, for others it is 30 or more. Doctors consider the normal cycle length to be from 21 to 35 days, and if you deviate from this norm, it is advisable to check with a gynecologist and rule out possible diseases. If once or twice a year the cycle goes beyond these limits, but no more than ten days,...

A cycle that is too short or too long does not always indicate problems; this may be an individual feature of the woman, but it is recommended to undergo an examination.

The length of the menstrual cycle can change throughout a woman's life. With age, with changes in environment and lifestyle, due to illness and other factors, the cycle may become shorter or longer; if it remains regular, this is not a cause for concern.

Deviations from the norm

During the first year or two after the onset of the first, the menstrual cycle is irregular; several months may pass between periods, this is normal. In some cases, the cycle, on the contrary, is too short. Over time, the cycle will stabilize, but if after a few years this does not happen, you need to consult a gynecologist.

The length of the cycle may change and go beyond normal or feeding limits. In women who are breastfeeding, menstruation occurs at the end of lactation, and the cycle is restored within a few months. When mixed, 3-4 months after birth, but the cycle also does not immediately become regular.

The duration of the cycle also changes before menopause, first for several days, then for months. When there is no menstruation for more than a year, menopause occurs.

Deviations in the duration of menstruation from the norm can be associated with inflammation of the genital organs, tumors - fibroids, ovarian fibroids, endometritis. In some cases, congenital abnormalities in the reproductive system lead to too short or long menstrual periods. Chronic diseases not directly related to the genital organs can also affect menstruation: diabetes, thyroid disorders.

November 09, 2012 13:46

What is this article about and how to use the information received?

This article contains answers to many questions that girls and women have about (menstruation).

Any woman should have information about the nature of the occurrence and characteristics of such an important physiological process. Our article will help you understand these concepts.

This information will be especially relevant for the following audiences:

1. Young girls who have just started menstruating and don’t know much about it;
2. Adult women who are concerned about the nature of their menstrual cycle, who want to know how correctly everything is happening in their body;
3. Adult women of any age if there have been some changes in their menstrual cycle;
4. Adult women, in case of unusual occurrences;
5. Pregnant women, when menstruation occurs during pregnancy (at any stage).

What is menstruation? Why and why is this happening?

Very often, women wait with horror for the onset of their critical days, since for them it is a useless torment that unsettles them for a week, and sometimes even longer. However, it is important to treat this as a normal physiological mechanism. After all, all the processes that occur in the female body before and after menstruation are nothing more than evidence of her reproductive function. That is, it is the woman in whose body a normal menstrual cycle occurs that is capable of bearing a child.

And now we will tell you why and why menstruation occurs, and what it should be like for a healthy woman.

Thus, menstruation represents the rejection of the mucous membranes of the female uterus, which are not useful for the development of pregnancy. This is the principle of operation of a healthy woman’s body. But various diseases and certain conditions of a woman can disrupt the correct course of this process. They can cause cycle disruption and change the nature of menstruation.

Severe pain as a symptom of the disease

It happens that the pain is so severe that it makes a woman completely unadapted to normal life during this period. Severe pain often indicates a disorder and is called dysmenorrhea.

This diagnosis is confirmed if, along with pain, there are also signs such as:

• Headache;
• Dizziness;
• Nausea;
• Loss of consciousness;
• Constipation or diarrhea.

The presence of such signs is definitely a reason to immediately contact a gynecologist. Let's look at what this means below.

Pain during menstruation. When should you see a doctor?

So, if you have severe pain during your period, you should seriously think about your health.

Pain can signal a number of diseases:

• Uterine fibroids;
• Uterine cancer;
• Uterine polyps.

In addition, you need to pay attention to the changes that have been happening to you lately.

So, if you have the following signs, you need to urgently contact a gynecologist:

1. Your periods are more painful than before;
2. The pain in the lower abdomen is very strong (you constantly take painkillers);
3. In addition to the pain, the discharge itself has become more abundant (one pad lasts you less than 2 hours);
4. Along with pain, other disorders occur (weight loss, cycle disruption, inability to get pregnant).

How to relieve pain?

As we have already said, the presence of some pain during menstruation is normal.

Therefore, to alleviate your condition, you can use some common techniques:

1. These days you need to get a good night's sleep. But just lying down all day is not an option. Staying without movement, on the contrary, worsens the condition;
2. Transfer complex mental and physical stress to the period when your period is over;
3. These days you need to move more, walk, play sports. You only need to avoid heavy physical activity. The ideal option would be either Pilates;
4. Sex helps relieve pain (thus reducing muscle tension in the uterus);
5. If the pain is very painful, you can take a painkiller (, analgin, naproxen). It must be remembered that girls under 16 years of age cannot take aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid).

If menstrual pain is constant, every month, and if your doctor does not see any abnormalities in your health, he may prescribe preventive medications. They will help reduce pain during the onset of menstrual periods.

Period of the menstrual cycle. How regular should it be?

Ideally, a healthy woman menstruates regularly; there is a certain period of her cycle. But minor deviations from the average cycle length are not always the result of any health problem. A fluctuation in the onset of menstruation, earlier or later, by a few days (approximately 3 to 5 days) is not significant.

Particular attention should be paid to understanding that a regular menstrual cycle is not the fact that menstruation arrives on a certain day. Menstruation should not start on the same day every month. The regularity of the cycle consists in observing the period of the break itself between the previous and next menstruation. This is influenced by the number of calendar days in a month, the onset of a leap year and the time of day when the previous menstruation occurred.

Let's give an example. A woman's normal menstrual cycle is 27 days. Last month, my period started on March 1st. Thus, the beginning of the critical days of the next month should fall on March 27th (but not on April 1st). But next month it will be April 23rd. And so on.

Violations and failure of a stable cycle. What can delayed menstruation mean?

If disturbances in the cycle are minor, or they are sporadic, there is no cause for concern. But frequent and prolonged symptoms, as well as its irregular nature, may indicate many gynecological diseases. Unpredictable onset of menstruation and frequent delays should be a reason to immediately consult a doctor.


If a delay occurs in a woman whose cycle was previously stable, this may indicate the following changes:

• Pregnancy;
• The result of exposure to certain factors (nervous strain,);
• Disease.

The normal state of a woman after menstruation

After the bleeding stops, a woman may notice some symptoms.

The following symptoms may persist for several days after menstruation:

1. Mild pain in the lower back, lower abdomen and side;
2. Mild headache, nipple tension, slight tingling in the chest;
3. Slight when pressed;
4. Weak bloody discharge (spotting). Their color can be brown, pink, yellow or transparent.

If at the end of menstruation you feel pronounced pain in the abdomen or lower back, you should immediately see a gynecologist. If the discharge described above does not go away on the 3rd - 4th day after the end of menstruation, this may also be a signal of illness. Especially if, along with this, other symptoms appear (fever,

In the modern world, it is generally accepted that the menstrual cycle is about 28 days, but often the cycle of women does not fall within this framework and can last from 25 to 34 days, which is also considered acceptable.

Period- this is what accompanies every girl, starting from 11-14 years old, all her life until menopause. Menstruation is responsible for renewing blood in the body and getting rid of eggs unsuitable for conception.
It happens that the menstrual cycle gets confused and behaves unstable. Let's look at the norms and deviations of the menstrual cycle and why this happens.

Menstrual cycle

In the modern world, it is generally accepted that the menstrual cycle is about 28 days, but often the cycle of women does not fall within this framework and can last from 25 to 34 days, which is also considered acceptable.
There are several phases of menstruation:

1. The menstrual phase is accompanied by bleeding and shedding of the uterine lining. Lasts on average from 3 to 6 days.
2. The follicular phase occurs after menstruation during the first 14 days. During this period, a follicle is produced in the ovaries, which will then serve to create a new egg.
3. Ovulatory phase or ovulation - takes place within three days, after the previous phase, accompanied by the release of a new egg from a mature follicle.
4. The luteal phase lasts for 11-16 days and is accompanied by the body releasing hormones to prepare for conception. Often during this period, premenstrual syndrome (PMS) occurs, which is accompanied by some irritability in women and mood swings.

How is the cycle between menstruation calculated?

To count your menstrual cycle, you need a calendar, a pen and a little patience. Over the course of three periods, you need to mark the beginning and end of your period, and only then can you calculate the average cycle of your period by counting the days between them.
If you find it difficult or reluctant to mark days on the calendar, then you can use applications on your smartphone that will do all the calculations for you. You will only need to enter the start and end date of menstruation, then the program will do everything for you and show you the average cycle.

Normal and abnormal menstrual cycle

The word “menstruation” comes from the word “month” and means that menstruation lasts for a month, but the female body is not one-piece, so deviations from the designated month occur. As stated earlier, a cycle lasts from 25 to 34 days, and it is normal for your period to arrive within 7 days earlier or later of your cycle.
But if the cycles are uneven and one is 14 days and the other is 35 days, this is a reason to consult a doctor to determine the cause of the failure, where you will need your “female calendar”.

How many days are there between ovulation and the start of your next period?

When tracking the phases of menstruation, which were described earlier, you can track that the onset of ovulation occurs 12-16 days before the start of menstruation.

Bloody discharge between periods

Women most often complain about spotting between periods; unfortunately, this problem indicates some pathology in the body and requires a visit to the doctor. This may not necessarily be a disease of the reproductive organs, but it may indicate hormonal imbalances and it is better to consult a specialist.

From this article you learned what a cycle is and how to calculate it. Monitor your cycle constantly and you will be able to find out about problems in the body or the presence of diseases before it results in an unpleasant surprise for you.

The menstrual cycle is a natural process that repeats from month to month and occurs in the body of all women of reproductive age. Normally, the duration of the menstrual cycle should be the same in each month, but sometimes the body malfunctions and various disorders occur. In order to detect or suspect a pathology in time, you need to know how many days your period should take, and how long it lasts normally.

A girl should have her first menstruation before the age of 15. Heredity has a great influence on the process of puberty. If grandmothers or mothers started their periods early (at age 11), then the girl’s period will come early, and vice versa.

If menstruation does not begin until the age of eighteen, then the girl needs to see a gynecologist to identify the cause of this condition.

But a certain duration of the menstrual cycle is not immediately established. This happens within 12–18 months. In this case, there may be either fewer or more days between periods.

After about a year, the duration of the cycle becomes stable, and all deviations from the established figure are violations that require attention.

Cycle duration

After menstruation begins, the girl must be taught to count the duration of her cycle in order to know how many days later her period will arrive. The countdown starts from the first day of menstruation and ends with the beginning of the next menstruation.

A normal cycle length is 21–36 days. Each month must have the same number of days; a deviation of 2–4 days is acceptable, either upward or downward. However, such deviations should not be frequent.

A delay of several days may be due to a number of reasons:

• colds and viral diseases;
• nervous overstrain;
• unfavorable environment;
• physical overload;
• acclimatization.

For convenience, it is worth keeping a calendar that will prompt you in case of any changes.

Phases of the menstrual cycle

If the duration of the cycle in women is different, then its phases are absolutely identical for everyone. These phases correspond to changes occurring in the endometrium and ovaries.

1 phase

Includes follicular and menstrual phases. The menstrual phase is essentially menstruation, that is, the period of bleeding from the uterus. It lasts about 6 days, it depends on the length of the menstrual cycle. The follicular phase lasts approximately two weeks. A follicle is formed in the ovaries, and in the uterus after menstruation, the endometrium is renewed.

Phase 2 – ovulatory

Its duration is no more than 3 days. Intensive production of luteinizing hormone occurs, and at the end of this phase the walls of the mature follicle rupture and the egg is released.

Phase 3 – luteal

This phase lasts from ovulation until the onset of menstruation. A corpus luteum forms at the site of the ruptured follicle. It intensively produces the hormones estrogen and progesterone, which, in turn, prepare the endometrium for conception and gestation. If pregnancy does not occur, then menstruation begins.

Menstruation

The normal duration of menstruation is 3–7 days. During menstruation, how much blood is released? There is no exact figure, but blood loss should be at least 50 and no more than 200 milliliters. Heavy discharge is observed in the first two days, then its intensity should decrease. The discharged blood should be scarlet in color; in the first days, small blood clots may be observed in the discharge. The first day of menstruation is more difficult for a woman; she may experience pain and a feeling of heaviness in the lower abdomen, sometimes nausea and dizziness occur.

If the amount of blood released does not decrease or, on the contrary, increases, it is necessary to contact a gynecologist to identify pathologies of the genital organs.

If a woman has an intrauterine device installed, then menstruation can be heavy and painful. This is considered a variant of the norm. When using oral contraceptives, discharge may become scanty and short-lived.

Symptoms of PMS that may indicate your approaching menstruation include:

• the appearance of acne on the skin of the face, sometimes in the chest area;
• enlargement, increased sensitivity, and sometimes soreness of the mammary glands;
• bothered by headaches;
• flatulence is noted;
• mood swings, increased nervousness.

Menstrual irregularities

The duration of the menstrual cycle may vary depending on various reasons:

• severe stress;
• unhealthy diet, starvation;
• diseases of internal organs and endocrine disorders;
• taking certain medications (hormonal drugs, blood thinners, and others).

Hypermenstrual syndrome is characterized by increased blood loss (this condition can lead to anemia):

• Hypermenorrhea is an increase in the volume of blood secreted.
• Polymenorrhea – prolonged bleeding. In this case, how many days does it take for your period to start? The interval between menstruation becomes less than 20 days.
• Proyomenorrhea – frequent menstruation.

Hypomenstrual syndrome is characterized by a decrease in blood loss:

• Hypomenorrhea is a significant decrease in the amount of blood released.
• Oligomenorrhea - reduction in the duration of menstrual bleeding to two days.
• Amenorrhea. There is an absence of menstrual flow for six months or more. Normally, this condition is observed during pregnancy and lactation.
• Opsomenorea. How long does it take for menstruation to start in this situation? With this disorder, menstruation comes with a noticeable delay - up to two months.
• Spanomenorrhea – extremely infrequent periods, several times a year (2–3).

Menstrual dysfunction also includes painful periods (algodysmenorrhea), bleeding between periods, heavy periods in adolescents (juvenile bleeding) and bleeding from the genital tract during menopause.

If any of the above disorders occur, you should consult a specialist, as they may indicate the development of a serious pathology of the genital organs.