What is your period like?
Have you really thought about whether they are healthy or not?
I don’t like using the word ‘normal’, but I do believe every girl can have a perfect period. Not a textbook period, but your version of a perfect period. We are all different and so will our menstrual cycles be, but it’s important to know when you are far away from what is considered normal.
Cycle Length
Textbooks say that the length of our menstrual cycle (from one bleed to the next) should be 28 days, plus or minus 7. So this is a good place to start. It is considered normal if your cycle length is 21-35 days. I tend to disagree with this though. If your cycle length is around 21 days, this is often associated with unwanted symptoms around your period and pregnancy would be difficult. Depending on your symptoms and whether you were hoping to fall pregnant I would want your cycle length to be no less than 25 days.
Your Period – the actual bleed
Your bleed should start full flow, if you are spotting that is considered part of your last cycle. So Day 1 of your bleed is first day of full flow. Anywhere from 2-7 days of bleeding is considered normal, with the last few days seen as spotting. 3-5 days is the optimal amount of days I find more common, and more ideal for us menstruating ladies.
The amount of blood loss
The average blood loss should be around 50ml. It is considered excessive blood loss if you lose more than 80ml of blood from your period every menstrual cycle. It is hard to determine how much blood you are losing as it’s really a subjective measurement. Two different women could consider themselves to be heavy bleeders, but maybe one is not, if you have nothing to compare it to then how do you know.
I have created a ‘Current State of Period Health’ report that is downloadable from here. As well as tracking your other period symptoms, here you can calculate your blood loss according to your sanitary product use, instead of guessing.
Consistency of your period
The consistency of your bleed should be mostly liquid. If you are seeing large clots, it might be a good time to get your Doctor to check it out. Few small clots are ok to see, but if you are seeing blood clots 2cm in diameter and bigger, there may be something underlying. I encounter women all the time who experience these big clots, so don’t panic.
Colour
Your blood loss on the first few days when your flow is heaviest should be bright red. Bright red blood occurs when the blood is flowing faster. As your blood loss slows down we will expect to see it darken in colour to a brownish-red. If you are starting your period with a brown-ish red colour, it means the blood is stagnant and not flowing fast enough.
Symptoms to track each menstrual cycle
- Length of your cycle
- Duration of bleed, plus spotting
- Amount of blood loss
- Amount and size of clots
- Colour of blood
To make things easy for you I have created a ‘Current State of Period Health’ report that you can download by clicking here.
Here you will be given a comparison table of the “normal” symptoms and ranges you should expect to see from your menstrual cycle. There are questions for you to fill out that shows your current state of hormonal health. This can highlight a period that is your version of ‘perfect’, or a period that is undesirable, caused by hormonal imbalance. If your ‘Current State of Period Health’ report identifies imbalances, please know that it is possible for you to improve your hormonal health and you’re in the right place.
If you’d like to be supported by a naturopath that specialises in Women’s Hormonal complaints, please know we offer Skype consults or face-to-face if you live close by. Contact us by filling out our contact form here.
Love Your Flow,
Amanda xx