It is much more than a constant in a woman’s life , or an annoying and necessary evil. Our period isn’t an opportunity for a “that’s-not-my-second-round-of-potato-chips-and-hand-me-some-more-chocolate-would-you” kind of evening”.

Menstruation is often also called period, or other countless names like the Red Wave, Strawberry Week, Bloody Mary, or Aunt Rosa’s visit. The many synonyms testify to decades of tabooing menstruation and it’s about time for it to no longer be the “embarrassing thing” of women or the never ending cycle of suffering. Because menstruation is actually also referred to as the “fountain of new life”.

The first day of bleeding is also the first day of the cycle and the first half of the cycle. This day is arbitrarily fixed, but somewhere it is necessary to begin the beginning of a circle.
As menstruation begins, the concentration of the hormones estrogen and progesterone in the blood decreases. Red alarm stage, as it were, for the uterine lining built up in the cycle, since it is now dissolved and bled off. Meanwhile, the growth of new oocytes in the ovaries is already stimulated. At the end of menstruation, the new mucous membrane begins to build up. And so the “circle of life” closes.

What happens in the body during the monthly bleed?

To be more precise, progesterone production decreases with the disappearance of the corpus luteum. This is what triggers menstruation a.k.a. the shedding of the uterine lining. Estrogen production reaches its peak and then falls again. That’s stimulating the hypothalamus to get ready for another cycle of ovulation.

A combination of brown spotting and cherry-red bleeding characterizes this phase. You may also experience cramping, back pain, tiredness and cravings. Sometimes you may feel a sense of relaxation and relief while your estrogen peak passes.

breathe ilo helps you to learn where you are in your cycle. That way, you can get to know your body better and understand your unique cycle ♡