Time to Cycle Sync.

I regularly find myself cursing whoever taught me about periods when I was growing up. I distinctly do NOT remember being told that it’s possible to end up a slave to your hormones for most of your life and if slightly out of balance they will reign hell over your mind, body, and mood in ways you didn’t realize they could, and that seems like a vital bit of information to miss out don’t you think? After being a victim to my own hormones and petrified of my own symptoms for so long, only now (in my early thirties), I am starting to learn what’s really going on down there.

I’ve struggled with the worst PMS for most of my adult life, and I’ve tried almost everything to get it under control. At one stage I would pray, “just cramps this month please” even though they were so unbearable I’d be paralyzed in pain. But I’d vote to straddle a hot water bottle and snort painkillers instead of the ‘drop’. The drop in energy, mood, hope, focus, added anxiety, depression, and insomnia… the list is long. Doctors fobbed me off countless times, I was regularly shocked by the lack of understanding as to what I was going through, and the only medical advice was to be shoved off with pockets rattling full of antidepressants and contraceptives. I couldn’t believe they were the only options given to me, that didn’t seem like much of a choice at all? I felt hopeless.

I took matters into my own hands and went the ‘holistic route’. I broke down in tears at my first acupuncture session, my acupuncturist listened and nodded in agreement and finished my sentences for me, and for the first time, I was reassured I wasn’t going crazy.

Luckily there is a lot more information out there nowadays, but I’m only now learning that periods aren’t, ‘PMS then period’, but are a part of a much more intricate cycle of a month-long hormone frenzy!

I was about to throw myself under my duvet at  4 in the afternoon, I was beyond overwhelmed and exhausted. My phone rang, it was my best friend. She listened carefully as I blubbered down the phone. She could hear that all too familiar period panic, and gently said, “check where you are in your cycle, maybe you just need a nap”.

NAP I did. And it helped.

If we start to understand where we are in our hormone cycle, that can make a hell of a lot make sense. Whether you’re greatly affected by your periods or not at all, they do quite literally rule our lives.

The differing hormone levels in our bodies impact everything, and I mean EVERYTHING. From the choices we make to the motivation we have, to the way our face looks. Our hormones are the reason why some days we can leap out of bed and get our to-do lists done before 9 am, and on others, it takes 2 hours to put on our shoes.

Tracking and being aware of your cycle is the biggest form of self-care you can do! All it means is to understand each phase, to give yourself a better understanding of what your body needs. You might not be able to change all your plans around your cycle nor do you have to. It’s just there to give you a menstrual map on how to care for yourself. Now we can understand our bodies and do everything we can to utilize our hormones to work for us, not against us.

This understanding can help us navigate our already complicated lives, so our hormones shouldn’t be any more complicated. Use this guide to check in with yourself, this is an extremely condensed version of the information in the book ‘Period Power’ by Maisie Hill. In what is now my new bible, Maisie likens each hormonal phase to the seasons of the year;

Menstrual Phase | Winter🩸

When your period starts. You’re in the trenches, your hormones drop to their lowest levels, you may get overwhelming fatigue, anxiety, a sense of separation between you and the world, needing space, brain fog, physical contact becomes annoying, you’re emotional and in pain, your stomach hurts as much as your back and if someone dares to chew too loud there’s no telling what you might do.

During this time it’s time to go inward, be introspective, don’t make solid plans, or aim to be too social. Go soft on your workouts, do gentle yoga, and no hard crunching of your abs! Keep your bellies soft and your hearts softer.

Nourish your body with good food and give in to the occasional craving, rest as much as you can, if you struggle to find the time to do nothing, find it. Our bodies go through ALOT to get this phase so it’s time to go easy on yourself, guilt-free. 

Follicular Phase | Spring 🌼

Just after your period, you’re emerging from the fuzzy cocoon of your own making, the light might burn your eyes on emergence, but your energy level is rising, you’re full of possibilities, the fog has lifted, the hope is back and you’re ready to reconnect with the world.

You’re curious, more creative, and buzzing with ideas. Your oestrogen is increasing so your memory and mental agility are improving, you're capable of doing more now your hormones are firing back up.

This is a good time to build self-esteem and relationships, you’ve got your spark back so be more visible. It’s a good time to do more endurance-based exercises, form new habits and bring back that self-care routine that got thrown out the window during the menstruation phase.

Ovulation Phase | Summer 🌞

The final hormonal push towards ovulation. Oestrogen reaches its peak joined by our old friend testosterone and it’s time to party baby!

You’re firing on all cylinders, you’re in flow state and have an increased ability to handle all life’s challenges. You ooze more confidence you can stand to look at yourself in the mirror.

We’re more interested in exploring the world, we can put ourselves out there more, and we’re in the mood for sex and pleasure!

Workouts can be at their peak because you’ve got your friend testosterone to help you out, you can go for it in every way and hit most of your goals in this phase. 

Luteal Phase | Autumn 🍁

You may feel like you’re coming down from a high or in my case CRASHING down from one.

You may feel your oestrogen take a nosedive and you get the agitated cranky tired feelings that are prepping you for the winter withdrawal. This is when the bloating starts, tender boobs, and the dodgy digestion bubble starts to grow, ready for it to pop when the period arrives.

Random meltdowns, cravings, stress increases, and self-care decreases. These are times when you tend to be harder on yourself, you’re more likely to make mistakes, you’re more sensitive to criticism and more reactive.

It’s not all bad in Autumn though, you also become more assertive, start to focus on what’s important to you, and can be certain in decision making. Now is the time to start slowing down again, be more understanding yourself during this time, don’t push your body to the max but a good sweaty workout can help alleviate cramps.

This is the time for self-compassion, to be more reflective rather than reactive, cry it out if you need to, do loads of meditation and understand this too shall pass.

All of this is an extremely condensed version of the cycle syncing chapter in ‘Period Power’ by Maisie Hill. She talks us through everything, whether you bleed or not, have a womb or not, whatever stage of life you’re at this book is for you. It’s for us!

Written by Tara-Emily