Wondering if you might have an irregular period? Heavy bleeds, pain and menstrual migraines are all common cues that something might not be quite right.

5 Common (but not normal) Period Symptoms

I want you to imagine in your head that it’s that time of the month. What just came to mind? Maybe cramps, visions of chocolate fountains, a sore chest, and ruining your favorite cute new pair of undies? Perhaps migraines, nausea, box after box of tampons and intense fatigue?

We as women have been gaslit into believing that these sorts of symptoms are normal. It’s just PMS, right? We’re women. We’re strong and quite literally built to power through this – right?

But what if I told you that your period shouldn’t be a living nightmare? And that we don’t need to dread it every 28-ish days? If you can’t fathom that as a possibility, then I highly encourage you to seek 1:1 support to dig into what your cycle might be trying to tell you.

Now don’t get me wrong. Our bodies are working HARD during our menstrual bleed and our hormones are shifting, so that does come with the occasional cramping, bloating, some fatigue and maybe some cravings or fluctuations in our mood. But if our period is making it feel impossible to get through the day or experience joy for a solid week of the month, then we might need to dig in a little deeper and ask ourselves what our bodies are trying to tell us.

Your period is a report card for your menstrual cycle. All the gentle fluctuations of your cycle influence how you feel during your period. So if we’re not taking care of ourselves throughout our cycle, or if somethings not functioning properly, our period will cue us that something’s up.

What’s happening during your menstrual cycle?

Your menstrual phase starts with the first day of heavy flow. This is day 1 of the menstrual cycle and technically part of the follicular phase. Your period arrives via the shedding of your uterine lining after an egg is not fertilized. With day 1, your hormones are at their lowest of the cycle, but estrogen will gently start to rise as the days go on.

Everyone’s cycle is unique to them, but typically, we should expect:

• Your bleed to last 3-6 days, and last roughly the same amount of time with each cycle
• To have a period every 21-35 days. But this doesn’t mean that it’s normal for one cycle to last 28 days and then for the next one to last 35 days. Your cycle should be roughly the same number of days each time.
• Each bleed to be consistent in volume. If your period is really heavy one month, then incredibly light the next, something might be off.
• Some clots occasionally. But if you’re seeing lots of clots that are larger than a quarter, our body is telling us something’s not right.

5 Period Symptom Red Flags

Signs and symptoms are often mistaken as normal when they are actually sharing a lot about your hormone health as whole. Here are 5 period symptoms that we so often write off as PMS, but might actually be red flags:

1. Very light periods. If your period feels more like a spotting episode than a full bleed, this may be a sign that your sex hormones are not available in adequate levels, particularly estrogen. Estrogen is responsible for building up our uterine lining, so if we have chronically low estrogen, we might never be able to build up a healthy uterine lining to be shed in the first place.
2. Unpredictable cycles. You should be able to point to a date on the calendar when you suspect your next cycle will arrive, and be within a few days of accuracy. If you can’t it might be a sign of a bigger issue. Irregular cycle durations and missing periods can indicate a hormone imbalance or potentially PCOS.
3. Menstrual headaches or migraines. A headache here and there can be a normal symptom, but if you’re having chronic, recurring headaches or migraines, this could indicate elevated estrogen, poor gut health, or impaired hormone detox.
4. Flu-like symptoms. While you might not always feel 100% on your period, you shouldn’t feel physically ill. If you’re having chills, feeling really nauseous, regularly vomiting on your period or simply cannot will yourself out of bed, this is a big red flag that our body needs support.
5. Extreme fatigue and poor sleep. We all feel tired here and there, but feeling like you’re so fatigued that you need to call off work or stay in bed is not normal. Levels of fatigue that keep you from going about your everyday life can reflect low nutrient status and poor progesterone production.

How to support your body during your period

We don’t need to dread our period. There are habits and strategies we can put in place to help us feel more wholly supported and cared for during this time of the month, instead of feeling run down and depleted.

• Self compassion: Your menstrual phase is a great time to focus on self care. Run a bath, cook yourself a comforting meal, snuggle up on the couch and lean into your emotions. It’s normal to feel a little bit of fatigue when our hormones are in a valley during our menstrual phase, so give yourself some space to slow down.
• Nutrition: Now’s the time to practice balance. It can be normal to crave comfort foods, and we shouldn’t live in a restrictive mindset. But it can also be supportive to make sure you’re getting plenty of whole food iron, vitamin C and magnesium. Iron and vitamin C will allow us to replenish after our period, while magnesium can help minimize cramping.
• Movement: Give yourself grace to practice balancing supportive movement with rest. Low impact, slow movement like yoga, long walks and pilates may feel really restorative during your period.

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Need more support? Take the first step in making your period more manageable and building a path to better cycle health by scheduling a Discovery Call.