Menstrual cycle – a better way forward with the ‘Mooncup’
The curse’, as many refer to the monthly female bleeding has never been a great topic of conversation. But it is an important one as over a life time a woman spends an absolute fortune on sanitary products, an estimated £18,000
But is there another way. Something to save you a lot of money and is also good for the environment (just imagine the colossal mountain of used sanitary towels and tampons that collect just in one year, not to mention all these clogged up toilets!).
It is called the moon cup and I have used it myself for over a decade now. It is a silicone cup that is very comfortable and safe. Find out more about the Mooncup.
When I was doing a bit of research of how many women in my neighbourhood knew facts about the menstrual cycle and the moon cup, I started a conversation with a 30ish year old woman and was shocked when she revealed that she did not really know how many days a normal female fertility cycle lasted for or even how to count fertile days and so on. She just relied on the pill. I would have expected this response from a 14 year old girl, but not from a grown woman. I pointed her to this website and rushed home to complete this article.
What is the menstrual cycle?
How to find out the average length of your menstrual cycle
Always count from the first day of your period until day before your next period. This is the length of your menstrual cycle. It varies from woman to woman, but anything between 21 to 34 days is seen as ‘normal’. The average time is 28 days, which is the same length as the moon cycle and the reason why so many civilisations connected the moon with fertility. (Please read more about fertility in the article Conceive with the moon. )
Be also aware that if you are taking extra hormones, such as the pill or an iud with hormones, this can alter the length or frequency of your natural menstruation cycle.
Know your body
If you never suffered from heavy or painful periods or use a permanent contraceptive you may not pay much attention to it all. But I believe that start dates, flow rates and regularity can give you important clues about the state of your health. So get your diary out (or the monthly LWTM calendar – it is free, but you need to sign up to our list for this ), then circle the first day of each period, it is that simple.
What should you look out for?
- Length. Over time you work out the average length. You need this information to find out if you are pregnant. A delayed period without pregnancy can point to a health problem or the onset of the menopause
- Flow. Stronger periods could point to fibroids or onset of the menopause
- Irregularities. Women with premature ovarian failure and ‘polycystic ovary syndrome’ are prone to irregular or lapsed periods, so too are women who suffer from eating disorders, substantial weight loss/gain or are still breastfeeding.
- Consult a doctor if
– you have had no period for more than 90 days and you are not pregnant
– you develop a strong bleeding and bleed more than seven days
– bleed mid cycle and/or are in serious pain