November 09, 2012 13:46

What is this article about and how to use the information received?

This article contains answers to many questions that girls and women have about (menstruation).

Any woman should have information about the nature of the occurrence and characteristics of the course of such an important physiological process. Our article will help you understand these concepts.

It will be especially relevant this information for the following audience:

1. Young girls who have just started menstruating and don’t know much about it;
2. Adult women who are concerned about the nature of their menstrual cycle, who want to know how correctly everything is happening in their body;
3. Adult women of any age if there have been some changes in their menstrual cycle;
4. Adult women, in case of unusual occurrences;
5. Pregnant women, when menstruation occurs during pregnancy (at any stage).

What is menstruation? Why and why is this happening?

Very often women wait with horror for the onset of critical days, since for them it is a useless torment that unsettles them for a week, and sometimes longer. However, it is important to treat this as normal physiological mechanism. After all, all the processes that occur in the female body before and after menstruation are nothing more than evidence of her reproductive function. That is, it is the woman in whose body a normal menstrual cycle occurs that is capable of bearing a child.

And now we will tell you why and why menstruation occurs, and what it should be like. healthy woman.

Thus, menstruation represents the rejection of mucous membranes female uterus, which were not useful for the development of pregnancy. This is the principle of operation of a healthy woman’s body. But they can disrupt the correct course of this process various diseases and certain conditions of women. They can cause cycle disruption and change the nature of menstruation.

Severe pain as a symptom of the disease

It happens that the pain is so severe that it makes a woman completely unadapted to normal life during this period. Severe pain often indicates a disorder and is called dysmenorrhea.

This diagnosis is confirmed if, along with pain, there are also signs such as:

• Headache;
• Dizziness;
• Nausea;
• Loss of consciousness;
• Constipation or diarrhea.

The presence of such signs clearly serves as a reason for immediate appeal see a gynecologist. Let's look at what this means below.

Pain during menstruation. When should you see a doctor?

So, if there is severe pain During your period, you should seriously think about your health.

Pain can signal a number of diseases:

• Uterine fibroids;
• Uterine cancer;
• Uterine polyps.

In addition, you need to pay attention to the changes that have been happening to you lately.

So, if you are present the following signs, you need to urgently contact a gynecologist:

1. Your periods are more painful than before;
2. The pain in the lower abdomen is very strong (you constantly take painkillers);
3. In addition to the pain, the discharge itself has become more abundant (one pad lasts you less than 2 hours);
4. Along with pain, other disorders occur (weight loss, cycle disruption, inability to get pregnant).

How to relieve pain?

As we have already said, the presence of some pain during menstruation is normal.

Therefore, to alleviate your condition, you can use some common techniques:

1. These days you need to get a good night's sleep. But just lying down all day is not an option. Staying without movement, on the contrary, worsens the condition;
2. Complex mental and physical activity postpone until after your period ends;
3. These days you need to move more, walk, play sports. You only need to avoid heavy physical activity. Ideal option will be either Pilates;
4. Sex helps relieve pain and (thus reduces muscle tension uterus);
5. If the pain is very painful, you can take a painkiller (, analgin, naproxen). It must be remembered that girls under 16 years of age should take aspirin ( acetylsalicylic acid) cannot be accepted.

If menstrual pain are permanent, every month, and if your doctor does not see any abnormalities in your health, he may prescribe prophylactic drugs. They will help reduce pain during the onset of menstrual periods.

Period of the menstrual cycle. How regular should it be?

Ideally, a healthy woman menstruates regularly; there is a certain period of her cycle. But minor deviations from the average cycle length are not always a consequence of any health problem. A fluctuation in the onset of menstruation, earlier or later, by a few days (approximately 3 to 5 days) is not significant.

Particular attention should be paid to understand that a regular menstrual cycle is not the fact that menstruation arrives on a certain day. Menstruation should not start on the same day every month. The regularity of the cycle consists in observing the period of the break itself between the previous and next menstruation. This is influenced by the quantity calendar days in the month, offensive leap year and the time of day when the previous menstruation began.

Let's give an example. A woman's normal menstrual cycle is 27 days. Last month, my period started on March 1st. Thus, the beginning of the critical days of the next month should fall on the date of March 27th (but not on April 1st). But next month it will be April 23rd. And so on.

Violations and failure of a stable cycle. What can delayed menstruation mean?

If disturbances in the cycle are minor, or they are isolated in nature, there is no cause for concern. But frequent and prolonged symptoms, as well as its irregular nature, may indicate many gynecological diseases. Unpredictable onset of menstruation frequent delays should be a reason to immediately consult a doctor.


If a delay occurs in a woman whose cycle was previously stable, this may indicate the following changes:

• Pregnancy;
• The result of the influence of certain factors (, nervous tension, );
• Disease.

The normal state of a woman after menstruation

After the bleeding stops, a woman may notice some symptoms.

The following symptoms may persist for several days after menstruation:

1. Mild pain in the lower back, lower abdomen and side;
2. Weak headache, nipple tension, slight tingling in the chest;
3. Slight when pressed;
4. Weak spotting(daub). Their color can be brown, pink, yellow or transparent.

If at the end of menstruation you feel pronounced pain in the abdomen or lower back, you should immediately see a gynecologist. If the discharge described above does not go away on the 3rd - 4th day after the end of menstruation, this may also be a signal of illness. Especially if, along with this, other symptoms appear (fever,

Every woman knows firsthand what the menstrual cycle is - already from adolescence the girl begins to have menstruation (bleeding from the genitals), and they will accompany her until menopause, interrupting only during pregnancy or in the case of some women's diseases. Every woman needs to be aware of what is happening to the body now. And for this you should learn to count your menstrual cycle.

If a woman is healthy and her genitourinary system works correctly, the menstrual cycle should be regular. This is why the ability to count correctly is important. monthly cycle– this will help monitor your health status and notice unwanted changes in time. For those who are planning a pregnancy, it is absolutely necessary to be aware of events - by correctly calculating the menstrual cycle, you can find out the days most suitable for conception. The menstrual cycle is the time period from the first day of menstruation to the first day of the next. That is, the cycle is not counted with last day previous menstruation, but from the first. This is definitely something to keep in mind. The duration of the menstrual cycle should be 28-35 days. This is considered the norm. If menstruation occurs more frequently (with an interval of 21 days or less) or less frequently (more than 35 days), you should consult a doctor. Small deviations from the normal cycle (two to three days) are normal, after all female body- complex design.
Cycle failure can also be caused by natural reasons:

• about a year after the start of the first menstruation in teenage girls, a cycle is established, so disruptions are possible;
  
• the cycle is not immediately restored after childbirth, especially during breastfeeding;
  
• are happening hormonal changes and the cycle goes astray when menopause occurs.
  

It has been observed that if women live in the same area, their menstrual cycles are synchronized. It is difficult to say what this is connected with, but some deviations from the usual cycle may be explained by this.

Changes in the menstrual cycle may be associated with medications taken sharp decline weight and many other reasons. You should also pay attention to the course of your periods. The normal duration is four to five days. At the same time, menstruation should not be too painful, too abundant or, conversely, scanty. In case of deviations from the norm, it is best to consult your gynecologist as soon as possible.

How to calculate the monthly cycle? For this, a regular calendar is suitable, which you can carry in your wallet or keep in your diary. The main thing here is to remember to mark the first day of your period, and within a few months you will have a clear picture of what your menstrual cycle looks like. It will be convenient for someone to use advances in technology and high technology– download a special application with a menstruation calendar to your phone or use an online calendar, which, having data about the beginning of your cycle, will automatically calculate all the “dangerous” and “safe” days.

What happens to the body during the entire cycle and when do the days most favorable for conception come?

The first four to five days are characterized by reduced level progesterone, this is what causes bleeding. But the level of estrogen increases and the mucous membrane that lines the uterine cavity is rejected.

On the fourth or fifth day, menstruation ends, and by the ninth to thirteenth, the level of the estrogen hormone increases to its maximum and the period of potential conception begins, and on the fourteenth - ovulation.

Starting from the fifteenth day, the amount of estrogen decreases, the so-called “ corpus luteum", producing progesterone. The level of this hormone will begin to decrease on the 24th – 28th day, then the woman will already feel the first signs of PMS(premenstrual syndrome).

Knowing what day of the cycle it is today can help a couple who decide to have a child - this way you can easily calculate the time suitable for conception. But using information about “safe” days as a means of contraception is strongly discouraged. In the practice of any experienced gynecologist, there are hundreds of cases when pregnancy occurs on the most unexpected days. So if reproduction is not yet part of your plans, take care of a more reliable method of contraception.

Every woman should know when to expect her next menstruation. Thanks to this, she will be able to understand whether everything is normal with her reproductive system. In addition, having figured out how to count the menstrual cycle, you will be able to find out exact date their arrival, calculate safe days and avoid excesses.

To calculate the duration of the menstrual cycle, you must first understand the processes that occur in the body during this period. They directly depend on the level of hormones produced in the ovaries.

Conventionally, the cycle is divided into several phases:

• follicular;
• ovulatory;
• luteal

Follicular

The first day of menstruation is considered the beginning of the cycle. During this period, the follicular phase begins. Its length, depending on individual characteristics body, varies from 7 to 22 days. The phase begins from the moment when the uterus is cleared of the previously formed endometrium (during the period of critical days).

Towards the end of menstruation, intensive production of follicle-stimulating hormone is observed in the pituitary gland, which promotes the development of follicles in the ovaries. As they grow, estrogens begin to be released, which are necessary for the growth of a new layer of the endometrium.

When the egg matures and the follicle bursts, the ovulation phase begins. During this period, the woman’s body is ready for fertilization. The duration of the ovulatory process is from 1 to 3 days.

Luteal

This stage of the cycle is also called the corpus luteum phase. The functioning of this temporary gland lasts about 12 days. Intensive production of progesterone occurs.

With successful fertilization, the corpus luteum continues its activity until the process of placenta formation in the endometrium is completed. In the absence of pregnancy, this gland dies and critical days arrive. Since the advent bleeding The countdown of a new menstrual cycle begins.

Calculating the cycle

Such observations should be carried out for six months. In this case, the first day of the cycle is correctly considered the date of the beginning of menstruation, and the last is the day before the arrival of the next menstruation.

Day of next menstruation

Many women, wondering how to count the menstrual cycle, mistakenly think that this period covers the interval from the end of some critical days to the onset of others. Actually this is not true. The first day of your period is the beginning of the menstrual cycle. This day should be considered the first.

To determine the time of arrival of the next menstruation, you need to mark the start date of your critical days on a calendar for six months. The data obtained will allow you to understand how to count your periods. For example, if the duration of the cycle is 28 days, menstruation began on the 1st, then the arrival of the next critical days should be expected on the 28th of the same month.

There are several other nuances that need to be taken into account when calculating. Women are often concerned about how to count the cycle during menstruation if they appear late in the evening. According to doctors, in this case, the date of their arrival should be postponed to the next day.

Another important point is the abundance of discharge. If the blood only begins to smear, then this date can be considered the beginning of the critical days. The only thing that needs to be taken into account is that with endometriosis, such symptoms are observed long before the arrival of the regulator. Therefore, it is better to consult with a gynecologist, who will not only take into account all the nuances, but will also help you create a menstrual schedule.

Ovulation day

This date is calculated as follows: first, the middle of the cycle is determined - this will be the date of ovulation (the most favorable day for conception), after which another five days are counted in one direction or the other.

Thus, with a duration of 28 days, fertilization of the ovum can occur from the 9th to the 19th.

In addition, there are certain symptoms that also signal that the ovulation process has begun. Among the main ones are the following:

• vaginal discharge becomes abundant and changes its consistency (stringy, reminiscent of egg white);
• sexual desire increases significantly;
• basal temperature rises.

These signs will help ensure that all calculations were made correctly and accurately determine the period of the onset of the ovulatory process.

Safe days

Definition without dangerous days is a calendar method of contraception. Despite the fact that its effectiveness is questionable, many women still trust this method prevention unwanted pregnancy. According to statistics, the error is about twenty percent.

This method can be used only if critical days appear strictly within a certain period and the schedule does not go astray for a long time.

To calculate safe days on which the likelihood of pregnancy is minimized, you need to take into account data collected for at least six months. First of all, you need to calculate average duration period and highlight 10 days in the middle - the most dangerous days. In the remaining numbers, the chances of fertilization are low.

Thus, with a cycle duration of 28 days from the first day after menstruation until the ninth, this is a safe period; from the 19th to the 28th, you should especially worry about possible conception also not worth it.

According to this principle, an individual table is created for a certain period, albeit a short one. A malfunction may occur in the body at any moment, and the calculations will no longer be reliable.

How to determine the regularity of your cycle

To determine the duration of the menstrual cycle and its regularity, you need to keep a menstrual calendar, which marks the first day of menstruation. Thanks to these calculations, it will be possible to determine favorable and dangerous dates for conception, as well as identify serious disorders in the body. Regular menstruation is one of the main signs women's health.

If heavy menstruation abruptly give way to smearing ones, come to different terms and a change in duration is noted, then a serious pathology can be suspected. In this case, medical consultation is required.

You can find out your cycle using a calculator in days by following a number of rules. The main thing that is needed for this is to note for a long time the day on which menstruation begins.

1. First example: for correct calculation information is taken for each month in order to identify the presence of fluctuations. Thus, if the first regulations began on May 7, and the next ones came on June 4, then you need to subtract 7 from 31 (the number of days in May) and add 4. The result is 28. This is the duration of the period.
2. Second example: calculations are made with fluctuations from 1 to 3 days. In cases where, when determining the duration, different results(26, 27, 28 days), the average of the numbers will be considered the duration of the period. In the above example, this will be 27.
3. Third example: calculations are performed during regular failures. If the same number was noted during the year, and there were fluctuations in one month, then its value is not taken into account. Perhaps these disorders are caused by stress or overwork.

The situation is completely different if fluctuations are observed from month to month and last more than two days. In that case we're talking about about irregular menstruation, the duration of which cannot be calculated.

The arrival of menstrual periods often comes as a surprise to women. To avoid unpleasant situations, you need to keep track of the date of their arrival and keep a special calendar. In this way, it will be possible to identify disorders in the body and quickly eliminate them.

There is probably no woman who doesn’t like surprises? True, there is one surprise, the appearance of which will darken the mood of even the most optimistic and unfading lady - these are menstruation. Menstruation, the onset of which is taken by surprise, can ruin not only appearance woman, but also put her in an awkward position. To prevent this from happening in the future, it is important to know how to count your cycle and keep a pad or tampon in your purse for emergencies.

Why count your menstrual cycle?

• To eliminate the chances of getting pregnant. Knowing the “dangerous” days will eliminate the likelihood of unnecessary pregnancy and serve as a kind of natural contraceptive.
• To have a chance to get pregnant. If you correctly calculate the period of ovulation and are active at this time sex life, then the chances of conceiving a child will increase.
• For hygiene purposes. You need to count correctly so that there are no surprises.
• To eliminate the possibility of an emerging health problem. If the cycle has a pronounced irregularity over a long period of time, then this is enough to contact a gynecologist to find out the reasons for this behavior of the body.

Cycle duration

The very name “menstruation” speaks for itself, because lunar month consists of 28 days, like the average menstrual cycle. But in contrast to the strict regularity of astronomical laws, the female body is individual and chooses the cyclicity of menstruation for itself.

A normal duration is considered to be within the range of 21-35 days, i.e. 28 ± 7 days.

How to make the correct calculation

First you need to decide what you will use to keep records. Choose the method that is convenient for you and will not get lost in a pile of papers as soon as possible. Some prefer to count in a calendar, notebook, notepad, while others use applications on a computer, tablet and smartphone. The main thing is not to keep all the data in your head, otherwise there is a high probability of confusing or forgetting something.

Menstrual cycle– this is the interval between the first days of the beginning of the past and current menstruation. By marking each first day of your discharge on the calendar, the cycle period automatically appears. If last month the beginning fell on December 5, and next month on January 3, then the cycle will be 29 days, i.e. 31-5+3=29. And this is how it is calculated every month.

Cycle disruption

Calculating the menstrual cycle in advance is not entirely logical and correct, since menstruation tends to be disrupted for several days, either decreasing or increasing. This may be due to several reasons:

• hormonal imbalance;
• postpartum recovery and lactation;
• adolescence;
• the beginning of menopause;
• restoration of the body after an abortion;
• change in climate;
• weight change (increase or decrease);
• reproductive system problems;
• taking medications;
• illnesses and emotional disorders.

Natural causes find solutions over time, while acquired ones only through examination and treatment.

If a one-time failure has occurred, then you should not “sound the alarm” ahead of time; to some extent, this is normal, especially taking into account the conditions modern life: stress and overexertion at work, bad habits, fatigue and lack of sleep. Observe the flow of your periods, their consistency, color and smell. If everything is in order, then calm down and continue calculating the cycle.

How to calculate the length of the menstrual cycle to get pregnant

Most favorable phase For conception, ovulation is considered, the activity of which begins already on the 14-16th day of the cycle. A mature egg has “set off” for fertilization and has only 1 day, after which it dies and “awaits” the arrival of menstruation. However, you can get pregnant before ovulation, since sperm retain their viability and mobility for 2-5 days. To calculate the cycle correctly and determine the most suitable days to conceive, you need to use data about your cycles for last year. Choose one longest cycle and one shortest. Subtract 18 from the short term, and 11 from the long term. For example, here is the calculation:

34 (long cycle) - 11 days = 23;

25 (short cycle) – 18 = 7.

This means that between the 7th and 23rd day of the cycle is the most suitable period for conceiving a new life.

PMS syndrome (premenstrual syndrome)

After the period of possible conception has passed, the next phase begins - premenstrual syndrome, popularly known as PMS. Its appearance notifies the woman that the time of conception has passed and that in about a week her period will begin. PMS is accompanied by unpleasant and painful symptoms caused by “playful” hormones:

• the mammary glands increase in size and become sensitive to touch;
• observed sharp changes moods, irritability, tearfulness and emotional breakdowns;
• headaches, nausea, swelling, bloating and loss of strength appear;
• jumps in blood pressure are noticed;
• a rash in the form of pimples and acne may appear on the face and chest;
• the size of the thyroid gland increases.

Counting your menstrual cycle is also necessary to assess women's health. If there is a significant delay or menstruation occurs with painful sensations and temperature, this may indicate inflammatory process, endometriosis and other problems that can be determined by examination and the professional eye of a gynecologist.

A menstrual calendar is something that every girl should definitely keep, regardless of whether she is sexually active or not. Depending on how regularly menstruation occurs, we can judge general condition health, not only reproductive system. For example, irregular periods may be associated with problems in endocrine system or too low body weight. Only a doctor can determine the exact cause of this phenomenon.

Any girl can calculate her period calendar. Ideally, the cycle lasts no less than 25 and no more than 35 days, more often - 28-30. Other options require medical examination. Important point- the menstrual cycle is counted from the very first day of menstruation until the first day of the next one. So when your doctor asks the question, “When was your last period?”, you need to say the first day of your last period. For a healthy woman, her period comes exactly after a certain period of time. Our online menstruation calendar will help you remember about the onset of the next critical days. You only need to correctly indicate the first day of the last menstrual bleeding and cycle duration.

For most women, the main role of the calendar is not to track the possible onset of pregnancy (noticing a delay in time). The menstrual calendar also allows you to calculate the days of ovulation - when pregnancy is most likely to occur during unprotected sexual intercourse. These days occur in the middle of the menstrual cycle. The beginning of the cycle and its end are considered “sterile.” However, there are many cases where women became pregnant even at “safe” times, and therefore it is not worth using only the calendar method as contraception. It is better to keep a record of dangerous and safe days for planning pregnancy, and not for protecting against it.

Another interesting option using an online menstrual calendar is planning the gender of the child. It is known that conception that occurs exactly in the middle of the cycle usually gives a boy, and 1-2 days before ovulation - a girl. It is believed that this statistic due to better mobility of sperm - carriers of the male chromosome. Future girls are not so nimble, but more resilient and patient, and can remain viable in the female genital tract for up to several days.

An online menstrual calendar will help expectant mothers calculate their due date. The average pregnancy duration for women is 280 lunar days. You can add 280 to the probable date of conception (the day of ovulation, as a rule) and thus find out the expected date of birth. An easier way is to use Naegele's formula - subtract 3 months from the first day of the last menstruation and add 7 days. However, this formula may give erroneous results for women with irregular, too long or, conversely, short menstrual cycles. With a long cycle, ovulation occurs later, which means the pregnancy lasts longer, so to speak. But with a short birth, on the contrary, a woman can give birth a little earlier than the due date. The date of birth of a child is influenced by many factors. Even at the date confirmed by several methods, not even half of the babies are born.

In a word, the menstrual calendar is a universal thing. And it is much more convenient to monitor your cycle online than to check the paper version, which can be lost, torn, wet, or, in general, become unusable at any time, and all the data entered in it will be lost. Here the program will calculate everything for you and display the results on the monitor. What could be simpler?

Good luck with your calculations and women's health!