Normal Period Bleeding

The ability to conceive and bear children is exclusive to the females of the human race. When a baby girl is born, she already has all the eggs for her lifetime, up to as many as 450,000. This endowment brings with it the promise of a complex yet fascinating reproductive cycle known as menstruation. As a young girl’s or woman’s body prepares for pregnancy each month, estrogen (the female hormone) thickens the uterine lining.

In turn, an egg in the ovary sac will mature due to a change in hormone levels and travel through the Fallopian tube before dropping into the uterus. This stage is called ovulation. If no conception happens at this time, the egg will eventually break up and the thickened uterine lining will simply be shed through menstruation. The blood that is lost each month is mostly that of the uterine lining and if conception had happened it would have become the womb and nourished the embryo through its gestation.

Within a few years of the onset of breast development, a young girl should experience her first period (the average age is 12) and will generally have monthly menses until her body reaches menopause later in her life, usually around age 50. There are though several factors that could cause a female to stop menstruating long before menopause. They are pregnancy, breast feeding, rapid weight loss, eating disorders, stress, excessive exercise and more serious medical conditions needing diagnosis and treatment.

A woman’s menstrual cycle can be counted from day one of her period to day one of her next month’s period, with the average cycle being approximately 28 days in length. Having a regular menstruation cycle is a good sign that the reproductive organs are working as normal. The length of menstrual flow (bleeding) varies between two to seven days and will also change fluctuating from light, moderate to heavy.

This can be different for each woman and may even change over time for one woman. Longer cycles are more common for younger girls and women and they tend to shorten with age. The measure of blood that is shed may seem like a large amount but it is really only three to six tablespoons for the entire cycle. The color and consistency will range from light to a deep red depending on the flow and will have very small clusters (if any) of uterine tissue.

The shift of changing hormones that prompt ovulation during a normal menstrual cycle can cause other symptoms like bloating, tender breasts, emotional moodiness, headaches, trouble focusing, feeling tired and stomach cramps. Some women may also experience break-outs of acne which tend to clear up as their monthly cycle winds down. These side effects are generally more common in women who have been getting their periods for a longer span of time.

A woman’s period could be inspiring if only thought of as a piece of the entire reproductive puzzle. Unfortunately, for girls and women not currently planning a family it is more like an unwelcome monthly visitor that is begrudged when she comes knocking. Especially for those women who experience many of the other noted uncomfortable symptoms in addition to their regular menstrual flow.

Menstruation is natural and healthy and can also be considered part of a monthly cleansing process. Out with the old and in with the new. The entire cycle will become easier and a manageable routine over time. Most women generally begin to recognize the moment that they are ovulating and when they are about to begin their cycle simply by tuning into their bodies and going with the flow.