Your Period Is a Report Card

Oooo girl, I am coming to you live the week before my period + I’m going to describe exactly what I am feeling. I want you to tell me if I’m lying or if you can relate.

This week I’ve woken up every morning bloated. Nothing fits right. I’ve passed the mirror more than once this week + was not feeling what I saw, not even a little bit. My patience has been REAL thin. Like nobody better even think of saying anything off to me. I’ve been flowing in this space of completely ready to fight + throw hands or burst into tears. I can admit I’ve shed multiple tears. There was even a point this week where I started rethinking every decision I’ve made this year. Walking away from contracts. The work I do. A relationship. Even this haircut I got at the beginning of this month all felt wrong. This week I haven’t known whether I was coming or going.

And like clockwork, in maybe 3 days I will get my period.

Within a day or two of that the fog will lift + I’ll go “Ohhhhh. That’s why.”

Every. Single. Month.

It’s the same song + dance. You know what still gets me about it? I’m not new to this body + you’re not new to paying attention to your body. We know when something is going on, even if it’s happening in the background. You probably have an app or some way of tracking on your phone right now that dings a couple days before. And you know what? That app is doing a great job of telling you when, but doesn’t do a great job of telling you about you. This puts you in the cycle of “finding” out after the fact that your period is coming when you could have seen it coming + maybe planned for it.

What the week before your period is actually doing

Usually about two weeks or more after the first day of your last period is when you begin to see PMS symptoms show up during the second half of your cycle. By the second day of your bleed, those symptoms tend to ease up. There is bloating, some cravings, shorter fuses, maybe some sadness, trouble focusing or issues with sleeping. Most women deal with some version of symptoms during the childbearing years + these symptoms can get much louder in your late 30s + 40s.

Despite symptoms not always being pleasant, having them does not mean something is wrong with you. Actually the symptoms mean that your body is right on schedule, you just wasn’t given those details before being in the thick of it.

Even the ACOG, the organization behind the OB-GYNs, suggests doctors to look at the menstrual cycle as an additional vital sign for girls + teens. Similar to your pulse or blood pressure, the menstrual cycle can really provide some good data on how the whole body is doing.

Truth Moment? I treat my period like a report card. Not in the sense of grading, but a true reflection of how I treated myself in the last thirty days.

When a period comes in hard + painful, take a look at the month before it. How was your sleep? Did you push when you were actually tired? Were you eating enough? Running on stress + coffee?

More often than not, how we treat ourselves shows up in our cycle. It’s golden data. Our cycle is an invitation to reflect, not a reason to beat ourselves up. If your periods are really painful, heavy or have changed on you, that is your sign to take your notes to a provider. A report card + that golden data can flag something that needs more than rest.

How I read mine

Paying attention to my cycle has been a game changer + I’m not exaggerating. Tuning into what my body is doing has changed my everyday life, my business + the relationship I have with myself. I know when I am my most magnetic self, so I schedule outings + finally knock out the things that have been sitting on my to-do list. During my magnetic week this month I rebuilt BOTH websites, had several consultations with new clients + even hit a new personal best at the aerial studio. I was on FIRE in the best way + felt like I was hitting on all cylinders.

On the flip side, I know the days leading up to my bleed are the time to slow down. Eat warmer, more filling foods. Broths. And most importantly a softer calendar. In preparation, this week, I slept. A lot. I didn’t have any plans set in stone + kept things very lowkey.

Even though this is my literal jam, I’m still human + I don’t always get it perfect. But regardless I have a way better understanding of when my body is telling me something + how to support what it’s saying. The proof is in the literal pudding. When I take care of my body, truly take care of it, it takes care of me in return.

What grinds my gears

This is a safe space right? I kinda hate to see women doing the absolute most to push their period off a day or two for vacation or a party. It is your body, I mean + totally your call. I just think about how much effort it takes to boss around something that is happening on a cellular level, when you coulda just planned the trip around a body you already understand.

Also because I’m in my forties now, every symptom is filed under perimenopause, which is SO annoying. Sometimes it is perimenopause + other times it is something else completely. The only way to know for sure is to talk to your provider with real notes vs a guess + recalling symptoms.

How to Start Reading Your Period

Get off your phone. You gotta go old school with paper + pen/pencil. If you are a journal girl like me, a habit-tracker, a new-pens-make-me-happy girl, this is your sign + permission. Paper lets you see the whole month at once, + you get to see your progress clearly in one place.

Mark Day 1. The first day of bleeding is Day 1. Everything counts from there.

Three words a day. Energy, mood, body. One word each. “Bloated” definitely counts. “Magnetic” also counts.

Write it however you want. No two cycles are the same + how you move through yours won’t look like mine. Some days you’ll want to rage-write a whole page. Other days you’ll want to check a box + go to bed. Both things are right + they both count. This is also why the pages in my planner, Rooted in Her Rhythm, aren’t dated: you start on Day 1 + fill them however your body is moving that month.

Look back before you look ahead. When your period starts, flip back thirty days. How did you sleep? Did you push when you were tired? Eat enough? That’s the grade.

Give it three cycles. One cycle is a literal snapshot. Three is a pattern. MedlinePlus suggests tracking for at least three months.

Then plan with it. Big things on your magnetic days. Broth + a softer calendar the days before your bleed. Please note that a “softer calendar” is about your schedule, not stopping movement.

And just like that, the weeks stop ambushing you because you saw it coming.

Your period is going to show up with a report card one way or another. We don’t have to ace our cycles. We just have to understand what our body is asking + how to give it what it’s needing.

Questions, Answered

Till next time,

XOXO

Denawa Deniece