Keeping track of your cycle probably doesn't sound that interesting or important, but you can benefit a lot by doing that. There are changes that your body goes through and there are specific times when you are ovulating; knowing all these would make your life a lot easier, which is only possible by tracking your period.

1.   Know about your body: Getting your period every 28 days has always been considered normal but only 15% of women get their periods on the clock. Many factors such as stress, illness, exercise, etc. can cause delay in  your period. This is where tracking your cycle can help you find the pattern that is specific to your body condition. During your cycle there are lots of changes happening in your body. The hormones cause a change in the fluid produced from your cervix and also lead the basal temperature of your body to increase. Monitoring these changes through tracking your cycle is known as the symptothermal method. By this way you know about how fascinatingly your body works.

2.   Desire to get pregnant: Tracking your cycle will help you get pregnant. During your cycle, there is a specific time which heightens the possibility of conceiving. The fluid production from the cervix due to hormonal change is the cause of such possibility. Knowing your cycle can take out the stress from trying to get pregnant and it can also help determine any abnormalities that are preventing your pregnancy.

3. Avoid pregnancy: If you know the time when you are most likely to get pregnant through tracking, you obviously know when not to have sex, if you are trying to avoid pregnancy. Using symptothermal method for the purpose of birth control has proven to be 99.6% effective, which is higher than birth control medications.

4. Health benefits: You can reap a lot of health benefits by tracking your cycle. Conditions like fibroids, polycystic ovarian syndrome and endometriosis are quite common in women, which can be detected by tracking your period. If anything is wrong in your reproductive system, the cycle will indicate it.

4 Reasons To Keep Track Of Your Periods

A collection of symptoms typically occurring between ovulation and menses (discharge of blood and from the uterus) is defined as premenstrual syndrome (PMS). Premenstrual syndrome symptoms can either be physical or emotional.

Physical symptoms and signs include:
i. Muscle or joint pain
ii. Headache
iii. Fatigue
iv. Weight gain due to fluid retention
v. Bloated abdomen
vi. Breast tenderness
vii. Acne breakouts
viii. Diarrhoea or constipation

While other behavioural and emotional symptoms include:
i. Anxiety or tension
ii. Depressed mood
iii. Crying spells
iv. Anger or irritability and mood swings
v. Food cravings and appetite changes
vi. Insomnia
vii. Social withdrawal
viii. Poor concentration

Causes 
The exact cause of PMS is unknown. But there are several contributing factors, such as:
1. Cyclic hormonal changes: The hormones oestrogen and progesterone fluctuate a lot while preparing for a normal menstrual cycle. This fluctuation causes some of the symptoms of PMS.
2. Chemical changes: The fluctuation of serotonin, a kind of neurotransmitter (brain chemical), affects the mood, which causes some of the emotional symptoms of PMS. For instance, insufficient serotonin triggers premenstrual depression, insomnia, food cravings and fatigue.
3. Depression: If the PMS symptoms are severe, depression could be the underlying cause, though it doesn't usually trigger all of the symptoms.

Treatment
There is no permanent cure for PMS, but a few lifestyle changes and home remedies can work very well for you. Some treatment options include:

1. To ease abdominal bloating, drink lots of fluids
2. Eat a balanced diet comprised of plenty of vegetables and fruits. Reduce your alcohol, caffeine, salt and sugar intake.
3. You can take supplements such as magnesium, calcium, vitamin B-6 and folic acid to reduce mood swings and cramps.
4. Take vitamin D supplements to relieve symptoms
5. Sleep for at least eight hours in the night to counter fatigue
6. Exercise to improve your emotional health and reduce bloating
7. Try to reduce your stress as much as you can; read a book or walk to relieve some stress.

Besides, these lifestyle changes, you can take over-the-counter medications such as aspirin and ibuprofen to reduce stomach cramps, muscles aches and headaches. Diuretics (drugs that increase urination) are excellent treatments for bloating and fluid retention. However, consult your doctor before consuming any medication or supplement.

Causes and Treatment of Premenstrual Syndrome

4 Types of irregular periods and their causes

Menstruation is a cyclical process when at a certain time of the month, the lining of the uterus is shed and vaginal bleeding occurs. Sometimes there can be abnormalities in this cycle. Irregular periods in women are abnormal variations in the length, volume, duration and quality of menstrual cycle. Irregular periods aren't uncommon among menstruating women.

Abnormalities in periods can be of the following nature:

- Varying time between successive periods
- Loss of more or less blood than usual
- Varying length of your periods

Based on these categorizations, the different types of periods are:

1. Irregular menstrual bleeding - Irregular menstrual bleeding is characterized by bleeding that takes place for more than 20 days in a solitary cycle, which can lengthen over a period of a year.

2. Absent menstrual bleeding - In this type of menstrual bleeding, a woman does not get her period at all within a span of 90 days.

3. Heavy menstrual bleeding - This involves excessive blood loss that may intervene with a woman's physical, psychological and social quality of life.

4. Heavy and prolonged menstrual bleeding - This is less common than heavy menstrual bleeding and is different from in terms of duration. A different type of therapy is required to treat the condition as it is more severe in nature.

5. Light menstrual bleeding - Light menstrual bleeding is characterized by less blood loss than usual.

Irregular periods can be caused due to several reasons. Some of them are:

- Switching from one birth control pill to another or taking certain medication
- Excessive exercising
- Breastfeeding or pregnancy
- Stress
- Hyperthyroidism
- Polycystic ovary disease (PCOS)
- Uterine fibroids
- Getting an IUD (intrauterine device)
- Gradual thickening of uterine lining or the development of polyps on the uterine lining
- Scarring of the lining of the uterus can also be a possible cause

Changes in the body's level of hormones can also disrupt a woman's periods. Estrogen and progesterone are the chief hormones that play a crucial part in the menstrual cycle and influence the flow as well, thereby giving rise to abnormalities if their balance is disturbed.

When it comes to treating irregular periods, modifying your lifestyle, treating the underlying issue behind an irregular cycle, changing your birth control pills (if that is the cause), opting for hormone therapy or even surgery are viable treatment options.



All about Irregular Periods : Their Types and Causes

7 causes of heavy menstrual bleeding you must know about

Heavy menstrual bleeding, also known as Menorrhagia, refers to the state of abnormally heavy bleeding during periods. It's common for women at the premenopausal stage of their life to experience heavy bleeding during periods; but if you are not among them, heavy menstrual bleeding is a matter of severe concern.

If you normally lose a lot of blood during your periods or experience severe cramps that prevent you from leading your normal lifestyle, you must first identify the cause of it.

Here are some of the most common conditions that are responsible for causing Menorrhagia.

Disturbed hormonal balance: Menstruation involves the shedding of the lining of the uterus (endometrium), whose build-up is generally controlled by the balance between oestrogen and progesterone, the two significant hormones of your body. It sometimes happens that there is excess endometrium generation due to disturbed hormonal balance, which results in heavy menstrual bleeding.

Polyps: Sometimes heavy menstrual bleeding occurs due to the occurrence of uterine polyps, which are tiny growths appearing on the uterus lining. This condition is mostly prevalent among women of child-bearing age caused due to raised levels of hormones.

Intrauterine device (IUD): People who use birth control methods like intrauterine device or IUD are likely to experience certain side effects which include heavy menstrual bleeding. If the cause behind your menorrhagia is an IUD, you might need to remove it to get relief from the condition.

Pregnancy complications: If you experience your period later than usual and it is associated with excessive bleeding, it may be caused by a miscarriage. Moreover, you might also experience menorrhagia incase of an ectopic pregnancy, a condition when the fertilized egg is implanted within the fallopian tube in place of the uterus.

Uterine fibroids: Women of reproductive age may develop noncancerous (benign) tumours in the uterus known as uterine fibroids. These fibroids can be responsible for giving you periods lasting longer than usual accompanied with excessive bleeding.

Cancer: Though it is a rare case, sometimes the reason behind heavy menstrual bleeding may be uterine cancer, cervical cancer or ovarian cancer.

Medications: consumption of certain prescription drugs such as anticoagulants and anti-inflammatory medicines may lead to prolonged or excessive menstrual bleeding.





7 Causes of Heavy Menstrual Bleeding You Must Know About

Heavy menstrual bleeding, technically called menorrhagia, is one of the most common types of abnormal bleeding from the uterus. Menstrual bleeding is said to be heavy if there is so much blood that a tampon or pad remains soaked for several hours. 

Here are all the possible causes of heavy menstrual bleeding:
1. Hormonal imbalance
Estrogen and progesterone levels are the primary control mechanism for periods. If the ovaries have a problem in functioning, hormonal imbalances may occur. Heavy menstrual bleeding is most common in females who are at the start of menopause. Puberty menorrhagia can occur in adolescents who are experiencing their first menstrual period. 
2. Fibroids
Fibroids most commonly occur around the age when women can get pregnant. Uterine fibroids are non-cancerous growth on the uterus.
3. Ectopic pregnancy
An ectopic pregnancy is when a fertilized egg stays in the fallopian tube, but does not reach the uterus.
4. Blood thinners
These are medicines, which are usually anticoagulant or antiplatelet drugs.
5. Problems with iud
A non-hormonal intrauterine device is a t-shaped device used for birth control which is inserted into the uterus.
6. Adenomyosis
This is a condition in which the muscular wall of the uterus also gets the lining of the uterus intermingled with it. However, this condition is rare and only happens in middle aged women with several children.
7. Pid
Pid stands for pelvic inflammatory disease and refers to any infection within the organs of the reproductive system.
8. Cancer
Uterine, ovarian and cervical cancer are just some of the cancers, which may cause heavy menstrual bleeding.
9. Other diseases
Liver, kidney and thyroid diseases are all included.

Possible Causes of Heavy Menstrual Bleeding

The Movie 'PadMan' is making waves much across India and is now attracting the attention of the international media as well, to a problem most women and girls have been facing in India. The movie is inspired by the life of Arunachalam Muruganatham, the inventor of a low-cost sanitary pad the manufacturing machine. He fought social stigma and faced social ostracization for trying to understand the fears and discomfort of women. He worked hard to come up with a low-cost sanitary pad that could be afforded by the poor women all across India.

Taboo:

The taboos, misgivings, and fears surrounding the menstruating women are not new, it is deeply rooted in our culture and its teachings. Such reservations exist in all the cultures whether it is Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity or Buddhism. There are several kinds of rules imposed on women like the prohibition of visiting a temple, physical intimacy, cooking and many more.

Present Condition:

India is a land of contrasts and while there are working women who do not think twice about pulling an 'all-nighter' at work, you also have women who have probably never stepped into a well-constructed or a clean bathroom in all their lives. What any woman of this generation would consider basic menstrual hygiene is probably grossly missing in the latter s case.

Apart from having minimum water to clean themselves, they use sanitary cloths (really old and discarded cloth) which are washed and reused for every period. They have very less water to wash these sanitary cloths and they are forced to dry them out in a dark and dingy corner of their house lest anyone sees it. In fact, there are several reports of women in rural India using straw, ashes, and sand instead of sanitary pads.

Complications:

Majority of such women in the rural areas report reproductive tract infections.

Lack of awareness amongst men about menstruation makes them ill-informed. As a result, they follow the mindless rituals and beliefs which make the problem much larger than it already is.

Lack of awareness about menstrual hygiene management has resulted in several young girls picking up infections thanks to the usage of hay, straw, and sand as a replacement for sanitary pads.

But, Bollywood's latest blockbuster 'PadMan' has broken the silence and stigma by starting out the conversation openly about sanitary pads. Having said that, below given are some of the basic hygiene tips that should be encouraged in every single woman.

Some Basic Hygiene tips

There are several small things women can do to prevent issues and problems. This can be done by following some simple changes in your routine:

Make sure you change pads frequently to avoid infections.

Soaps and Vaginal washes should be avoided as these can wash the  good bacteria  away.

Avoid wearing jeans and tight-fitting clothes as this can cause excessive sweating.

Make sure you dispose of the used pads correctly and wash your hands with warm water and soap to prevent bacterial infections.

While such awareness about menstrual hygiene is in its nascent stages, there is hope and that is thanks to men like Arunachalam Muruganantham. So, take a step forward and play your part in spreading awareness about menstrual hygiene and its effect on a female s overall health.

The PadMan Effect - Why Menstrual Hygiene is Such a Big Deal In India!

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