Why Tracking Your Menstrual Cycles Is Important?

Tracking the cycle means that you keep a record of when you are menstruating and what are the symptoms you experience. Many doctors emphasize on maintaining a regular planner and mark the first day of your period on the planner. This will help you as well as your doctor to diagnose the real cause of any problem you are suffering. You could know the length of the menstrual cycle and if the duration changes every time, you could take up the issue with the doctor.

It is very important for the woman who wants to conceive or who wants to avoid pregnancy to understand the rhythm of the cycle. Those women who have very regular cycles can find big help in the cycles as it is an effective tool for birth control. This method has been used since ages and it has proved effective to be most of the times.

Keeping track of your periods gives you a clear indicator of whether you have become pregnant because delay in menstrual onset implies pregnancy. The reverse is also true; if you are trying to get pregnant, conception is usually fruitful on these days of maximum ovulation, which you can easily calculate based on your well maintained menstrual record.

What to Track?

1. Period heaviness by day — Does your period start with a couple of days of heavy flow and then taper off to a day or two of spotting? If so, you probably require different strengths of pads or tampons through the course of your cycle. Anticipating these needs can make your life much easier.
2. Changes in mood during the menstrual cycle — If you experience PMS or PMDD, your moods may seem subject to random fluctuations. Start tracking your moods in the days leading up to and during your period, though, and you just might find that you wake up on the wrong side of bed exactly two days before starting your cycle each month.
3. Energy level, appetite and other changes — A lot of women don't even realize how many aspects of their lives are dictated by the menstrual cycle, at least during parts of the month. When you track how you feel as your cycle approaches, you can learn some pretty interesting things about your habits. Also, it might be possible that tracking your energy level shows you that you are always exhausted on day three of your period, or that you get a headache before your period starts each month. When you track every aspect of your cycle, you won't be blindsided by your body's reactions to menstruation.

How should you go about keeping track of your menstruation?

While it not possible to note down every possible aspect of the menstruation in a notebook, the easiest way of maintaining a planner is to mark the first day of each period on the calendar. However, if you want to get a little more high-tech with it, there are computer programs, online trackers and smart-phone apps that give you the ability to keep up with every detail you could want. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a gynaecologist.