TIME TO HARNESS YOUR HORMONES

It used to be seen as a bloody pain, but understanding your cycle could be the key to unlocking your potential

Besides fighting tampon tax,

our periods haven’t had much airtime lately. But that looks set to change this year, with claims that a better understanding of our monthly cycles can help us deal with everything from mood swings to nailing that job interview, or even a Tinder date. This isn’t any old pseudo-waffle, either – a whole host of well-respected experts, such as professor of psychology at UCLA, Martie Haselton (whose book, Hormonal: How Hormones Drive Desire, Shape Relationships And Make Us Wiser, is out in March), are getting behind the movement.

Women’s health practitioner Maisie Hill founded the hilariously named Womb Tang Clan – a cycle-based support service for women – because she didn’t ‘want women to be held back by “women’s troubles”.’

‘ We have a tendency to see menstrual cycles negatively,’ she says. ‘ Women are perceived in a real “Jekyll and Hyde” way at different points of the month. Not understanding our cycles can be detrimental to relationships, careers and our mental health. If women knew more about their cycle, we could adapt our lives much more effectively. For example, someone with a 28-day cycle usually feels more confident and experiences less pain around day 12-14, thanks to oestrogen being released, meaning it’s a great time for a bikini wax or job interview. And instead of pushing or berating ourselves on day 21, a woman might think, “Oh, my progesterone is peaking, so no wonder I feel tired.” Planning and capitalising on these fluctuations can be really helpful and reassuring.’

Entrepreneur Amy Thomson feels similarly. Together with journalist Laura Weir and nutritionist Lola Ross, she founded Moody, a new web platform and soon-to-be app [wearemoody.com] designed to help women understand their moods, cycles and hormones to maximise productivity. ‘Seven years ago, I was running a business and was so stressed my periods stopped,’ says Amy. ‘After working with an endocrinologist and various experts, I saw first-hand the benefits that tracking the algorithms of your hormones and cycle can bring. It totally changed my life, and I want to give other women access to this, too.’

Time to finally harness our period power? About bloody time.