Should you be living according to your period?
Which is the best week of your cycle to book that date? And when will you smash your work deadlines? radhika sanini goes with her flow to find out
periods. We’ve always had them, but we’ve never been more aware of them - in a good way. From the heightened awareness around period poverty to breaking down taboos in everything from blood-stained images on Insta to visible tampon strings in adverts, the shifting perspective means women aren’t trying to hide their flow anymore. It no longer feels like we’re living life despite periods, but actually embracing our natural cycles and maybe even looking for new ways to make them work for us. This is the latest evolution in our interest in self-development and the idea comes with all the gear. There are books such as Emma Barnett’s, Period, bleed-proof underwear by brands such as Wuka and Thinx, cramps buster machine, Livia and even Nextgen Jane, a device that can spot endometriosis.
There’s also a huge list of tracking apps: Natural Cycles, Flow Health, Eve and Laura Weir’s, Moody Month. Most are like Clue, a doctor-recommended app with over eight million users, that tracks your mood, energy and cramps, or Period Diary, an app that records over 50 symptoms, which sync with your phone’s calendar. Useful if you want to keep track of your womb’s lining. However, the lucrative nature of this growing industry is leading many to believe that tracking your period and changing your schedule around it may be more of a marketing ploy than a good health exercise. Experts have pointed out the differences between each woman’s flow may make general advice redundant, and let’s not forget a large number of women in South Africa are using pharmaceutical birth control and therefore living without a natural cycle. Yet in her new book, In The Flo, Alisan Vitti claims we should be living our life by our period. I wonder how that’d apply to me. Could I somehow avoid my monthly sensitive moods and oily skin – or build my life around them? So, when Glamour challenged me to literally go with the flow for a month, I was intrigued. But first, some research. In 2019, a Dutch study found period-related symptoms can lead to a decrease in productivity (can confirm: I am useless when I’m on mine), while Japanese and US research published in 2017 showed that when a woman’s cycle changes, so does her response to people’s emotions (I’m 100% more hypersensitive when I’m premenstrual).
Clearly, menstruation’s affecting us – we need to channel it. How? I decided to get myself a period coach. Yes, that’s a thing. Claire Bake is a certified health and life coach trained at the UK’S Red School, which offers courses on harnessing the power of your cycle. “Understanding it can be empowering, as it gives you awareness of how your mood and energy levels will change,” she says. Claire broke my cycle up into four ‘seasons’: winter, spring, summer and autumn, lasting roughly a week. Each one comes with its traits (from low productivity in winter to summer’s high sex drive) dictated by the rise and fall of hormone levels and dos and don’ts – if I want to let my cycle run the show. It’s hard enough to get a day without waiting until a high-libido week, and I couldn’t just start rearranging meetings based on when I was ovulating. Or could I?
Winter days (1-7)
What’s happening? Menstruation. Your levels of progesterone oestrogen have hit rock bottom. How do you feel? Low, withdrawn, less active and less social. What to avoid? Too much exercise, work or social commitments. It’s never fun when you have your period, but now
“I couldn’t just start rearranging meetings based on when I was ovulating. Or could I?”
that I’ve been living ‘according to it’, my menstruation week somehow feels worse than usual. Maybe it’s because I hit the first two speed bumps. I can’t avoid work commitments into my more productive spring and summer seasons, so I muddle through, knowing I’m not firing on full hormonal cylinders. I also end up having a first date during
my ‘winter’ when all I want to do is eat cheese. It isn’t ideal, but I suggest we go for pizza rather than to a bar. Making a choice that fits my menstrual mood pays off: we spend hours chatting over carbs, and even though I’m not in the mood for a goodnight kiss, I do have a good time. I also don’t feel bad about the pizza (which I previously would’ve – silly, I know) because I speak to a nutritionist and hormone expert, Kay Ali, who ‘blames’ period cravings on oestrogen and how it affects the insulin that manages our blood sugar levels. When oestrogen declines, our blood sugar levels rise, and our body tries to bring them down. This blood sugar crash leads our brains to pick the levels up again through sugar cravings. Kay advises increasing the amount of complex carbs you’re eating, such as wholegrains, pasta and rice: “What you don’t want to do is work against your hormones and resist eating carbohydrates, only to binge on more sugary foods later, as oestrogen continues to decline, taking insulin sensitivity and balanced blood-sugar levels with it.” Medically sanctioned pizza dates? I could get used to this.
spring (days 7-13)
What’s happening? Pre-ovulation. Oestrogen levels are rising. What to do? Start new projects, challenge yourself, socialise, exercise. What to avoid? Overdoing it, getting distracted. I’ve already downloaded the Clue app to track my cycle, and now it tells me I’m entering the pre-ovulation phase (my spring). According to Claire, I’m supposed to be feeling fantastic now: chatty and energetic. Maybe it’s just the direct contrast with winter – but I do. I’m also supposed to be feeling a bit sexier. It’s because my body is gearing up for summer, also known as The Venus Week. Dr Rebecca Booth, a women’s health expert who coined the phrase in her book of the same name, explains that it’s when we have a peak in oestrogen ( the feel-good hormone). “Biologically, your body ‘wants’ a baby, so it releases high doses of these hormones before you ovulate to make you more attractive to a potential mate,” she says. So, I schedule a second date with pizza for spring, when my oestrogen levels are rising, meaning I have more energy and a higher libido. This time, I’m more into him, and I find myself initiating a kiss! I can’t help but think it might be down to my inner Venus.
summer (days 13-17)
What’s happening? Ovulation. How do you feel? Happier, more social, with a higher sex drive and more energy. What to do? Network, date, socialise, exercise, have sex or masturbate (the orgasms are better). What to avoid? Missing sleep, being too busy. By the time my app sends me a notification telling me I’m ovulating – hello, summer – I’m getting the hang of things. I feel more positive, which could be the oestrogen rise, and I’m keen to harness it. So, I accept an invite to a networking event I’d normally avoid, and end up being so chatty I befriend several media types, and am rewarded with offers of work. Success! It might simply be a placebo effect, but I know that three weeks earlier – in
“I no longer feel guilty about my mood swings.instead, I’m more accepting of my body, treating myself the way I should’ve since I first got my period 19 years ago”
my winter – there’s no way I would’ve had the energy to do that. Another thing I love about summer besides the energy? My skin. I’d never noticed it, but ovulation’s better for my skin than any face mask.
Charlotte Ferguson, the founder of skincare brand Disciple, explains that a rise in oestrogen actually makes your skin glow. “When you’re ovulating, use Vitamin C products to keep that oestrogen glow going for longer,” she advises. She also recommends salicylic acid for those post-period breakouts due to a drop in progesterone. I’ll admit, changing my entire skincare routine was a financial step too far and (spoiler alert) I did get my post-period breakout the day I was hosting a party. But, instead of doing what I would’ve done before (crying and feeling insecure), I use my hormones as a scapegoat to take the pressure off, and book in for a facial and a hair appointment.
autumn (days 17-28)
What’s happening? You’re premenstrual – progesterone levels are falling. How do you feel? Anti-social, irritated, tired, sad, low-libido What to do? Admin, gentle exercise and indulgence – treat yourself. What to avoid? Confrontations or negotiations (you’ll probably be tetchy). My summer energy’s wearing off and, with it, any enthusiasm I had to go to the gym. I’d been working out more than usual – armed with my new menstrual know-how. Claire explained the female body’s particularly good at building muscle in the first half of the menstrual cycle because oestrogen is at its highest, meaning the body can recover faster from high-intensity workouts. During those ‘warmer’ seasons, I’d tried intense exercises such as circuits, dance classes and resistance training and found Claire’s advice worked. My body felt acclimatised to these highenergy activities in a way it suddenly doesn’t in my autumn. That’s because, in contrast, autumn and winter are best for going slower – long walks, yoga, and a few gym-free days. Once I crawl towards winter, Claire suggests rest. That gives me permission to ignore the PE teachers of my youth and listen to my body, rather than force myself to work out with cramps – and it means I’m actually looking forward to hitting the gym when my bleeding stops. It seems simple but feels revolutionary.
the results
Marketing ploy or not, understanding these simple things we take for granted, or experience without examination, has made a difference. After one month of living by my period, I haven’t drastically changed my life (let’s not forget, women have been managing their periods without tracking them for, well, ever), but understanding more about my hormones means I can stay in control of my body throughout my cycle. I no longer feel guilty about my mood swings, or my inability to wake up for a 7am gym class when I’m menstruating. Instead, I’m more accepting of my body, treating myself the way I should have ever since I first got my period 19 years ago. The downside? I started to get a bit obsessive – only scheduling meetings and dates for my high-oestrogen weeks, and I did use my period as an excuse to get out of doing a few things I definitely could’ve done (such as cleaning my flat and making that deadline). But the best thing about living in sync with your period is it’s about your period, not someone else’s. Advice that works for one person might not work for you, and the idea is to get to know your cycle. Only then can you make adjustments to help you be kinder to yourself, ditch unnecessary guilt, and make sure you’re living for you, according to you. Period.