Menstruation is vaginal bleeding that occurs at the beginning of a woman's menstrual cycle and corresponds to the shedding of the endometrium when there has been no pregnancy.
This stage of the menstrual cycle is also known as a period since it has a periodicity, that is, it is a cyclical process that is repeated every month.
Despite this, menstruation may vary from cycle to cycle in each woman in terms of the amount, appearance, and duration of bleeding, and may manifest differently in each woman.
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What is period?
The typical menstrual bleeding is a mixture of vaginal discharge, blood, and endometrial tissue. Its duration is usually 3 to 5 days, in which an approximate quantity of 40-50 ml is expelled.
However, there are women with a very rare and short period, and others with more abundant bleeding that can last up to 7 days.
In the words of Dr. Nadia Caroppo, gynecologist specializing in assisted reproduction:
Menstruation is the result of the desquamation of the endometrium, which was prepared for a possible nesting of a pregnancy.
With the beginning of puberty and until menopause, a woman's body is prepared every month for a possible pregnancy. Specifically, it is the inner layer of the uterus called the endometrium that is renewed in each menstrual cycle to house the embryo once fertilized and be able to give rise to pregnancy.
If neither fertilization nor implantation of the embryo occurs, the endometrium detaches and causes menstruation.
Also, the drop in menstruation means the beginning of a new menstrual cycle, as it corresponds to the signal to start again with the synthesis of sex hormones and allow the maturation of a new follicle in the ovary.
Phases of the menstrual cycle
The menstrual cycle lasts approximately 28 days, that is, every 28 days a woman will experience the menstrual bleeding typical of her period. However, there are women with longer or shorter cycles, which is completely normal.
During the menstrual cycle, the following stages are differentiated according to the levels of the female sex hormones, which are responsible for regulating the entire cycle:
- Menstruation
- the drop in estrogen and progesterone in a woman's body causes the endometrium lining the uterine lining to detach, which is expelled through vaginal bleeding.
- Follicular phase
- Follicular development begins by the action of the hormone FSH in the ovaries. At the same time, estrogens synthesized in the ovaries cause a new endometrium to begin to proliferate.
- Ovulation phase
- the rise of the LH hormone causes the mature follicle to rupture and an egg is expelled into the fallopian tube, a process known as ovulation.
- Luteal phase
- the corpus luteum formed in the ovary secretes progesterone, which acts on the endometrium causing it to reach the appropriate thickness and become receptive.
If you want to know more about each of these phases, we recommend that you read on: The Different Phases of the Menstrual Cycle.
Symptoms
The most characteristic symptom of the menstrual period is vaginal bleeding.
However, there are also other symptoms that a woman may feel when her period comes down. These are discussed below:
- Breast pain and swelling
- Abdominal pain and cramping
- Kidney pain
- Headache
- Acne
- Mood swings
- Fatigue
- Gastrointestinal disturbances: nausea, gas, diarrhea, or constipation
It should be noted that some women suffer from a marked premenstrual syndrome, that is, both emotional and physical symptoms appear before the onset of menstruation.
To fight all these symptoms, it is recommended to eat a healthy diet, drink plenty of water, avoid salt, reduce the level of stress, and, if necessary, take some analgesics.
Other characteristics
As we have said, menstruation is not the same in all women. The same woman may experience changes in her period throughout her reproductive life.
Next, we are going to comment on some curiosities and characteristics of menstruation that all women should know.
First period
The first menstruation is known as menarche and appears when girls reach puberty, around age 12 and 14. However, some girls have their first period at age 10 or it may be delayed until age 16.
During the first year, periods may be irregular, with little bleeding, since the body is still adapting to hormonal changes that act on the ovaries and endometrium.
Amenorrhea
Amenorrhea in the absence of menstruation, either at the onset of puberty or during some later stage in a woman's life.
The main cause of amenorrhea is pregnancy. Once women become pregnant, the endometrium does not flake and they do not menstruate until after giving birth.
Other causes of amenorrhea in women include the following:
- Absence of uterus
- Hormonal alterations: thyroid problems, PCOS, etc.
- Sudden weight changes, anorexia, and obesity
- Stress and anxiety
- Infections: cystitis, viral process, etc.
- Breastfeeding
- Excessive physical activity
- Some medications: antidepressants, immunosuppressants, etc.
Finally, the total cessation of menstruation occurs when a woman reaches menopause, around age 50. If you want to read more on this subject, you can access the following article: What Is Menopause? – Age, Causes, Symptoms & Treatment.
Bleeding Colors
The color of menstrual bleeding depends on many factors, such as the amount of flow or the day of menstruation a woman is in.
In general, the rule begins with a scarce flow of brown color. As the volume of bleeding increases, it takes on a more intense red color. Finally, during the last days of your period, the blood returns to a darker tone, and the volume of flow decreases until it completely disappears.
Next, we will give a brief explanation of what each blood tone can mean during menstruation:
- Pale red
- when it comes to a weak day of menstruation with little bleeding. It usually occurs when a woman takes the birth control pill, although it can also be a sign of a hormonal disorder.
- Red orange
- this color during menstruation is associated with infections. In this case, the blood will also have an unpleasant odor.
- Bright red
- is the usual color of menstruation in its most intense days.
- Dark red
- is the so-called old blood that usually appears during the last days of menstruation.
- Brown or black
- are the remnants of endometrial tissue in the blood. It may also be old blood from the last menstrual period.
If dark brown bleeding lasts for several days, it may indicate endometriosis, miscarriage, or benign tumor. Therefore, it would be advisable to see your doctor sooner if there is any unusual bleeding.
Duration and quantity
As we have said, the days of menstruation and the amount of bleeding vary greatly from woman to woman, depending on many factors.
The only way to know if our menstruation has abnormal parameters is to pay attention to some considerations such as the following:
- Bleeding lasts more than 8 days
- Bleeding is very heavy and requires changing the pad or tampon every less than 4 hours
- The menstrual cycle lasts less than 23 days, i.e., menstruation is repeated every 23 days or less
- There is intermenstrual bleeding, which is known as metrorrhagia
If these alterations occur during the period regularly each month, it is advisable to see a gynecologist.
FAQs from users
What is period for?
During the menstrual cycle and thanks to the action of female sex hormones, ovarian follicles develop in the ovaries and the walls of the uterus (endometrium) become thick enough for an embryo to nest.
After ovulation, if there is no fertilization between egg and sperm or implantation of the embryo, the endometrium is shedded and eliminated in the form of menstruation. In this way, a new menstrual cycle can begin.
Can menstruation be affected by tubal ligation?
No. Although the woman undergoes irreversible sterilization with tubal ligation, ovarian function and hormone levels are not altered. Ovulation also continues to take place, as well as the proliferation and desquamation of the endometrium in the absence of embryo implantation.
How can menstruation be distinguished from implantation bleeding?
Implantation bleeding occurs when the embryo adheres to the uterine wall and causes a small wound in the endometrium, although this does not always take place.
Therefore, the implantation bleeding occurs a few days before the expected date of the period, i.e. when the embryo implantation takes place. Furthermore, the bleeding that takes place is much scarcer and lighter than that of menstruation.
Suggested for you
Menstruation is one of the secondary sexual characteristics that appear in girls when they reach puberty. If you want to learn more about sexual maturity and fertility development, we recommend you read on here: Female Fertility – Parts of the Female Reproductive System.
Some fertility-related diseases are diagnosed in women when they reach puberty and do not have menstruation. By doing gynecological tests, the doctor discovers that there is an absence of the uterus or some genetic alteration. These would be the cases of Rokitansky syndrome and Turner syndrome, respectively.
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References
REPRODUCCION ASISTIDA ORG: Video of Dr Nadia Caroppo on March 24th , 2015. [See original video in spanish here]
FAQs from users: 'What is period for?', 'Can menstruation be affected by tubal ligation?' and 'How can menstruation be distinguished from implantation bleeding?'.
Authors and contributors
Hello,
Pls, give me a piece of advice. My daughter had her first period 3 years ago now… The first year it was very irregular, but we didn’t pay attention at all because we knew first periods are never regular as you have just begun (when I was her age, the same happened to me). But it’s been 3 years now and it has become worse. She is 15 now and has periods like twice or three times in a year, just that. She doesn’t have normal periods like any other girl her age. I try to tell her it is common because her period came rather late (at age 12). What do you think?
Pls, tell us something, I’m praying to God she’ll have normal periods soon!!
Hello Sally,
If her periods started 3 years ago and they are still that irregular, that may be due to some hormone alteration or even polycystic ovaries.
My advice is that you take her to a gynecologist in order to have a check-up done and find what’s the cause behind this.
Regards