Hi Reader
We're talking about menstrual cycles this month.
And before anyone who isn't currently trying for a baby switches off because they think this isn't particularly relevant to them... stay with me.
Because one of the things I really want to explore throughout September is the idea that our reproductive health is about so much more than reproduction.
I think for a lot of women, our menstrual cycle becomes something we only really pay attention to when it inconveniences us.
Our period arrives when we don't want it to….we're suddenly exhausted, our skin breaks out, we can't concentrate and we're ravenously hungry.
Someone breathes slightly too loudly in our direction and somehow this feels like a personal attack!
Then our period comes and we think, "Ahhhhhh. That explains it."
And we carry on.
But your menstrual cycle isn't just the few days you're bleeding.
It's an ongoing hormonal rhythm happening throughout the month, and those hormonal changes can influence far more than whether or not you get a period.
They can influence your energy, appetite, sleep, mood, concentration and how you feel physically. Hormones themselves are involved in an enormous number of processes throughout the body, which is why I think it's a shame that we often reduce conversations about female hormones to periods, pregnancy and menopause.
You don't need to be trying for a baby to care about reproductive health.
And you certainly don't need to wait until you want children before becoming curious about what your body has been telling you.
I think this matters particularly for professional women because our working lives tend to expect consistency.
You have the same hours in your diary.
The same job.
The same expectations.
The same number of hours in the day.
But you may not feel exactly the same every day of the month.
For years, I thought that inconsistency was something I needed to overcome.
If I could concentrate brilliantly one week but everything felt harder another week, I'd judge the harder version of myself against the easier one.
Why am I so tired?
Why is this bothering me?
Why can't I just get on with it?
I didn't really understand that there was information there.
So, a very quick menstrual-cycle lesson without turning your Friday email into GCSE Biology...
Day 1 is the first day of your period. From there, you're in the follicular phase, which takes you towards ovulation. After ovulation comes the luteal phase, which takes you towards your next period. That's the basic map.
In reality, there's much more happening underneath it, and importantly, not everybody has a textbook 28-day cycle or experiences each phase in exactly the same way.
That's why I'm much more interested in helping women understand their own patterns than giving them another set of rules about what women supposedly should or shouldn't do on Day 17.
Because here's the bit I find fascinating.
Your cycle isn't four completely separate boxes where one phase ends, you wipe the slate clean and another begins.
What happens earlier can affect what happens later.
If I've had an incredibly stressful month, been sleeping badly, under-eating, overtraining or generally asking far more from my body than I'm giving back, I can't necessarily expect to arrive at the end of my cycle and feel exactly the same as I would after a month where I've been sleeping well, eating properly, recovering and managing stress.
The body doesn't work in isolated 24-hour snapshots. There's a story unfolding.
And sometimes the symptoms we get frustrated with at the end of the month are worth viewing in the context of what has been happening throughout it.
That's one of the reasons I think tracking your cycle can be so useful.
Not obsessively, and not so that an app gets to decide how you're going to feel today before you've even got out of bed. Just with curiosity.
When did your period start?
How was your energy this month?
When did you feel particularly focused?
When did you want more food?
How was your sleep?
Did you notice changes in your mood, digestion, skin or training?
What was happening at work?
Was life particularly stressful?
Over time, you start building a picture of you.
And I think that's where menstrual-cycle awareness becomes incredibly empowering.
You're no longer experiencing something every month and thinking, "What on earth is wrong with me?"
You have context.
You might start noticing, “Oh, this happens quite regularly at this point in my cycle”. Or, “Interesting, this month felt completely different. What else was going on?”
And that information gives you choices.
Maybe you protect your sleep a little more.
Maybe you notice that you need more recovery.
Maybe you stop expecting yourself to feel identical every single day.
And sometimes, if something has changed significantly, is particularly painful, is interfering with your life or simply doesn't feel right for you, that awareness gives you useful information to take to an appropriate healthcare professional rather than suffering quietly and assuming it's just something women have to put up with.
I think that's ultimately what I want this month to be about.
Not "hormone hacking". Not trying to perfectly optimise every phase of your menstrual cycle. And definitely not another set of rules for busy women to get right.
I want it to be about knowing yourself.
Because your menstrual cycle isn't an annoying monthly interruption to your health. It's part of your health.
And the more I've learned to listen to mine, the more I've understood about my energy, stress, recovery and the way I want to structure my life.
Next week I'm going to get much more personal and share what my own relationship with my menstrual cycle has looked like over the years, including what happened when I came off the pill, what I struggled with during my first stint in law, and why understanding my cycle has influenced some of the career decisions I've made since.
But for this week, I'd love you to start somewhere very simple.
Do you actually know your own cycle?
Not what a textbook says it should look like. Yours.
If you already track it, have a look back over the last few months and see what you notice. And if you don't, perhaps just start with Day 1 of your next period and get curious from there.
You don't have to do anything with the information yet. Just notice.
Because self-awareness is often where the most sustainable changes begin.
And I'd love to hear from you on this one: what's something you wish someone had taught you about your menstrual cycle when you were younger?
Hit reply and tell me. I have a feeling there are going to be some very interesting answers to this one.
Speak soon.
With care and wellness,
Cat