The menstrual cycle of a regular woman is 28 days, however in few women it is fulfilled exactly and it is considered normal that it oscillates between 21 and 40 days. There is no need to worry if our period does not come on the same day every month, as there are many variables that can cause this to change without meaning that we have a problem.
In order to calculate for ourselves when our menstruation is going to come, it is convenient to write down the first day of bleeding each month on a calendar, doing this for several months we can calculate the average and thus know more exactly what day of the month our cycle begins.
Causes why the arrival of menstruation can vary
- Polycystic ovarian syndrome. Disorder by which women suffer an alteration in their sex hormones caused by excess male hormones. Normally it causes irregular menstrual cycles, such as amenorrhea (lack of menstruation), oligomenorrhea (cycles longer than 35 days), polymenorrhea (cycles shorter than 24 days) or hypermenorrhea (heavy periods).
- Stress, anxiety or changes in lifestyle.
- Bad diet. Just like following a good diet helps regulate our cycle, the opposite can happen if we don’t eat properly.
- Certain diseases. Endocrine problems, such as thyroid, play a very important role in hormone levels, thus affecting our menstruation.
- The menstrual cycle is made up of four phases: the menstrual phase, the follicular phase, the ovulatory phase, and the luteal phase. That menstruation arrives earlier than expected is related to what is called deficient luteal phase, where the production of progesterone is not sufficient. Likewise, that the arrival of the period is delayed has to do on many occasions with a defective ovulation, this is due to an increase in the production of estrogens.
