Let's Talk about Periods!

What is a Period?

A period is the part of the menstrual cycle when a person bleeds from their vagina for a few days.

For most people that experience periods, this happens every 28 days or so, but it's common for periods to be more or less frequent than this, ranging from every 23 days to every 35 days.

A period can last between 2 and 7 days, but it will usually last for about 5 days. The bleeding tends to be heaviest in the first 2 days.

When the period is at its heaviest, the blood will be red. On lighter days, it may be pink or brown.

A person will lose about 20 to 90ml (about 1 to 5 tablespoons) of blood during their period, although some people bleed more heavily than this.

Sanitary Products

Sanitary products soak up or collect the blood released during a period. The main types of sanitary products are:

• sanitary pads
• tampons
• menstrual cups

Sanitary Pads

Sanitary pads are strips of padding that have a sticky side that is attached inside the underwear to hold them in place. One side of the pad is made of an absorbent material that soaks up the blood.

Pads come in many sizes, so users can choose one to suit how heavy or light their period is.

Reusable, washable pads are also available.

Pantyliners are a smaller and thinner type of sanitary pad that can be used on days when a period is very light.

Tampons

Tampons are small tubes of cotton wool that are inserted into the vagina to soak up the blood before it comes out of the body.

There are 2 types of tampon – ones that come with an applicator and others without an applicator that are inserted using fingers. In both cases, there's a string at one end of the tampon, which is pulled to remove it.

Tampons come with instructions that explain how to use them. If the tampon is inserted correctly, The user should not be able to feel it inside of them. If they can feel it or it hurts, it might not be in properly.

It is not possible for a tampon to get lost inside of the user. Your vagina holds it firmly in place and it expands inside the user as it soaks up the blood.

Menstrual Cups

Menstrual cups are an alternative to sanitary pads and tampons.

The cup is made from silicone and is put it inside the vagina.

Menstrual cups collect the blood rather than absorb it.

Unlike tampons and most sanitary pads, which are thrown away after they've been used, menstrual cups can be washed and used again.

Period Underwear

Period underwear are pants made from absorbent fabric.

They soak up blood in the same way as sanitary pads, and have a layer to prevent leaks.

They're designed to be washed and reused.

PMS (premenstrual syndrome)

Changes in the body's hormone levels before a period can cause physical and emotional changes.

This is known as PMS (premenstrual syndrome) or PMT (premenstrual tension).

There are many possible symptoms of PMS, but typical symptoms include:

• feeling bloated
• chest tenderness
• mood swings
• feeling irritable
• spotty skin
• low sex drive (loss of libido)

These symptoms usually improve when a period starts and disappear a few days afterwards. Not everyone that has a period gets PMS.

Getting Pregnant

Working out when a person can get pregnant – their fertile time – can be difficult. It's around the time they ovulate, which is about 12 to 16 days before the start of their next period.

But sperm can survive inside the body for up to 7 days before ovulation occurs. This means the fertile time extends back earlier in the cycle.

You can calculate when a period will start and the peak ovulation times using an online period calendar such as Polkadot.

A person cannot get pregnant if they do not ovulate. Some hormonal methods of contraception, such as the combined contraceptive pill, contraceptive patch and contraceptive injection, work by preventing ovulation.

Period Changes

Periods can change – for example, they may last longer or get lighter. This does not necessarily mean there's a problem, but it does need to be investigated.

Somebody experiencing period changes can see their GP, or visit their nearest sexual health clinic.

Bleeding between periods, bleeding after having sex, or bleeding after the menopause needs to be checked by a doctor.

It might be caused by an infection, abnormalities in the neck of the womb (the cervix) or, in rare cases, it could be cancer.

A person could be pregnant if they miss a period and they've had sex. They should see their GP if they've taken a pregnancy test and the result is negative (not pregnant) and they've missed 3 consecutive periods.

They will investigate the cause and recommend any necessary treatment.

When do periods stop?

Periods will continue until a person reaches the menopause, which usually happens when they are in their mid-40s to mid-50s. In the UK the average age of menopause is 51.

Periods will not usually stop suddenly when going through the menopause. They may start to become less frequent over a few months or years before stopping altogether.

Delaying Periods

It’s possible to delay a person's period if they take the combined contraceptive pill.

How to do this depends on the type of combined pill they take. For more information, speak to a GP or pharmacist, or a doctor or nurse at a sexual health clinic, about how to delay periods using the combined pill.

If a person does not take the combined pill already, they will need to start it a few weeks before the time they want to delay their period.

If they do not want to take the contraceptive pill, their GP can prescribe a medicine called norethisterone to delay their periods, but this is not suitable for everyone.