A Heavier Than Normal Period
Usha Anandi. 05 | OCTOBER | 2021
You head to the bathroom, pull down your pants, and surprise, surprise… there’s way more period blood than usual.
Should you just write it off and ignore it, chalking it up to “the curse” of being a woman or person with a womb?
Or is your body trying to tell you something?
If you’ve read any of our blogs before or know about our work, I think you can guess which one of the above options I would choose.
Our menstrual cycle is an indicator of our overall health.
And although women’s wisdom traditions have known this for hundreds of years, allopathic medical practitioners are starting to agree with this fact, too.
According to a statement first released by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) in 2015, the menstrual cycle should be considered as a “fifth vital sign”.
That means it’s just as important as indicating overall health as blood pressure, pulse, body temperature, and respiration.
For those looking for real, tangible tools to support a healthy monthly cycle, our Power of the Period Workshop is for you.
If your menstrual cycle is a fifth vital sign, then heavy bleeding is not something to ignore.
Heavy bleeding, known as menorrhagia, is indicated by bleeding for more than seven days or soaking through one or more tampons every 1-2 hours, according to ACOG.
But what if you don’t soak through your pad every hour or bleed for more than seven days, but all of a sudden you notice more blood and even more clotting than normal?
If something feels strange or off to you – listen to that.
You know your body better and its patterns more than anyone else does.
As you listen to yourself deeply, you can work with the questions below to ensure you’re moving in the right direction on your path.
Lifestyle
When looking at any womb-health related challenge, lifestyle is one of the first things that should be considered when looking for the path back to balance.
A balanced lifestyle is foundational for overall health, and simply cannot be replaced by more herbs, “superfoods”, or supplements.
Only once we’ve aligned our lifestyle with our intention, in this case to look at our heavy periods, can we then start to think about possible dietary changes and emotional integration.
Looking at your lifestyle, ask yourself…
How much do I sleep? →
Our hormone system is designed to live in alignment with the cycles of the sun and moon.
When the sun goes down, we are meant to rest. When the sun comes up, we are meant to rise.
When our sleep/wake cycles are out of alignment, our hormones are impacted.
💡Try this…
- Turn off electronics at least 1 hour before sleep at night
- Go to bed before 10 pm
- Prefer going to sleep early and waking up early vs. going to sleep late and waking up late
How much do I exercise? →
Moderate exercise can support in clearing stagnation associated with heavy periods.
It’s important to note that you shouldn’t exercise the same way everyday, as too much exercise at the wrong times of your cycle can increase inflammation and stress.
💡Try this…
- In my brand new course, Menstrual Movement, I teach you how to exercise according to the distinct physical, hormonal, and energetic changes that take place throughout your monthly cycle to increase results and minimize burnout. This course is available for one-time only until October 10th.
Diet
A healthy lifestyle is the foundation for a healthy cycle.
Once you’ve considered your lifestyle and daily routine, it’s time to look at food. The food you eat, and the way you eat it, can either help encourage a healthy monthly cycle or can disrupt it.
Looking at your diet, ask yourself…
Am I eating regularly? →
We focus so much in the wellness world on WHAT we eat, but few talk about HOW we eat it. For a balanced cycle, we need balanced hormones. For balanced hormones, we need balanced blood sugar.
Skipping meals leads to blood sugar spikes, which overtime can contribute to high insulin levels.
Insulin is a hormone responsible for taking sugar out of the blood stream and up into your cells for energy. Increased insulin is connected to increased stress hormone levels, depleted progesterone, and estrogen dominance.
💡Try this →
- Set your meal times and try to eat within 30 minutes of that time everyday so your body knows when to expect food.
- Avoid eating after 7 pm as this can cause stress hormone levels to rise and contribute to poor digestion.
How is my digestion? →
Poor digestion leads to energetic stagnation. According to Ayurveda, clearing digestive toxins and enkindling digestive fire with the support of spices may help those with heavy periods.
💡Try this →
- Ayurvedic texts encourage the use of ginger tea daily for 5 – 10 days before menstruation to burn excess toxins and clear stagnation. If you often feel weak from blood loss during menstruation, consider adding 1 Tbsp blackstrap molasses to the tea for the iron boost. 1 Tbsp contains 20% of recommended daily iron.
- Aid digestion by cooking with spices like cumin, ginger, black pepper, and cinnamon
Emotions
Just like undigested food, undigested emotions can block energetic pathways and impact the amount of energy reaching our organs. According to ancient sciences like Ayurveda, Yoga, and Traditional Chinese Medicine, unprocessed emotions can impact our organ systems, including the uterus, which may impact our monthly cycle and overall health.
When looking at what you’re feeling, ask yourself…
How comfortable do I feel fully feeling and expressing my difficult core emotions like anger, frustration, or sadness? →
Heavy periods are related to emotional stagnation, according to Yoga and Ayurveda. When we are unable to feel or express an emotion fully, it may begin to build up and stagnate, which in turn impacts our organs.
💡Try this…
- Start a journaling practice where you write down how you’re feeling and what caused you to feel that way. Day by day, you may find that your emotions begin to digest and integrate.
- Spend more time alone in nature. We are all indigenous to somewhere, no matter how we try to differentiate ourselves from our animal nature, we are from the land. Tuning into nature with all of your senses can support the integration of difficult emotions and bring about a sense of true belonging.
One of the best ways to support your monthly cycle is to adapt your exercise according to the distinct physical, hormonal, and energetic changes that take place during the month.
In my Power of the Period Workshop you’ll receive all the tools to start working WITH our cycle instead of against it.
