How to calculate when your next period will start

Most women of reproductive age usually experience irregular menstrual cycles. Each has its own reason for this. Some suffer from illnesses, others are faced with hormonal imbalance. In any case, this condition cannot be called the norm. A woman must clearly monitor her menstruation schedule, know from what day to count the delay of her period, in order to clearly see when a malfunction occurred in the body. Paying close attention to yourself and undergoing regular gynecological examinations will preserve your health and prevent the development of serious pathologies.

General understanding of the menstrual cycle

The female cycle is divided into 3 phases:

1. Menstruation. It lasts 3-5 days, during which the inner layer of the uterus is rejected and is accompanied by bleeding.
2. Phase I, follicular. A 28-day cycle lasts 14 days. At this time, follicles - vesicles containing an egg - mature in the ovaries, and a new inner lining grows in the uterus. By the 14th day, the largest follicle bursts (ovulation process), the released egg penetrates the fallopian tube and meets the sperm. The edges of the burst bubble stick together, and a new formation is formed - the corpus luteum.
3. Phase II (corpus luteum or luteal). It begins after ovulation, and also lasts an average of 14 days. Pregnancy begins in a woman’s body, the corpus luteum “blooms”, that is, it produces hormones that prepare the uterine cavity to receive a fertilized egg.

If pregnancy does not occur in the current cycle, the corpus luteum ceases its activity. The uterus rejects the inner lining as an unnecessary thing. And menstrual bleeding begins.

The ideal female cycle is 28 calendar days. But it’s rare that any woman can boast that their periods “run like clockwork.” For some, they arrive either earlier or later than the indicated value and range from 21 to 35 days.

The female body is individual. In order for a follicle with an egg to mature, it takes 10-12 days for one woman, and 15-16 for another. Hence the duration of the cycle is different: for some it is 21-24 days, and for others it is 30-35. Deviation from the indicator during a cycle, for example, 28 days plus/minus 7 days is also generally accepted as normal. The arrival of menstruation a week earlier or a week later in any cycle of at least 25 or 30 days is considered acceptable, i.e. within normal limits.

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Ways to restore a normal cycle

If there are deviations in the duration of the menstrual cycle (not of a pathological nature), gynecologists use the following treatment methods.

Table:

Additionally, it is recommended to follow a nutritious but gentle diet. Especially if you have weight problems (overweight or underweight). Regular sexual intercourse also helps normalize the menstrual cycle.

Every woman of childbearing age should be able to calculate the date of her period using any of the methods discussed. This allows you to know in advance the beginning of the next menstruation, avoid unwanted pregnancy and promptly detect the onset of gynecological pathologies. The most convenient and simplest method is considered to be the method of determining menstruation by the date of the last menstruation.

Author: Kotlyachkova Svetlana

Article design: Oleg Lozinsky

What is considered a delay?

If for some reason in phase I of the cycle there is no growth of a full-fledged follicle that could “release” a mature egg, then phase II will not begin. It’s all simple: if the follicle has not burst, then the corpus luteum will not form. And phase I can drag on for a very long time, until the inner layer of the uterus, greatly overgrown under the influence of hormones, begins to be rejected on its own. Therefore, the onset of menstruation is delayed from several days to several months.

The absence of monthly bleeding in a regular cycle for more than 7-10 days from the moment you expect it should be regarded as a delay in menstruation.

For a normal menstrual cycle, it is not so much the number of days between bleeding that is important, but the regularity of their recurrence. For example, if your menstrual cycle always occurs after 25-28-30 days, but this month menstruation did not occur on time, then this should be considered a delay. Especially if more than 7-10 days have passed since the expected day.

How to make a monthly calendar?

It has already been said that in order to calculate your periods, you will need a calendar. It's better if it's large. Then it is more convenient to note the intensity of blood discharge. According to gynecologists, this will help you determine the pain of menstruation, because if it is accompanied by severe pain, it would be advisable to check your health.

So, the girl has the first day of her period, and it does not cause any inconvenience. She should take her calendar, which is designed specifically for this, and circle this day with a red pen, and write below with what intensity the blood is flowing and whether there is pain. If you are using a small calendar, you need to shorten the word to one letter, that is, if your periods are spotting and painless, then you can write it like this: “B and M.” This is how every day is celebrated until the last and a characteristic is given to each one. The discharge can be copious, slight, medium and, as already mentioned, spotting.

The last day of menstruation has passed. Now you can live in peace for a month. The girl continues to celebrate her menstruation every day next month, until the last.

When information for two months has appeared, it is possible to determine on what day ovulation will occur. To do this, you need to subtract 14 from the last day of the cycle. Around this time, the egg will be released from the ovary, and it is quite possible that conception will occur.

Causes of delayed menstruation

A woman's menstrual cycle is controlled by hormones. It should be said that the hormonal system is very vulnerable and is easily influenced by even the most minor adverse factors, which can result in the absence of menstruation.

So, the reasons for a delay in menstruation:

• increased physical activity;
• excessive emotional stress;
• traveling with changes in climate and time zones;
• reaction to shock, resentment, grief, breakup with a loved one;
• illness;
• overweight or underweight;
• use of “fire contraception”;
• approaching menopause;
• pregnancy.

Pregnancy is the most likely reason for the absence of menstruation in women who have not used contraceptives. Modern pregnancy tests give a positive result already on 1-2 days of delay.

Delayed menstruation: pathology and norm

The menstrual cycle in women is a clear and well-functioning mechanism, but it can also fail. Only in some cases is a delay in menstruation considered normal, and in others a pathology.

And in general, is there a norm for delaying menstruation and how many days is it?

Dear women! You are all so different: young and “mature”, thin and plump, vulnerable and imperturbable. Therefore, the delay rate for each will also be different. For some of you, the absence of menstruation for two months will not be a pathology, but for some, a two-day delay will be a disaster.

So, let's figure out what situation should alert you and how many days of delay is considered normal.

When is delay normal?

If menstruation does not occur on time, women begin to worry about this and suspect either pregnancy or some kind of pathology.

Pregnancy is the only thing for which a woman’s entire reproductive system works. And delays in menstruation for the entire period of pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding are considered a physiological norm.

It is accepted that healthy women may experience delays of menstruation by 1-2 days several times a year. And this is a normal situation. Usually it is associated with minor stress factors, after the disappearance of which everything returns to normal.

Women who have not given birth are more likely to experience delays in menstruation than women who have given birth. Everything will get better after the first birth. The female body will fulfill its mission of giving birth to offspring and will work at full capacity, without interruption.

It is very important to understand that the female cycle does not immediately become regular and stable. Irregularity and instability are especially characteristic of the period of formation of menstruation, or, conversely, before their cessation.

Why is this happening? The onset of the first menstruation in a teenage girl does not mean at all that her reproductive system is mature and ready to work correctly. In adolescence, there is still no clear hormonal regulation of the menstrual cycle, and the ovaries function poorly. Therefore, a delay in menstruation in adolescents, even for several months, is quite common and is not considered a serious problem. 1-2 years will pass, and a clear relationship will be established in the young girl’s body between the ovarian hormones and the brain centers that regulate the functioning of the reproductive system (pituitary gland and hypothalamus).

A premenopausal woman may also experience menstrual irregularities in the form of delayed periods. This is due to a decrease in hormonal levels and loss of ovarian function.

Attention! The maximum permissible delay rate can vary widely: from 1-2 to 7 days in healthy women of reproductive age and from 1-2 months (sometimes up to 6 months) in teenage girls and women before menopause.

Which method is more accurate?

Sometimes menstrual irregularities occur. They are expressed in a change in the length of the cycle, the duration of menstruation or a change in the amount of blood loss. If your cycle is less than 21 days or more than 35 days, this is a reason to see a doctor. If they last less than 2 or more than 7 days, you need to consult a gynecologist. Scanty or abundant should also be a reason to visit a doctor.

Video on the topic

note

If you smoke, your risk of menstrual irregularities increases 5 times.

Sources:

• how will menstruation happen?

Why is it necessary to know the gestational age? After all, childbirth will happen sooner or later for every woman. This is true, however, you need to take into account that knowing the exact duration of pregnancy, the doctor will not only set the most correct PDA (presumed day of birth), but will also track week by week whether the baby is developing correctly at each stage.

Instructions

It is customary to start counting pregnancy from the first day of the last menstruation. This is the so-called deadline. Strictly speaking, the first two weeks of this period a woman is not pregnant, but if you consider that it is impossible to determine the exact day of ovulation and conception without measuring basal temperature, then this method allows you to calculate quite correctly. After all, almost every woman can name the day of her last menstruation. The date of birth according to the obstetric period is determined as follows: to the number of the first day of menstruation, add 7 days and subtract 3 months. This will be the PDR.

Many ladies are puzzled after visiting the ultrasound room by the fact that the period according to the study results is about 2 weeks less. This is correct and should not cause concern: the ultrasound specialist sets the actual period of fetal development, and it should precisely be less than the obstetric period.

Based on the results of an ultrasound, you can very accurately determine the gestational age of up to 8 weeks: during this period, everyone develops in the same way, and we can talk not even about weeks, but about days of pregnancy. In addition, fetal development occurs according to an individual schedule, which is included in special tables that allow doctors to judge how well the pregnancy is progressing.

Pregnancy is diagnosed by analyzing the level of a specific hormone, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). An increase in the content of this hormone in the blood indicates pregnancy, and the period is determined by its amount. However, this method is not the most accurate, since the range of hCG levels is too wide.

Starting from about the twelfth week, the observing obstetrician-gynecologist will measure the height of the uterine fundus above: - at 12 weeks the uterus is located on the upper edge of the womb, - at 14 weeks - 3-5 centimeters above the womb, - at 16 weeks the uterine fundus is felt between the womb and, - at 24 weeks at the level of the navel, - at 32 weeks the height is 28-30 centimeters, - at 36 weeks the fundus of the uterus supports the ribs, - by the end of the pregnancy it drops to the level of thirty-two weeks, since the presenting part of the child drops lower in pelvis

Development is considered to be within the normal range if the deviation from the average is up to 3 centimeters. Measuring the height of the uterine fundus allows you not only to verify the duration and normal development of pregnancy, but also to timely diagnose such problems as oligohydramnios or polyhydramnios and a number of others.

Sources:

• My baby in 2019

Doctors determine the approximate gestational age by the date of the last menstruation, but this factor is not the only one. The obstetrician must take into account the data of the gynecological examination, the results of the ultrasound examination, the date of the first movement and other factors.

Instructions

The date of the first day of the last menstrual period indicates the beginning of the cycle of maturation of the egg, which is subsequently fertilized and leads to pregnancy. It is believed that pregnancy occurs 2 weeks after the start of the menstrual cycle, because ovulation most often occurs on the 14th day of the cycle, and it is on this day that a woman can. If a woman does not remember when they were, then the period is determined by other leading factors. Sometimes it happens that pregnancy has occurred, but false periods are observed; in this case, the date when the spotting occurred does not affect the period of intrauterine development.

During pregnancy, persistent slight hyperemia on the cervix (Chadwick's symptom) is characteristic. The gynecologist palpates the uterus to determine its size. At each stage of intrauterine life, the reproductive organ has a certain size. For example, at 7 weeks of pregnancy the uterus is approximately the size of an average chicken egg, at 10 weeks it measures 110 by 80 mm, etc.

Why did nature create woman? It would seem a strange question. Of course, a woman is needed to help a man in spiritual matters, to support him, to feed him, to raise children. But in fact, the main purpose of a woman in nature is to bear and give birth to a child. This is a feature of the female reproductive system. Every cell of her body acts so that she can reproduce her own kind.

In order for the discharge to be regular and to be able to conceive a child, a woman needs to take vitamins, especially those containing lutein, eat right, and be less nervous at work. After all, you must agree that health is more important, especially if you want to become the mother of a beautiful and healthy baby.

Pathological delay

A delay in menstruation in a regular, established cycle for more than 7-10 days always makes a woman wonder: “is everything okay?” Only a doctor can answer the question and find out the reasons for the delay in menstruation.

Most often, a long absence of menstruation indicates the presence of pregnancy. But if the “interesting situation” is not confirmed, it is necessary to exclude inflammatory diseases, pathology of the thyroid gland and tumors of the genital organs. In this case, you cannot do without consulting a specialist.

A woman's age matters and is reflected in the menstrual cycle. So, by the age of 40, a woman has a history of inflammation of the genital organs, abortions, and chronic diseases, so she has to deal with the problem of delayed menstruation more often than at a young age.

It is important to know! A delay in menstruation without pregnancy is an indicator of an imbalance in the body and requires immediate medical intervention.

Why do you need to know the date of your next menstruation?

So, if a female representative can calculate her periods, she will not have to run to the store on the day the discharge starts and buy pads to ensure personal hygiene. She will already have several necessary things for this period in her purse. Another comical reason is that a young man or husband will know when to agree with his beloved on everything and smile even if he doesn’t like something, or quietly go to the TV so as not to irritate her. Then there are more serious reasons: a longer menstrual cycle may indicate that ovulation is delayed. Also, a delay or too short interval between periods may indicate serious illness and the inability to get pregnant.

What to do if a cycle violation occurs?

If there is an unexpected delay in your cycle, there is no need to panic. This kind of delay can occur in any woman or girl. In order to understand the reason for the failure, and for this:

1. First, calm down and remember if you experienced stress on the eve of your period. If the delay in menstruation is caused by stress, this is not such a problem. Usually everything returns to normal after the negativity is eliminated.
2. Rule out pregnancy with a test.
3. If pregnancy is excluded, to find out the reasons for the absence of menstruation, you need to contact a gynecologist at the antenatal clinic.

Fundal height of the uterus

If it is impossible to determine the exact date using ultrasound, you will have to resort to more ancient methods, but you must remember that these data will be approximate and you should rely on them more than carefully.
One of these methods is to determine the standing height of the uterus. Already starting from , the doctor can easily feel it through the abdominal wall and, if it, for example, reaches the navel, then we can say that the gestational age is 22-24 weeks.

Even an accurately calculated due date is not absolute and serves only as a guide because the normal gestational age ranges from 38 to 42 weeks.