Why Menstruation Makes Me Feel Ugly

Books as gifts are the best thing ever. I may be the only one who feels this way and I may be your boring relative who only ever gives you books but I am fine with that. I am filled with joy on receiving books, especially ones on my wish list, and I will cry if you have written an inscription – a roller coaster of emotions I experienced recently when my friend gave me Sara Pascoe's new book Sex Power Money (here's a handy link so you can buy it immediately). Followers of the blog (thanks mammy!) will be familiar with how much I love Sara Pascoe's writing and view on the world having previously devoured her first book Animal (handy link so you can buy it immediately). I love the way she blends comedy, life experience and science to look at the way we are currently experiencing our lives. 

In her new book, Sara (look at me referring to her like a mate! Lol!) looks at the evolutionary drives behind our sexual desires and actions and it got me thinking. Are there evolutionary drives behind our relationship with our body image? This then sent me on a lot of google searches and tangents until I happened upon a thought that I have been stewing over for months. Are the hormone levels during our menstrual cycle also responsible for our feelings about our body and not just there for the possible pregnancy prep? The answer is yes. Obviously. I don't know why the thought had never occurred to me before and the more I looked into it the more it explained EVERYTHING. 

Let me take you on a hormonal adventure! I have included an image below for those who can’t be bothered to read further.

Oestrogen or Estrogen for the Americans, Progesterone and Testosterone are the three main hormones involved during our menstrual cycle and seem to be the ones that have the biggest effect on our confidence levels so I am going to focus on those. Their levels increase and decrease throughout a menstrual cycle and the physical changes caused by this have a big impact on how we see ourselves. The first day of your menstrual cycle is the first day of your period, a.k.a. The Big Bleed, and your cycle is the length of time until the day before your next period. So for me that's roughly thirty days which can change in periods of stress, illness, sleep deprivation etc. but let's use thirty as the example in this case.

During Week One (Day 1-7), which is when I will experience my period and everything is kicking off for another round, I begin to experience a rise in oestrogen. This causes an increase in confidence as well as an urge to put more effort into my appearance or experiment with my style. It's a slow increase so I am not going to be attempting a mohawk just yet but my body is certainly experiencing subtle changes and already I am feeling more optimistic about myself and my body.

Week Two (Day 8-16) arrives and oestrogen levels continue to rise. It gives my skin a healthy glow and making my features more symmetrical. Now scientists are still deliberating over this but it is believed by some that as symmetry is a developmental goal, the closer your features are to being symmetrical the more genetically strong you are perceived to be and therefore the more attractive you are. Whatever the reasons, during Week Two, I am very much feeling my fitness!

The high oestrogen is causing changes to my gait, my facial features and my voice which are making me appear more attractive. I am more likely to experiment with my style and appearance, take on new challenges and feeling positive about it increases my feelings of self-worth which in turn boosts my confidence levels. Near to the end of Week Two, my boobs jump on the symmetry bandwagon and they are more symmetrical than any other time of my cycle – scientists believe this may be a tiny cue to potential mates that I am approaching my most fertile phase.

By the time I reach ovulation day, a.k.a. Egg Vacate Day, I am the most confident I have been in 30 days and it is all about to be swiftly taken away from me so a big breath before the roller coaster dip of despair.

Week 3 (Day 17-24) begins with a nose dive in oestrogen and testosterone levels causing pre-PMS, a shorter and less intense version of PMS, and progesterone swans into the room. A rise in progesterone means a few things – an increase in appetite for sugary, salty, fatty and/or carbohydrate rich foods, water retention and constipation which results in me feeling bloated, an increase in gassy behaviour which makes me feel disgusting and a greater urge to be more introspective. All of these combined means this week is my lowest week in my cycle for my body image. I am eating more, it's going nowhere and all I can think of is how terrible I am at life.

There is a small increase in oestrogen half way through this week which can put an end to the feelings of sadness unless like me you are prone to progesterone which just means more sadness and volatile anger if I don't eat regularly. Snacking is a must during Week Three which can take the form of pizza and baked goods or beans, vegetables and fruits which are also sugary and carb filled (I'll probably choose pizza and blame progesterone). You can also try and deplete the bloating by eating diuretic foods like asparagus, ginger and watercress.

Progesterone peaks at the end of the week with me feeling very sleepy, low in confidence but actually quite calm and mellow.

Enter Week 4 (Day 25-30), a.k.a. Hell Week. There is a second drop in oestrogen and PMS cranks into full gear but the good news is progesterone is dropping too so there is an increase in energy as well as irritability and lack of patience. The low oestrogen means my confidence is being sapped and with the drop in progesterone too I am super pessimistic and self-critical so overall not feeling my most confident. However, research has shown that if you think of a steamy scene from a movie or book, it can cause a surge in testosterone which will rev up confidence. Just a tip!

Week Four ends with the arrival of Day 1, that sweet rise in oestrogen and it all begins again!

If you are thinking this sounds intense, you would be correct but I do think there is something empowering in knowing your cycle. When you recognise patterns you can put things in place to counteract behaviour and hopefully try and keep your attitude towards yourself at a more positive, constant level. Obviously, our hormones affect many other things other than our confidence during this time and I would highly recommend downloading an app such as Hormonology (Hormone Horoscope) to get a daily account of what's happening in your body. It's helped me recognise that my behaviours are not irrational and that there is an explanation which really does have a calming effect.

For me, it goes without saying, that there are exceptions to this. Many people who go through menstrual cycles in their lives experience them completely differently and the patterns are not always so clear cut but if we can use this as base level of understanding and build on it then hopefully we can use it to help ourselves feel fabulous at all stages of our cycle. 

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All icons in image made by Freepik from www.flaticon.com

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