Menstrual Cycle
Some background
A newborn baby girl has up to 450,000 eggs stored in her ovaries. When she starts her periods between the ages of about 10 and 14, one of these eggs will ripen each month. The egg is released from the ovary and caught by the ferny ends of the fallopian tube, which transports it, using a gentle rippling motion, along to the uterus (womb). If the egg is fertilised by a sperm on its journey, it will bed down once it reaches the uterus and grow into a baby and a placenta. If fertilisation doesn’t take place, the egg will be flushed out, along with the lining of your uterus, when you have your period.
What’s a normal menstrual cycle?
An average menstrual cycle lasts 28 days – that’s counting from the first day of one period to the day before the next. Some women have much shorter cycles, possibly lasting only 23 days, and some have much longer ones, lasting up to 35 days. Cycles which are shorter or longer than this are probably not normal, and you should see your doctor. You should also see your doctor if you bleed between periods or after sex.
The Menstrual Cycle
A menstrual cycle is the time from the first day of one period to the first day of the next. Some cycles are 21 days long. Some are 35 days long or longer. And some are somewhere in between. Each cycle is divided into two parts. One comes before ovulation. The other comes after. Here is the pattern for a 28-day cycle:
Part One — Day one is the day bleeding begins. It lasts from 3 to 5 days. Day seven is usually the day that some of the eggs in the ovaries start to get ripe. From Days 7 to 11, the lining of the uterus begins to get thick. After Day 11, hormones start working on the ripest egg to get it released from the ovary. Day 14, 15, or 16 is usually the day the egg is released (in a 28-day cycle).
Part One may last 13 to 20 days or more. How long it lasts is different for different women. For many women, how long it lasts is different from month to month. Simple changes in a woman’s life can make Part One longer or shorter. For example, her regular pattern can change if she
- becomes ill
- works out very hard
- has a lot of worries
Some women believe they can tell when the egg is released. Some have a slight pain in the back or on one side of the lower abdomen. This is called mittleschmerz — which is German for “middle pain.” A few women may have a little blood tinged or clear discharge from the vagina. But none of these is a sure signal exactly when an egg has been released.
Part Two — The egg travels down the fallopian tube toward the uterus. It is usually in the tube that an egg joins with a sperm. Pregnancy begins if a fertilized egg travels through the fallopian tube to the uterus and attaches to the lining of the uterus. This is called implantation. The egg breaks apart in a day or two if this doesn’t happen. Around Day 25, the hormones that could support a pregnancy drop off. This makes the lining of the uterus break down. It starts being shed in the woman’s period a few days later on Day one. And a new cycle begins.
Ovulation Widget : Check our awesome ovulation widget in the sidebar. Just put your first day of your last menstrual cycle and get the whole data for 3 months. It will contain those 5 high fertility days, next period date and if you miss period the Pregnancy Test date.