78: What should a normal period actually look like?

The PCOS Nutritionist Podcast

What should a normal period actually look like?

Irregular periods and long cycles are pretty typical in PCOS - in fact, it’s one of the three criteria your doctor or OBGYN will consider when deciding whether you fit the diagnosis.

While some women with PCOS have perfectly regular periods, that’s unfortunately not the reality for many women dealing with PCOS.

As a good friend of mine, Lara Briden, puts it:

Your period is like a monthly report card about your health.
So how do you know if your period is “normal” or not? How do you know if you’re getting a ‘good grade’ on that monthly report card from your body? Maybe you’re dealing with long cycles or short cycles or random bleeding. Maybe you think your periods are too light or too heavy or your ‘period’ has lasted multiple weeks or months.

Whatever the reason, it’s important to understand what’s normal so you can accurately troubleshoot why your cycle is looking the way it is OR you can be assured that your cycle is working as it should.

Hence today’s episode being all about what a normal period should look like - and a starting point with where to get help if your period doesn’t look quite right.

I hope this podcast today helps you get started on your journey of improving your periods - because they’re so darn important!

This episode is for you if:

• Your periods are irregular
• You don’t know if the amount of days of bleeding in your cycle is normal
• Your periods are longer than 7 days or shorter than 2 days
• You can’t tell if the flow counts as a period or not
• Coming off the Pill, you aren’t sure if your periods are normal or not
• You want to know if your bleeding is a ‘normal’ amount for a heavy flow or if it’s something you should be concerned about
• You soak through pads / tampons within 1-2hrs
• You are thinking of coming off hormonal birth control and want to know what your period should ideally look like

Some things we cover in this episode:

• Cycle length and period length (two different things!)
• How to tell if it’s spotting or an actual flow
• Amenorrhea
• Heavy bleeding - when you should be concerned
• Endometriosis
• Intermenstrual bleeding
• Ovulating - why it’s important

Resources and References:

• Lara’s book: Period Repair Manual
• My Book: Getting Pregnant with PCOS

Links to our programs:

• The PCOS Protocol
• Eggducated