Thanks for sharing your experience of how you rise and fall with your hormones. We all (people with ovaries/uteri) do, to some degree, but it sounds like your experience is all consuming.
My life struggle is autoimmune disease, which is also all consuming but operates on a more fluid and unpredictable timeline. There’s so many potential contributing parts (stress, diet, passing viral illnesses, sleep…) and I tend to just push on through because so much of it feels uncontrollable. But this piece makes me think, what if I stopped for a moment and noticed how my menstrual cycle was interwoven into the rise and fall of my symptoms. Because certainly the drastic hormone fluctuations we are subject to have some effect!
“Markers matter” — so agree. I feel that with my cycles. But now I’m in the peri-phase and am starting to wonder what’ll be like when my cycling days are over. I wrote about it recently, to help me process my whole period experiences, beginning with diary entries from 1988 when I got my first one. Looking back, I do think that having those shit-days before my period gave me a break from the world. A time to reset, and face things I would’ve otherwise ignored.
This is the most amazing writing I've ever read about menstrual cycles, and also the best scientific explanation of what happens inside with things I really didn't know (lovely discussion of the scientific terms!). Sharing it with others. I'm done with all of that now and have gone through different kinds of swings, changes, effects on mind and body of hormones having their way with me. I don't miss any of it, although I miss the feelings of the body I used to have.
Beautifully described. And as a fellow ADHDer, I so relate. I’d love to read your ADHD diagnosis article. Any chance that can be reposed here in Substack?
Thanks for sharing your experience of how you rise and fall with your hormones. We all (people with ovaries/uteri) do, to some degree, but it sounds like your experience is all consuming.
My life struggle is autoimmune disease, which is also all consuming but operates on a more fluid and unpredictable timeline. There’s so many potential contributing parts (stress, diet, passing viral illnesses, sleep…) and I tend to just push on through because so much of it feels uncontrollable. But this piece makes me think, what if I stopped for a moment and noticed how my menstrual cycle was interwoven into the rise and fall of my symptoms. Because certainly the drastic hormone fluctuations we are subject to have some effect!
“Markers matter” — so agree. I feel that with my cycles. But now I’m in the peri-phase and am starting to wonder what’ll be like when my cycling days are over. I wrote about it recently, to help me process my whole period experiences, beginning with diary entries from 1988 when I got my first one. Looking back, I do think that having those shit-days before my period gave me a break from the world. A time to reset, and face things I would’ve otherwise ignored.
https://daphneberryhill.substack.com/p/finding-your-flow-through-uncharted
This is gorgeous and enlightening! Thanks for popping up a signpost to it, and for writing it and sharing it.
This is the most amazing writing I've ever read about menstrual cycles, and also the best scientific explanation of what happens inside with things I really didn't know (lovely discussion of the scientific terms!). Sharing it with others. I'm done with all of that now and have gone through different kinds of swings, changes, effects on mind and body of hormones having their way with me. I don't miss any of it, although I miss the feelings of the body I used to have.
Beautifully described. And as a fellow ADHDer, I so relate. I’d love to read your ADHD diagnosis article. Any chance that can be reposed here in Substack?