How Your Period Changes In Your 20s, 30s & 40s

Although cramps, bloating, discomfort and mood swings, etc., are few things associated with menstruation, it is, most importantly, an indication of a woman's fertility. But, we sometimes start worrying when our periods aren't on time, don't we? Many women have a love-hate relationship with their periods. In this article, we will write about how your period changes in your 20s, 30s and 40s.

The menstrual cycle is sometimes unpredictable - it can be late one month and early the next month. And sometimes the period flow lasts for four days and then all of a sudden it goes on for a week. Factors like stress, health conditions or lifestyle changes can alter your menstrual flow.

Also as you get older, your menstrual cycle will keep evolving and adjusting due to the hormonal changes in the body. This can disrupt or alter your flow.

Let's discuss here how your period changes in your 20s, 30s and 40s.

This Is What Happens When You Are In Your 20s

This is the age when your period flow becomes smooth and regular. However, the downside to regular periods, is a lot of issues that come along, which are:

1. A new birth control can lighten your period flow or make it non-existent, but that's not something you should be stressing out. It will take time for your body to adjust and if it continues for more than three months, then consult a gynaecologist.

2. Even if you aren't stressed out or pregnant, you may start experiencing erratic cycles where your period lasts for more than a week. This could be a possibility that you have PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), a hormonal imbalance that causes small cysts to grow in the ovaries. This mainly shows up in women who are in their 20s.

3. When you are in your 20s, there are many things in your life that cause stress whether it's your struggling period in finding a job or losing a job, getting into a serious relationship or having a bitter breakup. All these factors can affect your menstruation largely because stress hormones disrupt the signal from your brain to your ovaries and this can cause an erratic period for a few months.

3. PMS symptoms become prominent when you are in your 20s as you will start experiencing abdominal cramps, breast tenderness and other premenstrual symptoms.

This Is What Happens When You Are In Your 30s

This is the age when your periods remain regular and have a heavier flow or a slow menstrual flow. Fibroids and endometriosis are also common when you are in your 30s.

These are the issues that come along.

1. Getting pregnant in your 30s can completely alter your menstrual cycle. Having a child is also likely to affect your normal period cycle, especially if you are breastfeeding. This shouldn't be worrisome until your menstruation appears on schedule.

2. Some of the most common health conditions during your 30s are fibroids, polyps and benign uterine growths. Most of these aren't harmful, but they can interfere with your menstrual cycle.

This Is What Happens When You Are In Your 40s

This is the perimenopausal phase in which you may see irregularity, missed or spotting between periods. Being in your 40s doesn't mean you can get pregnant, but these are the issues that may accompany.

1. Changes in the exercise routine can also have an effect on your age as your body is taking time to adjust to this new lifestyle change. And this can affect your menstrual cycle too. What happens when you exercise during your period?

2. Uterine cancer is common condition among women who are in their 40s. The first sign is irregular periods. So, if you are having a problem with periods around this time in your life. It's time to seek a doctor's help immediately.

3. Women may experience perimenopause changes even upto 10 years before menopause. Even if your ovulation is erratic, you can still get pregnant. But, if your periods have ceased for at least a year, a woman is in menopause. Because when you approach the menopause stage, the estrogen and progesterone stop following their normal patterns, than the way it used to do when you were young.

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