The fourth day of my period

Menstruation accompanies a woman for half of her life, like an inseparable friend. We all know that we should not touch cold water or drink cold drinks before menstruation. During menstruation, you should keep warm, avoid strenuous exercise, and avoid eating cold food. The menstrual period usually lasts three days, some women may have two more days, and some women may not have it on the third day. Few women pay attention to what we should pay attention to on the fourth day.

The menstrual cycle, also known as menstruation or physiological period, is a physiological cycle that occurs in primates and[1] humans, and in other mammals as the estrus cycle. Primates and humans are different from other species. Compared with other female animals that have obvious external signs during ovulation, the appearance changes of chimpanzees and women during ovulation are quite subtle. A woman may feel her ovulation, but it is difficult for others to identify it. This is called latent ovulation. This feature has sociobiological significance. In contrast, other species often sense information through heat.

The first day of bleeding is the beginning of the menstrual cycle, and the interval between the first days of two menstruations is called the menstrual cycle. Therefore, the calculation of the menstrual cycle should include the time of menstruation. Some women only count the time when their menstruation stops, so they may think that their menstrual cycle is shortened. Clinically, some women often complain of irregular menstruation, with two periods in a month. In fact, if you calculate carefully, it is normal to have a menstrual period once at the beginning and end of the month. The normal menstrual cycle is 28-35 days. The length of the cycle may vary from person to person. 7-10 days early or late can be considered within the normal range. As long as a certain regularity can be maintained, it cannot be considered as irregular menstruation.

The last menstrual period refers to the menstrual period closest to the date of consultation and should be calculated from the first day of bleeding. However, it should be noted that the last menstrual period refers to the duration and amount of this menstrual period that are the same as usual. Do not mistake abnormal vaginal bleeding for menstruation. This type of bleeding is generally less than menstrual period, and the duration may be shorter or longer, or the normal menstrual pattern may be lost.

The duration of menstruation is generally 3-7 days, and the amount of bleeding is within 20-60 ml, with the highest amount on the 2nd or 3rd day. Menstrual blood is generally dark red and does not coagulate. In addition to blood, it also contains endometrial fragments, cervical mucus and vaginal epithelial cells. Generally, women have no symptoms during menstruation. A few may experience discomfort such as a feeling of heaviness in the lower abdomen or lumbar region, breast tenderness, constipation or diarrhea, and headache, which generally do not affect their daily work, study, and life.

Reasons for women's long menstrual cycle

The pathogenesis of prolonged menstruation can be both deficiency and excess. Excess syndrome is mostly due to blood stasis blocking Chong and Ren meridians, preventing new blood from returning to the meridians; deficiency syndrome is mostly due to yin deficiency and internal heat, which disturbs the blood sea and leads to prolonged menstruation.

Qi stagnation and blood stasis

If a woman is usually depressed, it will cause qi stagnation and blood stasis over time. Or women may feel the cold during menstruation or after giving birth, which can hinder the circulation of Qi and blood and cause blood stasis. Because blood stasis blocks the cell vessels, new blood cannot return to the menstruation, resulting in delayed menstruation.

Yin deficiency and internal heat

If a woman has a Yin deficiency constitution, or if her Yin fluid is damaged due to long-term illness, too many births, or excessive sexual intercourse, her Yin blood will be depleted. Yin deficiency and internal heat cause the blood sea to be restless, and menstrual blood cannot flow normally, thus leading to prolonged menstruation.

Therefore, Chinese medicine believes that the reasons for prolonged menstrual period in women can be divided into deficiency and excess, so regulating menstruation must also be distinguished between deficiency and excess before starting. In addition, Chinese medicine treatment focuses on overall observation of the woman's complexion, and it is also possible to determine whether a woman has menstrual irregularities from her complexion. This is not because Chinese medicine doctors can read faces, but because Chinese medicine believes that when changes in internal organs, qi and blood occur, they will be reflected on the person's face.

Causes of Shortened Menstrual Cycles

1. Caused by neuroendocrine dysfunction: mainly due to unstable or defective function of the lower hindbrain-stomach-ovary axis, that is, menstrual disease.

2. Caused by organic diseases or drugs, including local inflammation, tumors and developmental abnormalities, malnutrition of reproductive organs; intracranial diseases; other endocrine dysfunctions such as thyroid and adrenal cortex dysfunction, diabetes, Sheehan's disease, liver diseases; blood diseases, etc.

Menstrual irregularities may occur in women who use drugs to treat mental illnesses, endocrine preparations, or intrauterine devices for contraception. Certain occupations, such as long-distance runners, are prone to amenorrhea. In addition, some abnormal bleeding during pregnancy is often mistaken for menstrual irregularities.