Why Almost Everything We Were Taught About Our Periods Was Wrong

your menstrual cycle is one of the most extraordinary rhythms of the female body and one of the clearest indicators of your health.

What if your period isn't the main event of your menstrual cycle, and many of the things you've been taught about the female body simply aren't true? It's time to rediscover the wisdom of your cycle.

For generations, women have inherited the same messages about our periods. Don't talk about them. Hide your tampon on the way to the toilet. Flush away any trace of blood as quickly as possible. Push through the pain. Carry on as normal. Treat your period as an inconvenience to be managed rather than a natural rhythm to be understood.

As I think about my own journey, from menarche (my first period) through to my forties, I realise that I was taught how to manage my periods, but not how to understand them.

I remember a brief biology lesson at school where our teacher demonstrated how a tampon expanded by dropping it into a glass of water. Beyond that, there was very little conversation. We were handed a packet of pads, given the basics of reproduction, and then expected to navigate the next forty years of our reproductive lives with remarkably little understanding of what was happening inside our own bodies.

I knew how to use a tampon, and I knew roughly when to expect my next bleed. But nobody explained that my menstrual cycle was one of the clearest indicators of my health, or that my hormones would influence my energy, mood, creativity and capacity throughout the month. Nobody told me that my body wasn't supposed to feel the same every day, or that those shifts were not a flaw to overcome but part of a healthy, intelligent rhythm.

The more I've learnt about women's health, the more I've come to believe that almost everything we were taught about our menstrual cycle was back to front.

Your Period Is Not the Main Event

Most of us think of the menstrual cycle as beginning and ending with our period. In reality, your period is the conclusion of an entire cycle. The real biological event is ovulation.

Every month, your body prepares for the possibility of creating new life. Hormones rise and fall in an intricate dance, an egg matures, the lining of the uterus thickens in preparation for implantation, and only when pregnancy doesn't occur does the body begin to shed that lining.

Your period isn't the main event. It's the closing chapter.

When we only pay attention to the bleed, we miss the extraordinary intelligence of everything that came before it.

Your Menstrual Cycle Is a Vital Sign

We often monitor our blood pressure, heart rate and temperature as indicators of health. Our menstrual cycle deserves the same respect.

A healthy cycle can tell us an enormous amount about what's happening inside the body. It reflects the complex relationship between our hormones, nervous system, nutrition, stress levels and overall wellbeing. Stress, illness, under-eating, over-exercising and significant life changes can all influence the cycle.

Rather than judging those changes as the body "failing", perhaps we can begin to recognise them as vital information.

Our bodies are constantly communicating with us.

The question is whether we've learnt to listen.

Period Blood Is Not Dirty

One of the oldest myths surrounding menstruation is that period blood is somehow unclean. Yet biologically, menstrual blood is simply blood mixed with the uterine lining that your body lovingly created in preparation for a possible pregnancy. It isn't dirty. The shame surrounding menstruation has never been rooted in biology. It's cultural.

For centuries, menstruating women were considered impure. In different cultures they were excluded from religious ceremonies, separated from their communities or taught to conceal their bleeding at all costs. Although much has changed, many of us still carry echoes of those beliefs today. We whisper when asking for a tampon, apologise if we leak through our clothes and hope nobody notices that we're bleeding.

Perhaps the greatest inheritance many women received wasn't knowledge. It was shame.

The Fascinating Science of Menstrual Blood

One of the discoveries that completely changed the way I think about menstruation is that menstrual blood contains specialised stem cells, known as menstrual stem cells. Researchers are exploring their remarkable regenerative potential because, in laboratory settings, these cells appear able to multiply rapidly and develop into different types of tissue. Scientists are investigating whether they could one day contribute to advances in regenerative medicine, although this research is still in its early stages.

I find that extraordinary.

For something so often dismissed as ‘waste’, menstrual blood is teaching science new things.

Long before researchers began studying these cells, many ancient cultures held menstruation in deep reverence. Menstrual blood was seen as connected to fertility, renewal and the cycles of life itself. While some of those traditions may seem unfamiliar today, they remind us that not every culture viewed menstruation through a lens of shame.

Perhaps our ancestors understood something we have forgotten.

Pain Is Information

Many of us have been taught that painful periods are simply something we have to endure. While some discomfort can be a normal part of menstruation, pain that regularly stops you from living your life deserves attention.

Pain isn't a personal failing. Nor is it something you simply have to ‘put up with.’ Our bodies use symptoms to communicate.

Severe period pain can sometimes be linked to conditions such as endometriosis, adenomyosis or fibroids, while changes in our cycle can reflect stress, inflammation or hormonal imbalance.

Listening to the body doesn't mean fearing every symptom. It means becoming curious about what it might be trying to tell us.

Every Phase Has Something to Teach Us

One of the greatest gifts of cycle awareness is discovering that every phase has its own wisdom.

Menstruation invites rest and reflection. Inner Spring brings fresh energy and possibility. Inner Summer encourages connection, creativity and visibility. Inner Autumn asks us to slow down, become discerning and notice what no longer feels aligned.

Once I began understanding my cycle and aligning my life through the lens of the Inner Seasons, I stopped expecting myself to feel exactly the same every day of the month.

Instead of fighting my body, I began working with it. That simple shift changed everything.

It's Time we told a a Different Story

Imagine how different things might be if girls grew up understanding that their cycle wasn't an inconvenience but an extraordinary source of information. Imagine if they learnt that their changing energy wasn't something to apologise for, that rest wasn't a sign of weakness, and that every phase of their cycle had something to offer. Instead of feeling frustrated by their bodies, perhaps they would grow up trusting them.

I often wonder how different my own relationship with myself would have been if I'd learnt these things sooner. How much energy I might have saved had I stopped fighting my body and started listening to it. Understanding my menstrual cycle hasn't simply helped me navigate my hormones; it's changed the way I move through life. It has taught me that I don't need to feel the same every day to be healthy, successful or worthy. Like nature itself, I am allowed to have seasons.

Perhaps that's the real invitation of cyclical living. It isn't simply about understanding your menstrual cycle. It's about remembering that you are part of nature, not separate from it. And when you stop expecting yourself to bloom all year round, you begin to discover the incredible wisdom your body has been trying to share with you all along.

Ready to Understand Your Body in a Different Way?

If this article has resonated with you, perhaps you're beginning to see your menstrual cycle—and your body—through a different lens. Maybe you've spent years feeling frustrated by your hormones, confused by the changes happening throughout your cycle, or disconnected from the wisdom your body has been trying to share with you.

I offer one-to-one coaching, which gives you a compassionate space to slow down and become curious. Together, we'll explore your unique rhythms, identify the patterns that may have gone unnoticed for years, and help you build a more trusting relationship with your body. Whether you're navigating your menstrual cycle, perimenopause or another significant life transition, my role isn't to tell you what your body is saying—it's to help you learn how to listen to it yourself.

If you'd like to explore working together, I'd love to invite you to apply for a complimentary Discovery Call. It's a relaxed, no-obligation conversation where we can talk about what's bringing you here and whether coaching feels like the right next step.

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