Let’s take a little closer look at the monthly cycle of hormones for women. Sadly this is a VERY overlooked area of education, and most women don’t even know what phases their body is going through at any given time.
Frankly, we find this unacceptable.
If you know how your cycle works, then you can support your body well.
If you know how your cycle works, then you can understand why you feel better or worse on certain days.
If you know how your cycle works, you can even create nourishing routines to meet your body’s specific needs during that time in your cycle.
Here is a brief overview of what a female hormone cycle looks like:
Phase 1: Menstrual Phase (Week 1– Day 1 (first day of period) to Day 7)
- On day 1 of your cycle, progesterone plunges and the lining of the uterus sheds. Estrogen levels are also at their lowest, and throughout this week of bleeding, estrogen starts a steady climb. During this week, your energy is the lowest in your cycle and you may feel tired and withdrawn. You may want to rest more than you usually do, or even take a day off, if possible.
Phase 2 — The Follicular Phase (Week 2 – Day 8 to ovulation):
- This phase follows just after menstruation. It’s called the Follicular phase because your pituitary gland releases a hormone called Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH), which stimulates the follicles in your ovaries to mature. Estrogen and testosterone rise till they peak.
- Fun fact: You build more muscle and build it faster when you do resistance exercises during the first half of your cycle—your Week 1 and Week 2—compared to when doing them in the second half of your cycle—your Week 3 and Week 4—thanks to rising estrogen.
Phase 3 — The Ovulatory Phase (Begins the day after ovulation and lasts 8 days)
- Ovulation is the culmination of all the hard work your body has been doing over the last couple of weeks. An egg gets released from its follicle in your ovary and will survive for 12-24 hours. Progesterone rises; estrogen and testosterone rise to peak levels, making this a time you likely feel great.
Phase 4 — The Luteal Phase (Week 4 – Final 6 days of your cycle)
- The first 2 to 3 days of this phase will feel a lot like the ovulatory phase. That changes when estrogen and testosterone decline and your body starts producing progesterone.
- The second half of this phase, however, is notoriously difficult for many women. You might feel PMS symptoms like cravings for carbohydrate-heavy comfort foods, bloating, breast tenderness, headaches, anxiety and moodiness. These symptoms are not all in your head but they aren’t something you should suffer through either.
Clearly the levels of hormones in our bodies are meant to fluctuate throughout the month, but almost all women are starting at a hormone deficit (at least with progesterone!), making all of the symptoms of each phase even more acute.
Estrogen and progesterone are needed in some amount every day of the month. Depending on your situation, you may find that support for both hormones works best for you!
Let’s talk about how to get this support. First up, progesterone.
If you determine that you are one of the many women who do need extra progesterone, how do you get it?
This is usually where conventional HRT comes in. However, many of these hormones are made with horse urine, medroxy-progesterone acetate, and other synthetic progestins. These are VERY different from what is found in plants or in your body. Plus, their long term effects have some dramatic risk factors.
Natural hormones are easily recognized by the body. It says, “Hey! I know you! And I know exactly where you need to go to help me.” This is why we love phyto-progesterones like the ones in Progessence Plus!
Progessence Plus is our BFF. It is a pure progesterone serum from wild yam that is infused with Sacred Frankincense essential oil. This serum easily absorbs into the skin and also contains the nourishing oils Copaiba, Cedarwood, Bergamot, Peppermint, and Clove giving it many added benefits for supporting and stabilizing mood.
Fun bonus: Clinical studies are also showing that essential oils can enhance the ability of natural hormones to penetrate the skin, allowing us even more benefit. This way we quickly get our new progesterone on its way to that estrogen that’s been left hanging.
Another great option for female hormone support is FemiGen!
FemiGen is a twice-daily supplement that combines whole-food herbs including wild yam, damiana, and dong quai with synergistic amino acids, and clary sage, fennel, ylang ylang, and sage essential oils.
FemiGen specifically supports the female reproductive system through estrogen balance and helps maintain and nourish the reproductive system from development through menopause.
Happy Hormones Habits
- Apply Progessence Plus daily to the wrists or front of the throat.
- Take FemiGen twice daily.
- Maintain your baseline supplements to nourish your hormones and body in general – NingXia Red, Mineral Essence, Super B, Green Omega 3s.