What Nobody Told You About Your Circadian Rhythm
How your period affects your sleep
In my continuous search to understand how my body works and how to optimise my health, I recently read a book called “The Circadian Code”. Written by one of the world’s leading experts on circadian rhythms, it is full of data-backed recommendations to optimize our lifestyle.
The book explains how each organ in our body has its own circadian rhythm and the many health benefits of identifying and living in sync with these timing, one of the biggest ones being the promise to regulate our hormones.
Sounds straight-forward: if you eat and sleep well, your body will start working at its peak.
However, this might not be entirely true for menstruating folks.
Your period affects everything
I have previously mentioned how hormones affect everything you do, from the decisions you take, to the exercise you are able to do. The circadian rhythm could not be an exception.
Even though research on circadian rhythm is quite niche and limited, recent studies have found that hormonal changes during your menstrual cycle can have an effect on it.
Interestingly enough, sleep disruptions are 1.5–2 times more common in women than in men, and these kinds of disruptions tend to happen mostly in the post-ovulatory phase of our cycle.
This is the same time of our cycle when we tend to feel more tired, and when those suffering from PMS symptoms see the highest discomfort. Evidence also shows a general reduced REM sleep cycle during this phase, which could be highly related to the increase in cortisol levels.
Other articles highlight that “disruptions of circadian rhythms are associated with disturbances in menstrual function.”
This only seems to worsen the situation — we will have irregular cycles by not living in sync with our circadian rhythm, but this same rhythm changes during our 28-day hormonal cycle.
Living in sync was never more important
All of the above just comes to highlight once again that it is important to listen to our bodies as much as possible.
We cannot expect women to always perform in the same way, when our hormonal profile is completely different to that of men.
Whilst men can wake up energized everyday, motivated by a spike in testosterone, women’s energy levels might not be so straightforward.
If we pair this with the circadian disruptions identified in the studies above, we can further explain why our energy levels and motivation changes during the month.
The way to be able to honor these changes is to rest when you feel like that — to not feel like you have to push yourself to the extreme. Your body is already doing enough by trying to shed your uterus.
Losing motivation
Last week, I felt completely exhausted, and I knew why: my period was a couple of days late and it had been a crazy work week.
However, when it came to giving myself rest, despite everything I preach for in my articles, I found myself being very frustrated by my luck of productivity.
When we have the flu, we have soup and sleep fourteen hours a day.
However, when we are feeling tired or emotionally overwhelmed, we tend to neglect ourselves. We feel like we are wasting time, we are lazy, and we just lack the motivation needed.
In reality, we are just human — our body is going through changes. If we are not able to have the same level of restorative rest as at other times of the month, we will of course feel more tired.
When we begin to listen to our body, we might feel uncertain at first, thinking we are letting ourselves go. However, I ensure you that once you start doing it, you can better optimize for everything.
By allowing yourself to rest and to feel like you are not being productive, you will see how you have more energy when you are feeling better rested. By honoring your “lows”, you will experience your “highs” with more force.
If you are feeling unmotivated, tired or anxious, look at where you are on your cycle — chances are, your period is coming. And it is time for some good rest.
The fight against yourself ends here.
Disclaimer: This article is only for informational purposes and it is not aimed to give professional advice. If you are experiencing any health issues, you should seek help from a medical professional.
hormonal stories is a publication born to give a voice to all menstruating folks and break the silence on period pain. We want to rewrite old narratives and visibilise hidden struggles. Join the conversation! Write for us (link) #hormonalstories
