Why do some women experience extreme tiredness during their periods. How can menstrual fatigue be linked to underlying health conditions. What are the common causes of period-related weakness and exhaustion.

The Impact of Heavy Menstrual Bleeding on Energy Levels

Menstrual cycles can significantly affect a woman’s energy levels, with many experiencing fatigue and weakness during their periods. This phenomenon, often referred to as “period fatigue,” is particularly prevalent in women who experience heavy menstrual bleeding, or menorrhagia.

Heavy periods affect approximately one in three women, leading many to seek medical treatment. But what exactly constitutes a heavy period?

• Soaking through at least one sanitary product per hour
• Needing to use both a pad and tampon simultaneously
• Having to change sanitary products during the night
• Bleeding that lasts more than a week
• Passing large blood clots
• Interference with daily activities

If you’re experiencing these symptoms, it’s crucial not to ignore them. Heavy bleeding can be a sign of underlying health issues and should be addressed by a healthcare professional.

Hormonal Fluctuations and Their Role in Menstrual Fatigue

The menstrual cycle is governed by hormonal changes, particularly fluctuations in estrogen and progesterone levels. During menstruation, estrogen levels decrease, which can contribute to feelings of fatigue and weakness.

For most women, energy levels typically return to normal within a few days as hormone levels begin to rise again. However, some women may experience more prolonged and severe fatigue, which could be indicative of other issues.

Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) and Fatigue

Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is a common condition that affects many women in the days leading up to their period. While the exact cause of PMS is not fully understood, it’s believed to be related to hormonal fluctuations, pre-existing mental health conditions, and lifestyle factors.

Symptoms of PMS can include:

• Extreme fatigue
• Mood swings
• Irritability
• Bloating
• Breast tenderness
• Headaches

In some cases, these symptoms can be severe enough to interfere with daily life. When PMS symptoms are particularly intense, it may be diagnosed as Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), which requires more extensive medical care.

Iron Deficiency Anemia: A Common Culprit Behind Period Weakness

One of the most frequent causes of severe fatigue during menstruation is iron deficiency anemia. This condition often results from heavy menstrual bleeding, which can lead to significant blood loss over time.

How can you identify iron deficiency anemia? Common symptoms include:

• Extreme tiredness
• Pale skin
• Shortness of breath
• Heart palpitations

Diagnosis typically involves a full blood test to assess red blood cell count. If iron deficiency anemia is confirmed, treatment usually involves iron supplements and dietary changes to increase iron intake. In cases where heavy periods are the root cause, medication may be prescribed to manage menstrual flow.

Thyroid Disorders and Their Impact on Menstrual Energy Levels

The thyroid gland plays a crucial role in regulating metabolism and energy levels. Disorders affecting this small, butterfly-shaped gland in the neck can significantly impact a woman’s menstrual cycle and overall energy levels.

Hypothyroidism: When the Thyroid Is Underactive

An underactive thyroid, or hypothyroidism, occurs when the thyroid gland doesn’t produce enough hormones. This condition affects about 15 in 1000 women in the UK and can lead to various symptoms, including:

• Extreme fatigue
• Constant sleepiness despite adequate rest
• Weight gain
• Feelings of depression

Women experiencing these symptoms, particularly if they coincide with menstrual fatigue, should consult their healthcare provider for thyroid function tests.

Hyperthyroidism: When the Thyroid Is Overactive

Conversely, hyperthyroidism occurs when the thyroid produces an excess of hormones. While this condition can lead to increased energy levels, it can also cause:

• Irregular menstrual cycles
• Anxiety
• Rapid heartbeat
• Unexplained weight loss

Both hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism can disrupt the menstrual cycle and contribute to fatigue, making it essential to address these conditions if suspected.

The Link Between Menstrual Disorders and Chronic Fatigue

While occasional tiredness during menstruation is normal, chronic fatigue that significantly impacts daily life may be a sign of underlying menstrual disorders. Some conditions that can lead to persistent fatigue include:

• Endometriosis
• Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)
• Uterine fibroids
• Adenomyosis

These conditions can cause heavy bleeding, hormonal imbalances, and chronic pain, all of which contribute to fatigue. If you’re experiencing ongoing fatigue related to your menstrual cycle, it’s crucial to consult with a gynecologist for proper diagnosis and treatment.

Lifestyle Factors Contributing to Menstrual Fatigue

While medical conditions can certainly contribute to period-related weakness, lifestyle factors also play a significant role. Some common lifestyle-related causes of menstrual fatigue include:

• Poor sleep habits
• Inadequate nutrition
• Lack of physical activity
• High stress levels
• Dehydration

Addressing these factors can often help alleviate some of the fatigue associated with menstruation. Simple changes like maintaining a consistent sleep schedule, eating a balanced diet rich in iron and other essential nutrients, staying hydrated, and engaging in regular physical activity can make a significant difference in energy levels during your period.

When to Seek Medical Help for Menstrual Fatigue

While some level of fatigue during menstruation is normal, there are instances when it’s crucial to seek medical attention. You should consult a healthcare provider if:

• Fatigue is severe enough to interfere with daily activities
• You experience extreme tiredness that doesn’t improve with rest
• Fatigue is accompanied by heavy bleeding or severe pain
• You notice sudden changes in your menstrual cycle or energy levels
• Fatigue persists beyond your menstrual period

A healthcare professional can help determine if your fatigue is related to your menstrual cycle or if there’s an underlying condition that needs to be addressed. They may recommend blood tests, hormone level checks, or other diagnostic procedures to get to the root of the issue.

Managing and Treating Menstrual Fatigue

Dealing with period-related weakness and exhaustion can be challenging, but there are several strategies that can help manage and alleviate these symptoms:

Medical Treatments

Depending on the underlying cause of your menstrual fatigue, your doctor may recommend:

• Iron supplements for anemia
• Hormone therapy to regulate menstrual cycles
• Thyroid medication for thyroid disorders
• Pain relief medication for menstrual cramps and discomfort
• Oral contraceptives to manage heavy bleeding

Lifestyle Adjustments

In addition to medical treatments, certain lifestyle changes can significantly improve energy levels during menstruation:

• Prioritize sleep and aim for 7-9 hours per night
• Maintain a balanced diet rich in iron, B vitamins, and other essential nutrients
• Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water throughout the day
• Engage in regular, moderate exercise
• Practice stress-reduction techniques like meditation or yoga
• Limit caffeine and alcohol intake, especially during your period

By combining appropriate medical care with healthy lifestyle habits, many women find that they can effectively manage menstrual fatigue and maintain their energy levels throughout their cycle.

Understanding the various factors that contribute to feeling weak during your period is the first step in addressing this common issue. Whether it’s due to heavy bleeding, hormonal imbalances, or underlying health conditions, period-related fatigue should not be ignored. By working closely with healthcare providers and making necessary lifestyle adjustments, women can take control of their menstrual health and minimize the impact of fatigue on their daily lives.

Remember, every woman’s experience with menstruation is unique. What works for one person may not work for another, so it’s important to be patient and persistent in finding the right combination of treatments and lifestyle changes that work best for you. With the right approach, it’s possible to navigate your menstrual cycle with greater ease and maintain your energy levels throughout the month.

Why You Should Not Ignore Tiredness during Your Period

09 July 2019    by – Dr Demetri C Panayi

Feeling fatigued and tired is a common occurrence that can be a direct impact of excessive physical activity, lack of sleep, unhealthy eating habits, or a side effect of some types of medication. Although most of these causes can be controlled and avoided, tiredness during the weeks leading up to (PMS) and during your period may be caused by an underlying health issue.

Many women suffer from menorrhagia, which is more commonly known as heavy periods. Around 1 in 3 women will seek treatment for the issue.

If heavy bleeding is interfering with your everyday life, you shouldn’t ignore it, as your body could be telling you there is something seriously wrong.

When Is a Period Heavy?

Throughout your menstrual cycle, the degree of menstrual bleeding differs from woman to woman; a period can be considered ‘heavy” when the following symptoms occur:

• At least one sanitary towel or tampon is soaked through each hour
• A pad and a tampon is used at the same time
• Waking up in the night to change sanitary product
• Bleeding for more than a week
• Large blood clots
• Normal day-to-day activities are affected

Extreme Tiredness May Be An Underlying Medical Condition

Heavy menstrual bleeding often causes women to feel tired, commonly known as period fatigue. This is normal due to the decrease in oestrogen levels, which occurs around this point in your menstrual cycle. Your energy levels will usually return to normal within a few days as your hormone levels begin to increase again. However, for some women, period fatigue and mood swings may last longer and be more extreme. Some women may experience pre-menstrual symptoms and find themselves completely sluggish and unable to properly carry out routine activities, signifying something more severe.

This should be investigated as there could, in fact, be a medical reason or underlining gynaecological conditions as to why your energy levels are low and you feel so fatigued during your period. You may generally be a person whose periods cause them to feel more tired than others, or you might have an underlying medical issue like anaemia or an underactive thyroid. The important point to make is that you should never ignore extreme menstrual fatigue.

Premenstrual syndrome

A few women will experience a combination of symptoms in a predictable pattern before their period. Premenstrual syndrome describes extreme changes in physical and emotional health that appear before the onset of your period and persist for a few days after it starts. Whilst PMS some symptoms are similar to those experienced during a period, their severity significantly interrupts everyday life and creates physical and mental suffering.

Even though the precise cause of premenstrual syndrome is unknown, research points to hormone shifts, pre-existing mental health issues, and particular lifestyle variables as significant factors. Premenstrual dysphoric disorder is the term used to describe very severe types of premenstrual syndrome, which need for further medical care.

Iron Deficiency Anaemia

The most common cause of iron deficiency anaemia is menorrhagia since there is often a significant amount of blood loss. The symptoms of iron deficiency anaemia include tiredness, pale skin, shortness of breath and heart palpitations during your menstrual cycles.

A diagnosis can be given after carrying out a full blood test to determine whether the number of red blood cells is within the normal range. If diagnosed with iron deficiency anaemia, your doctor will normally advise you to take iron supplements and improve your diet to increase the amount of iron-rich foods you eat; to compensate for the loss of nutrients during heavy periods.

Where heavy periods are the reason for your anaemia, medication is typically prescribed by your GP. There are several treatment options available for menorrhagia, and these will vary from patient to patient depending on several factors, including severity, medical history and lifestyle. Where medication is ineffective, surgical treatment may be recommended.

Hypothyroidism and Hyperthyroidism

The thyroid is a small butterfly-shaped gland found in the neck, the function of which is to produce hormones to regulate the metabolism of your body naturally.

Some women who experience extreme period fatigue and tiredness may find that they have an underactive thyroid, which means your thyroid is not producing enough hormones. Symptoms include feeling exhausted and wanting to sleep all the time even if you have had a full ‘night’s rest. Other common symptoms include weight gain and feelings of depression. Around 15 in 1000, women in the UK will suffer from hypothyroidism.

The opposite might occur where the thyroid is overactive and produces an excess of certain hormones; this is called hyperthyroidism.

Your GP can determine if you have a thyroid problem by carrying out a thyroid function test, taking a blood sample to measure hormone levels. If diagnosed, hormone replacement tablets are prescribed and should be taken daily, with blood tests being carried out regularly to monitor hormone levels.

Period Fatigue Recommendations

If you are experiencing heavy periods or extreme period fatigue, ensure that you see your GP or a private gynaecologist to outline whether it is due to any underlying health issues or not.

Some ways to combat the feeling of tiredness during your period include drinking plenty of water to avoid dehydration, improving sleep quality by getting at least 8 hours of sleep, and doing some physical activity or exercise – as it is the best fighter of period fatigue.

Private Gynaecologist London

Why Am I So Tired During My Period?

Why Am I So Tired During My Period?

Periods tend to bring on a slew of unwanted symptoms, outside of the obviously unwelcome bleeding. Lower energy levels are one of them, and when paired with cramps, they can really put a damper on your day. Period (or PMS) fatigue can make you want to crawl back into bed, turn on Netflix and reach for your favorite comfort food – but that’s not necessarily the best plan to help you get through it. Let’s talk about why your energy levels tank during your time of the month, and how you can learn to combat fatigue and power through.

What’s the Deal? 

During the second half of the menstrual cycle, around the time women start experiencing symptoms of PMS, estrogen levels peak and then fall quickly – causing you to feel tired or sluggish. In the last week (during your period), estrogen levels will continue to fall, carrying this unpleasant feeling through the end of your cycle. ¹

Other culprits could be iron deficiency related to your period, stress, unhealthy eating habits, or the obvious answer, lack of sleep. The CDC recommends more than 7 hours of sleep each night² – so if you’re getting less than that, more sleep might be the key to a more manageable time of the month.

If your flow feels abnormally heavy, or you have symptoms that just feel like they have to be something more, it’s possible there are other reasons at play too, like uterine fibroids or abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB). These are known causes of heavy menstrual bleeding that could cause some of the symptoms mentioned above. And the fact is, they’re also pretty common. 70% of women have uterine fibroids, and 80% of African American women will develop fibroids by the age of 50.³ However, not all women experience fibroid symptoms, which include stomach and pelvic pain, anemia, frequent urination and other debilitating symptoms that could lead to physical exhaustion, which makes it even more important to talk to your doctor if you feel like you’re experiencing an unusually heavy flow. ⁴  

What Can I Do? 

Your first instinct for dealing with period fatigue may be to close your eyes again, but that might only make the situation worse. Physical activity can actually increase your energy levels and boost your mood. Try taking on a new workout with a friend to help keep your energy up or keep track of your physical activity in a fitness journal. Hormonal birth control can help to regulate these hormones, and while your hormones will still rise and fall, the symptoms may be less noticeable, just be sure to talk to your doctor before taking a hormonal therapy.¹ Also, we know sluggishness and cramps can make you crave those salty and sweet treats – but be sure to eat nutritious foods and drink plenty of water during your period. Dehydration is a common contributor to low energy levels, so make sure you are tracking your water intake too.

What if it’s Not That Easy? 

Extreme fatigue, pain, or heavy bleeding during your period that causes you to stay home and skip out on daily activities could indicate something more serious. If you’re experiencing extremely low energy levels in addition to other symptoms, like heavy or prolonged bleeding, symptomatic uterine fibroids or AUB could be the underlying conditions causing these symptoms and that low-energy feeling. 

Luckily, there are some treatment options to consider with your doctor if some of the more holistic recommendations haven’t worked for you and the symptoms of your period are affecting your quality of life. For example, medical procedures such as, intra-uterine tissue removal procedures and laparoscopic radiofrequency ablation, both of which require little to no incisions, are treatment options for women experiencing the disruptive symptoms of fibroids. Furthermore, there are other safe and effective options for women who are finished having children. For more information and to learn more, check out the resources listed below: 

Laparoscopic Radiofrequency Ablation (Lap-RFA)

Lap-RFA is a minimally invasive procedure that delivers heat directly into a fibroid in order to destroy its tissue and relieve symptoms. It addresses fibroids in most locations and may provide relief from heavy periods and bloating symptoms.⁵ The procedure recovery time varies but is most frequently between 4-5 days.⁶

Intra-uterine Tissue Removal

An intra-uterine tissue removal procedure is a uterine sparing procedure that removes fibroids, polyps and other intrauterine tissue. The typically outpatient procedure is minimally invasive and is administered through the body’s natural openings (i.e. through the vagina).⁷ 

Endometrial Ablation

Endometrial ablation is a one-time, five-minute procedure that can safely and effectively reduce or eliminate heavy menstrual bleeding. The minimally invasive procedure removes the uterine lining and is appropriate for women who are finished with childbearing and desire relief from heavy bleeding.⁸ 

Talk to an OBGYN in your area about your symptoms of abnormal uterine bleeding and potential treatment options that might be right for you.

References

1. Physical activity and your menstrual cycle. Office on Women’s Health. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. https://www.womenshealth.gov/getting-active/physical-activity-menstrual-cycle.
2. “How Much Sleep Do I Need?” Sleep and Sleep Disorders. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/sleep/about_sleep/how_much_sleep.html.
3. Baird DD, Dunson DB, Hill MV, Cousins D, Schechtman JM. High cumulative incidence of uterine leiomyoma in black and white women: ultrasound evidence. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2003; 188:100—107.
4. Mayo Clinic—Uterine Fibroids—www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/uterine-fibroids/symptoms-causes/syc-20354288
5. Acessa ProVu Instructions for Use, ProVu Users Guide PL-01-0040
6. SG Chudnoff, et al. Outpatient Procedure for the Treatment and Relief of Symptomatic Uterine Myomas. Obstetrics and Gynecology, 2013;121(5):1075-82.
7. McIlwaine P, McElhinney B, Karthigasu KA, Hart R, A Prospective Study of the Use of the MyoSure Resectoscope to Manage Endometrial Polyps in an Outpatient Setting. The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. October 2015.
8. NovaSure Instructions for Use.

Hypomenorrhea or scanty periods – treatment in Kyiv

Monthly bleeding from the vagina is a natural consequence of cyclic hormonal changes in a woman’s body. A condition where menstruation also occurs regularly, but with scanty blood flow, is considered a gynecological disorder and requires treatment. Hypomenorrhea – this is the name of this pathology, characterized by a decrease in the volume of menstrual blood by 20% or more compared to normal menstruation.

Doctors of the Gynecology Department of the Center “Meddiagnostics”.

Lyudmila Ivanovna Mokhon

Obstetrician-gynecologist, ultrasound diagnostician

Price for services

Make an appointment with a gynecologist Meddiagnostika Center, Kiev , left bank, 250 meters from the Darnitsa metro station, Stroiteley lane, house 4. Location on the map

Diagnostics and treatment in one building.

Normal menstruation is considered to be bleeding occurring within 3-7 days with a blood loss of 20 ml to 60 ml per day. Scanty menstruation is a process that lasts up to 2 days with blood loss of less than 20 ml per day.

Classification of hypomenorrhea and its consequences

Taking into account the duration and volume of menstruation, hypomenstrual syndrome is classified as follows:

• oligomenorrhea – the physiological process lasts 1-2 days;
• opsomenorrhea – menstruation became scarce, and the interval between them increased from 35 days to 3 months;
• hypomenorrhea – rare, short and scanty menstruation.

If uncorrected, hypomenorrhea leads to the decline of reproductive function, as a result of which a woman cannot become pregnant and carry a child normally until delivery.

What causes scanty periods

If the color of the menstrual blood is normal, the menses come on time, and the woman feels satisfactory, this condition is not a disease. If, in addition to meager discharge, other symptoms are present, the situation is considered pathological.

Important! Hypomenorrhea can be a signal of the development of a serious gynecological or endocrine disease in the patient’s body.

Answering the question: why meager periods, it is necessary to highlight several main reasons.

1. Violation of the function of the thyroid gland, which produces the hormone thyroxine, without which normal menstruation and conception are impossible.
2. Dystrophy or obesity. With a deficiency of fat in the body, the synthesis of estrogens slows down. Excess body weight leads to an excessive increase in the amount of female sex hormones, and they begin to dominate over progesterone, which is also involved in the regulation of the menstrual cycle.
3. Avitaminosis, anemia. A lack of vitamins in the body leads to a decrease in the synthesis of hormones and a deficiency of hemoglobin, which leads to poor discharge during menstruation. Against the background of hypomenorrhoea, provoked by beriberi, painful sensations appear in the lower abdomen, and infertility develops.
4. Congenital anomalies in the structure of the uterus, complicated childbirth, surgical interventions, including curettage, are also the causes of meager periods.

In medical practice, there are many cases when scanty menstruation became the first signal of a developing neuropsychiatric disorder.

Symptoms of hypomenorrhea

In addition to the fact that menstruation is scanty, other symptoms of hypomenorrhea are also characteristic:

• unnatural color of menstrual flow – from light brown to almost black;
• headache;
• nausea;
• general weakness;
• intestinal disorders;
• soreness in the lumbar region;
• spastic uterine contractions.

Some women complain of severe nosebleeds that disappear when menstruation stops. Another unpleasant sign of hypomenstrual syndrome is a decrease in sexual desire, lack of orgasm.

However, hypomenorrhea can occur without additional symptoms and without any complications other than impaired fertility. If a woman does not plan to have more children, apart from infertility, this condition does not threaten her with anything. In premenopausal women, hypomenorrhea is considered a normal phenomenon, which only indicates the beginning of a cardinal restructuring in the body.

For patients of reproductive age, whose plans include the birth of a child, it is unacceptable to ignore meager periods. Timely treatment will help a woman find the happiness of motherhood.

Methods for the treatment of scanty periods

Therapeutic measures depend on the factors that triggered the hypomenstrual syndrome. If the cause lies in a gynecological disease, the gynecologist is engaged in the treatment of the patient. Hypomenorrhea against the background of hormonal disorders is treated by a gynecologist-endocrinologist. Factors of a psychological nature are eliminated with the assistance of a psychologist, and sometimes a psychiatrist. Scanty periods caused by tuberculosis infection are treated by a gynecologist and a phthisiatrician. In case of obesity and dystrophy, the patient is simultaneously led by a dietitian.

Depending on the severity of hypomenorrhoea, its treatment can be conservative and surgical. Surgical intervention is aimed at eliminating adhesive processes. Conservative treatment consists in a course of taking drugs: hormonal, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and attending physiotherapy sessions. Vitamin preparations are aimed at filling the deficiency of minerals.

Whatever the causes of hypomenorrhea, the doctors of our diagnostic and treatment center will select an effective therapeutic regimen suitable for a particular case. Prices for services at the Meddiagnostika clinic are available for all segments of the population and are indicated in the price list.

Price for services

Make an appointment with a gynecologist 3

Diagnosis and treatment in one building.

Make an appointment
Getting there

How the menstrual cycle affects a woman’s intelligence

• Zaria Gorvette
• BBC Future

August 8, 2018

Immediately after menstruation, women improve spatial imagination, and verbal skills reach their peak in the middle of the cycle. Hormones do affect a woman’s brain, but this effect may well be positive.

Image copyright, Getty Images

This article is part of The Health Gap series about the equality of women and men in health and medicine.

First there was “hysteria”. From the priests of ancient Egypt to the bearded philosophers of classical Greece, physicians have attributed a variety of symptoms to this condition, from anxiety to erotic fantasies. Only one thing was clear: hysteria is an exclusively female disease.

Plato believed that hysteria is caused by the uterus, which is sad because she does not bear a child. His contemporaries argued that hysteria occurs when the uterus of a non-pregnant woman wanders around the body, getting stuck in different parts of it.

• Scientists have found out the cause of the syndrome that causes infertility
• Vacation for women during menstruation: what confuses you?
• Raped and without periods: how women live in the DPRK army

This last notion persisted until the 19th century, when they began to treat the disorder, bringing women to orgasm with the first mechanical vibrators.

However, even today the idea that hormones in a woman’s body affect her intellectual abilities and mood is firmly entrenched in the mass consciousness. Irritability is immediately explained by PMS, and sexual desire is explained by ovulation.

There is, of course, a good deal of truth in this. Some women do experience a lot of anxiety and irritability before and during their period, and libido really increases during ovulation.

But it is obvious that these symptoms are not always explained by hormonal changes. And most importantly, it is important to remember that the tradition of writing off any health problems as hysteria led to very dangerous consequences.

Image copyright, Getty Images

Image caption,

Some women do experience anxiety and irritability before menstruation, but on other days of the cycle, hormones have a positive effect on the female body

However, much less is known that hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle improve various types of mental activity.

It turns out that immediately after menstruation, women significantly improve some cognitive skills, in particular spatial orientation. In the third week of the cycle, women peak in communication with others, they are especially good at detecting when others are afraid.

And in other periods of the cycle, the woman’s brain even increases in size.

Let’s find out what happens in the female body.

Of course, the reason for such changes is not the uterus, but the ovaries, which produce estrogen and progesterone in different amounts during the month. The main task of these hormones is to thicken the inner lining of the uterus and release the egg. But they also seriously affect the mood and behavior of a woman.

Scientists have been studying the menstrual cycle since 1930s. This is a surprisingly popular research topic, and because of this, we now know a lot about the effect of the cycle on the female body – from when it is best for women to quit smoking, to the dreams they have on different days of the cycle.

Image copyright, Getty Images

Image caption,

Hormone fluctuations – monthly in women and seasonal in men – affect the differences between the male and female brain and a woman, and above all, how different their brains are.

Scientists have long assumed that hormones are the root cause.

“Women’s brains are affected by the menstrual cycle, while men’s brains are affected by seasonal fluctuations in testosterone levels,” says Markus Hausmann, a neuroscientist at the University of Durham.

Women, for example, have better social skills. They have a more developed ability to empathize and understand that the worldview of other people may differ from theirs.

They also have better communication skills. This partly explains the fact that boys are four times more likely than girls to be diagnosed with mild forms of autism, while girls are able to mask the symptoms of the disorder.

“Female children speak earlier, women are generally more fluent in language and learn spelling faster,” says Pauline Mackie, a psychologist at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Image copyright, Getty Images

Image caption,

Women have better verbal skills than men. Perhaps this is due to evolution, since women must pass on information to their children

This is obviously a consequence of evolution, because mothers, who are able to articulate their thoughts, are better at conveying vital knowledge to their children, for example, about the dangers of poisonous plants.

But do hormones influence these skills? And to what extent?

Hormonal balance

Back in 2002, researchers found that at the peak of the female hormone estrogen, women performed much worse on spatial reasoning tasks (usually good for men), but performed well on linguistic tasks (in which women usually have an advantage). ).

When estrogen levels dropped, spatial imagination skills were restored.

Image copyright, Getty Images

Image caption,

High levels of estrogen in a woman’s blood impair her ability to solve spatial problems scientists, is very important for the development of communication skills.

“Subconscious memory” manifests itself when we suddenly use in our speech words that are not inherent to us or not entirely clear, which we have recently heard or read.

Estrogen actively influences two adjacent parts of the brain. The first is the hippocampus, which is involved in storing memories and is very important for social skills. The ability to remember your experiences helps you better understand the motives of other people.

Interestingly, this region of the brain increases every month when the hormone estrogen enters the blood of a woman.

The second area, the amygdala, is involved in the processing of emotions, primarily fear, and helps to make decisions in critical situations.

Image copyright, Getty Images

Image caption,

Female hormones improve language skills

It is also very important in communication, as understanding what the other person is afraid of, and reasoning about whether we should be afraid of it, contributes to vision situations from the point of view of the interlocutor.

This ability also allows us to make moral judgments and even lie.

Studies show that the ability to recognize the fear of another person coincides with the peak of estrogen in a woman’s body. This is confirmed by the fact that women in general have better social skills than men.

Psychologist Polina Maki is sure that the influence of the menstrual cycle on our brain is completely random.

Image copyright, Getty Images

Image caption,

Estrogen is what makes women more empathetic and sees things from the other person’s point of view.

Researchers at one time came to the conclusion that, as if in the period of the greatest probability of fertilization, women prefer men with masculine, symmetrical features. The discovery, of course, received wide publicity.

However, none of the subsequent large-scale studies could confirm this hypothesis.

Girl power

Whatever the reasons for this monthly transformation, the female brain obviously has some other advantages.

So, unlike men, when solving any problem, such as a mathematical problem, women use both hemispheres of the brain.

The distribution of activity between the right and left hemispheres is relatively constant. “This is primarily manifested in the activity of the hands,” explains Markus Hausmann. “For example, if I am right-handed, the language processes in my brain occur predominantly in the left hemisphere.”

This specialization is not accidental, as many animals, from fish to amphibians, have similar brains.

Image copyright, Getty Images

Image caption,

Women use both hemispheres of the brain more often, which contributes to the flexibility of thinking

Why a woman’s brain is smaller is a big mystery. But perhaps the reason is its greater flexibility.

As far back as 2002, Hausmann found that the tendency to use both hemispheres peaks when estrogen and progesterone levels peak during the cycle.