Extending from each side of the uterus are the fallopian tubes. Near the end of each fallopian tube is an ovary. The ovaries are almond-sized organs which produce eggs. Each ovary contains from 200,000 to 400,000 follicles. These follicles contain the material necessary to produce eggs.

The inner lining of the uterus is called the endometrium. The endometrium sheds during menstruation. Your menstrual flow also contains blood and mucus from the cervix and vagina. When pregnancy occurs, the endometrium thickens and fills with blood vessels that mature into the placenta that houses the growing fetus.

There are 6 hormones that serve as chemical messengers to your reproductive system:

• Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH)
• Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH)
• Luteinizing hormone (LH)
• Estrogen
• Progesterone
• Testosterone

During your menstrual cycle, GnRH is released first by the hypothalamus. This causes a chemical reaction in the pituitary gland and stimulates the production of FSH and LH. Estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone (yes, the male hormone) are produced by the ovaries in reaction to stimulation by FSH and LH. When these hormones work in unison, normal menstrual cycles occur. (End of article by Tracee Cornforth)
Béatrice Duplantier-Rhea N.D.... you might want to read this article about Xenoestrogens

Irregular Periods
Suffering from irregular periods is a fairly clear indication that your cycles have become imbalanced. There are a variety of reasons for this and also many ways to address the imbalance. Many women are unconcerned about having irregular cycles until they begin trying for a baby, but other women find it very difficult to plan without knowing when their periods could appear.

What are irregular periods?
Irregular periods are simply those that are not regular. If you suffer from irregular periods, you simply will not know when your period is going to appear. Cycles can vary from 23 to 35 days, but they are classed as regular if your periods occur at roughly the same time each cycle. So, even if your periods are, say, 35 days apart instead of the usual 28, but they always appear at day 35, they would be classified as being 'normal'. Irregular periods can be extremely difficult or even impossible to track.

What symptoms could you experience?
Minor cycle irregularities are common. For example, you may have your period on day 23 of one month and then the next month on day 35. You may, however, have a much more irregular cycle, in which case it is important that you have further investigations, so that other problems, such as polycystic ovary syndrome can be ruled out. The following symptoms are characteristic of irregular periods, and you can experience a combination of any or all of these:

1. Large gaps with no periods
2. Some gaps and then periods coming too frequently for a while (for example, two in one month) followed by gaps again.
3. Gaps of no periods and then bleeding continuously for a few weeks.
4. Spotting in between period.

Heavy Periods (Menorrhagia)
Every woman's periods are different, and it can be difficult to assess whether or not your bleeding is heavier than it should be. Periods are obviously a personal subject, and most of us have no way of knowing if our bleeding is the same as that of our friends or anyone else. How do specialists gauge it? Well, thanks to a number of women who sent their sanitary towels and tampons to a lab for analysis, we now know what is considered to be 'normal'.

On average, we lose about 6-8 teaspoons (35ml), or about half an eggcup, over the course of a period. Some women lose more and others less, but this figure acts as a benchmark for an average woman in an average cycle.

Are your periods heavy?
The easiest way to gauge whether your periods are unusually heavy is to work out how often you are changing whatever form of protection you are using. For example, if you have to change your tampon or pad every hour or sooner, or if you frequently leak in the night, chances are your periods are abnormally heavy.

For some women, symptoms are so extreme that they will actually flood to the point of haemorrhaging. I have had women describe flooding through their clothes and all over the car seat while driving. The blood may also contain clots that look like pieces of liver, which can be alarming. Some women have said that their flow has become so unpredictable and intense that they cannot stray far from a toilet. Many women reach the point where their lives are being planned around their periods.

When your period begins to affect the quality of your life and your ability to work, it's undoubtedly something that must be addressed.

Are there other symptoms?
Depending upon the cause of the heavy periods (also called menorrhagia), you may experience cramping or other symptoms. Heavy periods that cannot be medically explained often have no other symptoms.

What are your choices?
For many women with heavy periods, there is nothing wrong from a gynaecological point of view, except for the fact that there is excess bleeding. You may be building up more womb lining than necessary, which needs to be shed every month. Furthermore, your womb, which functions as a muscle, may be poorly toned, causing more bleeding than normal.

One of the aims of the natural approach to heavy periods is to ensure that your hormones are balanced. If you have excess estrogen, your womb lining can build up. Not only is what you eat important but supplements are added to make the dietary changes more effective in a shorter period of time.

Suggested products: Menstrual Reg or FCS II

No Periods   (Amenorrhoea)
Periods can be missed both at the beginning and end of our reproductive life. In the beginning, when we enter puberty, hormones can take a number of months to settle down into a proper rhythm. Much the same thing occurs as we move towards the menopause, and missing periods can be quite common. There are also natural reasons why we do not have periods - for example, during pregnancy and while breastfeeding . However, if you suffer from an absence of periods for more than six months, without any of these natural causes or at these normal times, you can be sure that what you are experiencing is not natural.

What is amenorrhoea?
The term 'amenorrhoea' literally means 'the absence of periods'. It may seem like a fairly straightforward diagnosis - either you have periods, or you don't. However, amenorrhoea is not a diagnosed condition, but a symptom of another problem. There are a wide variety of reasons why you may not be having periods, and you must always take steps to find out what is causing your amenorrhoea.

It's not normal for women to have no periods, and there will be something at the root of the problem.There is no doubt that periods can be inconvenient, but the plain truth is that it is unnatural not to have them. Your body is designed to have menstrual cycles when you are not pregnant, and if you are not having periods there is something out of balance or unnatural happening in your body. This needs to be investigated and treated. For one thing, if you are not having periods, your risk of osteoporosis is greatly increased.

What are your choices?
If your periods stop for no apparent reason or you have come off the pill and your periods have not come back then you should ask to be referred to a gynecologist. Many of the reasons why periods stop are not serious, but more serious health problems should always be ruled out before you decide upon a form of treatment.

If medical tests indicate that there is nothing seriously wrong, this section is for you. You may have been told 'to wait and see' or to go on the Pill as a form of treatment. This is one of those situations where the natural approach really comes into its own. By looking at your diet, correcting any vitamin and mineral deficiencies, and using herbs, it is possible to correct the underlying imbalance that is causing the loss of periods.

It is also important to look at your weight, to ensure that it falls within the normal ranges regardless of whether you are overweight or underweight because the effects on your cycle can be dramatic.

If you have been dieting you are likely to be deficient in vital nutrients. The same goes if you have been under a lot of stress.

Previous use of the Pill will also have upset your intake of nutrients. You may have low levels of the B vitamins, especially B2, B6, B12 and also folic acid. It is also well known that the Pill upsets the balance of copper and zinc in your body. You can end up with too much copper and not enough zinc. This imbalance can still exist even if it has been some time since you took the Pill regularly. Zinc is crucial for healthy functioning of your reproductive system.

Suggested Products: Nutri-Calm and Folic Acid Plus


Painful Periods (Dysmenorrhoea)
It is estimated that between 50 and 70 percent of women endure some degree of period pain and cramping. Of those, approximately 10 percent experience contractions so extreme that they are one and a half times more powerful than labour pains (if this is your case, do not hesitate to contact us - 1.407.740-8084 for immediate help using bio-energy. It can be done by telephone. Ask for Christian).

How painful is painful?
Every month many women suffer from pain around the time of their periods. For some women the pain can be so debilitating that they are forced to take time off work or can only get through their periods by dosing themselves with painkillers. Pain is normally considered to be a message from your body, telling you that something is wrong and that an investigation is in order. However, painful periods are viewed somewhat differently by the medical profession and many women who complain of period pains are advised to take a painkiller and to get on with it.

Every one of us has a different pain threshold, and it is impossible to imagine what another person might be experiencing. Only you know whether or not your period pains are unacceptably high for you, and if the pain is affecting the quality of your life, it's time to do something about it.

What symptoms could you experience?
Obviously pain is the overriding symptom in dysmenorrhoea, but many women will experience other symptoms, including:

nausea

vomiting

diarrhea/constipation

fainting

light-headedness

feeling dizzy

headaches

exhaustion and lethargy

The pain itself can vary and women will often experience two types of pain: a constant low back ache like a dull ache (congestive dysmenorrhoea) and/or cramping pains like contractions (spasmodic dysmenorrhoea)

What are your choices?
Because pain is usually a warning signal from your body, it is important that the pain is investigated. But period pains can, however, be unusual in that there may actually be nothing medically wrong and are simply an abnormal functioning of your body around the time of your period. This is pretty good news because it means that if you can get things back into balance, you'll not only get rid of the pain but you'll prevent it from returning. What the natural approach aims to do is to treat the condition, not simply mask the pain or 'turn off' your cycle. Furthermore, if you work to put your body back into balance, all aspects of health and well-being will be improved.

Cramp Reliefand Sea Calcium

Other Suggestion
Tiao He Cleanse (a gentle herbal colon cleansing to be taken 3 times a year)