Stress, the inhibitor of sex hormones
Stress is a big fish in the body's management system, reacting to events that disrupt our psychophysical balance. The cortisol secreted at that time increases the concentration of glucose in the blood, providing us with more energy to cope with difficult situations. Thanks to this, when stress orders: "act!", we mobilize ourselves to work in arousal, and when it screams: "run away!", we run away. If such commands are issued sporadically, the body usually willingly obeys them. On the other hand, chronic stress no longer has the strength to scream, so it slowly and quietly exhausts our resources. It then focuses so much on the production of cortisol by the adrenal glands that they eventually can't cope either and start to steal cortisol from pregnenolone in order to be able to use it regularly in difficult situations.
Pregneno… what?
Pregnenolone is a hormone that has a really good effect on our body. It stimulates our brain to work and makes us have a lot of energy. In the synthesis process, it combines with many other important hormones, such as progesterone, estrogen, testosterone, or cortisol. Thus, pregnenolone gives rise to adrenal and sex hormones. For this reason, it is important that it is at the right level. During stress, however, it mainly produces cortisol, and there is nothing left to produce progesterone. As a result, the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis is permanently stimulated, while the functions of the reproductive system cease. The balance of hormones is therefore disturbed (excess cortisol and deficiency of progesterone), which leads to various types of fluctuations or menstrual disorders.
Stress – what starts to go wrong?
As we can see, occasional and mild stress is not bad for the body, but chronic stress wreaks havoc on our hormones . It also has a negative impact on our immune and digestive systems, which can also mess with our menstrual cycle. Of course, stress symptoms do not have to be immediate - the time of their appearance depends on the individual energy "reserves" of each body. For this reason, in one person the effects of stress will appear after a few days, in another - after a few months, and in a third - even a few years after the stressor has acted.
Gradual cycle shutdown
As fertility advocate Jessie Brebner writes on Instagram , during crises,ovulation is one of the first things to go wrong. That's because our bodies are focused on survival, not reproduction . As Brebner explains, ovulation usually doesn't "switch off" immediately, but rather a slow process of cycle disruption occurs—a late period, anovulatory cycles, shorter luteal phases, breakthrough bleeding, and heavier or lighter periods. Some people also complain of severe abdominal pain during their period, which can be caused by both recent stress and stressors from the previous month.
Stress and PMS
In chronic stress, PMS can also be a pain for some people – people who have not yet experienced in practice what these big three letters mean will finally find out. Those whose mood swings always precede their period may start to feel the tension even more intensely. You can read more about premenstrual symptoms on our blog here .
Stress and missed period
Functional hypothalamic amenorrhea
In the past, functional amenorrhea of hypothalamic origin was called juvenile hypothalamus. The loss of efficient communication between the pituitary gland, the hypothalamus and the ovaries is caused, among other things, by the increasingly earlier occurrence of menarche, and thus the immaturity of the hypothalamic-pituitary system. However, this disorder is primarily attributed to teenagers (especially those under 16 years of age) due to conditions typical of adolescence, such as excessive mental stress, excessive physical exertion, adolescent depression or eating disorders. Each of these symptoms can result in impaired hypothalamic function. It is now known that inappropriate body weight (or more precisely, insufficient amount of adipose tissue, necessary for the proper functioning of the menstrual cycle ) or increased physical activity can cause functional hypothalamic amenorrhea also in mature people. Early diagnosis is crucial in the treatment of this disorder. For this reason, if amenorrhea persists for 3 cycles, be sure to consult a doctor. You may need to undergo hormone therapy to get your period back.
Hyperprolactinemia
Higher levels of prolactin in the blood during breastfeeding are normal, as the function of this hormone is to stimulate milk production. However, excess prolactin outside of lactation indirectly inhibits the secretion of reproductive hormones and can therefore lead to the cessation of menstruation (secondary amenorrhea). What affects prolactin levels? Diet, sexual activity, sleep and, of course, stress. Hyperprolactinemia is responsible for up to 20% of menstrual disorders. If your period is late and you know that pregnancy or menopause have nothing to do with it, do not delay and consult a doctor.
Is this pregnancy?! No, it's stressed ovulation
In one of her Instagram posts, Jessie Brebner recalls, “I was about 25 and on day 50 of my cycle and my period still hadn’t come. I was so worried that my late period meant I was pregnant that I bought a pregnancy test on my lunch break at work and took it in the mall bathroom. Sure enough, it came back negative, but the question remained: Where the hell is my period?” Looking back, Brebner continues, “There were so many things that my younger self didn’t know about. […] I simply ovulated later than usual that cycle. Now, if I feel like my body is fighting ovulation, I ask myself why and then I tune in to what my body is trying to tell me. It’s usually too much stress, not enough rest . So no more guessing! No more pregnancy tests at the mall, no more panic.”
I admit that Brebner's story is close to my heart. Perhaps some of you, when your period was only a few days late, grabbed your heads and ran to the pharmacy for a pregnancy test. Of course, that's what a pregnancy test is for, to have access to it at any time. However, Brebner wants to say that taking a test before our luteal phase is over, shifted by ovulation delayed by stress, for example, is unnecessary panic.
But how do we know when we are in the luteal phase, when in the follicular phase, whether and when we have ovulated? In theory, you can read about it in my article , in practice you will learn thanks to daily observation of your own body (a solid dose of knowledge about her on Brebner's Instagram or in her great book Period Repair Manual ). Measuring temperature, checking mucus or cervical height - it requires commitment, but in the end it becomes a great habit. Thanks to it, the functioning of our cycle may turn out to be less surprising and therefore less... stressful :)
One study found that people who reported preovulatory stress were less likely to get pregnant than those who did not report stress during that time. It has also been shown that abnormal cortisol levels in pregnant women can lead to premature birth.
How to reduce stress and thus improve your cycle?
" Just take it easy, cause there's no stress, " as we hear in the hit song. However, this is just a catchy refrain - in real life, trivializing stress doesn't help at all. So what can we do when stress and menstrual disorders go hand in hand? Of course, everything depends on the cause and intensity of stress, but it's certainly worth focusing on the body's regeneration: make sure that your body weight corresponds to the correct BMI value, focus on calming physical activity, such as yoga or pilates. It would be good to start matching your workouts to the phases of your cycle so as not to exacerbate cortisol, because - interestingly - the follicular phase is more sensitive to stress than the luteal phase. Of course, we should try to minimize mental stress as much as possible and learn to deal with it. However, anxiety, for example, is not something we should deal with on our own. Therefore, in more serious cases, a visit to a psychotherapist is necessary.
Diagnosis
Cycle fluctuations or disorders can also be caused by diseases such as hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism, diabetes or polycystic ovary syndrome. In some cases, nothing can replace contact with a doctor, so let's take care of ourselves and reach out for help. Instead of: "the less I know, the better I sleep", let's say to ourselves: "the less I guess, the less I stress out".
Created at: 06/08/2022
Updated at: 15/08/2022
