🌀 Cycles & Patterns

Cycles & Patterns explores both our monthly cycles (if applicable) and the wider cycles of life that impact our sexual health and wellbeing. By reflecting on these patterns, we gain a deeper understanding of how our body responds over time. Recognising shifts in energy, libido, and emotional wellbeing allows us to make choices that support our sexual wellbeing in harmony with these natural rhythms.

Your body operates through multiple cycles, with the menstrual cycle being a key indicator of overall health. However, it's just one part of a larger system. Recognising how each phase affects your mood, energy, and sexual desire can help you better understand and respond to your body's needs. For those with irregular cycles, it might feel more challenging to identify where you are within these phases, and that's completely normal. Tracking physical and emotional patterns over time can provide valuable insights.

Often seen as the body's reset point, this phase marks the start of your cycle. You might experience cramps, fatigue, and mood changes. It’s a time to prioritise rest and find comfort in small, supportive routines.

Much like early spring, this phase can bring renewed energy and mental clarity. Some people notice an increase in libido, making it a good time to reconnect with your sexual wellbeing, though this varies from person to person.

💃🏽 Ovulatory Phase (Around Day 14):

Ovulation is often when energy and confidence peak. For many, sexual desire increases due to hormonal shifts, but it's important to remember that everyone experiences this differently, especially if cycles are irregular.

🥱 Luteal Phase (Day 15-28):

As your body prepares for the next cycle, you might feel changes in mood, energy, and desire. This phase can bring premenstrual symptoms, so understanding your personal patterns can help you manage discomfort and maintain balance.

While the menstrual cycle provides valuable insights by tracking your period and reproductive health, it’s only one part of a complex system. Hormonal, ovarian, and sleep cycles all interact, and when one is out of balance, it can affect the others. Awareness of these cycles and patterns can help you make choices that support your individual wellbeing:

Tip: Keeping track of your cycle using a calendar, notes app, or a dedicated tracking app can help you identify patterns in your symptoms, moods, and energy levels. This makes it easier to understand what’s typical for you and spot any changes that might need attention.

Your Cycle on Contraception

Hormonal contraception, such as birth control pills, implants, and IUDs, can influence libido, energy levels, and how your body feels throughout your cycle. These methods work by adjusting your natural hormonal rhythms, and experiences can vary greatly from person to person.

Stress isn’t just a feeling—it’s a full-body experience. When your brain senses stress, your body releases cortisol, the stress hormone designed to help you respond to immediate challenges. But when stress is chronic, cortisol levels stay high, disrupting your natural hormonal balance.

This disruption can throw your cycle off track, leading to:

Stress also has a sneaky way of making premenstrual symptoms feel more intense, both physically and emotionally. 

People who experience severe premenstrual symptoms or PMDD (Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder) may find their symptoms worsen significantly under stress, making it even more challenging to manage. Mood swings, irritability, and fatigue can hit harder when your nervous system is already under strain.

The good news? Small changes can make a big difference. Practices like deep breathing, regular movement, mindfulness, and even simple routines like staying hydrated or getting outside can help lower cortisol levels. The more you tune into how stress shows up in your body, the better you can support your cycle and overall wellbeing.

The more you tune into how stress shows up in your body, the better you can support your cycle and overall sexual wellbeing.

Neurodivergent needs are unique, and hormonal transitions—whether monthly or through life stages—can bring additional challenges. For example, individuals with ADHD or autism may find hormonal shifts intensify stress, impact emotional regulation, or heighten sensory sensitivities. This can make it more difficult to track cycles, manage symptoms, or adapt to changes.

Recognising these patterns can help identify potential stress triggers and support strategies tailored to your needs.

Task: Self-Care and Cycles

Cycle syncing means adjusting your lifestyle—like diet, exercise, and sleep—to support your body during each phase of your cycle. This can also be helpful if you're on birth control, though experiences may vary.

The goal is simple: tune into your body and find what works best for you.

While understanding your monthly cycle is key, it's equally important to recognise the broader rhythms that shape your sexual wellbeing. Life’s wider cycles—,the ebb and flow of relationships, work or family stress, grief, and health conditions—can all influence your sexual health in profound ways.

Just as your cycle mirrors the seasons, actual seasonal shifts can also impact your sexual wellbeing. Changes in daylight and routine can affect mood, energy, and hormones. For example, less daylight in winter can lower serotonin, reducing libido, while summer's longer days often boost energy and desire.

Thinking about the bigger themes in your life, even if they seem abstract or separate from your sexual wellbeing, can reveal hidden connections. What’s happening in your life, even if it feels unrelated, might be quietly shaping how you feel in your body.

Life stages such as pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause, and menopause bring natural hormonal shifts that can affect your body and mind. Pregnancy often comes with changes in desire and comfort, while postpartum is a period of significant emotional and physical adjustment as the body heals.

Perimenopause and menopause introduce fluctuating hormones, which may affect arousal, lubrication, and sexual comfort. Though these transitions can be challenging, they also offer opportunities to deepen your understanding of your body and its evolving needs.

Stress doesn’t just sit in your mind—it settles in your body. Whether it's work pressure, relationship strains, or personal responsibilities, stress often shows up as physical tension. This can look like  jaw clenching, tight shoulders, an upset stomach or tension in the pelvic floor muscles.

The vagus nerve, which connects your brain to key organs (like the heart, uterus, and vocal cords), plays a big role here. When you’re stressed, vagus nerve activity drops, putting your body on high alert and making relaxation harder to achieve. Tense muscles, especially in the pelvic floor, can restrict blood flow, making intimacy uncomfortable or even painful.

Your sexual wellbeing doesn’t exist in isolation—it can be shaped by coexisting conditions like endometriosis, diabetes, depression or other long-term health issues. These conditions might cause discomfort, fatigue, or changes in mood and energy, which can influence how connected you feel to your body. 

Some conditions have flare-ups, while others create gradual, ongoing shifts that are easier to overlook but still impact your wellbeing over time. Recognising these patterns can help you better understand how your health intersects with your sexual wellbeing and respond to your body's needs with confidence.

Reflective Task: Cyclical Awareness

Take a few moments to reflect on your current experiences. There are no right or wrong answers—just space to notice what comes up for you.

Jot down your thoughts—there’s no pressure, just space for reflection.