uoyevoli

Menstrual cycle is not just a fancy word for period - there are actually multiple phases that can have effects on your body, mood and energy levels. 

I feel like there’s an increase on „awareness“ content on this. That’s generally a good thing! Menstrual education needs to move beyond „you get some cramps while on your period and that’s all“ (and definitely away from dehumanizing „you get your period and act crazy, the rest of the month you are normal“) and recognize that bodies are a lot more complex than that - but unfortunately it feels like the increased awareness is just an increase in „the same dehumanization now extended to ovulation and the luteal phase!“. 

Of course this doesn’t apply to every influencer who talks about these topics. But a lot of content has weird misogynistic undertones. Now it’s not just „You act crazy on your period“, now it’s „You act sex-crazy during your fertile window and then you act bitchy-crazy in your luteal phase and on your period, so basically you are crazy and not in control of yourself almost the whole month“. 

That’s not true. This is just a way to portray people with an uterus as „lesser than“ cis men. Yes, hormonal changes during the cycle influence you- but portraying people as incapable, unstable, helpless is not biology. It’s propaganda. 

No phase of the menstrual cycle by default renders you insane or makes you spin completely out of control. You don’t lose your mind every time you ovulate or get your period. While that idea may at first glance be comforting and affirming for those who experience strong symptoms, it really only helps those who want to have a reason to not treat people with an uterus as whole people. It’s an easy gateway to „You can’t be a fair leader“, „You can’t hold political power“, „You can’t be trusted to make good decisions“, „You can’t be responsible with money“ etc. Its what ultimately leads to standpoints like this: „why should we let women vote if they may currently be ovulating and in their dazed state just go for whoever looks best? It’s better to leave that to men who can be trusted to not decide with their vagina!“ 

Reducing all people with an uterus to a predictable script of “this week you’re this kind of crazy, next week you’re that kind of crazy” isn’t feminist - and it also isn’t true. As with anything in life, the reality is a lot more nuanced. Symptoms can vary heavily from one person to the next and even from one cycle to the next. For completeness’s sake, I’ll add a very simple overview here: 

Period: You’re not pregnant so your uterus gets rid of the lining it prepared for a potential baby. Usually ranges from two to seven days. You bleed and may experience cramps (can be mild or severe) as well as a variety of other symptoms such as constipation or diarrhea, mild nausea or emotional changes (get easily irritated or sad). 

Follicular phase: This phase starts on the first day of your period and lasts until ovulation (around fourteen days). Your body is preparing a new egg. Hormone levels (especially estrogen) gradually rise. Some people feel a bit more energetic or clear-headed as this phase progresses, others don’t notice much difference. Both is normal. 

Ovulation: Around the middle of the cycle (day 14), an egg is released from the ovary. This is your „fertile window“ (the time pregnancy may occur). Some people can tell when they’re ovulating because they notice physical signs like a change in discharge (it becomes thicker and „stickier“), light spotting or a brief one-sided abdominal pain. Others can’t tell (unless they take a ovulation test) and that’s completely normal too. There can be an increase in libido (feeling „horny“) for some people but not everyone experiences this, and a higher libido doesn’t turn you into an irrational or „sex-crazed“ person. 

Luteal phase: After ovulation, the body prepares for a possible pregnancy. Progesterone rises. If pregnancy doesn’t happen, hormone levels drop toward the end of this phase, which triggers your next period! You might feel more tired or easily irritable during this time. For many people, these changes are manageable and do not disrupt their daily life. Some experience significant physical or emotional symptoms during this phase (this is called PMS or PMDD, depending on which symptoms, and should not be dismissed as „acting crazy“). 

With all my love, 

Golp: a roundel purpure.

Roundels are circles in heraldry. They are named according to their color, which also has its own lingo. Let’s meet them!

Bezant: roundel or (gold) 🟡

Plate: roundel argent (silver) ⚪️

Torteau: roundel gules (red) 🔴

Pomme: roundel vert (green) 🟢

Hurt: roundel azure (blue) 🔵

Golp: roundel purpure (purple) 🟣

Pellet: roundel sable (black) ⚫️

me:

the old man wasn’t stealing.

He was using a neighbor’s water, that the neighbor pays for, with the neighbor’s permission. Nothing was stolen. The old man just wasn’t the one paying. If someone comes to my house and I let them charge their phone while they’re there, are they STEALING electricity because I’m the one who pays the electric bill? If I take someone out to dinner, are they STEALING their meal if I pay for both of us? Get fucked.

It was not to prevent the spread of drugs, it was to funnel Black people into prison and permanently curtail voting rights, to keep a provisional Jim Crow that could deflect criticism long enough to get the average white moderate to accept it, and to make the average white liberal’s dreams of “reform” still include the same framework.