Emotional stress is a major cause of various menstrual problems. Learn the 5 most important emotions that disrupt our hormone balance and cycle harmony.
I admit that I’m a sensitive and emotional woman. My emotions can run quite strong and deep, and I cannot seem to get a grasp of them at times.
On my journey to healing PMS and painful periods, I discovered a profound connection between my emotions and the menstrual disharmonies I experienced.
I wondered if I was different, if this was unique to me, but with study I soon realized…
Emotional Stress Is a Major Cause of Menstrual Problems
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), emotional stress – emotions experienced excessively or over an extended period of time – is identified as a major cause of disharmonies in menstruation, pregnancy, labor and menopause.
Because emotional stress disrupts the natural cycles of energy transformation and circulation within our body, it can cause our Qi and blood to stagnate or rebel – which may manifest as PMS/PMDD, irregular periods, amenorrhea (no period), delayed periods, heavy menstruation, or dysfunctional uterine bleeding.
Emotional stress is most detrimental during puberty
The impact of emotional stress during puberty is especially profound. Because a girl’s health is particularly vulnerable at this time, emotional problems will affect her body and mind deeply and with long-lasting effects.
In my own experience, depending on the issues, it can take many years of hard work to unwind and heal early emotional challenges.
I sincerely hope that we can offer young girls today more understanding, support and guidance to help them have a smooth and joyful transition into adulthood.
Five Emotions that Affect Menstruation
Specifically, there are five emotions that have a profound influence on women’s menstrual health:
Sadness and Grief
It’s normal to feel sad and grieve for our losses. But when these emotions are held inside for a prolonged period of time and not allowed a normal release, they can lead to amenorrhea, scanty periods, heavy bleeding, or delayed cycles.
Worry
Worry knots the Qi of the lungs, heart and spleen. It causes our Qi to stagnate which may lead to delayed periods, painful periods, pre-menstrual tension, breast tenderness, and breast lumps.
Anger
Anger includes frustration, resentment, bearing grudges, irritation, hatred, etc. Anger causes liver Qi stagnation, which often manifests as irregular periods, PMS/PMDD symptoms, painful periods or heavy periods.
Read 5 Steps to Managing PMS Anger.
Fear
Fear refers to either a sudden fright or a chronic state of anxiety. It can cause blood to rebel upward leading to headache, irritability, hot flashes, insomnia, and other peri/menopausal symptoms.
Guilt
An extremely common and damaging emotion, guilt causes the sinking of Qi, which may lead to a bearing-down feeling or a prolapse of the uterus or bladder.
There’s a Chinese saying, “Flowing water does not rot.”
If we allow our emotions to flow through us naturally, they will serve to guide us and enrich our lives.
On the other hand, if we repress or indulge in negative emotions, they will stagnate, knot, sink or rebel, causing various emotional and menstrual disharmonies.
What emotions are most challenging for you? Do you notice a connection between your emotions and menstruation? Please leave a comment to share your experience.
The Emotion Code, by Bradley Nelson
Anger, Wisdom for Cooling the Flames, by Thich Nhat Hanh
Dance of Anger: A Woman’s Guide to Changing the Patterns of Intimate Relationships, by Harriet Lerner
Healing After Loss: Daily Meditations For Working Through Grief, by Martha Whitmore Hickman
The Gifts of Imperfection, by Brené Brown
Hi i lost my dad two weeks ago today and i have come on my period two weeks early is that normal or worring can anyone help me pls
I recently lost my dad. He died on 21 October. My period had been a week before. On the 30th of October I just started bleeding heavily. Today its the 3rd of November and the bleeding is still on. I was really saddened by my father’s death. Could there be a connection between the grief and the bleeding of should I go and seek medical help.
Inessa, I am so sorry about your loss. There is definitely a connection between our emotions and our menstrual cycles. Allow yourself to go through the griefing process. Meanwhile, take good care of yourself. If your bleeding remains heavy in the next couple of cycles, by all means seek medical advice.
Thank you so much. I can now handle my emotional pain and not let them disorder my menstrual cycle.
Thank you for this insightful article, it always baffled me why I was like that. Now I understand this better.
Nqobile, I’m glad you find the article helpful. Have you tried our Mood Tracker? It’s an excellent tool to really get to know your emotions. I’d love to hear about your experience. 🙂
Thank you for this article. I recently had a horribly painful menstrual cycle with bloating and clotting. I’ve worked over the years to heal my painful cycles and have done pretty good until this past cycle. It scared me but I soon realized that slowly over the past few months, I had developed an inner conflict within myself over disliking some of the women’s behaviors in my life including my mothers and daughters. This got me to develop a dislike for most women seeing us in a emotionally unhealthy light. Working with my hubby (who’s a therapist) had helped me see the women around me in a loving, compassionate way so that I can release the negative energy I had stored in my uterus and regain
hormone balance once again as I did a few years ago. Sweet women:
please don’t hold onto negative emotions. They will disrupt the beauty
of your female identity. Find peace among others.
Rose, Thank you so much for sharing your insights. I too began to heal my PMS and painful period when I realized and resolved the inner conflicts I had. It’s still an ongoing process, untie one conflict at a time. I hope more women come forth like you to share what you’ve learned! Looking forward to reading more from you…
Thank you for the wonderful advice in this article. I found I could relate to a few of the emotional issues and the corresponding pms symptoms. The reminder is always good to hear abut being patient with ones self, something I really forget to do. Thanks again
Hugs, Alexandra