Naomi
By NAOMI COTTERIL
What did you do Sunday night?
Me? I got a Period Mentor.
I’m not proud of it, nor am I 100% certain what a period mentor actually is but the sweetly pink flower shaped app winking cheerily at me from page two of my iPhone screen informs me that I have not just downloaded a period tracker.
Oh no no no, I’ve only bloody well gone out and scored me a Mentor.
I don’t know about you but when it comes to my usual Sunday night, downloading a program to mentor me through that time of the month is always on the agenda. Snuggled firmly alongside ‘shave legs to ensure suitability should shorts be worn’ and ‘attempt to navigate a path through human sized pile of clean washing that cats have nested in, without actually having to fold and put any away’ comes Period Mentorship.
I don’t know why I didn’t get on this bandwagon months ago. My new mentor assures me that it is there to make life easier, more convenient. That its discreetly reassuring presence will be there to track my flow, moods, changes to my skin and more.
The thing is, all I really wanted was somewhere to record the dates my period usually falls on. Something simple that maybe worked out my average cycle length and gave me a ‘oh hey there, so that thing you dread each month? Yeah, it’s on its way’ type alert.
After years of being on the pill, a mild case of PCOS and a baby twelve and a bit months ago, I decided it was high time to try and be an adult and get on top of things, so to speak, so that at least when my GP asks when my last period was, I can answer confidently as opposed to frantically scrolling through my calendar in an attempt to find a date that I know in my heart I didn’t bother writing down.
There are a lot of period apps out there. Most of them are pink.
Instead what I got was a new best friend, complete with customizable colour scheme (pink is the default in case you were wondering) and a whole bunch of hints and tips. There’s even a forum to discuss all things period related (I’m guessing, I dropped in to chat just yet). It’s left me wondering; when did your period become such a palaver?
Yep, I’m the first one to put my hand up and say that I went looking for the technology, when I’m sure I could have put pen to paper (or finger to screen) and just noted down the dates myself and used my brain to calculate lengths and the like.
I’m still not certain whether to be pleased to have found such a helpful iPhone accessory, slightly offended at the suggestion that women have the desire to record every single detail of the five or so days a month when (cliché alert) the desire for roast potato and chocolates overwhelms every other or gently amused at the capabilities of my new buddy.
I’m sure I could go further and really get into a feminist interpretation of the whole kit and caboodle (hello, pink flowers and the ‘discreet’ nickname option to prevent ‘embarrassment’ should a stranger who has never been let in on the fact that women menstruate stumble upon the app and be startled out of their skins, but as I’m now thinking about roasting a potato, I’m going to save that for another day.
At this stage, I’m settling for somewhere between amused and terrified. Anyway, I must go. I’ve got weight and mood fluctuations to record.
Just don’t get me started on the discharge questions….
Naomi is a freelance writer, magazine gal and mum to baby Oliver and cats Oscar and Felix. She spends most of her time muddling her way through motherhood and blogging about the results. You can follow her on twitter @NaomiCotterill or check out her blog notjustamummy.com
How do you track your period?
Comments
24 Comments so far
So the author talks about feminism yet doesn’t understand that some men get periods? (female born, male identity). Hell as a man I’d want to know the certain times of the month of my partner and get in touch with how her cycle affects her to adjust life accordingly n try help her out more if she needs it not to mention know when to be super duper extra more cautious with birth control or when to have unprotected sex if we want kids.
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Oh yeah I have the same app! its actually really handy and when I was trying to get pregnant i could see my fertile days too and monitor the way things were “flowing” each month! very handy!
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This isn’t anything new. I used to use my diary and then used a little program on my laptop, that would have been at least 15 years ago. The nitty gritty is pretty useless, but knowing when it’s gonna happen is very practical.
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I downloaded one about a year ago! So handy to know when period is expected to come when planning holidays etc.
I also started IVF some months after getting the app and it meant I always knew where I was at.
Absolute necessity I reckon.
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When you need a phone app to track your period, then I’m afraid that something is definitely wrong.
Tell me what happens if you should lose your phone ? You forget that you are having your period ?
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for those of us that have irregular periods, the app is very helpful (esp. in regards to dr’s appointments as was mentioned)…
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Haha do you mean period MONITOR? That’s what most of those apps do, rather than “mentor”…!
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I wish I did Jess! The app in question proudly announced on the home screen that it would be the new ‘mentor’ in my life. Still trying to figure that one out…
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I wish I did Jess! My new app grandly announced on the home screen that it would be my new ‘mentor’ for the months ahead. Still not quite certain how that works…
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I only just downloaded an app revently for convenience. I avoided the app for so long because they’re all bloody pink and I can’t stand pink! The one I have you can set a password to it. That’s the most ridiculous thing, it’s no secret women menstruate!
Before the app I kept track in my diary. But because my diary stays at home and my phone is always with me I can always find out when I’m due and if I premenstrual to explain the mood swings!
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I found an unplanned and unpublicised advantage of having this app not long ago. On a day when my husband was driving me absolutely crazy with EVERYTHING he was saying and doing I picked up the phone and pressed the pink flower where it promptly told me that my husband was not an ABSOLUTE IDIOT and to take a chill pill. OK…so technically it said my period was due the next day but same same…..
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I have been using a similar app for nearly two years. It is the best thing ever! Very handy if you have irregular periods or tracking fertility.
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I downloaded a similar app ages ago and then my youngest erased it! Didn’t realise how irregular I was until I started keeping track. No wonder I thought I was possibly pregnant all the time. Even the app asked me once I was so long between periods. Had a giggle showing my husband who always thought I was exaggerating
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When I was a teen, I always marked them in a calendar with a sticker (trying to be discreet). These days I usually draw a symbol in my diary, but recently downloaded an app. Its really just a double-up so I can check even if I dont have my diary with me. Its nice to be able to keep track and shuffle things around if I have a special event coming up.
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When I first got my period at 12, my mum told me to start charting it in a calendar (well before the times of even basic mobiles! No app here!) Within my first 4 periods, I was probably one of the most regular teens around (I remember flipping out when my period didn’t come the exact morning I expected it when I had a boyfriend at the time – it came that afternoon, but that’s how regular I was!)
I think it’s a good thing for teens to have, as I knew my body and it’s quirks/rhythms from an early age thanks to my mum’s insistence. And the novelty of it being tech-based means the kids might actually use it.
Slightly unrelated question – I have been on the pill for 12 years, and intend to come off it at the end of this year in order to TTC. From experience, if you had clockwork cycles before the pill, is it likely that you’ll get regular cycles after (not including the adjustment period)?
Having not had a real period for 12 years, when I do, I will probably purchase every period tracker app ever made.
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Hi Rach, As a GP I get asked this a lot. It is very likely that your cycle will return to regular very quickly after stopping the pill unless there have been major changes in your health in that time. Have fun TTC. Cause it is meant to be fun right?
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Thanks Marty! If anything, my reproductive health has improved – went on pill partly for endometriosis, which has improved immensely during this time. Here’s hoping!
And yes, it will be fun. I was much more ‘in the mood’ when I wasn’t ingesting hormones!
I’m kind of looking forward to being horny again!
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Like you I was on the pill for many years (16-17 years) but prior to that very regular. When I came off the pill my periods resumed as per normal and after 4 cycles we conceived after one try. So being on the pill that long had no impact on my cycle – it was like clockwork which made it easy to know when i was ovulating. Obviously everyone is different and getting pregnant can be difficult for some. Good luck.
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Sounds like you are just as clockwork as me. I took the pill for about the same amount of time and when i came off it was still clockwork. I thinm there was one cycle when i was a couple of days out, about 3 months after stopping the pill but that was it.
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Good to know it can happen that way! Thanks!
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There are lots of perfectly valid reasons for women to want to track our cycle.
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My husband would love this so he could prepare himself for the very confusing mood swings!
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I went off the pill over a year ago (no reason other than laziness …) after about 7 years on it and d/l a period app on the iPad (pun?) that I share with my partner. Now we both know when I’m due and I don’t have to remind him to not try anything funny during those few days so WIN-WIN! (I am definitely NOT an on-period sexer-upper!)
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I got a similar app a few years ago and found it incredibly helpful with my dodgy menstrual hx, it ended up documenting what I suspected and having a much overdue gynae procedure and now the app has been deleted as I no longer need to keep track.
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