Signs stress is impacting your menstrual health, and how to deal with it
For Stress Awareness Month 2025, Honey Wyatt explores how to tell if stress is impacting your periods and what to do about it
We’ve all been there: a niggling in your stomach, feeling skittish, and that overwhelming feeling of fatigue. But is it stress or your period?
Between the public transport rush to work, slogging through the hours of nine to five, and trying to maintain a social life while, oh yeah, keeping yourself alive, if you manage to catch a breath to acknowledge these feelings, it can be easy to attribute them to either your hormones or the anxiety of life.
How does stress affect your period?
The two are actually inextricably linked, according to Kelly Newton, founder of period care company NIXI Body. “Stress can have a profound effect on menstrual health by disrupting the body’s hormone balance,” Newton tells Sextras.
“When we’re stressed, our body produces more cortisol, which can interfere with hormones like oestrogen and progesterone, responsible for regulating the menstrual cycle. This imbalance can lead to irregular periods, missed cycles, or more intense PMS symptoms.”
Painful periods can also be a sign that stress is having an impact on your cycle, something that 20% of women in the UK reported last year.
Meanwhile, the cumulative force of workplace burnout, and the pressure on women to fulfill a plethora of roles and expectations in the home and out means that they are 1.5 times more likely to experience stress than men in the UK.
And, like a lot of issues impacting women’s health, support from healthcare professionals, workplaces, and partners is lacking. More than half of women (53%) report being shamed for their period, while 23% have had their symptoms dismissed by a healthcare professional.
So, shocker, it’s up to women to be able to recognise the impact of stress on their menstrual cycle and manage their symptoms.
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How to manage stress and your menstrual cycle
When neither periods nor stress are spoken about nearly as much as they should be, though, how can women know how to spot the problem, let alone deal with it?
“If you're concerned about stress affecting your cycle, the first step is to track your period and symptoms,” Newton explains. “Period apps are a really good way to track your cycle, stress levels, and any noticeable changes. Consulting a healthcare provider such as your GP can help rule out underlying conditions and provide strategies for managing both stress and menstrual health.”
Although, considering the time it can take for women to actually seek help for their period pain (on average 22 months), the length of NHS waiting times, and the rallying and negotiation it takes to actually get a diagnosis, you’ll likely want to take matters into your own hands in the meantime.
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Look at your lifestyle, Newton recommends, and consider what changes you can make to reduce stress. “To reduce stress, prioritise self-care practices like regular exercise, mindfulness or meditation, and adequate sleep,” she says.
“Eating a balanced diet and setting healthy boundaries with work and social commitments can also make a big difference. Managing stress effectively is key to maintaining a healthy menstrual cycle and overall wellbeing.”
Self-care tips for a healthy menstrual cycle
If you’re not sure what that looks like in practice, we got you! Here are some of Newton’s top tips for maintaining a healthy menstrual cycle:
Prioritise movement: Regular exercise helps to regulate hormones, reduce cortisol levels, and alleviate PMS symptoms.
Practice mindfulness: Techniques like yoga and meditation can calm the mind and stabilise your cycle.
Eat for hormonal balance: Nutrient-rich foods, especially those high in magnesium and B vitamins, can help combat period-related stress.
Stay hydrated: Dehydration can worsen cramps and fatigue, so aim for two to three litres of water daily, especially around your cycle.
Establish a sleep routine: Poor sleep can exacerbate stress and hormonal imbalances. Aim for seven to nine hours of restful sleep each night.