Why your period is late

Let’s get this right out of the way…

There is ONLY one reason why your period is late if you’re not pregnant.

Your period is late because you ovulated later.

There is literally no other reason. NONE.

You bleed because you ovulate. If you don’t ovulate, you don’t bleed regularly. If you ovulate late, you bleed late. If you ovulate early, you bleed early.

Ovulation determines when your period comes.

Your period isn’t late because you’re stressed out.

It’s not late because you’ve been eating more junk food this week.

It’s not late because you’re traveling, or started a new medication, or working out more or less.

Your period is late because you ovulated late.

Now, you may have ovulated later because of stress, diet, travel, medication, and excessive working out. All of those things can absolutely impact when and how you ovulate. (They can also leave you with heavy, long, painful, brutal periods too.)

And, then it is ovulation that impacts when the heck your period shows up.

Why is that?

Because the luteal phase of your cycle that comes after ovulation has a fixed length. A healthy luteal phase is 10 to 16 days long. Any longer and pregnancy is likely. Any shorter and we’re looking at a hormonal imbalance called luteal phase defect which is caused by low progesterone and/or excess estrogen following ovulation.

Once you ovulate, your period will always arrive within 10 to 16 days unless you’re pregnant.

The phase of your cycle that IS variable is the follicular phase, the phase prior to ovulation. Follicular phase length is however long it takes your body to achieve ovulation in each cycle. Therefore, if your period is late it’s not because you had a long post-ovulatory luteal phase. It’s because you had a long preovulatory follicular phase.

The good news is that if you are cycle tracking using cervical fluid and temperature you can pinpoint ovulation in each cycle, count forward 10 to 16 days and know when you can expect your period. For example, my period almost always arrives 13 to 14 days after ovulation. I literally know when my period is going to arrive right down to a 24-48 hour window!

This means that when cycle tracking even if your period is set to arrive 10 days later than you expected, you don’t need to freak out and start taking pregnancy tests. You know that you ovulated later than usual in that cycle and have 10 to 16 days until you need to even consider if pregnancy is in question.

Cycle tracking cervical fluid and temperature to identify ovulation brings SO MUCH ease and peace of mind to our monthly cycles. This type of cycle tracking (the sympto-thermal method) is so much more than just a natural birth control method or pregnancy achievement tool. It is a menstrual health tool that allows us to know exactly what’s going on in our bodies each month so that we can live with greater confidence and a lot less anxiety.

If you’ve ever freaked out that your period was late, took pregnancy test after pregnancy test, and been overcome with pregnancy fears in a cycle… then you NEED sympto-thermal cycle tracking.

Cycle tracking as a menstrual health tool gives us our power back. It allows us to step out of the darkness and finally understand how our bodies actually work. It brings us peace, ease, and empowerment like we’ve never dreamed possible.

Cycle tracking allows us to embrace our menstrual cycles as the superpower that they truly are.

When you’re ready to say enough is enough and finally learn how to track your cycle like a pro, I want to show you how!

Learning to cycle track with the sympto-thermal method was the single best decision that I have ever made for my health & wellbeing. It changed my life in incredible, mind-blowing, truly empowering ways. I can’t wait for you to feel this shift too!

Learn all about my Cycle Wisdom Mentorships and working with me 1-on-1 to learn how to use cycle tracking too!

Disclaimer: Brandy Oswald, Sauvage Wellness LLC, and her employees are not doctors, nurses, physicians, psychotherapists, or in anyway licensed medical practitioners and information presented here is to serve as an educational resource and not to be interpreted as: (1) medical advice; (2) a 100% effective birth control or pregnancy achievement options or (3) nutrition or health guidelines. By reading this you acknowledge that you understand that as a specialized form of consulting, fertility awareness education is not the same as professional or licensed therapy or medical advice and intervention; and recognize that it is your responsibility to seek such services from a licensed professional. Brandy Oswald is not a medical provider and cannot give medical advice. All information provided by Sauvage Wellness LLC and Brandy Oswald is of a general nature and is intended only for educational purposes to help with your personal health improvement goals and should not be relied on as medical advice. Always consult a physician with any health concerns and prior to changing your diet, lifestyle, supplements, birth control, fitness, or prescription medicine routine. Should you choose to use the information provided by Brandy Oswald it is of your own volition and you recognize that neither Brandy nor Sauvage Wellness LLC is not held liable for any intended or unintended outcomes.

All viewers hereby WAIVE AND RELEASE Brandy Oswald and Sauvage Wellness LLC from any claim, demand, cause of action of any kind resulting from or related to my participation in classes, workshops, and all service offerings provided by Brandy and Sauvage Wellness. As a view you hereby acknowledge that you are fully responsible for any and all risks, injuries, or damages, known or unknown, which might occur as a result of your participation.