Estrogen levels in the blood vary during the month and follow a common pattern to each menstrual cycle. For women who are not on hormonal birth control, levels are lowest in the days just before and after the start of menstrual bleeding. This low level sometimes can contribute to vulvar and vaginal dryness.
Menstrual cycle hormonal fluctuations
The hormones estrogen and progesterone fluctuate throughout your menstrual cycle. Vaginal dryness may increase when estrogen levels are lower (5). These hormones can also affect sexual desire.
Your natural lubrication levels are often lower during your period. Throughout the phases of your cycle, oestrogen levels change, and when you're menstruating they drop. Oestrogen helps to create natural lubrication, keeping your vagina moist and maintaining the thickness of your vaginal lining.
Low estrogen and vaginal dryness can happen at other times. Estrogen levels can fall after childbirth, with breastfeeding, during cancer treatment, or with anti-estrogen drugs. Then there are non-hormonal factors. Cold and allergy medications and some antidepressants can dry out vaginal tissue.
Higher estrogen levels can increase vaginal wetness by causing the Bartholin glands to produce more fluid. People on hormone treatments, such as those taking hormone replacement therapy, may notice an increase in vaginal wetness. Some people use vaginal estrogen to increase vaginal wetness.
At times, the vagina may feel tighter than usual. This is because the vagina changes over the course of life as a result of aging and events such as pregnancy and childbirth. Sometimes, these changes may cause a vagina to feel tighter than normal.
Did you know that dehydration can take a big toll on our vaginal health as well? If you're not drinking enough water, your skin is prone to dryness- this doesn't exclude your vaginal skin.
When you are actually menstruating, you might feel tighter than usual. What's more, after ovulation, your progesterone and estrogen levels will drop, and that's responsible for the decreased elasticity and lubrication. If your vagina is feeling less flexible or drier than normal, it will probably also feel tighter.
When you are on your period, your hormone levels are low and it takes estrogen to make a moist vagina. Within a couple of days of starting your period, your estrogen has kicked in enough to moisten the vagina, but until then the vaginal wall is pretty dry.
You may have vaginal dryness if you: feel sore or itchy in and around your vagina. feel pain or discomfort during sex. need to pee more often than usual.
Estrogen levels in the blood vary during the month and follow a common pattern to each menstrual cycle. For women who are not on hormonal birth control, levels are lowest in the days just before and after the start of menstrual bleeding. This low level sometimes can contribute to vulvar and vaginal dryness.
Metabolism Changes
Before the menstruation starts, metabolism increases by 10% which has an effect on the weight of the human bodies. Because of other symptoms of PMS and because of increased metabolism, the body starts reducing temporary weight.
“Some studies have shown that the vaginal muscles can take up to six months post-delivery to get back to their normal shape and size,” says Wider.
Hormonal shifts during a woman's menstrual cycle affect vaginal secretions and may affect vaginal elasticity. She may feel “looser” on certain days of her cycle than on others. 4. Certain drugs, such as antihistamines or marijuana, may make the walls of the vagina feel dry so they seem “tighter.”
Signs of vaginismus include: Discomfort or pain during vaginal penetration. Inability to have sex or have a pelvic exam due to vaginal muscle spasms or pain. Painful intercourse.
It can cause dryness and/or discomfort.
With stress on your mind, hormone levels will begin to shift—as cortisol rises, testosterone (essential for your libido) will dip. On top of that, your body won't be sending enough blood down there to increase moisture, so vaginal dryness and/or discomfort is more likely.
In the middle of your cycle, during ovulation, your discharge may feel slippery or thinner. Then during the second part of the menstrual cycle, after ovulation, you may notice creamy, white discharge. Healthy vaginal discharge during this time is typically white, creamy, milky, or cloudy and is sometimes thick.
There is a lot of cervical fluid during the days right before ovulation (5). Your vagina will likely start to feel much wetter. There is more cervical fluid during this time and this is typically very slippery (5). This is caused by estrogen peaking one to two days before ovulation (5).
When you know your average menstrual cycle length, you can work out when you ovulate. Ovulation happens about 14 days before your period starts. If your average menstrual cycle is 28 days, you ovulate around day 14, and your most fertile days are days 12, 13 and 14.
Clear and stretchy — This is “fertile” mucous and means you're ovulating. Clear and watery — This occurs at different times of your cycle and can be particularly heavy after exercising. Yellow or green — May indicate an infection, especially if it's thick or clumpy like cottage cheese or has a foul odor.