Common questions
Short answers about periods, symptoms, fertility and the Ruva app. When a question needs more than a few sentences, we link to a longer guide with its sources.
These answers are general information, not medical advice. If you’re worried about a symptom, talk to a doctor, nurse or pharmacist. If you feel very unwell, are in severe pain or are bleeding heavily, get urgent medical help.
Periods and cycles
How do I count my menstrual cycle?
Count from the first day of one period to the day before the next one starts. The days when you aren’t bleeding are part of the cycle too, so the length is the gap between period starts, not how long you bleed.
How long should my period last?
The NHS says a period can last between 2 and 7 days, usually about 5, and is often heaviest in the first 2 days. If your periods start lasting longer than usual, or bleeding goes on for more than 7 days, it’s worth seeing a GP.
Is it normal for my period to be late?
Late or missed periods are common. Pregnancy, stress and hormonal contraception are among the reasons, so if you could be pregnant, take a pregnancy test first. See a GP if you’ve missed 3 periods in a row, or if a missed period comes with symptoms such as tiredness or weight changes.
Can stress make my period late?
Yes, stress is one of the reasons the NHS gives for late or missed periods. Pregnancy and other causes are possible too, so don’t assume stress explains it. A GP can help if your periods have become irregular, and can offer support with the stress itself.
What does brown blood mean?
Period blood is usually red on the heaviest days and can be pink or brown on lighter days. Bleeding between periods or after sex is different: it should always be checked by a doctor, even though it’s not usually serious.
Symptoms and when to get help
How do I know if my period is too heavy?
Signs include needing to change a pad or tampon every 1 to 2 hours, bleeding for more than 7 days, or bleeding through to your clothes or bedding. The NHS suggests seeing a GP if heavy bleeding is affecting your life or has been happening for some time.
Are large blood clots during my period normal?
Passing clots larger than about 2.5cm, roughly the size of a 10p coin, is one of the NHS signs of heavy periods. Book a GP appointment if heavy periods are affecting your life or have gone on for some time.
Is bad period pain normal?
Some period pain is common. Pain that stops you doing your usual activities is a reason to see a GP. If the pain is severe or worse than usual and painkillers haven’t helped, get urgent medical advice.
What can help with period cramps?
The NHS suggests heat, such as a warm bath or a hot water bottle wrapped in a tea towel on your tummy. Gentle exercise like walking can help, and so can painkillers such as paracetamol or ibuprofen. Check the leaflet or ask a pharmacist if you’re not sure a medicine suits you.
Should I get spotting between periods checked?
Yes. Bleeding between periods or after sex should always be checked by a doctor. It’s often not serious, but possible causes include infections and changes to the cervix, so it’s worth finding out.
When should I get urgent help for pain in my lower tummy?
Get urgent medical advice for pelvic pain if you might be pregnant or have unusual vaginal bleeding. Call 999 in the UK, or your local emergency number, if the pain is severe or getting worse, or comes with fainting, difficulty breathing or heavy vaginal bleeding.
Fertility and ovulation
How many days after my period can I get pregnant?
There isn’t a fixed number of days. The NHS explains that pregnancy is possible soon after a period ends, particularly if you ovulate early or have a short cycle, because sperm can survive for several days.
Can I get pregnant on my period?
Yes. Sperm can stay alive in the body for several days after sex, and the timing of ovulation can vary. So having sex only during your period isn’t a reliable way to avoid pregnancy.
What is my fertile window?
It’s the part of your cycle when sex can lead to pregnancy: the days leading up to ovulation and the day itself. Ovulation is when an ovary releases an egg, and sperm can survive for several days beforehand, which is why the window starts before it.
How do I know if I’m ovulating?
Around ovulation, vaginal discharge often becomes thinner and stretchy, a bit like raw egg white. Other signs include a small rise in resting temperature afterwards and a positive ovulation test beforehand, but none of them pinpoints the exact day. See a GP if a change in your discharge worries you.
Contraception and pregnancy tests
Can contraception stop my periods?
Yes. Some hormonal methods, including the contraceptive pill, the injection and the hormonal coil (IUS), can cause missed periods. Pregnancy is still possible with any method, so take a test if you think you might be pregnant.
When should I take a pregnancy test?
Most pregnancy tests can be used from the first day of a missed period. If you don’t know when your next period is due, the NHS says to test at least 21 days after you last had unprotected sex.
What should I do if my contraception failed?
Ask a pharmacist, GP or sexual health clinic about emergency contraception as soon as you can. The options are the emergency pill or a copper IUD. Depending on the type, they need to be used within 3 to 5 days of unprotected sex, and the sooner the better.
Why is my period late if my pregnancy test is negative?
You may have tested too early, or something else may be delaying your period, such as stress or a change in contraception. If you still think you could be pregnant, test again after a few days. Contact a GP if the second test is negative and your period still hasn’t come.
Will a pregnancy test work if I’m on the pill?
Yes. The hormones in the contraceptive pill don’t stop a pregnancy test working. No method of contraception is completely effective, so if you think you could be pregnant, take a test and follow its instructions.
About the Ruva app
What is Ruva?
Ruva is an app for recording your periods and what you notice day to day, such as symptoms, mood, energy and sleep. It helps you look back at your own history and see patterns in your entries. It has modes for trying to conceive, pregnancy, the months after a birth and perimenopause.
Is Ruva on iPhone and Android?
On Android, yes: get Ruva on Google Play for Android phones and tablets, with a Wear OS app for your watch. The iPhone and iPad app is coming soon, with Apple Watch, and Mac will run the iPad app. Until the iPhone app is out, you can use Ruva in your browser.
Can I use Ruva now?
Yes. Ruva works in your browser, and the Android app is on Google Play, with a Wear OS app for your watch. Both are free and need no account. What you log stays on your device unless you sync it, back it up, share it or post it. The iPhone and Apple Watch apps are coming soon.
What can I track?
You can log period days and flow, symptoms, moods, energy, sleep, discharge, sex and notes, plus pregnancy and ovulation tests, basal temperature, weight and water. You can also keep track of medicines and supplements, the pill, ring, patch or injection, activity minutes and, after a birth, feeds and nappies. You choose what to record. Nothing has to be filled in.
Are predictions guaranteed?
No. Period and fertile windows are estimates based on what you’ve logged, and dates can change. Ruva doesn’t diagnose conditions, confirm ovulation, guarantee pregnancy or work as contraception.
Can I use it without trying to conceive?
Yes. Cycle tracking is a mode of its own, and the fertility and pregnancy views are optional. You don’t need to be planning a pregnancy to want a good record of your periods.
What happens to the information I enter?
What you log stays on your device, and you don’t need an account. On the web, that means your browser. It leaves only if you turn on sync between your devices, make a cloud backup, share with a partner or post in the Community. You can download all of it or delete everything. Ruva has no ads and doesn’t sell data. The demo on this website uses sample entries and clears your changes on reset or reload.
Is there a paid plan?
No. Every feature is free for everyone, with no paywall and no premium tier. If you’d like, you can support Ruva with an optional pay-what-you-want amount in the Android app, through Google Play, and in the iPhone app, through the App Store, once it’s out. There are no payments on the web. The suggested amount is $2.99 a month. Supporting doesn’t add any features.
Is Ruva the same app as Veya?
Yes. Veya is now Ruva. Same app, same people, same privacy: only the name changed. Zuro Ansa Tech LLP still runs it, and our privacy policy and terms are the same apart from the name.
Is Ruva a form of contraception?
No. Ruva’s fertile-window estimates are not contraception and there are no “safe days” in it. If you want to avoid pregnancy, talk to a doctor, nurse, pharmacist or sexual health service about a method that suits you.
Can Ruva tell me if something is wrong?
No. Ruva helps you record and look back at what you notice. It doesn’t diagnose conditions. A pattern in your entries can be useful to bring to an appointment, but only a clinician can say what it means.
Does Ruva work if my periods are irregular?
Yes, you can log whatever happens. Estimates are less certain when cycle lengths vary, so Ruva shows them as ranges and labels them clearly as estimates. Irregular periods are worth mentioning to a GP, especially if your pattern has changed.
Do I need an account?
No. Ruva works without one, and what you log stays on your device. Three things need a linked account: sync between your devices, the Community, and restoring a cloud backup on a new device. For those, you can link a Google account (on Android or the web), use Sign in with Apple on iPhone, or create an account with your email address. With Google or Apple, Ruva gets only the email address, to recognise the account. With an email account, your name is used only in emails about your account, and Ruva never receives your password. Other Community members see only your display name, never your email. Your cycle data isn’t shared with Google or Apple.
Does Ruva show ads or sell my data?
No. Ruva has no ads and doesn’t sell data.
Can I download or delete my data?
Yes. You can download everything at any time as one JSON file, with your periods, every entry and note, medicines, reminders and settings. You can restore it into Ruva on another device without an account. There’s a CSV copy for spreadsheets too, and you can delete everything.
Can I bring my history from another app?
Yes. Ruva can import an Apple Health export, exports from Clue, Flo, Natural Cycles, drip. and Mensinator, or a CSV file with dates and flow. On Android, it can also read period history from Health Connect. Ruva reads the file on your device and shows a preview of what it found before saving anything. You can undo the import, then or later, in Your data & devices.
What comes across when I import?
Period days and flow, plus entries such as symptoms, moods, spotting, test results, temperatures and notes that match something you can log in Ruva. Days already in Ruva stay as they are. Settings and anything Ruva has no match for are left out, and the preview says how many. Importing the same file twice adds nothing the second time.
How does pay-what-you-want work?
It’s optional support for people who want to give something, and it’s in the phone apps: the Android app now, and the iPhone app once it’s out. There are no payments on the web. In the apps, you can choose a monthly amount ($0.99, $1.99, $2.99, $4.99 or $9.99, with $2.99 suggested) or a one-time gift ($2.99, $9.99 or $24.99) through Google Play or the App Store. These are US dollar prices, and the stores show their own local prices. Supporting doesn’t add any features, because every feature is already free. You can cancel a monthly amount at any time in your store subscriptions.
Can I share my records with a doctor or partner?
Yes, both are built in. A doctor summary PDF brings your cycles, recorded patterns and medicines to an appointment, with versions for pregnancy and after a birth. Partner sharing uses a private code to share your name and a short summary you choose, and stops when you turn it off. You don’t need either one to use Ruva.
Can I add my predicted periods to my calendar?
Yes. In Settings › Reminders, Add to your calendar makes an .ics file with your next six predicted periods, and your fertile windows when your mode shows them. With neutral titles on, every event is just called “Ruva”. The file is made on your device, and Ruva doesn’t receive it. If your calendar syncs online, your calendar provider keeps a copy. Estimates change as you log, so add a new file after your next period.
Does Ruva have widgets?
Yes, in the phone apps: the Android app now, and the iPhone app once it’s out. There are home-screen widgets on Android, iPhone and iPad, and Lock Screen widgets on iPhone and iPad. You can also use shortcuts from the app icon and, on Android, a Quick Settings tile. With discreet mode on, they leave out words such as “period”.
Which languages does Ruva support?
Eight: English, Spanish, French, German, Brazilian Portuguese, Arabic, Simplified Chinese and Hindi, the same as this website. The library guides are in all eight.
Does Ruva support pregnancy, postpartum or perimenopause?
Yes. Pregnancy, after a birth and perimenopause are modes of their own, alongside cycle tracking and trying to conceive. Pregnancy mode has week-by-week guidance and When to get help. After a birth has recovery notes, a weekly mood check, and feeds and nappies. Perimenopause has symptom and treatment tracking. All of them are in the app.
Does Ruva tell me when to get help?
Yes, in plain words. In pregnancy and after a birth, When to get help lists the signs to act on, sorted by how urgent they are. It shows the numbers for where you get care (the UK, the US or elsewhere), and your own care contacts are one tap away. Every library guide has a when-to-get-help section too. Ruva doesn’t assess your symptoms: if you’re worried, call.
Will Ruva tell me how much of a medicine to take?
No. Ruva keeps track of what you take and when, with an optional reminder, but it never suggests a dose. Doses come from your doctor, midwife or pharmacist, and you shouldn’t stop a prescribed medicine without checking with them first.
Choosing a tracker app
What’s the best private period tracker app?
The right app is one whose privacy choices you understand and are happy with, so check any tracker’s settings and policy before you start. Ruva keeps what you log on your phone, with no account and no ads. What you log leaves the phone only if you turn on sync between your devices, make a cloud backup, share with a partner or post in the Community. Ruva uses Google Analytics for Firebase, with advertising switched off, to see how the app is used, and counts health-related screens itself so they never reach Google. You can switch it off.
Is there a period tracker without ads?
Ruva has no ads at all, for everyone. There’s no paid tier to remove them, because there are none to remove. Supporting Ruva is optional and adds no features. You can use Ruva in your browser or the Android app now, and the iPhone and iPad app is coming soon.
Is there a completely free period tracker app?
Ruva is free in full: every feature, including the pregnancy, after-a-birth and perimenopause modes, the doctor summary and the library of guides. There’s no paywall or premium tier. If you’d like, you can give an optional pay-what-you-want amount in the Android app through Google Play, and in the iPhone app through the App Store once it’s out, with $2.99 a month suggested.
Which period tracker apps don’t sell your data?
Ruva doesn’t sell data or show ads, and what you log stays on your device unless you sync it, back it up or share it. It uses Google Analytics for Firebase, with advertising switched off, to see how the app is used, and counts health-related screens itself so they never reach Google. You can switch it off. For any app, read its privacy policy to see who it shares data with, where data is stored, and whether you can export and delete your records.
Is there a pregnancy app in Arabic or Hindi?
Ruva is in eight languages, including Arabic (with a right-to-left layout) and Hindi. Its pregnancy mode has a week-by-week guide, When to get help with the numbers for where you get care, and a contraction timer. The library of guides is on this website in all eight languages too. You can use Ruva in your browser or the Android app now, and the iPhone app is coming soon.
Where the health answers come from
The answers about periods, symptoms, fertility and pregnancy tests are based on these NHS pages. Each linked guide lists its own sources in full.
Choosing between trackers? See how Ruva compares with other apps, with sources for every claim.
Can’t find your question? Browse the Learn library, or see Ruva support for help with the app and this website.