---
title: "Your menstrual cycle: length, changes and patterns"
description: "How long a typical cycle is, why periods become irregular, how stress, sleep, exercise and stopping contraception can affect timing, and when to see a GP."
url: "https://myruva.co/learn/topics/your-cycle"
language: "en-GB"
---

# Your menstrual cycle: length, changes and patterns

Cycle length, what can shift it, and how to tell the difference between a pattern in your records and a prediction about next month.

- [Can stress delay your period? Sleep and exercise](https://myruva.co/learn/stress-sleep-exercise-and-your-cycle): What the evidence says about how stress, sleep and exercise affect your cycle, what low energy availability means, and when to get a missed period checked.
- [For teens: seeing a doctor about periods, contraception or sexual health](https://myruva.co/learn/seeing-a-doctor-as-a-teen-periods-contraception-and-confidentiality): When a period problem is worth an appointment, where to go, what a first visit involves and how confidentiality works for teens in the UK and US.
- [How long is a normal menstrual cycle?](https://myruva.co/learn/how-long-is-a-normal-menstrual-cycle): How to count your cycle, how the NHS and ACOG ranges compare, and when a short, long or changing cycle is worth raising with your GP.
- [Irregular cycles: what to log and when to ask](https://myruva.co/learn/irregular-cycles-what-to-log-and-when-to-ask): How to keep a useful record when your period dates vary, describe changes clearly and know when to get routine or urgent care.
- [Irregular periods: causes and when to see a doctor](https://myruva.co/learn/irregular-periods-causes-and-when-to-see-a-doctor): Common causes of irregular periods, from contraception to thyroid problems, with clear advice on when to see a GP or get urgent help.
- [Period products, safe use and help with cost](https://myruva.co/learn/period-products-and-period-poverty): Compare pads, tampons, cups, discs and period pants, spot symptoms that need urgent care, and find help getting period products.
- [Periods after stopping the pill and other methods](https://myruva.co/learn/periods-after-stopping-hormonal-contraception): What to expect after you stop the pill, patch, ring, implant, hormonal coil or injection, when fertility returns, and when to see a GP.
- [Recorded patterns vs predictions](https://myruva.co/learn/recorded-patterns-vs-predictions): How an entry, a pattern and an estimate differ, with a worked example and simple ways to read your own record without reading too much into it.
- [The hormones behind your cycle](https://myruva.co/learn/hormones-of-the-menstrual-cycle): What oestrogen, progesterone, FSH and LH do, why cycle timing varies, and what the evidence says about cycle-syncing claims.
- [Vulva and vagina: a plain guide](https://myruva.co/learn/vulva-and-vagina-a-plain-guide): The names for the outside and inside parts, how appearance varies, gentle care, and which changes are worth getting checked.