A period coach is essentially a person who helps you understand your moon cycles and manage your period better using education, tracking, nutrition, exercise, and much more.

Many might argue that an OB-GYN or doctor can address those issues. Getting an appointment with an OB-GYN or other doctors in on itself is a humongous hurdle. On top of that, they need to see a myriad of patients in a day which makes it difficult for them to give ample time and special attention. They end up brushing off several menstrual issues as normal. Women and menstruators require far more attention and care for their menstrual and hormonal health. An annual gynecological exam is not enough to cover all the issues a person with periods goes through.

So, period coaches can bridge that gap. Menstruation coaches are more accessible to their patients, offer a listening ear, more time, and frequent appointments for addressing doubts and queries.

Did you know that experiencing occasional cramps of low intensity is normal, but menstruation experience should not be painful or debilitating?

If you visit your doctor with menstruation pain as your prime complaint, they are inclined to treat the symptoms. Usually, they prescribe a hormonal birth control pill. It will stop the symptoms as it shuts down the body’s natural cycle. Yes, it momentarily solves the purpose. No release of the egg from the ovaries, no ovulation, significantly lowers pain.

Is it a fair trade-off though?

The issue is that they are not addressing the underlying condition which might be causing the menstrual pain. The pill is just a quick fix as it is addressing the symptoms and not a solution for the underlying problems. Digging deeper into why their periods are the way they are, is important. 

Are you satisfied with the medical care you receive for your menstruation issues?

A host of issues like estrogen dominance, PCOS, endometriosis, PMDD, fibroids, nutrient deficiency, chronic stress, etc.. could be causing menstrual pain. In contrast to the typical treatment offered by a doctor or an OB-GYN, a period coach helps you in addressing the underlying problems that may result in painful periods. 

Did you know that your bowel movements are also a significant indicator of your menstrual health?

Besides tracking your periods, a menstruation coach wants to know everything about your moon cycles starting from documenting your mood throughout the cycle to tracking bowel movements, and more. Their job is to offer menstrual education so that you know the science behind periods and why tracking them is important. The next steps depend on the issues you are facing. It can be nutritional counseling, supplement support, mental health support, stress management, self-pleasure, setting goals, physical training, acupuncture, and even hypnosis in some cases that can help improve your menstrual and hormonal health.

If you are planning to seek help from a period coach, you might want to invest time in learning about their area of expertise. It is important to make sure that you get your doctor on board with the idea of getting a period coach to help you along the way. A functional doctor or one doing an integrated practice might be more inclined to agree to it.

Also, make sure that your period coach is certified in the field that they are going to help you with. If your period coach is helping you improve your physical activity, make sure that they are a certified physical trainer or yoga instructor. Similarly, if you are seeking help for improving your emotional well-being, you might want to get a period coach who is a certified therapist or a CBT therapist. The bottom line is not to seek nutrition advice from a period coach whose core competency is acupuncture or one who has certification in hypnosis.

Periods are not just a woman’s thing and the world is still waking up to this fact. Non-binary folks can also experience menstruation and must be included. Much of the literature found on menstruation is exclusively cis-centric which makes non-binary or trans menstruators feel excluded. If you don’t identify as a cis-gendered woman but get periods, you might want to look for a period coach who is trans and non-binary inclusive.

All women and people with period need to learn to be proud of their bodies and allow nothing or nobody to make you feel ashamed of it. Menstruation is a natural bodily function for over half of us humans. Educating yourself about period positivity and shedding all the stigma around it is the need of the hour.