Understanding our cycle of fertility is an important part of understanding ourselves as women.

To begin our cycle of fertility, a hormone, called follicle-stimulating hormone, (FSH) is produced by the pituitary gland in the brain. FSH travels through the bloodstream to the ovaries, causing a few (about 16) of the many tiny follicles there to begin ripening, or maturing. A follicle is a ring of cells with a tiny, unripe egg, called an ovum, inside. Each ovary contains about 200,000 tiny follicles, barely visible without a microscope. As the follicles ripen, they produce another hormone, called estrogen. Estrogen causes the cervix, (the opening of the uterus,) to soften, open slightly, and move higher up the vaginal canal. Under the influence of estrogen, the cervix also begins producing fertile type mucus. For most of us there is enough mucus to flow down the vagina and be noticed outside the vaginal opening. (Without knowing our signs of fertility, we could mistake the cervical mucus for an infection!)

Estrogen also causes the endometrium, (the lining of the uterus,) to grow thick, soft and spongy, forming a kind of bed that can hold and nourish a baby. Finally, estrogen signals the pituitary gland in the brain that some follicles have matured in the ovaries.

Feelings: At this wet, potentially fertile time in our cycle we may feel self-confident, out-going, creative, and full of energy. We may also feel less need to sleep, since the chemical adrenaline, which causes excitement, is also high at this time. The fertile, wet time is really our power time. It is a time to start new projects or to finish old ones. Like Mother Earth in her rainy season, we are full of potential. We may feel courageous, loving, and interested in sexual activity. Estrogen is preparing us to have a baby, whether or not we want to have one!

However, charting our cycle, with its signs and signals, helps to keep us aware of the waxing and waning of energy and sexual desire. This awareness, called fertility awareness, allows us to harness our cycle to power our own goals--What I want to create this cycle--rather than allowing our hormones to push us in ways we really do not want to go.

Ovulation: When the pituitary gland receives the message that some follicles have matured, it produces another hormone, called leutenizing hormone, or LH. LH causes one of the ripening follicles to release its ovum into a fallopian tube. This is called ovulation. The ovum is moved along the fallopian tube by the cilia, tiny hairs that line the fallopian tubes. If the ovum is not fertilized by male sperm within 12 to 24 hours, it disintegrates and is reabsorbed by the body.

After ovulation, the empty follicle, which is called the corpus luteum, lives for about two weeks, all the while making another hormone, called progesterone. Progesterone thickens the fertile-type mucus in the cervix, creating a plug to keep germs out of the uterus in case of a pregnancy. Because the mucus is now thick , it no longer makes its way down the vagina to the outside of the body. Therefore we no longer notice any slippery wetness outside the vaginal opening. Progesterone also causes a woman's resting temperature to go up about 4/10 of a degree Fahrenheit or 2/10 of a degree Centigrade. Finally, progesterone prevents the pituitary in the brain from sending any more hormonal messages to begin another cycle. Progesterone continues to delay the beginning of another cycle for about two weeks, after which time the empty follicle dies.

More Feelings: After ovulation, under the influence of progesterone, we may feel somewhat deflated compared to our wet, fertile time. Like Mother Earth in her dry time, we may feel quiet and less energetic.

Menstruation: When the empty follicle dies and pregnancy has not occurred, the lining of the uterus is shed with menstruation. The bloody menstrual flow contains the tissue and nutrients that would have held and nourished a baby if conception had taken place. As soon as the lining of the uterus is shed with menstruation, another lining begins to grow. That is the nature of a cycle. One ends. Another begins.

And More Feelings: When menstrual bleeding begins, both estrogen and progesterone are at low levels. We may feel sensitive, solitary, or inward. "How did I spend my creative energy this cycle?"

By understanding and following the natural inward and outward energies of our cycle, we develop a sensitive and compassionate relationship with ourselves.