5 Reasons Your Period Is Off

Don’t freak out. You’re probably fine.

Sure, the scientific average of days between periods is 28, but there are plenty of factors that go into why your period could be off schedule.

Here are five of the most common, most likely reasons periods are out of whack.

1 Pregnancy

Duh, first instinct. Even if you’ve never had sex, you still think for a split second, “Am I pregnant!?” But it doesn’t hurt to double-check.

2 Birth Control

Any type of hormonal funkiness can change your period. Birth control pills specifically lighten your period: they’re fewer, further between and with less heavy of a flow. It’s a more polite unpredictability.

3 Activity

Scientifically, and in personal experience, when you’re doing more athletic activities than normal, your period can slow down or even temporarily stop (hey, high school water polo…) Exercising less can also affect your flow, but usually when it’s affected, more exercise means less menstruation.

4 Stress

If you’re extra anxious about things, if the weather is messing with your head or if you’re about to have an ulcer because your roommate never fills the Brita, your period could be affected by it.

It’s a digestive system thing and a hormonal thing. When you have more stress, there’s more aggravation on your organs.

5 Illness

Usually a regular cold isn’t enough to mess up your period, but if you have an intense flu or something, your body is tricked into thinking you’re not healthy enough to get pregnant so it shuts down menstruation.

So don’t stress if you’re not exactly 28 days between each period, because the scientific norm for everyone isn’t necessarily the norm for you. An irregularity here and there doesn’t mean you’re dying. Of course, you know your body best, so if something feels really wrong, talk to a doctor.

Also, WebMD shouldn’t be browsed for excessively long. Because that will bring stress, and as we now know, that’s a cause in and of itself.