A period is when you bleed from your uterus in your vagina each month. Periods are a very natural part of a female menstrual cycles. The average length of a period is three to seven days.

A period happens because of changes in hormones in the body. Hormones are chemical messengers. The ovaries release the female hormones, estrogenand progesterone which cause the lining of the uterus (or womb) to build up. The built-up lining is ready for a fertilized egg (an egg that has joined with a sperm) to attach to and develop into a baby. If there is no fertilized egg, the lining breaks down and bleeds. Then the same process happens all over again. It usually takes about a month for the lining to build up, then break down. That is why most females get their periods around once a month.

A menstrual cycle refers to the first day of your period to the day before your next period starts. The cycle can be different for women but the average length of a menstrual cycle is 28 days.

Most girls get their first period when they're around 12. but can occur be earlier and for some signficantly later.

Every girl's body has its own schedule.There isn't one right age for a girl to get her period.

Usually there are some signs in your body before the periods start including

-breasts starting to develop (periods usually start about 2 years after this)

-hair growing under a girl's arms and in her private parts

-seeing or feeling vaginal discharge fluid (sort of like mucus), which usually begins about 6 months to a year before a girl gets her first period

It may look like a lot of blood, but a girl usually only loses a few tablespoons of blood during the whole period. Most girls need to change their pad, tampon, or menstrual cup about 3‒6 times a day.

About one in four women have heavy periods (more significant  blood loss throughout your period).

Your periods may be considered heavy if:

-you need to change your period product every two hours or less because they are too heavy with blood

-you need to change your period product you are using overnight

- you have blood clots in your blood loss which you notice are bigger than a 50 cent coin

- your periods last eight or more days

- your periods blood flow stops you from doing activities you could normally do.

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For the first few years after a girl starts her period, it might not come regularly. This is normal at first. By about 2–3 years after her first period, a girl's periods should be coming around once every 4–5 weeks.

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You have many choices about how to deal with period blood. You may need to experiment a bit to find which works best for you. Some girls use only one method and others switch between different methods. Most girls use pads when they first get their period. Pads are made of cotton and come in lots of different sizes and shapes. They have sticky strips that attach to the underwear.'

Many girls find tampons more convenient than pads, especially when playing sports or swimming. A tampon is a cotton plug that you put into your vagina. Most tampons come with an applicator that guides the tampon into place. The tampon absorbs the blood. Don't leave a tampon in for more than 8 hours because this can increase your risk of a serious infection called toxic shock syndrome. Some girls prefer a menstrual cup. Most are made of silicone. To use a menstrual cup, a girl inserts it into her vagina. It holds the blood until she empties it.

A girl can get pregnant as soon as her period starts. There is potential for a girl to get pregnant right before her very first period because her hormones might already be active. The hormones may have led to ovulation and the building of the uterine wall already.

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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Autem dolore, alias, numquam enim ab voluptate id quam harum ducimus cupiditate similique quisquam et deserunt, recusandae.