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Referenced guides on your cycle, conditions, fertility, pregnancy and menopause — each reviewed by a clinician.
Afterpains: Cramps in the Days After Birth
Why the womb cramps in the days after birth, why feeding makes it worse, how long it lasts, and the pain that is not afterpains.
Bleeding After Birth: What Is Normal and What Is Not
How bleeding after birth usually changes week by week, what clots and colours mean, and the bleeding that needs urgent care.
Breastfeeding: The First Two Weeks
What the first fourteen days of breastfeeding usually involve: colostrum, milk coming in, latch, feeding frequency, engorgement and sore nipples.
Contraception After Birth: What to Know
When fertility returns after birth, which methods are usually discussed while breastfeeding, and when each can be started.
Your Mood After Birth: Baby Blues, Depression and Anxiety
The difference between the baby blues and something that needs support, what postnatal depression and anxiety look like, and how to ask for help.
Your Pelvic Floor After Birth
What the pelvic floor does, why leaking and heaviness happen after birth, what usually helps, and why common does not mean permanent.
When Your Periods Come Back After Birth
When periods usually return after birth, how feeding changes the timing, why the first cycles are irregular, and what is worth reporting.
Your Body in the First Six Weeks After Birth
What changes in the first six weeks after birth: bleeding, cramps, healing wounds, breasts, bladder, mood and sleep, and the signs that need care.
Postpartum Warning Signs That Need Urgent Care
The symptoms that need urgent care in the weeks after birth, why late signs are missed, and exactly what to say when you call.
Healing After Stitches or a Caesarean
How perineal stitches and caesarean wounds usually heal, what helps day to day, and the signs that mean a wound needs checking.
Sex After Birth: What to Expect
When sex after birth is usually possible, why it often hurts at first, what helps with dryness and scar pain, and what is worth reporting.
Your Six-Week Check After Birth
What the postnatal check is for, what usually happens, and how to make sure your own health is on the agenda rather than only the baby's.
Sleep and Exhaustion After Birth
Why exhaustion after birth is more than broken sleep, what actually helps, and when tiredness is a symptom rather than a stage.
When Breastfeeding Is Not Working
What to do when feeding hurts, supply feels low, or you want to stop: what help exists, what mastitis looks like, and how to change how you feed.
Period products, and how to choose
Pads, tampons, cups and period underwear, described honestly. What each one does, what it costs you in effort, and how to decide for yourself.
Getting ready for your first period
A simple plan: what to carry, where to keep it, who you can tell, and exactly what to do if your first period starts while you are out.
Is my period normal?
In the first two to three years, periods are uneven by design. Here is the range that is expected, and the few things worth showing a doctor.
A period at school
Leaks, PE, asking to leave a lesson and what to keep in your bag. The practical answers for having a period during a school day.
Period myths, checked
Swimming, washing, exercise, how much blood there really is, and whether tampons hurt. Each one checked against what health services actually say.
Period pain: what helps, and when it is too much
Cramps are common and there are things that genuinely help. There is also a line: pain that stops you going to school is worth a doctor, not endurance.
Tracking your cycle without stress
Why an app shows you a wide window at your age, why that is honest rather than broken, and how to track without it becoming another thing to worry about.
What is a period?
A period is the lining of the uterus leaving the body through the vagina. Here is what happens, in plain words, for someone who has not had one yet.
What's changing in my body
Puberty happens in a rough order, and it starts at a different age for everyone. Here is what usually changes, and when to ask a doctor.
When to tell an adult, and when to see a doctor
Which things are worth telling an adult, which are worth a doctor, and who you can go to if home is not the easiest place to ask.
Bleeding After Menopause: Why It Always Needs Checking
Any bleeding after twelve months without a period needs checking, however light. What the appointment involves, and why every episode counts.
Bottles and Formula: Preparing and Feeding Safely
Why powdered formula is not sterile, what preparation guidance covers, where countries differ on water temperature, and how bottle feeds are given safely.
Feeding Your Newborn: How Often, and How You Know It Is Going In
How often newborns feed, what feeding cues look like, and what a midwife or health visitor checks when feeding is being looked at.
Your Baby's First Checks and Vaccinations
The checks usually offered to a newborn baby, what each one looks at, and why vaccination schedules differ between countries.
Newborn Crying, and What Helps
Why newborn crying peaks in the early weeks, what parents are advised to try, and the safe thing to do when you have had enough.
Your Newborn in the First Two Weeks
What is usual for newborn babies in the first fortnight: feeding, sleep, weight, nappies, the cord stump and jaundice, and who to ask about your own baby.
Nappies, Skin and the Cord Stump
What newborn nappies usually contain, how nappy rash is handled, how the cord stump is cared for, and the signs that need to be seen.
Newborn Warning Signs That Need Urgent Care
The signs in a newborn that need emergency care, why fever under three months is different, and what to say when you seek help.
Safer Sleep for Your Baby
What safer sleep guidance covers, where national guidance agrees, where it differs on bed sharing, and how to find the advice that applies where you live.
Week 10 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
By week 10 the womb is about the size of a large orange, and looser digestive muscles are behind the bloating and heartburn.
Week 11 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 11 usually opens the dating scan window, and with it the first real screening choices of the pregnancy.
Week 12 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 12 closes the first trimester for most women, and it is the week the scan and the telling-people question usually arrive together.
Week 13 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 13 starts the second trimester. A small bump may appear, and sore gums become one of the more surprising new symptoms.
Week 14 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Appetite often returns in week 14, and the placenta is doing the work now. Some women see the first traces of colostrum.
Week 15 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Discharge increases in week 15 and hearing begins. Knowing which changes in discharge need checking is the useful part.
Week 16 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 16 usually brings an antenatal appointment, blood test results, and the first blood pressure and urine checks of the second trimester.
Week 17 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 17 is around when some women feel the first movements — bubbling or fluttering, easily mistaken for wind.
Week 18 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
The anomaly scan window opens in week 18. It is a detailed look at development, and it does not find everything.
Week 19 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 19 is when loosening ligaments start to make running uncomfortable, and when sleep gets harder for many women.
Week 20 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 20 is the halfway mark. The anomaly scan often falls here, and the whooping cough vaccination is usually offered around now.
Week 21 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Balance shifts noticeably in week 21, and sleep-wake patterns are forming that rarely match your own.
Week 22 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Piles and stretch marks are the week 22 complaints, while breathing practice and taste buds are developing.
Week 23 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Rib pain and breathlessness arrive in week 23 as the ribcage expands, and movement starts to have a rhythm you can recognise.
Week 24 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 24 is the point from which a baby may survive with specialist care, and the week movement patterns start to matter clinically.
Week 25 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Puffy hands and feet are common in week 25, and this is the week to learn which swelling needs checking today.
Week 26 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Night-time leg cramps and forgetfulness define week 26, and eyes open for the first time.
Week 27 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 27 closes the second trimester. It is also the last week most airlines carry a pregnant passenger without a letter.
Week 28 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 28 starts the third trimester and brings the biggest routine appointment of the second half: bloods, anti-D and glucose testing.
Week 29 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Breathlessness and broken sleep define week 29, and every folk method of guessing the sex is worth ignoring.
Week 30 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 30 is three-quarters of the way, and it is when vivid dreams and broken sleep are at their most reported.
Week 31 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 31 often brings the first proper check of position and bump size, and the first mention of the word breech.
Week 32 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 32 is a weight-gain week for both of you, and the week the vitamin K decision is usually first explained.
Week 33 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 33 is the packing week, and the week to ask about group B strep. Only about one baby in twenty arrives on the due date.
Week 34 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 34 often brings engagement — the head dropping into the pelvis — and with it a strange sense of relief that means very little.
Week 35 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 35 is the week to read about pain relief in labour, while there is still time to ask questions about it.
Week 36 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 36 is when position is taken seriously, and when turning a breech baby is offered. The appointment this week is not one to skip.
Week 37 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 37 is full term. A birth from here is not early, and the signs that labour has started are worth knowing by heart.
Week 38 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 38 is when the conversation about going past 41 weeks usually happens, and when waiting becomes the main symptom.
Week 39 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 39 is when waters may break, and when knowing exactly when to call the maternity unit matters more than anything else.
Week 4 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 4 is usually the week a period is missed. Nothing shows on the outside, and many women feel no different at all.
Week 40 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 40 contains the due date, which is an estimate rather than a deadline. Term runs to 42 weeks, and nothing is late inside it.
Week 5 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 5 is when most women find out. Tiredness often arrives first, and the heart and nervous system are taking shape.
Week 6 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 6 is when nausea often starts, at any hour of the day. Limb buds and ears are beginning to form.
Week 7 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Blood volume is already climbing in week 7, which explains the thirst and the dizziness. Brain and spinal cord are growing fast.
Week 8 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 8 usually opens the booking appointment window, and it is often the week mood swings become the loudest symptom.
Week 9 of Pregnancy: What to Expect
Week 9 is when pregnancy hormone levels usually peak, which is why it is often the hardest week of the first trimester.
Fertility Tests: What an Assessment Usually Involves
What a fertility assessment usually includes, why both partners are checked, how long results take, and what to ask before you start.
Age and Fertility: What the Numbers Do and Do Not Say
How age affects the chance of conceiving each month, why population figures cannot predict any individual, and when guidance suggests asking for help sooner.
Trying to Conceive With Irregular Cycles
Why timing advice built on a 28-day cycle does not work when yours varies, what is worth tracking instead, and when to ask for help rather than wait.
Thyroid Conditions and Trying to Conceive
Why a thyroid condition is worth reviewing before you conceive rather than after, what usually gets checked, and what changes as soon as a test is positive.
Meet Femio: Your Women's Health Tracking Companion
Meet Femio, a women's health app for cycle and symptom tracking, free calculators, private health logs, and better-prepared clinician visits.
What Are Common Early Pregnancy Changes?
Learn about common early pregnancy changes, why symptoms differ, how pregnancy is confirmed, and which pain, bleeding, or sickness needs care.
Can Endometriosis Affect Fertility?
Learn how endometriosis may affect fertility, what a clinical review may include, and how care choices can reflect your conception goals.
What Are the Common Signs of Endometriosis?
Learn about common endometriosis signs, how symptoms can vary, what details are useful to track, and when to seek medical care.
What Is the Fertile Window?
Learn what the fertile window means, why it spans several days, how estimates are made, and why calendar dates cannot guarantee ovulation.
What Happens at Your First Pregnancy Appointment?
Learn what may happen at a first pregnancy appointment, which questions and checks may be discussed, what to bring, and how to speak up about your needs.
Can Heavy Periods Cause Iron-Deficiency Anaemia?
Learn how heavy periods can lead to iron-deficiency anaemia, which symptoms to notice, what tests may be discussed, and when to seek care.
How Is Endometriosis Assessed?
Learn how clinicians assess possible endometriosis using symptom history, exams, imaging, and sometimes laparoscopy, plus how to prepare.
How Are Painful Periods Assessed?
Learn how clinicians assess painful periods using your symptom history, an exam or imaging when useful, and checks for possible underlying causes.
How Do Clinicians Assess PCOS?
Learn how clinicians assess possible PCOS, which criteria and checks may be used, what other causes are considered, and how to prepare.
How Should You Track Your Menstrual Cycle?
Learn which cycle dates, bleeding details, and symptoms are useful to track, how to spot patterns, and how to prepare a clear health summary.
What Menopause Care Options Can a Clinician Discuss?
Learn which menopause care options a clinician may discuss, including HRT, non-hormonal approaches, vaginal care, shared decisions, and review.
What Is Menopause and What Can Change?
Learn what menopause means, which changes may occur, how clinicians assess symptoms, and when bleeding or other symptoms need medical care.
How Does the Menstrual Cycle Work?
Learn how the menstrual cycle works, how to count cycle days, what can vary, and which changes are worth discussing with a doctor.
Can PCOS Affect Fertility?
Learn how PCOS may affect ovulation and fertility, what to track while trying to conceive, and when a clinical fertility review may help.
What Are the Common Signs of PCOS?
Learn about common PCOS signs, why they vary, what details may help at an appointment, and when changes need medical care.
What Is Perimenopause and What Can Change?
Learn what perimenopause is, how periods and symptoms can change, how clinicians assess it, and which bleeding needs medical attention.
What Care Options Can Help With Period Pain?
Learn which self-care and clinician-discussed options may ease period pain, how choices depend on the cause, and when pain needs further assessment.
What Happens at a Preconception Appointment?
Learn what a clinician may discuss before pregnancy, including health history, medicines, vaccines, folic acid, tests, and personal pregnancy goals.
What Can You Expect During a Typical Pregnancy?
Learn what may happen across the three trimesters, what prenatal care involves, and which pregnancy warning signs need urgent help.
Which Pregnancy Warning Signs Need Urgent Care?
Learn which pregnancy symptoms need urgent medical care, including severe pain, bleeding, breathing trouble, headache, reduced movement, and safety concerns.
How Should You Track Perimenopause Symptoms?
Learn how to track period changes, hot flushes, sleep, mood, and daily impact during perimenopause without treating app estimates as medical conclusions.
How Should You Track PMS and PMDD Symptoms?
Learn how to keep a daily PMS or PMDD symptom record, identify cycle timing, summarise daily impact, and know when to seek help.
Trying to Conceive: Where Should You Start?
Start trying to conceive with clear steps on prepregnancy health, cycle timing, medicines, testing, and when to ask for fertility support.
When Should You Seek Fertility Help?
Learn when to ask for fertility support, which factors may call for an earlier review, what an initial assessment can involve, and how to prepare.
When Should You Take a Pregnancy Test?
Learn when a home pregnancy test is most useful, why an early result may be negative, how to follow the instructions, and what to do next.