The Period Flu Is Not a Joke

Is the period flu real? Asking for a friend who just took two Motrin and set an alarm so she could nap between meetings.

As I've mentioned before, I never used to get a regular period. PCOS meant my cycle showed up whenever it felt like it, sometimes every 60 days, sometimes not at all. So when I tell you I just had my second "normal" cycle in a row, you'd think I'd be celebrating. And I am, truly. Except that both times, on cycle day 1, I could not get out of bed.

Not ideal when you have three little kids and are running a business.

It turns out there's a name for this. "Period flu" isn't an official medical diagnosis — which feels like a personal attack — but it describes the cluster of flu-like symptoms that can arrive right before or at the start of your period: body aches, chills, nausea, and that trudging-through-mud fatigue where you can't tell if it's a cold, allergies, or just your uterus.

Prostaglandins are the main culprit. They're inflammatory compounds your uterus releases to shed its lining that occasionally decide to circulate beyond their assigned area and take the rest of your body down with them. And it's more common than anyone lets on.

Did you know painful periods are the leading cause of lost time from school and work among women of childbearing age — and about 10% are fully incapacitated for up to three days each month? So there are a lot of us out there, horizontal, alarm set, hoping nothing important comes up while we're snoring on the couch.

It helps to know I'm not alone. I just didn't expect "normal" to feel quite like this.