I am an 18 year old virgin, my period is two weeks late

Hello Anonymous,

Welcome to EmpowHER. I am glad you reached out to our community with your concern about your late period.

Pregnancy is definitely not the cause. And, you are correct, you cannot become pregnant by sitting on a public restroom toilet seat:)

Traveling can affect your menstrual cycle.

When you are traveling, especially to a faraway city or overseas, the time change will interfere with your normal internal biological clock or circadian rhythm. This is what is referred to as jet lag, and rapid air travel across various time zones can lead to a number of problems. It can cause many problems, from exhaustion, irritability, and fatigue to stomach problems and lack of appetite.

A study was conducted on this, and it indicated that women have sleep disturbances seventy percent of the time after they cross a time zone. This is another example of how a major disruption in the circadian rhythm could have a huge effect on your period. As a matter of fact, the same study shows the well-documented fact that female flight attendants are commonly affected by irregular menstrual cycles.

Hormone release and various other vital bodily functions are influenced by your circadian rhythm. Whenever it’s off, your hormones such as progesterone and estrogen, which play an important role in your menstrual and ovulation, will be thrown off. Estrogen could spike to trigger ovulation or the spike might be delayed because of changes in your rhythm and cause your period to come later than normal.

Hope you had a lovely trip abroad,
Maryann