| by a sperm cell within a relatively short time, it will degenerate. This process of ovulation occurs once a month. Each ovary normally releases an ovum every 56 days. The right and the left ovary alternately discharge an ovum resulting in approximately one ovum every 28 days. The menstrual cycle in most women is therefore approximately 28 days. Reproductive cycle Females around the age of 11 to 12 years (puberty) begin to experience the female reproductive cycle and continue up to the middle age, after which it ceases. The female reproductive cycle, or menstrual cycle, is characterized by regular and recurring changes in the uterine lining, resulting in menstrual bleeding (menses). The first phase of the recurring reproductive cycle is menstrual bleeding. It begins when the endometrial lining starts to slough off from the walls of the uterus, and it is characterized by bleeding from the vagina. This is day 1 of the cycle, and this phase usually lasts through day 5. The time between the last day of the menses and ovulation is known as the postmenstrual phase. It lasts from day 6 through day 13 or 14 and is characterized by proliferation |