A hard cervix does mean your period is coming as your cervix will feel firm before your period if you have not conceived.
However if you are pregnant then your cervix will feel soft instead of firm.
Your cervix can be low and hard but without a period during ovulation which causes the cervix to drop lower and become more firm.
The opening to your uterus will become tightly closed and can happen right after ovulation or it may take several hours or days.
You can even ovulate without trying to become pregnant.
Conditions such as polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) affect normal ovulation.
Irregular ovulation is also a problem. Being overweight can add to ovulation problems and reduce your chances of conceiving.
Stress, very low body weight, and excessive exercise also impact ovulation.
Right before your period your cervix is most often hard or at least firm as estrogen levels will be low but as your menstrual cycle progresses the estrogen will make the cervix feel softer.
And during the follicular phase the body is preparing your uterine lining for a fertilized egg to attach.
Your cervix usually drops 7 days to 10 days before your period and it can happen right before and during your period.
In the days that lead up to your period when your cervix drops lower in the vagina it may make it easier to feel the position of the cervix.
Right before and during your period your cervix will drop slightly and be lower until your period is over with.
Then your cervix usually goes back up to where it was normally before.
Also just before ovulation the cervix will be slightly open as well and have a tiny opening about the size of a slit.
After ovulation and your period the cervix should close back up and then reopen again for your period.
After the ovulation occurs your cervix will become more firm and drop lower and your opening to your uterus will become tightly closed.
It can happen immediately or take several hours or even days to occur.
When a woman is not pregnant, the position of their cervix changes throughout the stages of their menstrual cycle.
For example during ovulation, the woman's cervix is higher in the vagina.
After ovulation and before menstruation, if the woman has not become pregnant, the cervix drops lower in the vagina.
After ovulation, your cervix will drop and harden.
The cervix may be low but stay soft as you get closer to menstruating.
And if fertilization didn't happen during ovulation, the cervix will open to allow menstruation to happen, but will stay low and hard.
The cervix is said to show infertile signs when it is low, closed, firm, and lying against the vaginal wall; that change occurs quickly under progesterone influence.
If the cervical length is less than 25 millimeters (short cervix) before 24 weeks of pregnancy and you're only carrying one baby, your doctor may consider a procedure that uses sutures or synthetic tape to reinforce your cervix (cervical cerclage).