... I read up on how to maintain good battery life and found a few websites. They mention something about how it's not good to use the iphone from life to death over and over because you're only suppose to do a single cycle charge like that per month. ...
I think you are reading too much into the info that you see. It's not telling you that you can only discharge completely and fully recharge once per month, the information actually reads:
Be sure to go through at least one charge cycle per month (charging the battery to 100% and then completely running it down).
And that same paragraph starts with the headline "Use your iPhone regularly"
I can't think of a way to use an iPhone (or any rechargeable device, for that matter) that doesn't occasionally run the battery down if you use it as a portable.
If your question is really "How do I get maximum life out of a battery, and best usage in a battery-operated device?" That Apple article covers it pretty well.
If YOUR battery fails very quickly, not charging any more, or loses a full charge within a few minutes, then you get that fixed. That's one purpose for your warranty.
All rechargeable batteries eventually fail through normal use - they have a limited lifespan, and eventually fail to take a charge. You should reasonably expect two or three years at the most. Some individual batteries might last considerably longer. Some will fail fail sooner than you might expect.
Following the general guidelines in that article will be some of the good techniques for potentially the best battery life, balanced with reasonable use.
Does that help answer your question?
