So I got my period today.
Problem is, I had it less than two weeks ago.
And two weeks before that as well.
For many years now, I’ve been on a 22-day cycle, pretty much like clockwork, which is something of a pain in the ass. OTOH, it’s meant lighter, shorter periods since the uterine lining doesn’t have much of a chance to do anything. And I’ve been more or less free of bad cramping or nausea or any of that. The worst thing I get is the runs, which is always a joy. And back pain, but I can’t always distinguish the period-related kind from the herniated-disk kind or the tight-back-from-running kind. But, you know, normal, regular, relatively unproblematic menses for about the last 20 years.
So why the HELL am I now getting my period every two weeks? Since this started right around my birthday, is it some little gift from the universe?
And do I really have to wait another TEN TO FIFTEEN YEARS for menopause?
Are you on any new BC? The only time I had a cycle like this was when I first started Norplant and my hormones were all out of whack. Lasted for about six months.
Nope, nothin’. I had my tubes tied years ago, and hormonal BC just made me crazy, so I haven’t taken it. I am at a loss.
It’s not unusually painful or heavy, incidentally.
Well, with your tubes tied, it seems pointless to be on hormonal BC. But it might be worth talking to your doctor about it anyway. I just switched to Lybrel, the no-period pill, and it’s a much lower dose pill than anything I’ve taken before. So far, it’s working good, though I’m like about twice as horny and my skin is sensitive now.
It could be several different things, none of them good. Scrape together some money and take yourself down to PP for an exam.
My first thought, since you said you’ve been gaining weight lately, was PCOS. Infrequent periods are more common with PCOS, but too-frequent ones can happen, too.
Any change in weight can foul up your cycles by shifting the amount of estrogen in your system. The irregular cycles in PCOS happen because you’re not ovulating, and other things can cause anovulatory cycles like, say, stress. But I know you don’t have any stress. Endometriosis and fibroids are other common culprits. And as much of a pain as it is, your heart and your bones are better off if menopause is a ways away….
Mnemosyne is right, it’s best to have it checked by a doctor who can actually see and examine you, since of course I can’t diagnose or treat over the internet.
Much sympathy. Royal pain in the, er, patoot.
I should get to PP, definitely, if for no other reason than that I’m overdue. Actually, I haven’t gained weight recently; I’ve been pretty stable for a couple of years after gaining weight. Plus, the cause of the gain was hardly mysterious, since I was eating a lot, not exercising, and hitting the bottle pretty hard.
I *have* lost a little weight recently, though, due to the running. Not a whole lot, but maybe that combined with stress is throwing my system for a loop.
Thanks for the Lybrel advice, Amanda. I can quite happily do without my period for the rest of my days. Now to see if I can actually get a weight-adjusted dosage of the things.
If it is endometriosis or PCOS, getting some kind of hormonal treatment now will help you avoid complications in the future. I stopped taking BC when it got too expensive (much cheaper to buy a 500 count bottle of store brand ibuprofen every month), but after a few years of increasing pain and menstrual problems, I was diagnosed with endometriosis. Now my organs are glued together and I’m going on ridiculous medication to keep things from getting worse, in addition to BC and prescription painkillers and special drugs to keep the side effects from getting out of hand. Supposedly, if I’d stuck with the BC, the endo wouldn’t have gotten this bad. Oh well. At least it’s not fatal.
At the very least, try to get a blood test to make sure your hormones are working properly (especially the thyroid — that bastard controls everything) and have a decent GYN make sure your ovaries aren’t screwy.
Actually, I haven’t gained weight recently; I’ve been pretty stable for a couple of years after gaining weight.
Hm. I was probably thinking of someone else. That’s what I get for reading too many blogs.
But, still — hormones out of whack = not good, and something to see a doctor about.
Zuzu,
Or, since you are loosing weight, you may just be getting ovulation spotting just for the hell of it. It happens sometimes.
In the meantime, GET THY ASS (AND UTERUS) TO AN OB-GYN AND GET A PELVIC ULTRASOUND. When my breakthrough bleeding got nuts, it took 3 different ultrasound operators (first two were sloppy) to find the culprits–2 uterine cysts, which I have since named Fluffy and Bubbles. I keep an eye on my new pets, and am medicating accordingly. They are (at this point) only annoying, not dangerous, but it’s good to know about them. Email me offline if you want my (good) radiologist that I used, so your obgyn can write an ultrasound scrip to them.
I just spent the last three months or so bleeding on an almost-continual basis. First thing they tested me for was an ectopic pregnancy. That wasn’t it (thankfully). After an ultrasound, it turns out I have a thickened uterine lining caused by estrogen-producing ovarian cysts. My estrogen levels were in the 600-range (normal is 200-range). I’m currently on BC pills to try to regulate the hormones gradually. If this doesn’t work, they’ll probably do a simple-ish surgical procedure to remove the cysts.
You have the same genes and are about the same age. Worth getting looked into. If untreated, the long-term problem is that it can develop into cancer. And, in my case at least, the bleeding got progressively worse. By August I was bleeding so much and passing clots …. I honestly thought I was having a miscarriage….
Go get it checked.
PS: Thankfully (and I mean wickedly, awesomely, thankfully) this all happened this year and not LAST year when I didn’t have insurance…..
oh.. and one more thing… I also thought (like you) I was bleeding so much/often that there couldn’t possibly be anything left in there (I was wrong). I did not have cramping either. I was tired a lot, and nesting a bit (sort of like when in my 1st trimester… )
I had exactly those symptoms when I was in college. It turned out to be endometriosis, which, thankfully, I got treated before it ruined my fertility. (The Pill is the basic treatment. I owe my two sons to the Pill.) Seriously, as everyone else says, hie thee to a doctor and get tests. Ovarian cysts are another common cause of those symptoms and are even less of a pleasure. Good luck to you.
PS: Thankfully (and I mean wickedly, awesomely, thankfully) this all happened this year and not LAST year when I didn’t have insurance…..
Well, unfortunately for me, it’s happening when I don’t have insurance. But I did look into the Freelancers’ Union, which now covers my industry (last time I looked, they didn’t, but they seem to have partnered up with some big organizations and opened it up), and has quite reasonable group rates for health insurance. Better than the bar association’s rates, which are about double.
So I’ll jump through the hoops and get their insurance and get this crap checked out.
Zuzu,
Planned Parenthood may even be able to hook you up with an affordable pelvic ultrasound. Try to get both an external and a transvaginal; that’s how they caught my pets in the end.
I feel sort of stupid for asking this question, but when taking Lybrel, how do you know if you’re pregnant? I mean, eventually you would certainly know, but how far along in the pregnancy would you be before you realized that’s what was going on? I’m thinking of switching pills, but the one and only thing I sort of like about having a period is the reassurance that I’m not pregnant (despite the small likelihood that I’d get pregnant while on the pill).
Whenever I’m faced with expensive testing for myself or the kids (even with insurance, some of cost shares and deductibles are overwhelming)… I always ask them if there is any way to determine to *some* degree of certainty, or to eliminate certain possibilities, by doing some lesser expensive alternatives in the short-term. Or, instead of doing all the tests they would normally order all at once, ask if instead you can do one at time as your budget permits. For instance, a blood test may give them enough information to treat a condition and eliminate or delay the need for an immediate ultrasound. I’m not suggesting in any way that you go without treatment, but you can only do what you can do and some care is better than none.
I also use this approach when something is particularly invasive.
Also, in my experience as an uninsured person, a lot of doctors are willing to work with you if you’re up-front and tell them you’re uninsured. They’ll give you a prescription for an older (less expensive) drug instead of the latest-and-greatest, they’ll let you space out your payments, charge much less for follow-up appointments, etc. Ask if they’ll give you a discount for paying cash. A lot of times, they’re willing to do that since it means they get the money right away instead of having to wait 6 months or more to get reimbursed by the insurance company.
I’m 37 and I’m going through the early stages of menapause. Do you sweat heavily? If yes, I would say either menapause or it could be realted to your thyroid.
Someone’s probably mentioned this already but it sounds like you might have an ovarian cyst. I’ve had those and they mess up your cycle big-time. Most of the time they go away on their own. You need to get an ultra-sound to diagnose it for certain.
Oh, one more thing: you might want to get on an iron supplement right away. Nothing can knock you off your feet faster than anemia.