Is It Safe To Try And Stop Your Period
Whether its for a week, a month or even long-term, its possible to stop your period.
Some people want to stop or delay their period because of special events like a wedding or honeymoon. For others, the desire to stop their period stems from a medical reason like:
- Heavy bleeding.
- Uterine fibroids.
While its safe to stop your period, remember that your body is normally on a cycle, which ranges from 21 to 35 days. And it all has to do with hormones.
Estrogen is the hormone that makes tissue build up in your uterus, which provides a nice cushiony lining for a pregnancy to implant, says Dr. Jhaveri. If you dont get pregnant, that tissue needs to shed, and thats your period. After you ovulate, another hormone, progesterone, is released and helps to keep you pregnant. But if you dont get pregnant that cycle, the progesterone goes away and thats when the period comes.
That decrease in progesterone causes your uterus sheds its lining, which results in a period.
If you can prolong the progesterone, thats the most effective way to stop your period, says Dr. Jhaveri. Youre faking your body into thinking youre pregnant.
Youre In A New Relationship
Beginnings of new relationships are exciting, fun, and passionate. Unpredictability and spontaneity are some of the best things about the honeymoon phase. If you dont want to be caught in a situation where you have to say, Uh…its that time of the month, so lets hold off for tonight, then you may want to ask your doctor about using birth control to skip your period.
Stopping Periods When Using Birth Control
People who are taking the combined contraceptive pill can plan their period to some extent as they know that it will come during the week that they are taking either the dummy pills or no pills.
If they have started their placebo pills or pill break for the week and their period has commenced, they could begin taking their next pack of pills.
Doing this will increase the level of hormones in their body, which may shorten the duration of bleeding, although there is no guarantee of this.
People can stop their periods in the long term by using hormonal birth control. Doctors refer to this as âmenstrual suppression.â
Long-term methods for stopping your period include:
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Why Its Not Possible To Stop A Period That Has Already Started
It isnt possible to stop a period that has already started because the shedding process in the lining of the uterus has already started due to low levels of estrogen and progesterone. Once these hormones decrease, the internal lining of the uterus sheds and leads to the bleeding that occurs during a period.
Taking 2 Packets Of The Combined Pill Back
If you take a combined contraceptive pill, you can delay your period by taking 2 packets back-to-back.
How you do this will depend on which pill you take.
Examples are:
- monophasic 21-day pills, such as Microgynon and Cilest you take a combined pill for 21 days, followed by 7 days without pills, when you have a bleed . To delay your period, start a new packet of pills straight after you finish the last pill and miss out the 7-day break.
- everyday pills, such as Microgynon ED and Lorynon ED you take a combined pill every day. The first 21 pills are active pills and the next 7 pills are inactive or dummy pills, when you have your period. To delay your period, miss out and throw away the dummy pills, and start the active pills in a new packet straight away.
- phasic 21-day pills, such as Binovium, Qlaira and Logynon the mix of hormones in each pill is different, depending on which phase you’re in. You need to take these pills in the correct order to have effective contraception. Ask your pharmacist, community contraception clinic or GP for more information.
Taking your contraceptive pills in the ways described above will not affect how they work as contraceptives.
If you’re not sure which pill you’re on or which pills in the packet to miss out, speak to your pharmacist, community contraception clinic or GP.
Avoid taking more than 2 packs without a break, unless your GP says you can.
There’s a risk you could experience side effects, such as:
- feeling sick
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Follow A Healthy Lifestyle
A healthy lifestyle that involves following a well-balanced diet and maintaining a healthy weight is also important to prevent heavy flow and regulate your menstrual cycle . Obese women are at an increased risk of heavy flow. Hence, managing your weight is a step closer to a regular menstrual cycle in which the blood flow stops sooner than usual.
Downsides Of Delaying Your Period
Some of the natural methods for delaying a period can cause side effects. Lemon juice and ACV may irritate sensitive tissues in your mouth and throats. They can also weaken enamel on your teeth. Gelatin and gram lentils may cause bloating and discomfort in your stomach.
Both natural and chemical remedies for delaying a period may not work. If they dont, you could have a period anyway. Irregular bleeding or spotting might also happen, even when theres not a full period.
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S That Can Stop Your Period Long
If you wish to explore the idea of stopping your period long-term, you have options. At the very least, birth control can minimize the frequency of periods you have a year.
- Intrauterine devices may take three to six months to stop your period altogether, but after that, they can remain effective for anywhere from three to 10 years depending on the type.
- Birth control implants like Nexplanon work for up to three years and provide lighter periods or may stop them altogether depending on the person.
- Endometrial ablation procedure: This procedure is usually only recommended for people with very heavy, prolonged periods who are at risk of anemia and shouldn’t be considered if you are planning to get pregnant at any point in the future.
Delaying Your Period If You’re On The Pill
If you’re taking the combined contraceptive pill, you should be able to take 2 packets back-to-back to delay your period . For more information, see the contraceptive pill and period delay.
You can delay your period in this way if you take most brands of the combined contraceptive pill, including Microgynon, Rigevidon, Cilest and Yasmin. However, some types of combined contraceptive pill contain a different mix of hormones in each pill . If you are taking a phasic pill brand you should consult with your doctor before attempting to delay your period.
If you take Cerazette, or another brand of the the mini pill , you will be taking a pill every day anyway, so there is no way to delay your period by skipping the 7-day break.
How does taking back-to-back packets delay my period?
You normally get your period when the lining of your womb sheds. The hormones in the combined contraceptive pill help to sustain the womb lining, and so taking back-to-back packets sustains it for longer.
Is it safe to take packets back-to-back?
Yes, this is common practice.
Can I take more than two packets back-to-back?
Yes, you can take up to three packets of the combined contraceptive pill back-to-back to delay your period for longer. However, this will cause the lining of your womb to build up extensively, and your chances of spotting or breakthrough bleeding increase. You will also be more likely to feel bloated.
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How To Delay Your Period When You Have A Vacation Coming Up
You booked the airfare, the room, and the activities. You took time off from work, bought a great new swimsuit, and are all packed. Everything about your trip is all set, except for one tiny thing your body didnt get the memo and youre going to have your period while on vacation. So many unexpected setbacks can happen even on the most perfectly planned trip, so the last thing you want to do is have to worry about your period. Well, good news, female travelers! If youre using certain contraceptives, you can easily delay your period for a vacation and its doctor-approved.
No matter where your vacation takes you, having your period during it is a pain. If your vacation plans entail activities by the water like snorkeling, kayaking, or sitting poolside youll be much more comfortable in your swimsuit not having to worry about bleeding and cramps. Or if your vacation is more focused on cultural pursuits, who needs to be constantly searching for a bathroom and making sure you have the right amount of sanitary products as you sightsee? And take care knowing that according to obstetrician-gynecologist Dr. Pari Ghodsi, there is no harm if you do choose to use your birth control to skip a period during your trip.
As Dr. Ghodsi explains it, you can only skip your period when you are on a combined hormonal contraceptive, like birth control pills, the ring , or the patch .
Can You Get Period Delay Tablets Over The Counter
No, period delay tablets are prescription-only. There are some serious health risks for certain people if they were going to take progesterone medications like period delay pills. So its important that a doctor can check to make sure theyre safe for you to take.
Although you need a doctor to check you for period delay treatment, you dont have to do it face-to-face. With services like Superdrug Online Doctor, you can get checked online instead using a quick and easy healthcare question that one of our doctors checks for you.
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First: Is It Safe To Delay Your Period At All
So there’s some good news here: You absolutely can delay your periodand do it in safe way. But that can only be done with one specific hormonal birth control method: the combination pill .
“A birth control pill has 21 days of hormones, usually ethinyl estradiol and progestin, and seven days of a placebo pill that prompts you to have an artificial period,” Alyse Kelly-Jones, MD, an ob-gyn in Charlotte, North Carolina, tells Health. “To delay your period, you would skip the placebo and immediately start a new pack of pills.”
Doing this for just one cycle can delay your period by as much as another three weeks, says Dr. Kelly-Jones. The only caveat is that you need to plan accordingly and with plenty of notice if you’re not already on hormonal birth control to begin with. “If you come to me two weeks out from your wedding or vacation and aren’t already on birth control, I probably won’t be able to help you,” she says. “At best, you might be able to delay it in time, but at worst, you might cause all kinds of irregular bleeding, which would be even less appealing.”
That’s because, with your birth control pills already in place, your body is like a well-oiled machine, while starting birth control from scratch can sometimes be a lengthy process to find one that works with your body to your liking.
Is It Safe To Stop Your Period In The Long Term
The length of the menstrual cycle may vary from one woman to another. Some factors can also interfere with its onset, such as stress, your weight, and your hormones. While the average cycle usually lasts anywhere between 2 to 7 days, some women may have longer periods. The menstrual cycle is often shortened as a woman ages and if she is on contraceptives.
If the menstrual cycle is too long, it often interferes with travel and other plans. Hence, it is natural for women to look for ways to suppress or end their period faster.
There are both long-term and short-term ways to stop periods. Long-term methods usually involve taking birth control pills, progestin shots, or contraceptive implants. There is no evidence that stopping your periods in the long term may be harmful to you, but the side effects often associated with contraceptives are not a secret.
Hence, it is better to look for options to suppress your periods for a short duration. And what could be better than some natural ways of doing this? Listed below are some easy ways to stop your periods faster, all naturally.
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Do Natural Methods Work
There is little research to support any claims that natural methods, such as apple cider vinegar, can cause a person to delay or skip their period.
If a person is opposed to using hormonal methods to delay their period, using a menstrual cup may be an alternative. This does not delay a period, but it can prevent any leakage without using tampons or sanitary pads.
Menstrual cups fit over the cervix and collect the menstrual flow, allowing people to participate in a range of day-to-day activities without changing menstrual products as frequently.
No Period For Three Months: Is This Normal
Not having your period for three months or more is known as secondary amenorrhea. This can happen for a variety of reasons. Natural causes of an absence of menstruation for three months include perimenopause, pregnancy, and breastfeeding. Certain lifestyle factors like stress and excessive exercise may also cause it. Furthermore, having either excessive or low body fat can also cause a missed period. Tumors on the pituitary gland or a hypoactive/hyperactive thyroid gland can also lead to hormonal imbalances and trigger secondary amenorrhea. Low levels of estrogen or high levels of testosterone can also result in a missed period.
Genetic disorders such as Swyer syndrome and Turner syndrome result in a lack of menstruation without proper hormone replacement therapy. Some people experience a missed period because of medications such as antidepressants, antipsychotics, or chemotherapy drugs. You could also notice no period for three months or more if you have just stopped taking birth control pills.
Physical issues like problems in your reproductive organs could also cause delayed or missed periods.
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Is It Normal To Miss A Period
There are several times in a persons life when irregular periods are expected: when a person first starts having periods , during breastfeeding, and at the beginning of perimenopause . On average, most people get their periods every 28 days. But a healthy persons menstrual cycle can last from 21 to 35 days. Apart from puberty, menopause, and pregnancy, a missed period may indicate a health issue.
Whats The Menstrual Cycle
Your menstrual cycle helps your body prepare for pregnancy every month. It also makes you have a period if youre not pregnant. Your menstrual cycle and period are controlled by hormones like estrogen and progesterone. Heres how it all goes down:
You have 2 ovaries, and each one holds a bunch of eggs. The eggs are super tiny too small to see with the naked eye.
During your menstrual cycle, hormones make the eggs in your ovaries mature when an egg is mature, that means its ready to be fertilized by a sperm cell. These hormones also make the lining of your uterus thick and spongy. So if your egg does get fertilized, it has a nice cushy place to land and start a pregnancy. This lining is made of tissue and blood, like almost everything else inside our bodies. It has lots of nutrients to help a pregnancy grow.
About halfway through your menstrual cycle, your hormones tell one of your ovaries to release a mature egg this is called ovulation. Most people dont feel it when they ovulate, but some ovulation symptoms are bloating, spotting, or a little pain in your lower belly that you may only feel on one side.
Once the egg leaves your ovary, it travels through one of your fallopian tubes toward your uterus.
If pregnancy doesnt happen, your body doesnt need the thick lining in your uterus. Your lining breaks down, and the blood, nutrients, and tissue flow out of your body through your vagina. Voilà, its your period!
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What Are The Side Effects Of Taking Norethisterone Tablets
You must be prescribed norethisterone, to ensure it is safe for you to take. As with any medication, side effects are possible and they can vary from person to person and in severity.
Seek medical help right away if you have symptoms of:
- an allergic reaction
- a blood clot in the lungs or brain
- deep-vein thrombosis
You can check the patient information leaflet for symptoms of these serious conditions.
You should also seek medical advice if you experience yellowing of your skin or have a migraine for the first time. All period delay treatments may not be 100% effective. Both norethisterone and medroxyprogesterone can still cause breakthrough bleeding during use. Making sure you take your treatment exactly as prescribed is the best way to get the most out of it.
Less serious side effects that have been reported by women taking norethisterone include:
- breast tenderness
How To Delay Period Naturally
One thing to remember is that you should not try to change your period if it is not incredibly important, because this can affect the regularity of your period. Here are some natural ways for you to try safely.
1. Natural Progesterone Cream
The levels of progesterone rise during the first half of your menstrual cycle. It comes down slowly by the second half. That dip in your progesterone levels tells your body to start your menstrual period. You can use natural progesterone cream and keep your progesterone levels elevated for a few days. This will help you delay your period for a few more days.
You need to start use the creams at ovulation and apply at least 1/4 teaspoon for twice each day to get desired results. Just stop using the cream when you want your period comes.
2. Foods to Eat and Avoid
You need to pay attention to your diet in order to learn how to delay period naturally, because your hormones can be influenced by your hormones and further help delay your period. Raspberry leaves and lentils may help delay menstruation. Sucking on a lemon may have the same effects.
Also, you need to eliminate certain foods from your diet because they usually bring on your period early. The list includes garlic, ginger, papaya, sesameand peppers. Yet, you may increase the use of these foods though to get your period out of the way early.
3. Breast Massage
4. Intense Exercise
5. Herbs
6. Gelatin
7. Lemon
8. Stress Relief
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