Its Not Actually Your Period
There are plenty of normal reasons why you may be bleeding that donât involve having your period. For example, if you just had your period a couple weeks ago and youâre experiencing brown discharge, Dr. Millheiser says thatâs probably just oxidized blood from your last period.
So, how do you discern whether youâre experiencing spotting or an early period? Dr. Millheiser says, âIf it’s a period, have a period,â to put it simply.That means, if youâre experiencing your period early, it will generally be like your other periods in terms of length of time and flow â just a little early.
Is It Normal To Get Early Period When You’re On The Pill
You can experience both normal and abnormal vaginal bleeding if you are using any kind of birth control pill. Although the causes are different for different people, they might depend on the kind of birth control pill you are on. Knowing the reason for the vaginal bleeding is essential for deciding whether medical attention is necessary or not. Although early period on the pill can occur, it is a good idea to give a call to your GYN and ask if there is a need for an examination. Heavy bleeding for a long time while being on the pill is definitely a sign that something is wrong.
When Should You Take A Pregnancy Test
Its usually recommended that you take a pregnancy test after youve missed your period. This is because pregnancy tests measure the level of human chorionic gonadotrophin in your body, which is a hormone that starts to build up when you conceive. It can take around three to four weeks from the first day of your last period for there to be enough hCG in your body to show up on a test.
Read Also: How Can You Track Your Period
Can I Make My Period Come Early
Vitamin C, ginger, and turmeric have all been touted as having qualities that will induce a period. However, there is no scientific research proving that these or other natural substances can bring on menstruation. Good nutrition, reducing stress, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle can help you avoid menstrual irregularities, though, so you can better predict when your period will occur.
You’re On Birth Control
Birth control has artificial hormones in it designed to make your body think it is already pregnant. This is why it’s effective for preventing pregnancies.
If you just started taking the pill and are on a pill-free week, you may start bleeding. If you stopped taking the pill, the drop in hormones may also cause you to bleed. When you first get an IUD, it can make you bleed more heavily than normal, and it may make your period irregular.
Read Also: Things Not To Eat On Your Period
What Common Symptoms Are Linked To The Menstrual Cycle
Some women have no pain or other problems. But other women have symptoms before and during their periods.
For about a week before a period, many women have some premenstrual symptoms. You may feel more tense or angry. You may gain water weight and feel bloated. Your breasts may feel tender. You may get acne. You also may have less energy than usual. A day or two before your period, you may start having pain in your belly, back, or legs. These symptoms go away during the first days of a period.
When your ovary releases an egg in the middle of your cycle, you may have pain in your lower belly. You also might have red spotting for less than a day. Both are normal.
How Early Can You Tell If Youre Pregnant
Again, youll need to take a pregnancy test at the right time to confirm your hopes or suspicions. But when it comes to the first symptoms of pregnancy, everyone is different. Some people start to notice changes within a week after conception. Others might not notice anything until they miss their period.
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My Period Keeps On Coming Early What Should I Do Is This Serious
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A typical menstrual cycle is about 28 days. Although this is the average length, it is still completely normal to have a cycle that is as short as every 21 days or as long as 40 days in the first few years after starting your periods. The length of the cycle can also change from month to month. It is common for girls to have irregular periods during the first two years after they get their first period. Sometimes stress or increased exercise or weight loss can also change the timing of your period each month. If your cycles are less than 21 days or longer than 40 days or you are having heavy or more frequent bleeding, make an appointment with your primary care provider .
I Started My Period A Week Early
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Read Also: How Can I Delay My Period
What Does It Mean If You Start Your Period Early
Depending on how early the period is, how heavy it is, the type of the discharge and many other factors, an early period can mean many different things.
It can be a simple change in the menstrual cycle, a disease, the effect of a drug or other activity. At times, it might not even be a period but another bodily process such as ovulation or implantation.
What Is The Normal Period In Girls
If you are seeing your period for the first time and you are not sure about what is normal, these are some period facts you should know.
Period is the shredding of the lining covering your womb. This lining is called the endometrium. During each menstrual cycle, you will experience bleeding that comes out of your vagina. The first time your period starts is menarche. When your period finally stops is called menopause.
A normal period in girls last about 2 to 7 days and you may experience cramps or pain in your abdomen.
A normal period may have blood clots sometimes. This is because excessive period blood clots may not be broken down by fibrinolysin.
Between 2 of your menstruation is your menstrual cycle. It is important that you chart your menstrual cycle to know if its regular or not.
Within each of your menstrual cycle, it is expected that you will ovulate. Ovulation, which occurs in the middle of your cycle, is the rupture of the most mature follicle with the release of an egg . When the egg is released, it is pushed into the fallopian tube for fertilization to take place.
During this rupture of the follicles, there may be slight bleeding that sometimes occurs in girls. This bleeding is the cause of brown discharge in women.
Also Check: Can A Plan B Delay Your Period
Why Is My Period One Week Early
Ask U.S. doctors your own question and get educational, text answers â it’s anonymous and free!
Ask U.S. doctors your own question and get educational, text answers â it’s anonymous and free!
HealthTap doctors are based in the U.S., board certified, and available by text or video.
What Is A Menstrual Cycle
The menstrual cycle is the series of changes a woman’s body goes through to prepare for a pregnancy. About once a month, the uterus grows a new lining to get ready for a fertilized egg. When there is no fertilized egg to start a pregnancy, the uterus sheds its lining. This is the monthly menstrual bleeding that women have from their early teen years until menopause, around age 50.
The menstrual cycle is from Day 1 of bleeding to Day 1 of the next time of bleeding. Although the average cycle is 28 days, it is normal to have a cycle that is shorter or longer.
Girls usually start having menstrual periods between the ages of 11 and 14. Women usually start to have fewer periods between ages 39 and 51. Women in their 40s and teens may have cycles that are longer or change a lot. If you are a teen, your cycles should even out with time. If you are nearing menopause, your cycles will probably get longer and then will stop.
Talk to your doctor if you notice any big change in your cycle. It’s especially important to check with your doctor if you have three or more menstrual periods that last longer than 7 days or are very heavy. Also call if you have bleeding between your periods or pelvic pain that is not from your period.
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What Are Regular Periods
Most girls get their first period between the ages of 10 and 15, but some get it earlier and some later. The first period is known as menarche .
A girl’s monthly cycle is the number of days from the start of her period to the start of the next time she gets her period. You often hear this is a 28-day cycle. But 28 is just an average figure that doctors use. Cycle lengths vary some are 24 days, some are 34 days. And a girl may notice that her cycles are different lengths each month especially for the few years after she first starts getting her period.
Early in a girl’s cycle, her ovaries start preparing one egg. At the same time, the lining of the uterus becomes thick to prepare a nesting place for a fertilized egg in the event that the girl becomes pregnant.
About 2 weeks before a girl gets her period, the egg is released from the ovary . The egg travels through the fallopian tube into the uterus. If the egg isn’t fertilized by sperm, it starts to fall apart. Then the lining and egg leave a girl’s body as her period and the whole thing starts all over again that’s why we use the word “cycle.” The first day a girl’s period comes is Day 1 of her cycle.
It’s also normal for the number of days a girl has her period to vary. Sometimes a girl may bleed for 2 days, sometimes it may last a week. That’s because the level of hormones the body makes can be different from one cycle to the next, and this affects the amount and length of bleeding.
What Does It Mean When Your Period Is Two Weeks Early
If you have a regular menstrual cycle, its very easy to know when there is a problem. This may be difficult if your menstrual cycle is still not regular, especially for young girls and women close to menopause.
Should you have a regular cycle and your experience vaginal bleeding 2 weeks from time, these are possible causes.
Also Check: Losing Too Much Blood During Period Symptoms
Skipping Or Discontinuing Birth Control
Birth control pills suppress your normal menstrual cycle with hormones that prevent ovulation. The pills usually come in a three-week supply followed by a week of placebos , and the lack of hormones during the placebo week is what makes you have a period.
When you go off of the pill, or even miss just a pill or two, your body may react like it does during the placebo week and start shedding the uterine lining. This can happen even if it hasn’t been very long since your last period. A similar process happens if you make a mistake with a birth control patch or ring.
The proper way to resume your birth control after missing one or more doses varies by type, so be sure to read the information that comes with your contraceptive or ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist what to do. And don’t forget that you may need a backup method of contraception or emergency contraception to avoid an unintended pregnancy.
Menarche And The Teenage Menstrual Cycle
Menarche is a girl’s first menstrual period. A first period usually happens after breasts, pubic hair, and underarm hair have begun to grow. Menarche is a sign of growing up and becoming a woman. It can happen as early as about age 9 or up to age 15. The first few periods are usually light and irregular. About 2 out of 3 girls have a regular pattern of menstrual periods within 2 years of menarche.footnote 1 During the teen years, periods may become longer and heavier. For more information, see Menarche.
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What Is Implantation Bleeding
Most women ovulate halfway through their menstrual cycle, and if you dont get pregnant then, youll get your period about two weeks after that. If a sperm does successfully fertilize the egg you released at ovulation, you have conceived. This newly created embryo will then travel to your uterus and burrow itself into the lining, if all goes according to plan. When this occurs, the embryo may agitate the blood cells in your lining and cause blood to be released from your body. The apparent release of that blood is known as implantation bleeding and it is an early pregnancy symptom.
There are a few ways you can distinguish implantation bleeding from your period:
- Timing: Implantation bleeding happens six to 14 days after conception. It typically happens before your period would normally arrive.
- Color: Implantation bleeding is often pink or brown, instead of bright red.
- Amount of blood: Implantation bleeding produces spotting, not a heavy flow. It usually lasts one to three days. Thats because the embryo has displaced only a small portion of your uterine lining. When you get your period, on the other hand, you shed the whole thing.
Should I Take A Pregnancy Test If I’m Spotting
Any woman who’s been sexually active in the previous month and could possibly be pregnant should take a pregnancy test after irregular bleeding of any kind, says Dr. Vyas.
Keep in mind that implantation bleeding always happens before a missed period. If you experience heavy bleeding that isn’t implantation or period related , it could be what’s known as first trimester bleeding, a common phenomenon that occurs in 15 to 25 percent of women early in their pregnancy. “But it might also be the first sign of a pregnancy loss or even an ectopic pregnancy,” a potentially fatal condition where the embryo implants outside of the uterus, says Dr. Berman.
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