You’re Less Fertile But You Can Still Get Pregnant
Your chances of getting pregnant decrease as you move through your 40s. But you can get pregnant in this decade, said Dr. Dunsmoor-Su. “There is an ovulation 14 days before each period as long as you have your period,” Dr. Dunsmoor-Su explained. “However, eggs at this time of life tend to be of poor quality with a lot of genetic ‘mistakes,’ and miscarriage rates are very high.” You should still use birth control if you don’t want to get pregnant in your forties.
Changes in your cycle over time are normal, but they could signal abnormalities, and sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference. Don’t immediately assume the worst if you experience one month of period weirdness. But “if you have significant sudden changes in your cycle, you should see an ob-gyn for evaluation for possible structural causes or pre-cancer syndromes,” suggested Dr. Dunsmoor-Su.
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 To Do If You Miss Your Period
If you miss your period, you should wait at first. Give it a few days to make sure you didn’t miscalculate or do something to mix up the dates or that you aren’t simply late. Many practitioners at this point, may recommend a pregnancy test.
You can take a pregnancy test at home or your can go into your doctor’s office. If it’s positive, you have your answer: You missed your period because you were pregnant. If it is negative, you may want to wait a bit and try again.
Seeing your doctor if you are worried is never a bad option. If you are planning to get pregnant soon, you can use the visit to start your preconception health plan. This is a great way to get your body on track to be pregnant. This helps you have the healthiest pregnancy possible.
If you are not ready to be pregnant, they can help you determine what your reproductive life plan may look like to stay healthy and avoid pregnancy until the point where you make a decision to have children or permanently decide to not have children.
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Why Do Some Menstrual Periods Become Irregular
There are many variables that can affect the length and timing of your menstrual cycle. Some are correctable, but others can signal significant medical issues.
- Polycystic ovary syndrome This metabolic and hormonal disorder occurs when the ovaries or adrenal glands overproduce the male hormones and the body has insulin resistance. Studies have shown that 87 percent of women with irregular menstrual cycles have PCOS.
- Thyroid or pituitary disorders Hypothyroidism , hyperthyroidism , and hyperprolactinemia can all affect menstrual regularity, says Dr. Lynn. One study found that 44 percent of study participants with irregular periods also had thyroid problems.
- Pelvic inflammatory disease An inflammation of the female reproductive system, PID is usually caused by sexually transmitted infections.
What Happens To Your Body If You Skip A Period
According to Dr. Speichinger, missing one period isnt dangerous, but if you go more than three months without a period or continue to miss periods intermittently over a long period of time, there is the potential for problems depending on the reason why its happening. Some hormonal imbalances can affect the health of the uterus over time.
If the lack of a period is due to too much estrogen compared to other hormones, as is the case with PCOS or excess weight, then there is the added risk of having abnormal cells develop in the uterus, Dr. Speichinger explains.
If you dont know the reason for your menstrual irregularities or missed periods, its a good idea to check in with your provider. Notify your doctor at your annual examinations if your cycle is irregular, Dr. Gibson says. If you miss a cycle, take a pregnancy test, if you miss more than two periods, contact your doctor.
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How To Induce Your Period
Whether or not you can jump start your period or encourage it to happen depends on the root cause of the delay. In the long-term, Dr. Speichinger says that addressing some of the issues that can cause late or missed periods can help get your cycle back on track. Reducing your stress levels, getting adequate rest, cutting back on excessive exercise if youre an athlete, and normalizing your weight can reset your cycle if those things have caused the disruption in the first place.
There are also medication options that may be available to you, especially if your late period is because of a hormone imbalance. Typically, we can start with a progesterone challenge to a withdrawal period, Dr. Speichinger explains.
A progesterone challenge test involves taking progesterone orally for about 10 days, then stopping the progesterone to see if withdrawal bleeding occurs. If it does, there may be an issue with ovulation if it doesnt, the problem may be related to estrogen levels. Dr. Speichinger notes that sometimes there is a second step to the progesterone challenge, where estrogen is given first and followed by progesterone, to cause the withdrawal period.
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This test can tell your womens health provider a lot about your hormonal levels, as well as the health of the lining of your uterus. It can make the next steps clearer for you and your provider as you look for the source of your late or missed periods.
Your Periods Could Become Less Frequent
Before you reach menopause, your body goes through perimenopause, a transition time before menopause that lasts about seven years on average, according to the National Institute on Aging. “Perimenopause is a time that’s characterized by irregular menses, which are usually more spaced out,” saidRebecca Dunsmoor-Su, MD, an ob-gyn in Seattle. As your hormones start to fluctuate, “it can lead to scanter, lighter periods,” added Adeeti Gupta, MD, an ob-gyn and founder of Walk In GYN Care in New York City.
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What Should I Do If I Have Missed My Period
Don’t panic! In most cases there is nothing serious going on. The most important thing to do is to do a pregnancy test if there is any chance at all you could be pregnant. If you otherwise feel well in yourself, and you are not pregnant, then the chances are your periods will start up again in due course.
You should consult a doctor if:
- You have not had a period for three months and your periods were previously regular.
- You have not had a period for 6-9 months but your periods have always been infrequent.
- You could be pregnant.
- You wish to become pregnant.
- You have hot flushes or night sweats and are under the age of 45.
- You have lost weight or your BMI is 19 or less.
- You or someone close to you is concerned about your eating or weight.
- You have milk leaking from your breasts and are not breastfeeding.
- You feel unwell in yourself .
- You have not had a period for six months after stopping the contraceptive pill .
- You are worried about your lack of periods.
What Are Irregular Periods
Even though girls get their periods on a cycle, that cycle can take different amounts of time each month. For example, a girl might get her period after 24 days one month and after 42 days the next. These are called irregular periods.
Irregular periods are very common, especially in a girls first few years of getting her period.
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Your Thyroid Isnt Working Properly
An underactive or overactive thyroid gland can cause your period to come twice in one month. The thyroid gland is regulated by hormones produced and regulated in the same area of the brainthe pituitary and hypothalamusas the hormones that control menstruation and ovulation, explains Dweck. When one is off, the other might be affected.
If you have hyperthyroidism , you may also lose weight unexpectedly, feel nervous or anxious, have a rapid heartbeat, or have trouble sleeping. Hypothyroidism can cause weight gain, constipation, fatigue, and increased sensitivity to cold, among other symptoms.
Your risk of developing a thyroid disease could vary by race, potentially due to a combination of environmental and genetic factors. According to a 2014 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Graves disease, an autoimmune disorder often at the root of hyperthyroidism, is more common in Black, Asian, and Pacific Islander women compared to white women. On the other hand, Hashimotos disease, which often causes hypothyroidism, is more common in white women.
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Medicines And Medical Treatment
As discussed above, a number of contraceptive treatments can stop you having periods. Other medicines can affect periods too. Examples are some medicines for schizophrenia , an anti-sickness medicine called metoclopramide and strong painkillers called opiates.A number of operations may result in absent periods. For example, after a hysterectomy you will not have periods. A hysterectomy is an operation where the womb is removed. As the blood during a period comes from the womb, you will never have periods again afterwards. Another operation , which is sometimes done for heavy periods, also causes periods to stop. In this operation the lining of the womb is removed. This is not usually permanent and periods start again in time.
Treatments for cancer, such as radiotherapy or chemotherapy, can also damage the ovaries and result in absent periods. Recreational drugs such as heroin may also cause periods to stop.
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Something Is Off With Your Thyroid
This gland in your neck regulates your metabolism, produces hormones, controls your body temp, and more. You want it to be on point. When it’s over, or underactive, it may stop ovulation, prompting an irregular period, and possibly impair fertility, according to a new study in The Obstetrician & Gynaecologist. If your doctor suspects this could be the cause she’ll run a simple blood test and probably prescribe a medication. “With the right treatment, your period should go back to normal within a few months,” says Dr. Goist.
You Have Uterine Or Cervical Polyps Or Fibroids
Uterine issues like polyps or fibroidsbenign lesions or tumors that can grow in the uterusare very common and may be related to hormonal issues. Uterine polyps can cause bleeding in between periods, says Dr. Dweck, especially if they are touched, like during sex, and fibroids can cause pain, back pain, abdominal bloating, anemia, pain with intercourse, and spontaneous bleeding because theyre not associated with the menstrual cycle, explains Dr. Richardson.
While fibroids can affect women of any age or race, Black women are about three times more likely to develop them compared to white women, and their symptoms tend to emerge at an earlier age with greater severity. Its unclear why exactly Black women are disproportionately impacted by fibroids, but some studies suggest that greater exposure to racial discrimination or genetics could play a role.
As the Black Womens Health Imperative notes, heavy, painful periods may seem like a fact of life since theyre so commonand many women wait years to seek treatment for fibroidsbut you dont have to needlessly suffer.
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You Have A Short Menstrual Cycle
Indeed, you can get your period twice in a month. And for some people, a bimonthly flow is totally typical.
Here’s why: “A normal menstrual period may last between 21 and 35 days, so many with normal menses may still have more than one period per month,” Dr. Verma says.
In other words, if you have a shorter cycle, you can bleed twice in the span of 30 days.
Reducing Exercise If Youre An Athlete
Missing periods may occur due to low energy availability, especially in adolescent athletes. This can occur if you arent taking in enough energy relative to the energy youre burning through exercise.
People who limit their food intake and engage in extreme exercise, with or without the use of laxatives, may develop amenorrhoea. This may be considered a warning sign for other health issues associated with low energy, such as poor bone accrual and low bone mineral density, both of which are associated with decreased bone strength.
If you may have amenorrhoea due to low energy availability, it is best to reduce the amount of exercise you do on a daily basis. You may want to see a doctor or trainer to determine how much exercise is safe for you to perform.
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Sohow Much Of A Delay In Your Period Is Still Considered Normal
âIf you have one or two irregular periods it is definitely something to pay attention to,â says Sherry Ross, MD, an ob-gyn at Providence Saint Johnâs Health Center in Santa Monica, California. A period is considered late if it hasnât started five or more days after the day you expected it to begin, according to Summit Medical Group. So if your period is, say, 10 days late, definitely take a pregnancy test and check in with your ob-gyn regardless of the results. In general, if your flow has been MIA for a week or more, that’s a sign you should take the test and also check in with your gyno to see what might be going on.
But again, you can miss a period and *not* be pregnant. If there’s no way you’re pregnant and/or your test comes back negative , one of these factors, including all the stress you might be under right now, may be to blame for your late period problems. Then, your next step is definitely calling your doc so they can help you suss out the best solution or treatment for your situation.
Complications Of Amenorrhea In Teens
The possible complications of amenorrhea include :
- Infertility: Pregnancy can become difficult or not possible if missed periods are due to a lack of ovulation or specific structural abnormalities.
- Bone thinning: Missed periods may occur as a result of low levels of estrogen hormones. Low estrogen levels may contribute to osteoporosis or thinning of the bones in the long-term.
If your teens estrogen levels are low, her doctor may recommend calcium supplements to prevent osteoporosis in the future. Due to recent advances in medicine, infertility can be treated with various methods. However, a thorough assessment could help your teens healthcare provider to take necessary measures to prevent these complications.
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How To Prevent Irregular Periods And Stomach Gas
Monitoring your cycle with a cycle tracking app, journal, or thermometer will keep you informed of subtle or major changes.
Cycle tracking is especially useful if youre trying to get pregnant. It can indicate when you are most fertile and if youre late. Its also an attractive habit for those looking for an extra layer of security against pregnancy.
Managing stress and eating a balanced diet can help regulate your cycle and other important functions like digestion. Consider getting a food allergy test to reduce the occurrence of stomach gas.
Ive Been Using Contraception Will This Affect My Cycle
This depends on what type of contraception youve been using. If youve been taking the pill, your period may be irregular when you first come off it, so try to give yourself up to 3 months for your natural menstrual cycle to get back to its normal routine.
The first period after stopping the pill is known as a withdrawal bleed. The next one after this is your first natural period.
The contraceptive injection can also affect your cycle. Your periods may change and become irregular, heavier, shorter, lighter or stop altogether. This can carry on for some months after you stop the injections.
If you use the contraceptive implant your fertility will return to normal as soon as it is taken out.
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