Period talk: Questions and advice

Linda Cook58 said:I need some advice.
On August 21st, I took my last birth control pill after three years because I have to take a break due to my cholesterol levels. I had my period normally on August 23rd, but according to my cycle tracking app, my next one was supposed to arrive by September 19th. It still hasn't shown up, and I'm almost two weeks late.
I took a pregnancy test this morning and it was negative.

Should I head straight to the gynecologist, or is it pretty common for things to get wonky when you stop taking the pill? Should I just wait a bit longer?

It’s definitely common, but don't let it drag on too long. At the very least, give your doctor a call—you don't necessarily need an immediate appointment.
Regarding the cholesterol, did your doctor suggest the pills were the cause? While it makes sense to pause them for now until your levels stabilize, keep in mind that diet and genetics usually play a much larger role than birth control does.

Linda Rodriguez38 said:But here is my actual PROBLEM:
I should be getting it tomorrow, or in the next few days.
But for the last 3 or 4 days, I've been feeling absolutely miserable.
I have lower abdominal pain, I'm exhausted, I can't do any physical activity because I have zero energy, plus digestive issues, nausea, and these intense waves of pain... I have no idea what's going on...
Theoretically, I shouldn't be pregnant.
But I have never felt this awful during the days leading up to my period.
I guess it might just be part of getting older, but this is so draining that I'll lose my mind if it happens every single month...

I occasionally deal with certain symptoms or pains that don't happen often, but they do occur. So... unfortunately, anything goes when it comes to that time of the month...

Morgan Torres said:Does anyone else experience painful lips during their period? Last month was a nightmare. I felt completely dehydrated inside and my lips were hurting like crazy.

Sorry, I haven't been following everything—are you on birth control? Because that can be a side effect too...

Megan Rivera98 said:A colleague and I are debating this...
Yasmin stopped taking her birth control right at the start of all these recent issues... which means she should be getting her first period soon after being on the pill for eight months straight.
Since they had sex around day 12 or 13 of her cycle...
basically right when her fertile window opens... is there a chance she's pregnant?
They were careful and he didn't finish inside her...
I'm telling her the odds of pregnancy are slim...

What do you mean by "careful"? If they just relied on him pulling out, then yeah, there’s definitely a chance. Look, Vadigavan isn't exactly a foolproof method, especially during those peak fertile days.

She took a pregnancy test today, but the result was negative...
She had been expecting her period around Tuesday or perhaps Wednesday...
It is already Friday, so one can only hope she didn't test too early...

@ Laura Mendoza - I take them, but I haven't seen that listed as a side effect anywhere else

Megan Rivera98 said:she took a pregnancy test today and it was negative...
she was expecting her period around Tuesday or Wednesday...
it's Friday now... hopefully she didn't take it too early...

It isn't too early, but if her period doesn't arrive by next week, she should run another test or just head straight to her OB-GYN.

Morgan Torres said:@ Laura Mendoza - I am taking them, but I didn't see that listed as a side effect anywhere.

Look at it this way: while sore lips might not be the issue, dryness definitely is. Is this a one-time thing that only happened during her cycle?

Even before I started taking birth control, I’d have those days where my lips would just start aching right before my period arrived. This is actually the first time that's happened since I started on my current pill (I'm on Yasmin). For what it's worth, I don't deal with dryness at all. I guess I could say I've been pretty lucky since I haven't had any side effects from the pills, other than some breast enlargement.

I’m honestly feeling a bit lost here. My OBGYN can't see me for another two weeks, and I'm starting to panic. I’ve already had my period three times in just a month and a half. Does anyone have any idea what might be causing this? I'm really worried about it.

You haven't really given us much to go on here, so I’m kind of in the dark—I don't know your age, if you might be pregnant, if you're on any birth control, or if there are any underlying health issues involved...
but look, an appointment with a gynecologist isn't exactly like booking a quick trim at a hair salon. If you're bleeding this frequently, you really should just call the doctor's office, tell them it's an emergency, and demand an earlier slot!! You need to get yourself seen in the exam room as soon as possible so they can figure out what's actually going on with you!!
and please, let us know how everything turns out once you've been seen.

I dealt with a month-long period myself—accompanied by some pretty intense pain around my ovaries. They ended up giving me an injection just to get the bleeding under control, and I think the doctor put me on something like progesterone to help regulate my cycle. They ran a full panel of hormone tests too, since those kinds of imbalances are usually the culprit in cases like this. My advice? Get your hormones checked and find a gynecologist for an ultrasound as soon as possible.
It could also be PCOS—if a cyst ruptures, you can definitely experience bleeding, though that usually comes with a lot of pain.
Everything came back normal for me, so they eventually concluded it was all just stress. And honestly? It’s accurate. Whenever I’m under massive pressure, my cycle goes haywire (plus, there was the added pain from an infection I was dealing with at the time).
In the end, they did find CIN1 and some changes linked to HPV, but that probably wasn't the direct cause of the bleeding, so they attributed that to the stress, just like I mentioned before.

Just wanted to give a quick update—I finally made it to my gynecologist yesterday to figure out what on earth is going on with my cycle, since I'm already nearly three weeks late. I actually managed to catch her right as she was heading out for the day (I had this idea in my head that she stayed until 8 😵), and she was incredibly patient, letting me vent before explaining everything in such detail. From what I gathered, she mentioned that the uterine lining needs to thicken up enough to shed before a period can start, but mine apparently isn't quite there yet because of how long I've been on hormonal birth control. She used a specific medical term for why it's not thickening properly, though I'll be honest, it totally went in one ear and out the other. She did reassure me that it’ll just take some time for everything to get back to its natural rhythm, but she insisted I schedule a formal follow-up regardless. So, I'm all set for an appointment, though the earliest opening they had wasn't until November 17th. 🙂, oh well, at least I'm feeling a little more at peace now.

Here's the deal... I've been on Yasmin for about 6 months now.
Two days ago was day 8—basically the day I’m supposed to start a new pack and the last day of my period.
The issue is I didn't keep taking them, and I had sex a week ago plus again on that last day of my period.
Now I'm stuck wondering if I should just jump back into a new pack and stay careful, or if I should just skip this month entirely and wait until my next period starts to begin a new pack.
Anyone dealt with this before?

wearyotter81 said:Oh my god, finally! I was seriously losing my mind here... it finally arrived this morning. I have been waiting forever 😍
this is a total record for me... a 39-day cycle 😲

So, I just got back from the OBGYN, and turns out PCOS is the culprit behind this whole mess 😲
Since this is actually the very first time my period has been this irregular and my cycle has been such a disaster, we’ll just have to wait and see. Maybe things will just balance themselves out over the next few months, or maybe they'll put me on some birth control pills.

Well, I guess there's a first time for everything, right? 🤣
Let's go, at least it isn't anything super serious...

Hey everyone! I’m dealing with a bit of a situation here... My period was supposed to arrive on October 10th, but my boyfriend and I had unprotected sex on the 11th—he didn't actually finish inside, but still. It's now October 18th and my period hasn't shown up yet! I should mention that last month it came right on time, but the month before that and the one before *that*, it was about ten days late. Now I'm starting to get really worried because it's been exactly a week since it was due, so is there any chance I could be pregnant?? Could someone please help me out and let me know which pregnancy tests are good to use and when would be the best time for me to go take one? Thank you so much! Oh, and we're both 17 years old.

I’m no expert or anything, but I guess it’s pretty much impossible—or at least super tough—to get pregnant like 7 days before and 7 days after your period hits... correct me if I'm wrong though

Laura Perez23 said:I’m no doctor, but it feels almost impossible to conceive roughly seven days before and after ovulation... correct me if I'm wrong!

Oh my goodness, Scott Smith6, I am really crossing my fingers that you're right about that, though wouldn't it be just wonderful if a professional could step in and give us a definitive answer? Your insight helps so much, but I should probably mention that my fertile window actually started right on the day I was expecting my period!

coastalscout24 said:Hey, I've got a problem.My period was supposed to start on October 10th. My boyfriend and I had sex on the 11th without protection—he didn't finish inside, but still. It’s October 18th now and nothing. My cycle has been all over the place lately; last month it showed up right on time, but the months before that, I was late by ten days. Now I'm freaking out because I'm exactly a week late. Could I actually be pregnant? I need answers ASAP. Which pregnancy tests actually work, and when is the best time to go take one? Thanks. Oh, and we're both 17.

Look, if he didn't finish inside you, the odds are slim, but they aren't zero. You should probably hit up a gynecologist. Or, if you haven't done that yet, just swing by a CVS and grab a pregnancy test.
I think you really need to get your period. The issue is your cycle is so irregular that you probably have zero clue when you’re actually fertile or not. But honestly, if he didn't finish inside you, does it even matter? Unless you're just looking for trouble.🤷

Quick question: I stopped taking my Yasmin pills on September 26th (which was when I should have just kept going as usual). My period is now two days late, and I’m wondering if this delay is normal while my hormones settle back down, or if I should be worried? Thanks.

Yeah, I actually stopped taking Diana just a few days ago myself. My doctor mentioned that my cycle might be late by as much as three weeks while my ovaries get back into their normal rhythm.

Hannah Peterson14 said:Yeah, I actually stopped taking Diana a few days ago too. My doctor told me my cycle might be late by up to three weeks while my ovaries get back to normal.

Did you have any ovarian pain? Thanks for the info.🙂

I’m actually feeling totally fine right now, mostly because I haven't even started this whole "artificial" period cycle yet.
We'll just have to wait and see how things shake out once it actually hits...

I’m honestly not quite sure where this belongs, so I’ll just drop it here and hope someone can move it if I’ve posted in the wrong spot...

Is it okay to have blood work done while I'm on my period—specifically for testing hormone levels—or will being on my cycle mess with the accuracy of the results?