Do you lose working days per month to your period?

I get extremely tired and irritable the day before. I also felt I got indecisive and found it hard to concentrate. Mine before peri came like clockwork so I made sure no important decisions were to be made the day before. I am lucky I can control my diary to an extent.

but when it came I was like a powerhouse and seemed to gain magic ability to accomplish lots in a day.

now it’s brain fog and fitting to power through my work!

Thank you! I love that women are speaking like this now. I suffered so much as a teenager because we are all meant to be productive automatons and if you have a problem there needs to be a fix a solution or else some people blame you for it.

I was always told in school that if you did anything but take some pain tablets and get on it with it when in pain then you are letting woman kind down. As if we are all experiencing the same amount of pain?! Some people have none. Some people are in agony and there is everything in between.

Surgery and hormonal treatments don't always work either unfortunately, or only work in the short term. I have endometriosis all over (ovaries, uterus, peritoneum, bladder, bowel, diaphragm and suspected on lungs). I've had 4 surgeries including 2 with a specialist. Painkillers barely take the edge off and the side effects of hormonal treatments just make me feel worse. I will probably never be pain free so I have to learn to live with it.

I've actually never taken a day off due to my period. I'm definitely not a high performer on my worst days though and I'm lucky enough to have a lovely manager who signed off on some reasonable adjustments to make my days a little bit more comfortable.

Honestly, if you were able to do this, your pain really wasn't that bad. At one point I was having to go to a&e to ask for morphine. I had a 9lb baby without pain relief so my pain threshold isn't low. Some women are in absolute agony thanks to endometriosis.

I’m not the one who is posting on here looking for the experience – the OP is. So it’s 100% useless for that poster to rail at me twice for simply saying that this sounds unusually debilitating and it would be something I would seek medical intervention for. All while not actually addressing the OP herself.

The OP has given no background of medical intervention before, she is asking if what she experiences is considered common and usual.

Thank you so much for saying this! I suffered for so many years thinking something was wrong with me. And fyi sometimes they don't what is wrong after looking too. I had stage 4 endometriosis. There is no cure, just things that may help and do not work for everyone. This post makes me feel seen.

Yes I had this. I have endometriosis as my username would suggest. It took years for them to find this and for me there is no cure really. Just things that may help. It sucks and it isn't my fault or yours. I would urge you to investigate if anything is wrong and what your options are because it could improve your work and quality of life.

It's not treatment, it's management, because endometriosis is incurable, and it's not uncommon for the so called treatment to not work. Take it from me.

I’m fucked for about 7 - 14 days. I have PMDD and some days physically can’t get out of bed. I have physical and emotional symptoms. We are trying to balance it with the doctors help, and I try to manage it with what I eat and drink, but sometimes it’s just too much. I am stuck in wfh freelancing hell because of this. I’d love a job where I can leave the house and feel super optimistic 1-2 weeks a month, but right now it’s where I am.

I don't for my period, but I have more than 4 days a month where I'm not working at full speed. I've deliberately chosen a career (software engineering type thing, WFH) that fits with how my brain works. I prefer working intensely, often long hours for part of a pay period and then taking the time in lieu/coasting/doing low brain stuff when it's quiet. I would say it's a typical work pattern amongst my colleagues. Don't know if it's a high level of ND among the STEM workers (I'm not diagnosed with anything) or just the company I work for, but it does seem to suit us.

I appreciate not everyone is lucky enough to be in the same position, I really do, but if you can, it could help to minimise some of the initial guilt (and imposter syndrome) around it by looking at what you get done over a month rather than on any given day. With intellectually exhausting roles, I think that helps with avoiding burn out, too. Honestly, some of my best 'work' (by which I mean best ideas/problem solving) happens in the garden or the shower and at the end of the day I don't have a lot to show for it. Some of the days I 'produce' the most, on paper, are those where I haven't changed the world in a big way, but I've caught up on a tonne of emails, admin, documentation and had meetings.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, 'are there low brain things you can do on bad days that means you can save your annual leave for relaxation'?

I'm out the other side of the menopause now, but my periods only caused bother at the start of perimenopause and a Mirena coil fixed that. I don't remember ever needing to take time off work for them. I found out recently that I have adenomyosis but I'm lucky in that I've never had any symptoms.

No and it wouldn’t be tolerated in my workplace
patients wait 3/6/12 months to see us and so taking a day off for anything is really tricky. I’d be expected to pop the nurofen and carry on

(some days we don’t have time for drinks or toilet breaks- the other day I needed a wee a 2pm. I finally went at 5pm on my way out to go home )

fortunately I don’t suffer with monthly problems

I've had awful periods but never taken time off for them. I powered through when I was in a high workload position. Now I'm in a more flexible lower workload wfh role, I can take it easy and do the bare minimum for a day or two and catch up afterwards.

Mid 40s, I can't leave the house for 2 days per month due to bleeding caused by fibroids/adenomyosis. HRT / mirena not an option so now trying new drug treatment. Desperate to avoid a hysterectomy. Life is too busy to take time out for surgery, but NHS wait list is ridiculous anyway!!! I feel mentally drained the week leading up to period and it lasts around 10 days, so not at my best for around 15 days per month. I work f/t and have an incredibly supportive, understanding boss so work flexibly to adjust but it's taken 3 years to get any help from NHS.

I used to get migraines a few times a year. Now I'm early 40s and probably Perimenopausal I can predict my period as I feel nauseous 1-2 days before and it lasts for 2 days. And that's without the brain fog!
I just try to be kind to myself, do more when I am able and give myself a break if I'm feeling shite. I work in an intense, emotionally draining role with no chmace of flexible working so I really do just have to get on with it...
Its shit.

I have been like this for the least 10 years or so. Only spoke about it to healthcare providers after a few years as I thought it was just something to put up with.

I was prescribed mefanamic acid and that helped a bit but like you, I actively still planned my diary around my period.

More recently saw a gynaecologist who said my uterine looking was v thick and my periods were probably v heavy and prescribed tranexamic acid which was kind of miraculous but I'm kind of wary about taking it 2 days in a row so tend to choose which day to take it.

Have you tried tranaxemic acid? Worked wonders for me and I was so heavy I would bleed through a super tampon in about 20 mins. Ask the doctor.

I get exceptional fatigue and dizziness for several days, brain fog and insomnia.

Yes since I went on tamoxifen for breast cancer.

I pushed for oc health and the adjustment has been that my sickness limit is a little higher.

I’ve not actually had to take much time off; so far it has mainly occurred over bank holidays or during the holidays luckily. But it took a weight off my mind. Nothing can be done to help as the cancer was hormone positive.

I mean, I didn't "believe in it" either but most workplaces don't appreciate you spending the day curled up on the floor vomiting.

I used to due to heavy flow, severe cramps to the point of lying on the floor crying in pain, fainting and vomiting.

I was diagnosed with endometriosis and multiple large fibroids and my operations were an absolute game changer. I know I was very lucky compared to many who don't have the same success.

I still have some bad flare ups. If my period starts on time, it's usually manageable but if it's even one day late, I'm in agony but I can usually work from home and manage with painkillers and hot water bottles.

I think you should seek treatment as it's very likely that you have an underlying condition.

I had awful first days of a period. Intense pain, cramping and sometimes flooding. Wasn’t until many years later I found out I had endometriosis. I just dosed up on painkillers took in sanpro and got on with it

not being a martyr about it I just didn’t believe in taking a couple of days a month off

I used to.

As a teenager, I would miss a day or two of school every month as I would vomit, faint and be in so much pain I could barely get out of bed.

I was eventually diagnosed with PCOS last year at 35 years old. I'm now on stronger painkillers as well as traxenamic acid to slow the bleeding and now I have no issues whatsoever.

Not every month, but a combination of severe headaches every few months, and absolutely crippling fatigue most months probably does mean that I am at less than my usual productivity. The headaches are bad but less frequent. The fatigue is just complete bone crushing exhaustion for 1-2 days.