Tranexamic acid or period delay hormone tablets for holiday? Heavy periods

[BreakfastRaclette]

Hi,

Can't remember the name of the hormone tablets - North something? But anyway, I've been prescribed them, a long with the Tranexamic Acid. Reason being, I have INSANELY heavy periods and I've worked out, I'm likely going to be due slap bang in the middle of my holiday next month. When I say heavy, I mean at the peak, needing to change super plus EXTRA tampon every 30 minutes, plus super pads.

I've never taken hormones before, apart from the morning after pill a couple of times in my teens, so I'm quite nervous tbh. I hear horror stories of awful, murderous style mood swings, terrible bloating and subsequent heavier than usual periods. Well, if my period is heavier, I honestly think I'll need medical assistance.

The Tranexamic Acid is for after my holiday, but I'm wondering whether I should just take this on my holiday instead of the hormone tablets, as I don't want to be a miserable cow on my holiday. I think I'd rather be on my period 🙄

Given they help thicken your blood and so increase your risk of clots, I don't think taking them around the time of flying is a good idea is it? The doctor gave me no warning of this.

Does anyone have any advice?

MTIA

I have used these before, but a few years back, so I can’t remember the precise details. Rather than take the pills on holiday I preferred to take them the month before, so that I could bump my period date to a time after my holiday. If that makes sense? I didn’t have any side effects from taking the pills, but by bumping the period along I was able to take less pills.

@TheNinjaWife , I did actually ask the GP if this is a good idea, but she clearly thought I was mad and asked why I would do that and not just take it on the run up to the holiday. Her thinking was that it could easily mess with my cycle, so there's no guarantee when my next period would come.

No not that noristerone or whatever it's called. I used it once to delay period on holiday (endometriosis), and never again! When I stopped taking it I had the most horrendous period of my life and that's saying something. Could you start a contraceptive like microgynon and then stop it straight after your holiday? I did this as a teen going on holiday with parents for my periods, but I can't remember the side effects after. I went on it again for contraception in early 20s but had to come off it due to blood pressure. It definitely made my periods lighter though. You'll definitely need the tranexamic acid after the nori whatever ime

I’ve been thinking about it since I posted. You need to take the pills a few days before you are due your period. So the period before my holiday I would start to take the pills to delay that one. Once you stop the pills you start your period a few days after. Then your next period comes (well it did with me) however many days your cycle is usually due. It takes a bit of working out.
The reason for doing this was that the holidays I took them for were long haul 14 nights. I think you can only take the pills for 17 days at a time. It was just easier to plan beforehand, so that I didn’t need to take them on holiday. Plus if there were any side effects it wouldn’t happen on holiday. It also usually meant I took less pills.
I used to have terrible flooding periods too, due to a fibroid I have since had zapped. .

@Haveatakeaway I hadn't really thought about that as an option tbh. Will look into it? Is it safe to just stop taking a contraceptive pill after a few weeks? Don't you have to phase it out? And yes, definitely concerned about the following mega period. Seems such an unfair payoff 😒

@TheNinjaWife , so I think I'm due any day now and my prescription won't be here until tomorrow. Think I may have missed the boat there. If I hadn't though and took it for this period, is there not a chance I could have a short cycle and then still end up coming on on my holiday? Sorry if I'm misunderstanding.

I've used Norethisterone many times and never had any kind of side effects of horrendous period after (no worse than normal!) so it definitely isn't a given that it will happen.

I preferred to take them the month before, so that I could bump my period date to a time after my holiday

My GP told me that "it doesn't work like that" although my experience was that it did indeed work like that. Maybe it's just unpredictable and therefore can't be relied upon.

@SoupDragon , yes, overall it makes sense to me. GP really didn't understand where I was coming from, but then I don't think she was really hearing my concerns about symptoms, such as mood swings and awful mood swings on holiday. She said they weren't common at all, but from what I'm reading, it's a 50/50 split. I think it's a bit of a risk either way though. This is why I was considering taking the Tranexamic Acid on holiday just to lighten, rather than delay.

I wouldn't mind having a "normal" period on holiday. Just not a debilitating one where I can't leave my hotel room, let alone sit by the pool in a bikini!

Just giving this a bump.

Does anyone know if this is available for teens? DD has pretty awful periods and we're doing a 'holiday of a lifetime' safari this summer with some quite basic camps. I have an awful picture of being stuck in the bush, miles from anywhere with lions prowling around and her desperate to get to a bathroom...

The period delay tablets are prescribable to teens. Got some for my DD when she was 12/13? Didn't need to use them in the end as she had her period before the trip.
Tranexamic acid tablets have been a complete game changer for me. Add in period pants overnight and life has gone back to normal!

Thanks so much, that is reassuring

@Mia85 you could also ask about her taking a contraceptive pill, then she could take it back to back and not get any periods at all.

@BreakfastRaclette I never had to wean off the contraceptive pill, I think you just stop it. I'm quite out of the loop with contraception now though as I got sterilized after my third csection 4 years ago.

I took norethisterone to delay period on holiday a few years ago - the only side effects I had were mega bloating (I actually looked pregnant by the end of the week), and loss of libido (not ideal on holiday with just DH for first time in years, but hey ho 😊). It was infinitely better than suffering with a period.
I came on as normal about 3 days after the last pill, and the period wasn’t any worse than usual (though they were always horrendous). Then my cycle continued in its usual pattern.

I got a 2 week supply even though holiday was only one week, and I’ve used the rest up to delay period by a few days a couple of times when we had days out etc planned, and had the same thing each time.

I’ve also taken tranexamic acid previously, and honestly I wasn’t a fan - you could only take it for 4 days, and I the first month I found that it was lighter for those 4 days and then it all came out after I had stopped them! The next few months we’re better, but I’d still vote norethisterone.

I got a mirena coil in November after much deliberation and it has been honestly life changing - 6 months down the road, and I get some spotting/light bleeding once a month in a predictable pattern, instead of having to set an alarm every 1.5 hours through the night, and basically not leave the house for 3 days!

Thanks @Haveatakeaway

@Penguinandduck , I've been offered this so many times, but was put off by some stories of having a constant light bleed for the first 6 months/year or it falling out! Glad it's helped you so much. I'm not surprised you're so happy 🙂

I've tried all these!
Norestherone doesn't affect me too badly although it does leave me feeling a bit bloated and the longer I take it for the worst it gets. I took it over the weekend to avoid having a period on holiday and I gained 3lb which can't all be chips!! It doesn't seem to have a knock-on effect on future periods or make them any heavier. The problem I've had with it recently is that you need to start taking it 3 days before you're due on and my cycle has been anything from 19 to 28 days in the last year! Assume that's peri-menopause / covid jabs.
Tranexamic Acid i've taken to relieve heavy bleeding. As you describe my worst days I was going through a super plus tampax in an hour and needing to wear pads as back up. It helps and makes the bleeding manageable but it does tend to give me a bit of a groggy headache.
Tried both the combined and mini pills in an attempt to help the bleeding - the combined gave me a migraine and the mini one made me bleed for 11 weeks before I decided enough was enough! Also tried a mirena which made the bleeding days longer and the heavy days heavier.
Have you had the cause of your heavy bleeding investigated? It's possible you have an underlying cause such as fibroids which could be treated.

Thanks @emmathedilemma I suspect I have endo, but I know that can't be diagnosed without surgery and I really don't want to be put under unless absolutely necessary. I have had abdominal scans and no fibroids were detected. Can they be seen on an ultrasound? I was under the impression they usually were.

Ugh well it seems to be the case that I just need to pick the lesser of two evils 😕

@BreakfastRaclette I was really worried about the constant bleeding with mirena too - for me it was fairly constant very light spotting for about 2 months, with proper (but much lighter than before) periods thrown in when I usually had them, then for the next few months it was less constant, and more like extended spotting either side of my period (maybe 10-12 days each month), and then it has just settled into reasonably predictable bleeding that is normal period length but much lighter (at most, using a super plus tampon is fine for 4 hours or so, whereas I was on Super plus ultra (the one up from super plus extra, made by lil-lets if you haven’t tried them, they’re the biggest available!) for only an hour at times!

So give it some more thought maybe, it’s worth 6 months of annoyance in my opinion 😊.

But for holiday, I’d def try tranexamic acid this month and see how you get on with it before deciding what to do when you’re away.

This is why I was considering taking the Tranexamic Acid on holiday just to lighten, rather than delay

As a heavy period sufferer I can say that trying to delay my period never worked at all so the best option for me was tranexamic acid.

Currently taking these to avoid period on holiday. I feel fine - a bit spotty and a bit bloated but honestly fine
I'm trying to do it so my period finished a week before holiday. I have no idea if it will work but most seems to make this system work

Hmm still not sure if I should risk it. I suspect I should be due on tomorrow and my prescription arrives today. Should I start taking them today to delay this one and put back the next (the holiday one!) or being so close to my period, should I just forget it?

Also, does anyone know about the Tranexamic Acid and flying?

I’ve taken the period delaying pill with no ill effects. I used to have very heavy periods and suffered terribly with them but honestly the delay pill was fab.

That's good to hear @ThatsALotOfPassionfruit

Didn't you even have the monster period after you stopped taking then?

No it was no worse than normal. It really was like I’d just pushed it back a week