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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Is there any way this bleeding isn’t something serious?

43 replies

Thechatnicknameyourequested · 01/02/2018 12:24

Apologies for the TMI. I have been having bleeding between my periods for two months now. It started with a gush of bright red blood after intercourse, followed by brown spotting for a few days, and then brownish blood again the next time we had sex. Now I am spotting/bleeding a bit every day, mostly brownish, occasionally pale pink. I’m not pregnant. I went to see the doctor after the first bleed and she did an examination, said everything looked normal and clear, but booked me for an internal ultrasound which is coming up next week. She said she couldn’t send me for a smear as I had my last one in 2016 and if they send you between times the tests just get thrown out. That smear was clear - I have never had anything show up on one. No change of partner. No pain. But what on earth can be wrong with me? I’m really worried - I have small DC - that it must be something awful. AIBU? and AIBU to consider paying for a private smear? Doctor said there was no point because they’re not diagnostic. I don’t really understand what that means. And I worry they’re not covering all the bases. Basically terrified that something is horribly wrong with me. I’m 42, btw, so it bloody well shouldn’t be menopause!

OP posts:
KalaLaka · 01/02/2018 12:30

Maybe fibroids? I'm sure there are a number of things it could be. I assume they will check your cervix if they think it's a possibility: I'd push for this if not. Get a referral to gynaecology following your ultrasound if it's not followed up to your satisfaction.

Allfednonedead · 01/02/2018 12:30

Could it be an ectropion? It used to be called an ‘eroded cervix’ and it basically means the outer big of the cervix has got confused and thinks it’s like the inside of the uterus.
I’ve got it, and it mostly just means spotting brown or pink blood and loads of extra mucus in the second half of my cycle, but it can lead to much more bleeding.
As far as I know, it’s pretty much harmless apart from the difficulty of dealing with the extra bleeding. There are surgical solutions, but mine is too mild to have bothered with them.
Fingers crossed. I’m sure your GP would be more worried if she thought it was anything that needed dealing with urgently.

twobambinos · 01/02/2018 12:30

They were talking about this on this morning today saying that between smears a repeat smear isn't what you need and that you need further investigations. Could it be a little bit of cervical erosion? I had that before and it seems to be gone you are doing the right thing getting the scan done try not to panic. Easier said than done i know.

Allfednonedead · 01/02/2018 12:31

Outer bit, not big. Oops.

carefreeeee · 01/02/2018 12:33

A smear is just a screening test they use to decide whether to send you for further tests if something was found on it. Your doctor has sent you for extra tests anyway so there's no point having a smear now. Your ultrasound will tell them if they need to do anything else such as a biopsy.

Try not to worry - just go along for the ultrasound. It might be something minor. There are other things that can cause this besides cancer so try and stay calm

Get someone to go with you to the appointment if you can, to help you remember what's said. Write down any questions and ask if you aren't clear about what's going on or if you feel they are missing something.

Sympathies as I know this is very scary Flowers

Faintlinesquints · 01/02/2018 12:33

I had very similar starting with bleeding after sex, had a laparoscopy and turned out to be a mild case of endometriosis.
They put a copper coil in whilst I was under, and that stopped the intermittent bleeding whilst it was in.

I can understand how worried you are, but be reassured your last smear was clear and they are doing the correct tests to determine what's wrong.

Good luck.

JustVent · 01/02/2018 12:34

I’m in the same boat. They throw out the smear request, it’s abismal isn’t it?!

Original poster
Thechatnicknameyourequested · 01/02/2018 12:35

Fibroids have been mentioned also polyps. GP also mentioned cervical erosion but said she thought thecervix looked healthy; I don’t really know if a visual/manual examination of that sort can reveal that accurately or not. Twobambinos - yes, this is what I keep reading and she herself said we’re following the course of action we would follow if you’d had a dodgy smear so that won’t tell us any more. I’m just so worried and it’s eating me up waiting. I want to be able to DO something. Wouldn’t a smear tell them if it was something wrong with my cervix?

OP posts:
frazzledbutcalm · 01/02/2018 12:36

I have the exact same op ... been that way for YEARS now. All tests normal, it's 'just the way my body is' now. I'm now on the mini pill (I'm 45 and she's has had snip) to lighten my periods. Oh and 1 gp said menopause in 40's is normal, next gp said 40's is very unusual!

Just thought I'd let you know it's not always something serious.

Original poster
Thechatnicknameyourequested · 01/02/2018 12:38

Justvent - yes, it seems crazy to me, but I am trying to get my head round what Faintlinesquints is saying, which is basically what my go said/what the interwebs seems to say - that once you know there’s a problem there’s no point in a smear...I thought they told you whether the problem was on your cervix though...

OP posts:
Original poster
Thechatnicknameyourequested · 01/02/2018 12:39

frazzledbutcalm - so this only came up in your40s?

Mum didn’t have menopause until very late, and I thohhht it was hereditary...?

OP posts:
Original poster
Thechatnicknameyourequested · 01/02/2018 12:40

And btw: thank you everyone for posting so quickly with your advice and experiences and sympathy. I’ve been worrying about this mostly internally for weeks...

OP posts:
Original poster
Thechatnicknameyourequested · 01/02/2018 12:46

Sorry, trying to get my head around what carefreee, not faintlinesquints, says...

OP posts:
ThatsNotMyToddler · 01/02/2018 12:48

Hi OP, I’m a GP. They won’t do a smear because smears are a screening test for women with no symptoms. They haven’t been studied in and are not appropriate once you have symptoms as you do. Apart from anything else it’s not appropriate for you to wait the (sometimes long) time it takes to get a smear result back.
Looking at your cervix is the right first step. We can usually see an erosion/ectropion as mentioned by pp. I would also be looking for polyps and would do swabs to rule out infection even if you haven’t had a recent new partner.
If that’s all normal and the scan doesn’t show a cause then you need a referral for colposcopy, which is the clinic you would go to if you had an abnormal smear. They’re able to have a much better look at your cervix, do specific tests/biopsies and even do treatment there and then if needs be.
I’m assuming you’re not on any hormones for contraception etc in the middle of this?

I understand the anxiety around this, especially as you have young children. But really, your GP seems to have things in hand. Go for your scan and find out how long the results will take to get back to your GP. Then book an appointment to discuss them. And try not to worry too much (easier said than done I know). Good luck

Mookatron · 01/02/2018 12:50

This happened/happens to me and they never really got to the bottom of it even with an ultrasound and a colposcopy. Clear for cancers though. I've got a mirena coil now and it's mostly sorted it.

SleepFreeZone · 01/02/2018 12:50

I had a TFMR in September and since then I’ve been getting some bleeding after sex. It’s frightening the life out of me too and I’m putting off going to the GP as I kind of don’t want to know that my cervix is knackered as I’m TTC.

Original poster
Thechatnicknameyourequested · 01/02/2018 12:54

Thatsnotmytoddler - thank you for explaining and also for the information on what you can see during an examination/next steps. That’s all pretty much what my GP said, and I do have great faith in her. I’m just sweating about, esp as every single day now I’m getting some kind of blood/spotting. I’m not on hormones or on any contraceptive. Am breastfeeding a toddler - but, like, hardly: 2 minutes morning and night, that’s it. I haven’t had bleeding like this before when I’ve been breastfeeding, just normal periods (which came back ages ago).

OP posts:
mindutopia · 01/02/2018 12:55

Have they referred you to gyn? If it's been going on awhile, I would expect that would be the normal course, though you may get that referral via the ultrasound.

I had a period of weird bleeding a few years ago, about 1.5 years after I had my first dc. I literally just bled for about 6 weeks. Sometimes it was brownish spotting, but other times heavy red bleeding. I was on the pill and there was no pain (it wasn't a miscarriage as I knew I wasn't pregnant). But it was just 6 weeks of constant bleeding/spotting with no explanation, basically it was like my period just continued. I got a referral to the gyn dept at the hospital and they did a colposcopy. I do have some cervical erosion (this I knew), so she biopsied that bit just to be sure and did a smear. My last smear was probably the year before, but I have a history of abnormal smears, so I get them more frequently usually (which maybe is why they did it, but I think it was mostly because the gyn was there and figured might as well). There was absolutely no sign of anything abnormal. She assumed it might have just been a weird reaction to the pill and maybe stress. I was under a lot of work stress at the time and doing a lot of long haul travel (which probably messed up some of the timing on my pills? though that was never an issue in the past). But the bleeding stopped after 6 weeks and I never had it again, so obviously wasn't anything. This was nearly 4 years ago now. So it's possible it could be nothing, but if they don't refer you for colposcopy, I would consider the private smear if it will put your mind at ease. There's no harm in doing it and it probably doesn't cost that much.

TheCatsPaws · 01/02/2018 12:57

This happened to me once and no explanation was ever given. Every test I had was clear.

Gynaegirl · 01/02/2018 12:58

Polyp
Cervical Ectropian
Infection
Even if the scan is fine with post coital bleeding you need a referral to a gynaecologist.

PoppiesAreYellow · 01/02/2018 13:01

If that’s all normal and the scan doesn’t show a cause then you need a referral for colposcopy

Really? I had a internal scan for mid cycle bleeding in March last year and it showed nothing but that was treated as the end of the matter.

Should I have been referred? As it happens I haven't had any mid cycle bleeding for months now and no other symptoms so I assume it really was nothing but should I have had a colposcopy?

whiskyowl · 01/02/2018 13:01

There is a very, very high chance that this isn't something serious. I bled for years between periods, every day - fibroids. Bleeding is a very, very common problem in women.

You do need to rule out any serious cause, but the earlier you do this the sooner your mind will be put at rest. It's not that there is 'no point' in a smear test - you just go into a different pathway once you have symptoms from screening, which is for symptom-free women.

gamerchick · 01/02/2018 13:02

When my periods went a bit wonky and bleeding at odd times it turned out I had chlamydia. Not saying you have an infection but it’s another thing maybe to put on the list to rule out at least. The clinics is a good place to start with that area anyway personally as that’s their area.

Good luck.

LostSight · 01/02/2018 13:10

I had exactly the same symptoms OP, initially after sex, the increasing to continual spotting. I had a leiomyoma (fibroid) somewhere just above my cervix. Apparently it was rubbing against the wall of my uterus and causing bleeding. If it is that, they should be able to see it on the ultrasound. I’ve also had normal cervical smears throughout. I had it removed and so far there have been no further problems.

Good luck. I hope it’s Nothing serious.

ALunerExplorer · 01/02/2018 13:23

Get it checked out. And start to diarise everything (not just in terms of fluid loss, but also pain levels, mood, eating patterns). Yes it could be a few possibilities, including endometriosis or fibroids, but I think your instinct is right and it needs checking.

Don't be afraid to trust your instinct: its your body, you live in it, you know it best.

Very very best to you. Flowers and hugs too.

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