To want a better explanation from my GP?

Yanbu at all but women's health issues are treated like this all the time. If a man was bleeding profusely out of his penis for 4 months to the point he was anaemic he would not be just thrust a pill and essentially told to like it or lump it.

Although it may be hormonal and the pill may help I really feel you should push for a second gynae opinion, this isn't normal. Are you up to date with your smears?

Are you in a position to pay for a private gynaecologist consultation? It sounds like endometriosis as my Sis and friend have this and experience similar issues to you.

I would definitely push for a hysterescopy as I had all the negative tests under the sun before being diagnosed with stage 4 endometriosis!!

I’ve had the same recently as well as really painful periods that have resulted in vomiting because the pains been so bad. I had two ultrasounds, scan showed a larger ovary one month and then they repeated it and fine next month though the GP seemed unsure when she was trying to interpret the results and kept saying she’d check with another GP what certain things meant and then get back to me (I appreciate it’s not their speciality area but not very reassuring).

They made the same recommendations they gave you and they’ve also referred to Gynae. Can you push for a Gynae referral?

Sorry the word I was looking for was laparoscopy.
I had years of heavy periods and pain and "IBS" I feel utterly let down by the lack of voice for womens health!

If you are 25 and TTC but suffering v heavy bleeding, then going on the pill for 3 months is not completely crazy. If it stops the bleeding and gives your body a break to recover, then you can stop the pill in 3 months and go back to TTC.

if you get a coil, that is a much bigger problem in relation to TTC because you have to get it professionally removed and the NHS can be reluctant to do that.

try the pill first and see how you get on - you can stop at any time, but try to give it time to work.

Tranexamic acid is used to help blood to clot, I used it before menopause it was very helpfull.I had similar problems,and didn't want a coil.

Completely agree.

I think you need to go back and be firm and ask for a referral to a gyne. I think more tests and investigations need to be run.

Have you had a smear test recently?

Please do not be fobbed off.

Is this norohisterone? The tablet? To take three a day? That’s what I was given post partum and it fucked me up. I’m almost 12 weeks postpartum now and had to have a womb scan because it didn’t work and I started passing clots. The gynae I seen after my scan said I shouldn’t have been prescribed it by gp because it’s not for unexplained bleeding. Still bleeding.

Definitely request a referral to see a gynaecologist.
I had years of heavy bleeding to the point my ferritin levels dropped to 2 earlier this year and I became so iron deficient that I ended up needing an urgent iron infusion. Don’t let it get that bad as it’s not fun!
As others have mentioned it’s worth looking into the possibility of endometriosis especially as you say sex is painful.
I, too don’t like hormonal contraceptives so opted for an ablation but you can not have this if you want children. I am a lot older than you and had my children but it has been a Godsend.
Push to see a gynaecologist.

Definitely not unreasonable to want to find out the cause of this, rather than be fobbed off with a sticking plaster for the symptoms.

The fact you’re ttc makes the proposed ‘solutions’ unsuitable in any event. And if it’s being caused by endometriosis you want to know that sooner rather than later, especially as you want a family. You don’t want to be one of the women who wait 10 years for an endo diagnosis on the NHS.

Keep pushing for a Gynae referral. If I were you I’d keep asking the GP ‘so what’s causing this bleeding?’’ ‘Oh, you don’t know? Well that’s why I need a referral to Gynae then, isn’t it? You don’t know, and you can’t say it definitely isn’t something that could limit my fertility and I want to ttc. So I’ll need to see somebody who IS in a position to get to the bottom of things and make a correct diagnosis so that they can come up with a treatment plan that’s specific to the condition.’

I had a non-stop period for 4 years. Basically it was caused by me not ovulating. I was also trying to conceive and realise now I was an idiot for not dealing with it properly sooner. Give the pill a whirl for 3 months. Given your current circumstances you are very unlikely to conceive anyway. I began ovulating again after I lost some weight and all went back to normal.

I thought this and then OP said she was 25 so maybe hasn't had one yet. You'd like to think that was GP's first point of call..

You can’t just demand a referral. GPs are the gatekeepers of the NHS - it would be overwhelmed if they just referred everyone. They have to try and treat people themselves first unless there are obvious red flags.
The GP sounds excellent- they have investigated thoroughly and suggested effective treatments. OP needs to try them first for a few months at least before referral is considered.

Have you asked for a gynaecology referral OP? I'm wondering if you need a hysteroscopy so someone can see try to see if anything else is going on.

Ok well here is a longish version - they are protecting your fertility and trying all the options before a gynae would do something more ‘drastic’ which could harm your fertility

I had bleeding so bad for 6 years from my 30’s I was permanently anaemic at one point my Hb was 7.6 😑 then I could never shit as always on iron tablets and the bleeding was absolutely unbearable I had actual broken down skin from being damp all the time and wore full Tena pants half the month. Tranexamic acid did help a bit

I saw 3 gynaecologists over this time and the furthest they would go was some womb ablation which didn’t do anything and they were reluctant as it could damage my womb. They all put coils in and they didn’t work (fell out)

I had grown really big fibroids but you don’t seem to have these so I honestly don’t know what they can do for you. My coil fell out as my fibroids grew so big

when I got to 40 I said NO I have had enough and demanded to see a new gynae, I told him I did not want more kids and he took out my womb last year (via sunroof as fibroids so bloody massive). I have ovaries still and no longer bleed

Mirena coil is good tbh, I liked mine until giant fibroid ejected it. I bled less and I didn’t have many side effects. I am not sure a gynae would see you if you haven’t tried all these other things - that’s how secondary care works

The GP hasn't "investigated thoroughly " what nonsense.

A 25 year old should not be bleeding continously and suffering pain in the pelvis?!

OP do you have private health care via work or have a few hundred quid available to get a private appt?

I'm disgusted and angry for you

If it’s tranexamic acid you’ve been given take it, you need to reduce your bleeding to help your anaemia. The other thing is anaemia can cause heavy periods so you get stuck in this awful loop of your iron getting lower and lower.
In your shoes I’d also be tempted to take the contraceptive pill for 3 months, essentially it’ll force your body back into a regular cycle as that seems to have got a bit off track.

I wouldn’t be having a coil, they’re intended for long term use, so you may struggle to find someone who will take it out quickly and I can’t imagine any nurse would be willing to put one in for someone who wants to TTC immediately.

I would be going back to the GP. List your symptoms again, especially the pain, explain that you want to conceive immediately and then ask for a referral if they don’t suggest it.

Go back and ask for a referral to gynaecology. It's understandable that he wants you on medication to stop your bleeding/anaemia but he can't expect you to do this in the long term without coming to a proper diagnosis of what is the underlying condition that's causing it, especially since you are ttc!

Don't worry about the tranexamic acid - I got prescribed it in the summer for heavy periods and it has helped - I went from flooding onto clothes and furniture to a much more manageable level of bleeding! So, definitely worth trying to see if it helps you? It doesn't affect fertility.

If that hadn't worked or if it stops working my GP explained that the next options are the contraceptive pill (which I'm not keen on as already taken for ten years before having DD) or the Mirena coil (which I'm also not keen on).

After that the options are surgical - endometrial ablation but that reduces chances of a pregnancy being able to go to term or, ultimately, hysterectomy, which clearly rules out a baby completely!

So, the options are fairly rubbish if you want to conceive. It sounds like you need further investigation by a gynaecologist to check for endometriosis? I found the initial, female, GP I saw very empathetic and helpful. My update phone call after the scans and blood tests with a male GP was much less helpful as he simply couldn't grasp why I didn't want the coil!

A referral will likely be years. If you can fund a private appointment then do so.

The gp said to me my body had got “stuck” on one particular part of my cycle. The pill for 3 months helped re-set it and my periods were normal after that. I went on to have 2 children.