Insanely heavy periods

[jimjamjoo]

My third child is nearly 18 months old and I am experiencing the worst periods I have ever had.

If I don't change a super max tampon after 1.5 hours then I flood my knickers. My mood in the run up is awful and I feel so angry. I have never had heavy periods and I'm really struggling.

FWIW I had 3 c sections, two of which were emergency. I'm still breastfeeding so unsure about what I can actually take.

Can anyone relate? I really can't continue with this until the menopause!

Mirena was life changing for me. I resisted it for years and years but the flooding was out of control and tranexamic acid had horrible side effects for me.
Bonus with the mirena is that it provides the progesterone part of HRT too.

I understand all too well and I'd start supplementing with iron I ended up having all sorts of issues as a result of crazt periods.

I too had ridiculously heavy periods after my second child (c section) that were ruining my life, I flooded onto my bedding regularly, my car seat, it was horrendous. I was anaemic as a result and felt weak all the time, was put on iron tablets which did help but I was just loosing the iron every 21 days.
I went to GP and demanded a referral to gynae as I couldnt cope anymore, my friend had told me about ablation and how it had helped her, so I researched and wanted that done. Gynae agreed to it straight away and luckily I only waited a few months on NHS as they could see via blood tests that me taking daily iron was pointless.
Best.thing.ever.
It has changed my life, I had it done in september last year and havent had a period since. I feel great, iron levels back to normal and I am free of the heavy flooding every 3 weeks. If your finished having children I would definitely recommend it, you cant have it if you want to get pregnant again.
I am 36 now, had it done at 35 and no issue with Gynae saying I was too young

Good luck x

Added bonus for me with Mirena ( which i loved anyway) was that i went through the menopause without realising ! I wasn't having periods so i had no idea what was going on 👍

I am going to demand this again when I see gynae for follow up. Were done with kids as I had 2 high risk pregnancies and my husband has had the snip. Atm I keep being told I'm to young for the ablation and it may not work or I may need it two or three times as my lining is thick still.

The mini pill isn't working and I've bled on and off for over 6 months now basically bleeding weekly sometimes heavy sometimes not. All my blood tests last week for iron calcium b12 etc etc are all abnormal and I feel awful. So fed up now with it all.

I used to have this and wore a super plus tampon with a maxi/nighttime pad. I used to sleep on a towel in case of nighttime leaking. No way I could managed with just tampons. Tranexamic acid helped for a while. I had some tests at the hospital to rule out anything sinister. My GP suggested the coil after prescribing progesterone to stop a 6 week period. I didn’t fancy that so asked to try the mini pill. It’s fantastic! My periods stopped altogether and I have been on it for a few years now (since my early 40s).

Definitely go in and demand it, I found the Gynae doctor absolutely lovely and didnt even try to talk me out of it, just said no problem and even said if it doesnt work we will offer hysterectomy. My GP was another ball game tho, I just said no to everything she offered, became quite stubborn and left her little option but to refer me, unfortunately some GPs just dont understand how it effects your life.
My OH has had the snip too, and i kept bringing that up to show I was seriously done with having children. Dont accept any less than a referral, sometimes you really have to stand your ground and make a fuss but I would do it a thousand times over to get the result I have. Good luck x

I don't know how to help the flow, but keep an eye on your ferritin and iron levels. A friend of mine with periods that sound like yours recently had to have an iron transfusion as her levels were so low.

go and see the GP. There can be underlying conditions. Fibroids or endometriosis. Get to the bottom if it and then you can treat it. İt's not a normal period and don't put up with it (don't let your GP to tell you to suck it up either).

I've tried all the hormonal contraceptives and tranexamic acid, but they didn't help. I've had an ablation, but it didn't work. I've since been diagnosed with adenomyosis and fibroids. Next step is a hysterectomy.

Ah thankyou. I definitely will. I was offered a Hysteroscopy to see what was going on the but the procedure was then cancelled at the appointment as they said I didn't need it.
I had an internal scan that I'm awaiting official results for with the gynaecologist consultant who was lovely but the gp said all they could see was fibroids reported.
I was told no to a hysterectomy as I'm too young and it will mess with my hormones. I've got PMDD as well so it's been a rough ride. Did they leave in your ovaries or are you on hormone replacement? So glad it's worked so well for you. I will keep pushing.

They didnt touch my ovaries, just did the ablation, aka destroyed the womb lining and also did a hysteroscopy while I was under the anesthetic, she said they found a few tiny fibroids.
Have you got a contact for your gynaes secretary? Sometimes an email to them explaining how badly its affecting you can give them a push. Have you had bloods done for iron and ferritin levels? If its below a certain number, you could be iron deficient or anaemic which also will push them to do more also, sorry I cant remember if you had mentioned that earlier.
dont give up trying, i know how hard it is, especially when you feel so crap and weak. I remember crying in my car on break at work feeling like i would never feel better.
Time to take control, start pushing for bloods, answers and treatment.

Ah right OK. That makes sense. I've got a letter from the gynae consultant requesting Hysteroscopy and internal scan so I will see if there's a contact on there.
I actually had bloods done last week as I have had a mix of 3 lots of tonsillitis, strep and this last week scarlet fever since May this year. All my blood results checking all the basics and thyroid etc all came back abnormal so I've got an apt with the Dr in a couple weeks. I've suffered with anaemia for years and made worse with haemorrhaging after the birth of my 2nd child. I've had iron supplements for years but doesn't help.
Honestly I'm so fed up and weak from feeling unwell constantly. I can't even look for work as I'm unwell so much with periods or PMDD or something else. Without the mini pill my periods are like full blown labour for 5 days a month and I can't care for my kids and my MIL and husband have to help out which is not ideal at all nor will an employer even entertain me. The mini pill has taken the edge off but I've bled for basically six months now.
I will push much harder for answers and help as my health is impacting our family financially as well as health wise. It's just so hard feeling like your banging your head on a brick wall and getting no where.

Totallly understand the not been able to work part, I was terrified of loosing my job because of it all, luckily one of my managers has dealt with similar herself. I suddenly got to a point of anger that they were leaving me struggling to get through the day that I ended up refusing to take no for an answer.
I would email all the above to your Gynae's secretary, give them a gentle nudge, you have nothing to loose. If your not happy with the outcome, email Pals. Makes me so angry women have to fight for this, but you can do it.

This sounds like adenomyosis. See your GP, it’s diagnosed via a scan/MRI. Various treatment routes.

That's so good you had an understanding boss. I quit my job when I was pregnant with my first as I was hospitalised with hyperemesis and she literally didn't care so I had no choice but to leave and haven't been able to find anything suitable since. It's shocking how much crap we have to put up with.
I checked the letter there's no email but a phone number so will try calling tomorrow.
PALS unfortunately are useless. I've had to make multiple complaints about serious health issues with my kids and they've washed their hands of it and took no responsibility so no point trying that but will keep chasing.
Thank you for all your help. Xx

@dilemmaleeds20 I chased up my follow up. Seems the hospital never got the message which is why I haven't got an apt. The woman was lovely and is seeing which patients can be moved so they can fit me in quickly as next routine apt isn't for 6 months and she said I can't wait that long for results and further treatment.

Definitely get your iron levels checked. Since taking an iron supplement my periods have got a lot lighter and shorter. I take a heme iron supplement rather than other types because your body can absorb it better than the usual iron supplements and it doesn't cause digestive issues. The stuff my doctor gave me was no use. I get it from Amazon it's called optifer heme iron.

https://amzn.to/3SnBlXd

Yet another vote for the Mirena coil, it literally changed my life. I was seriously anaemic beforehand and iI got my life back, periods dwindled to nothing, no discomfort or side effects at all.
I too was averse to putting anything into my body but this was definitely worth it.
Worth trying at least!

Let us know how you get on.

Wow thanks so much for all these fantastic responses. I really appreciate you all taking the time. I have booked an appointment with the dr and think I might try the mirena coil. Some really helpful tips here.

Mirena coil. I think you only get 1/5 of the hormones of the pill because it's released straight in the uterus. I have had awful side effects from every contraceptive pill I've ever had.

My life's biggest regret is not getting the Mirena until I was 33. I kept reading too many scary stories on the Internet. It could have saved me at least a decade of misery. My life was ruled by my periods, fear of it, trying different birth control pills etc.

There is a small chance it won't work for you. But give it a go.

What is it like getting them put in and removed. I've been told to try it but I'm utterly terrified after reading so many horror stories about them.

@abbs1 getting it put in is very painful for about 2 seconds, very sharp. I felt faint afterwards for 10 minutes from shock, they gave me a chocolate to recover. But I had never had children, once you have kids (even by c section) it's much smoother. I felt like I had bad PMS for about 24 hours (cramps, felt a bit emotional and teary). Your doctor may offer you local anaesthetic if you go private, I don't think an NHS GP will offer it.

Getting it out was a breeze. Couldn't feel it almost at all and definitely no discomfort right afterwards. Went home and had sex that afternoon (we had decided to TTC and I was too excited lol)

Sounds like you've had a really good experience with it. I'm guessing all the horror stories are very much a minority? I've had 2 children and not having any more so ideally I need a permanent solution but as I'm 30 hitting a lot of brick walls so maybe I will try the coil or at least start considering it.

I had an ablation (novasure) it has been life changing for me. I barely bleed anymore
But only if you don't want more children