Flare-Ups Just Before Period

[weaselstopper]

I have coeliac disease and regardless of whether I’ve had gluten or not, I get a few days of horrible inflammation symptoms just before my period. I know it’s not gluten because the digestive symptoms are missing and it only lasts a few days (a glutening lasts 6 weeks and brings ulcers, other infections and all sorts), but the joint pain, fatigue and brain fog all descend.

Does anyone else experience a flare up like this, and how do they manage it? Diet? Special tricks? My cycle is only 22 days long so more than once a month I’m just written off.

I also can’t find anything online (or from my doctor) about coeliac sufferers having this without having consumed gluten. Do any other coeliacs suffer from this?

Prefacing this with: NOT A DOCTOR.

That said, maybe it's not the coeliac, maybe it's something your hormones are doing to you. I'm no expert but I know I get similar sorts of symptoms when my period is oncoming... and I don't have coeliac.

I do have polycystic ovarian syndrome though. Which comes with a more irregular period so probably not what you have (more than twice a month? sucks to be you friend). Ask your doc for a referral to a gynaecologist/endocrinologist maybe?

Failing that, a chemical birth control that suppresses your period while you're taking it (i.e. the Pill) might relieve your symptoms if they are hormonal-based. Sure worked for me.

I get this with as yet undiagnosed stomach cramps and bowel problems, yes! And , when I had a gallbladder, I also had issues.

Unfortunately for me, nothing stops my bastard period.

Thank you, and yes you’re absolutely right. I often describe coeliac disease as like being pregnant - to you and health professionals whatever is going on with your body it’s assumed it’s to do with coeliac disease. And of course there’s millions of other things that could be going on …

A gynaecologist could be a good place to start. And yes, a 22 day cycle is SO miserable. The only time it was good is when I was trying to get pregnant - felt like I had ‘more chances’

Thank you for your insight 🙏🏻

Huge sympathy to you! I did used to get those same symptoms but pregnancy seemed to sort those specific ones out … Really hope you find a less drastic way of reducing them. I used to be coedined up to the eyeballs every time!

My genuine recommendation to you would be acupuncture. It really did help for the four months I did it, but I couldn’t afford to keep going. I went for something else but found I no longer had those horrible awful pains and bowel problems

Yes my autoimmune symptoms flare up before my period too. It’s how I know I’m premenstrual 😆

Hmm. Interesting. I had it for shoulder pain years ago when the NHS still offered it.

It can’t be related to Coeliac because you’re not eating gluten. You may have another Autoimmune disease though..

This would be my main concern 😬

But I had wondered if it was ‘just inflammation’ (ie the symptoms are how my body responds to inflammation, and periods cause inflammation) so thought perhaps people with other autoimmune conditions experienced the same thing.

I thought I was getting arthritis until I realised the pain was a week of every cycle (starts a couple of days before my period and finishes a day or so after).

This question was mainly posed due to not knowing what sort of doctor to go to in the first instance (I’m not in the UK so would go straight to a specialist under this country’s system)

Yep, same here. Get a thyroid test.

For the symptoms, don’t get too
tired & eat paracetamol; treat the time like a short flu.

I would suggest either an endocrinologist or a rheumatologist