Irregular periods after pill

[roldog]

I came off my pill in October 2022 after being on it for 10 years.

I thought my periods were back to normal, but the last few months they have been quite irregular. My last cycle was 40 days, and now I have come on my period on day 16 of my cycle only 11 days after my last period ended. It is really stressing me out as my periods were regular like clockwork before going on the pill, and for the first 6 months after coming off they seemed completely normal. It's really frustrating.

Does anybody have any advice or stories of this happening to them?

I'm in a similar situation. Came off the pill after 10 years in December and so far cycles have been between 30 and 50 days so totally unpredictable. Doctor thinks it's PCOS but I'm waiting for a follow up. Recommend booking an appointment to see your GP who will do blood tests.

@akk hi, thanks for sharing your experience. It's so frustrating isn't it! I didn't think about PCOS as my periods have always been very regular, can it just come on suddenly? I will have to book an appointment, so scared of having PCOS because of fertility etc but I should check just incase x

Yep absolutely, it didn't even cross my mind, my first two cycles were are 33 days so on the long side but I wasn't worried. Then they got longer and more unpredictable after that. Doctor said that the pill masks PCOS so lots of people don't realise they have it until the come off the pill to conceive, kinda cruel isn't it! Prior to the pill, I don't recall any irregularities other than painful periods.

I had a scan this week but waiting for the follow up appointment to confirm but the radiologist said "your ovaries would probably meet the criteria". Massive shock but there are many positive stories and treatments to try if it doesn't happen naturally. My biggest worry is that I'm in my 30s so not a lot left of the peak time to have a baby.

Hope you get an appointment soon,keep us posted!

I had a similar experience many years ago when I came off the pill to start trying. I was only on it for 4 years and never had any unusual cycles beforehand and I had a scan while in hospital and my ovaries looked fine. Once I came off it,my cycles were extremely irregular and they never ever returned to normal. I went long periods of time without a bleed. AfteIr many years, I got diagnosed with pcos at 33. So yes, I believe it can come on suddenly, in my case after taking the pill.
I've seen many articles discussing a link between the pill and pcos. I've absolutely no idea if there is a proven link and pcos . Your born with it but I definitely feel the pill exaggerated my symptoms once I came off

@MoonlightDreamer hi how did you finally get your diagnosis of pcos? I read that you had a ultrasound before and it was clear

Heya - I came off the pill after around 12 years. Had two normal cycles (like 30 and 33 days) and then had a super long one (45 days). They were more regular after that but became super super light, like a day of spotting rather than full af. Anyway long story short I started having acupuncture and noticed a big difference - cycles are now always between 28-33 days and I have 3-4 days of full flow. I also find it very relaxing! Downside is though it’s not cheap…