why do women still go through monthly periods?

[winstonstimpson]

Unless TTC obviously.

I have always used condoms or the pill in the past as contraception which meant that I still had a period (or, in the case of the pill, something resembling one).

I am still bf my 9 month old DD2 and, so far, havent started my periods again tho expect to do so soon.

A couple of my friends no longer have periods due to either being on the mini pill or having contraceptive injections. They say that this is great and wouldn't go back to having a period. Neither had any difficulties with painful/irregular periods.

Am just wondering why women still have periods if they don't need to? Whilst I understand their position I am uncomfortable with the notion of putting a stop to them through the use of drugs but am I just buying into the concept that unless I have a monthly bleed that whilst not painful for me is sometimes a little inconvenient, I am not a proper woman? There is some feminist debate on this I know. One of my friends is single and doesn't have regular sex and so her decision is nothing to do with the contraceptive element (she still uses condoms with any sexual partner) and entirely based on a wish not to have a period.

Just interested really ....

I've had the Mirena coil for almost a year now and although my periods have always been fine, I definitely prefer not getting them.

Oh yeah, and the reason for the breakthrough bleed when on the pill is that Dr John Rock (the pill's co-inventor) was Catholic and thought that this would make the pill more 'natural' and therefore could be sanctioned by the Church...

I have PCOS and unless I am on the combined pill do not have periods.

However, my GP and consultant told me I must have a "false" bleed at least every 2 years, as otherwise my risk of uterine cancer increases substantially?

I would never want to get rid of my periods completely for that exact reason.

Fleur - that's what worries me. The anovulation induced by lactation is what they think makes breastfeeding reduce the risk of getting ovarian cancer. It's the only thing that would make me consider taking the pill.

But I'm also fairly certain that there are other (maybe as yet unknown sometimes) risks to our bodies induced by taking artificial hormones.

Edgar - yes, that's true. But we shouldn't be subjected to perpetual pregnancy because if we breastfed totally naturally and had a healthily low calorie diet, like our bodies are expecting, then we would not start ovulating for 2-3y after our babies are born, giving our bodies plenty of time to recover from the last baby. We eat too much in our culture and breastfeed too little for what is meant to happen naturally to actually happen.

For some unknown reason I only used to get a period every one or two years. Did manage to get pregnant (once) though.

Had early menopause at 41. What you've never had, you never miss!!!

Although naturally we'd be quite likely to die in childbirth at some point... (interesting stuff in Tina Cassidy's book Birth about how many cultures have rituals around birth that are fundamentally to do with the mother bidding her family farewell because there's a chance she won't be seeing them again).

Assuming for the sake of argument first baby at 18 and menopause at 48, there'd still be room to squeeze in eight to ten babies or so even given lactational amenorrhoea.