DD ill with heavy periods but not anaemic - help!

[buttonmoon78]

DD1 is 14.5. She began her periods aged 13.1 and from the first one they were ultra heavy (think huge flooding onto sheets, ruining clothes etc) and every 21 days to the day. She's been on the pill for about a year which has helped with the spacing but not much with the flow. Now, for a few months, she's been poorly just before each period - off her food and nausea, pale, wibbly and tired, woozy if she stands up too fast etc. I was assuming it was anaemia so was shocked today when the results from yesterday's bloods came back as normal. So now I'm worrying what else it can be? She's back in to see the gp on Tuesday, but if anyone's got any ideas or things to ask the gp I'd be most grateful.

She's off school again today. This is happening every single damn month and she's meant to be doing her GCSEs for goodness' sake!

I was like this. The nausea is not something they are honest about during those 'your periods won't hurt lessons'!

Random vomming attacks were quite common at my girl's school due to periods and I spent most of my teens feeling quite queasy!

Could you try another pill? Marvelon sorted it out for me, gave me lovely clear skin and make me loose a couple of lbs. There's not much for it but to try lots of different pills and see what works.

Oh dear, that must be awful for her and you. My initial thought was ananemia aswell. I have been throught his myself, when I started My period at the age of 11, I bled for 7 weeks I know, anyway I ended up having a blood transfusion, and was in hospital for a week. I was also put on the pill because My periods just wouldn't settle, it wasn't that they were heavy, they just wouldn't stop.I had to stay on the pill for years, and eventually when I was 20 they settled down. I really hope you get it sorted, becasue it's horrible to see them like that.

tardis I was beginning to think about another pill TBH. She's on Microgynon 30 currently.

walnut that sounds awful

It's horrible. She's always been such a hardy thing - never ill as a child really, and suddenly this hits and she feels rubbish. She's not one to complain or ask to stay home either, she loves going to school and frets about missing stuff so I know that when she's like this she must be feeling dodgy!

Funnily enough, the pill has helped her skin enormously. She was spotty before, particularly on her back but it's really cleared up.

Let us know how she gets on at the doctors on tuesday.

Will do. Thanks both.

Oh yes, I used to throw up due to the pain.... Turns out my stomach cramps were contractions, I only realised this when I found labour a breeze

Can't help with solutions, but much sympathy for her, I used to only be able to lie on floor throw up, have a hot bath and sleep on first day of my period

Dd is is a similar situation...we have changed from Microgynon to Cerezette which seems to be helping.

I get like this and have heavy periods. The dizziness is horrible but I was told it is hormonal. The best thing I was told by the gynae for heavy periods was to take the max dose of ibuprofen for 3 days before my period and then during the first few days. This cut the blood loss to about half which was fab and I felt much better and less dizzy.
I also felt better if I took an iron supplement like spatone or just plain iron tablet even though I wasn't officially anaemic. When I was pregnant I discovered I was sensitive to the amount of iron in my blood and so got symptoms of anaemia at levels where other people might have been ok.
I hope your daughter finds a solution because it is rubbish and especially when she's so young.

Littleducks oddly, she doesn't get much pain. Just all these other symptoms!

Mrsr that's good to know. Hopefully we'll see an improvement if we swap then.

alberts I didn't realise that brufen could have that effect! I've decided to stick her on iron tablets anyway. I figured that a supplement of the RDA isn't going to hurt her even if she's not anaemic.

She's sat next to me now feeling miserable. Says she'll manage some dry pasta for lunch. Makes me go but if it's what she wants, it's what she's getting!

buttonmoon

I would ask, nay insist the GP to refer her to a gynae for further evaluation.

You need to find out what the CAUSE is; prescribing the pill as the GP has done treats the symptoms but masks the underlying problem.

Any symptoms that are cyclical in nature and get worse up to any including menses should be assessed properly and further by a gynae to see if endometriosis is present. It cannot be ruled out currently. I suffered similarly to your DD as a teen and endo was in my case the root cause. Bloodwork in endo cases as well often comes back as normal and pelvic scans do not detect it either

Also some GPs are pretty much not up to speed when it comes to such gynae problems, your DD needs to see a specialist and asap as this is increasingly impacting on her life.

Keeping a symptom diary is a good idea in the meantime; this will give the specialist as well more clues. Note all heaviness, appearance of menses etc.

Thank you Atilla. I think I needed to hear that. I'm not normally one for delaying a referral request so I'm a bit that I've not done it already!

I started mine at 12 and had a horrific time. I used to faint, vomit and spent a week out of every month sitting on the toilet. When I was 19, I was diagnosed with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome via an ultrasound scan and it all made sense. I was put on Dianette and tranexamic acid for whilst on my period and have never looked back. Dianette is very strong and now I've been moved to microgynon. I can understand if you don't want her on a strong pill but a different sort of pill might be worth contemplating.

May also be worth running the pill packs together. I had a horrendous time until I went on the pill and just ran the packs together for months.

I'll be doing that this coming month as we're going to Kenya for 18 days. She should be about half way through a period when we go but I'm not risking it. She'd have a long flight and then staying on shamba (not in cushy hotels) so might well not have access to a shower a day or decent toilets etc.

I'm all in favour of not dressing up the realities of life but that'd be taking it a step or two too far!

Can't comment on the symptoms but keep pushing with the doc, I had a horrendous time from the beginning and docs kept telling me it was 'normal' and go away, 20 years later I was diagnosed but too late, I couldn't conceive without IVF. Horrid, horrid thing for your DD but so worth getting a diagnosis now before too much damage is done, she needs specialist help.

If you add projectile vomiting then you have me at a similar age.

Talk to your Dr - there is no medical reason for the break in the pills - the break was introduced for some reason to try to get the RC church to agree to use it- I can't remember the details.

Anyway can she not have the break? Or only have a break every 3 months?

Have you considered depo jabs? I've not had a period for years due to depo - no PMT either. I realise not evereyone is the same but for me it was a life changer.

The wibbly bit could be low blood sugar - if she can't face food then glucose tablets can work. Again I speak from experience.

I've been on depo twice. The first time was great - not one period in four years. This time I've had it 3 times and it's been hideous - constant heavy spotting. I've given it 3 cycles as that's what my gp said to do but I'm not happy. So I don't know if it would be the right thing for her or not!

Agree with the glucose tablets. Picked some up in Tesco's this week.

She's just got up looking brighter which fits with the usual pattern as it's day 3 of bleeding.

Has she tried ponstan/ mefanamic acid? The gp can proscribe and it massively cuts down the blood loss, was v helpful for me as a teen.

My periods were like that. I was only 10 when I started and they were horrible right away. I was prescribed naproxen to take for the pain, which helped me cope (if take at the first twinge, it was very effective for the pain at least.) I tried several pills but didn't get on with any (it turns out any hint of oestrogen turns me into a suicidal, paranoid, delusional wreck) so muddled through for years. At 21 I couldn't cope any more and tried again, this time with cerazette which is progesterone only. It has changed my life. I haven't had a real period in 5 years. Most I've had is two days of spotting accompanied by a mild feeling of discomfort. I can understand why you'd be uncomfortable with the depo for her as once you've had it you're stuck with it for a while until it wears off, but another pill might be worth trying - after all if it doesn't suit her she can just stop.

I would also push for a test if the next pill doesn't work. Esp if this is not the norm for you. The pill cleared my probs up and it is fairly normal in my vv fertile family. Mum and sisters all have it.
However, if this is not something that runs in the family it may be worth having it checked out. Friends of mine had polycyctic ovaries and endometriosis diagnosed in their teens.
It is also worth asking about running pills together as this is what a lot of friends with bad periods do.

Have her iron stores checked too. I have heavy periods and was tired all the time for years. I put it down to a stressful, long hours, job. It was only when I felt the same when I had time off between jobs that I got checked out. I wasn't anaemic and the drs were puzzled and about to test me for all manner of weird and wonderful things as "second level" tests when a locum spotted that my iron stores were low. Within a few days of taking high dose iron tablets I felt ten times better. I was tired throughout the month though.

Oh? I assumed that as she wasn't anaemic there'd be nothing wrong with her iron levels.

You can have low iron without being anaemic..
The nhs normal parameters for iron aren't everyone's- I was CRIPPLED by what the dr described as a "slight iron deficiency". I was falling asleep everywhere. This was definitely linked to my regular, heavy blood loss during periods. It cleared the minute I went on liquid iron and I still took it after the levels balanced as I always felt somewhat tired before that all happened- which I thought too was due to "being busy" (drs always told me that - I was never that busy).
I had similar but not as severe Pms. Drs never seemed bothered by it- said some people get it. Now I am not saying you should settle for that diagnosis from any dr but mine balanced out over time. I also experimented with diet, which really helped.
GPs aren't much good at Pms- maybe whole medical system tbh.

Ask to see copies of the blood tests plus reference ranges then see what she is low in - esp ferritin (iron stores) - could be a deficiency not flagged up. Tbh I'd push for referral as well though