Gynae for 16 year old?

[Hoppinggreen]

So poor DD has always suffered very badly with her periods , pain not touched by strong painkillers, nausea, dizziness etc.
I suffered as well but was out on Microgynon at 15 which largely sorted it out. I still had a few gynae related issues but as I had no problem conceiving my GP wasn’t very interested.
DD has been given Naproxen, ponstan, usual ibruprofen etc but nothing seems to help. She was given Cerelle which affected her mood and made her throw up but didnt help with periods and cerazette which has had no effect and she is more or less constantly bleeding (she is still taking cerazette) The only other thing the GP suggested was The coil but she isn’t sexually active and really doesn’t fancy the idea of it. When she expressed this to The GP she was told that she “might be able to have a bit of local first”
I know from my own experience how bad period pain can be so I know she’s not making a fuss over nothing (as has been suggested by family AND one of the GPS - apparently a couple of paracetamol and a hot water bottle were the answer)

Due to Covid this has all been done by phone but we did manage to get an ultrasound referral and she has had this today and we have just had a text from The GP saying it was normal so no further action is required
Does anyone have any suggestions where to go from here? We can pay for a Private Gynae but due to her age it might be difficult finding one (we are in Yorkshire if anyone has any suggestions)
Surely she doesn’t have to be bleeding and in pain for 4 weeks out of 6 for the rest of her life?
Any advice would be great.

I would be going private asap. Your poor daughter needs help. I don't see why her age would make it difficult to find her a doctor.

I agree: go private. And really, I don't think her age should be a barrier to finding someone. At 16, she will be treated as an adult in terms of medical decision-making and consent. And whatever her age, she should be treated with respect for not being sexually active yet.

Go private.

She’s very lucky to have a mum who does not tell her it’s part of being a woman to suffer every month and all that misogynistic bullshit. I hope they can find the cause and it can be sorted. I wish you and her best of luck.

Thank you all
I have messaged her GP (only way to contact them s via eConsult) to ask for a referral letter and I have sent enquiries to a couple of Private gynaecologists as well. I do professionally know a Doctor who specialises in raising the issue of women’s painful periods/endo but she is based in Oz so I am not sure she can recommend anyone here.
LaBellina I think most people (including a lot of women)don’t understand how debilitating periods can be, it’s really a neglected area.
I remember my sil saying how my niece always made such a “drama” about her periods. She genuinely had no idea that they could actually be so painful

Cerelle and cerazette are basically exactly the same. Has she ever tried the combined pill? Dd has started taking it as she was having periods very close together

The NICE guidelines say "if symptoms are severe and do not respond to treatment within 3-6 months refer to a gynaecologist."

cks.nice.org.uk/topics/dysmenorrhoea/management/primary-dysmenorrhoea/

Look for your local BSGE consultant www.bsge.org.uk/ they will specialise in endometriosis and adenomyosis and hopefully she will get the help she needs

OP I'm no help to you but just wanted to say she is so lucky to have a great mum who is trying to help her and not just saying "it's one of those things". I am so annoyed the more I hear about women being fobbed off and being told to learn to live with all sorts of gynaecological problems.

At that age I had trinovum, a tri-phasic pill, increasing hormones each week for 3 weeks and then a break. It made my periods so much more manageable and less painful. I bled for 6 weeks nonstop on microgynon and still can't tolerate progesterone only pill. Cerazete made me crazy. Maybe some experimentation with oral contraceptives?

@Hoppinggreen

www.bmihealthcare.co.uk/consultants/maisa-salman

I can recommend this lady

[quote omgthepain]@Hoppinggreen

www.bmihealthcare.co.uk/consultants/maisa-salman

I can recommend this lady [/quote]
I know her and she's really good.
A friend also saw Miss Agawal www.bmihealthcare.co.uk/consultants/vandana-agarwal and she was excellent

But I would push with the gp for an nhs referral as they should do this as per nice guidelines.

Thank you both.
The 2 recommendations are a bit far for us but if we can’t find one closer I will look at them

The coil would not help. Its not heavy periods that are the issue, its pain. ask for a referral.

Hi OP

I didn't want to read and run. You could have been describing me so the your DDs symptoms! I just wanted to say that I also had an ultrasound which showed 'nothing' when in fact my left ovary was adhered to my pelvic wall due to endometriosis. I had surgery for this 3 weeks ago and I feel like a new person!

Endometriosis doesn't always show on an ultrasound.

Good luck! ❤️

Endometriosis rarely shows on an ultrasound, unless the person doing the ultrasound is highly specialist. If it was a sonographer, not a chance. GPs should not be saying that a negative ultrasound is reason not to investigate further.

I'm afraid these are classic endometriosis symptoms. I second the advice to look for your nearest BSGE centre. There are centres in York, Sheffield, Hull, Rotherham, Wakefield, Elland nr Halifax, and in Middlesborough. Burnley, Stockton-on-Tees or Manchester might also be an option for you - see the list here: www.bsge.org.uk/centre/
Unfortunately it's often a waste of time getting a referral to anywhere that isn't on this list or the 'pending accreditation' list.

Hope that helps. Good luck.

if your GP not taking it seriously enough, make it clear that you know what is recommended in the nice guidelines (a pp has linked above).
Doing that made a huge difference to the level of treatment I received, after being fobbed off for a year.

Your issues were sorted by a combined contraceptive yet both the pills your daughter has tried are progesterone only mini pills. I would ask the GP to try a combined pill and ask for referral if that doesn't work

@Disneycharacter

The coil would not help. Its not heavy periods that are the issue, its pain. ask for a referral.

why wouldn't it help? stops heavy bleeding and pain. works differently for different people; I had mine inserted under general anaesthetic, while they were carrying out an investigative procedure.

@AimingForSerenity

Your issues were sorted by a combined contraceptive yet both the pills your daughter has tried are progesterone only mini pills. I would ask the GP to try a combined pill and ask for referral if that doesn't work

I agree to trying a combined pill first. That's what my dd has

@AreYouCursed

Endometriosis rarely shows on an ultrasound, unless the person doing the ultrasound is highly specialist. If it was a sonographer, not a chance. GPs should not be saying that a negative ultrasound is reason not to investigate further.

I'm afraid these are classic endometriosis symptoms. I second the advice to look for your nearest BSGE centre. There are centres in York, Sheffield, Hull, Rotherham, Wakefield, Elland nr Halifax, and in Middlesborough. Burnley, Stockton-on-Tees or Manchester might also be an option for you - see the list here: www.bsge.org.uk/centre/
Unfortunately it's often a waste of time getting a referral to anywhere that isn't on this list or the 'pending accreditation' list.

Hope that helps. Good luck.

One of those is very close to me! Thank you

Will they see her without an Endo diagnosis though?

Cerelle and Cerazette are the same thing - desogestrel, a progesterone only pill.

Is there a reason she hasn’t been offered a combined pill? (Migraine with aura, BMI over 35, history of VTE etc).

It could well be endometriosis, and the combined pill can often help with that too.

Yes I know what they are, I have been prescribed both myself. The GP thought “a different brand might help”
DD has no risk factors for the combined pill, I would love to discuss it with our GP but they aren’t doing f2f appointments, only telephone and the way to get one is fill in a long form with lots of symptoms etc and wait to get a text saying when someone will call you
It’s all a bit shit really

I had a horrific time as a teenager. Most useless piece of advice I was given was to have a baby 🙄.

Anyway, while you wait for the private doctor get a copy of a book called The Period Repair Manual. She has some wonderful advice about all sorts of period issues. She has some great info about natural remedies and diet changes you can make while waiting for more serious interventions.

I'm waiting for some surgery at the moment to treat heavy periods. In the mean time I'm trying her no sugar diet to see whether that helps any. A new diet won't fix my issue but it's making it a bit more liveable while I wait.

She has been prescribed the mini pills, she needs the combined pills. Mini pills arent suitable for teens as there is sometimes breakthrough bleeding etc. My DD's GP put her onto the combined pill when she was 15 as she had weeks of heavy bleeding and pain. She runs 3 packs one after another, her pain is now almost non existent.