Daughter is gone 14 and no period

[SammyTheDog]

Just wondering if anyone else has this experience? DD was 14 in July and no sign of her period. She has all the other puberty signs, breasts growing, pubic hair, acne and mood swings! But no period. It's really getting her down and she's inclined to be anxious anyway. She just said to me, 'what happens if it never comes, and I can never have children'! What do I say to her? Anyone else got a 'late starter' in their family?

When did she start puberty? Onset of periods is around 2 years following the start of breast buds.

i should also add that 14 isn’t ‘late’.

Is she very slim, OP?

www.nhs.uk/conditions/periods/starting-periods/

I started at 16. I was always short and slim. I'm entirely healthy and conceived immediately every time I tried in my 30s.

14 is perfectly within the normal range.

Hi Zimunya,
Yes, she is very slim - though not underweight - and very sporty and active.
Could that be a factor?

I was literally about 7 weeks before my 16th birthday, stop worrying

My 14 yo dd started at 14..her older dsis was 15....Lucky things. I was 12..

I think my daughter was 16, which is the age when you might start getting concerned. She was small and started puberty late generally. She caught up!

I was late too, 14 is not late. Late menarche is correlated with late menopause so I wouldn’t see this as a problem.

I know someone's daughter who didn't start hers until a few months after she stopped doing gymnastics. I think sometimes it depends on the sport/ how much they train. She was also 14.

Take her to the GP.they most likely will book her for a scan to check that all is good.

Not at that age, dont be ridiculous

i was 14. I dont really remember when other parts of puberty started though…. were defo before then. I was a bit sporty but not underweight. It was a normal age as far as i know, i had friends earlier some at a similar time. Wasn’t unusual.

I would have rather that age than the ages some of my friends kids are like 10/11 to be honest. It’s a lot to deal with so young.

Yes, you need a kind of critical mass body-weight-wise for menstruation to kick in. Girls who start very young are nearly always overweight. Smaller, lighter girls and the very athletic tend to start later. This is entirely normal and not a problem. If she's in the healthy weight range, she's grand, and athletic is great - you'd only have something to worry about if she was exercising compulsively.

Everything you've said sounds like she's healthy and will start when her body's ready.

Unlikely - the NHS says to see your GP if they've not started by 15.

OP - mine started at 16 and I haven't had any problems conceiving. I was just small.

Just take her to the GP. Then see what happens.
God, people...
I, by the way, know of girls who hot checked for lack of period.
If the age is 15 in UK, they may not yet, but why not take her to the GP?

My daughter was 16 (almost 17). Also very sporty though not underweight (she is slim though). We went to the GP. She had blood tests and an ultrasound, whilst we were waiting for the consultant appointment she started her periods.

Yes, it could be a factor. She might well be underweight too, so don't assume there. Take her to the GP.

My DD3 was the same at that age, and it went on for quite a while longer too. She had mental health issues and was in the grip of anorexia under a veneer of just being very slim and sporty. She IS sporty but was at that stage of her life totally averse to eating anything like enough for her needs. She wanted to control food intake and eat very little until she became dangerously underweight, though it wasn't immediately obvious. She was good at disguising that too and could make a tiny amount of food look like an enormous amount by just smearing it around the plate etc.

Underweight can mean periods don't start, or if they do then they frequently stop again as weight either drops off or fails to keep up with body needs. Periods can stop (or not even start) if the body has insufficient reserves to support them.

14 is not disastrous, but is edging towards lateness. Go to the GP to put your mind and hers at rest.

Most definately is a factor. Most long distance runners don't get periods. Doctors have been known to advise to massively reduce exercise to help get pregnant.
I believe it's a really old left over evolutionery thing.

I was 15 and a half. DD was just shy of her 16th birthday. Both very slim (well, I was when I was 15!!).

I do have experience of this. I started my periods at the age of 14. I was probably one of the last girls and was very very average in every other way. One day the blood appeared and I’ve had periods regularly ever since.

I saw somewhere that 7 half stone is the weight girls tend to be when they start their periods. Worth bearing in mind. Being sporty will definitely have an impact.

Assuming you are the biological mother, when did you start yours? It can be familial.

The NHS says to see a GP if there are no periods by 15.

I was nearly 16 with mine. I was very slim - underweight in fact well into adulthood.

There is a range and it’s skewed heavily by the fact so many children are overweight and thus start their period earlier and earlier.

That's totally normal.
We're 3 girls in my family. I started my period when I was 14 years and 5 months, my older sister was close to 15 and my younger sis, 13 and 1 1 months
My mom was also 14. It is familial, so people develop earlier than others.
I'm 26 now with 2 babies and me and dh conceived easily if that helps. There is no correlation to late periods and struggling to conceive
Also, girls' periods are starting earlier and earlier due to many factors, all of them not good. (Ie all the hormones in the water from everyone on the pill, endocrine disruptors ie chemicals sprayed on food, obesity, etc). And now girls who get their period at a normal time, say 12 to 14 are feeling like they are late. Which is not the case!