Menstrual cycles getting shorter. Short enough to warrant a GP visit?

[CanvasBags]

I'm 35.

Pre-children my cycles were around 26 days.

After child 1, and 2 miscarriages, they shortened to 22 days. After child 2 they were anywhere between 22 and 25 days but mostly around the 23 day mark. Last 3 cycles they have been 22, 22 and 21 days.

Not fun. Is there any point in visiting a GP or is this something I have to grin and bear?

They'll offer you contraception to lengthen your cycles or tell you the Mirena coil will solve all your problems.

Oh I should add that my youngest child is nearly 4.

Mmm. I don't think it's abnormal to have a menstrual cycle that short, albeit it is on the shorter end of normal - my mother's were apparently only about 3 weeks apart for most of her fertile life and she produced plenty of children!

Yes, they'll offer you the Mirena coil.

I knocked it back, because so many on here said it made them depressed. GP looked it up in his book - didn't mention depression.

But I don't suppose so many here are imagining it.

ps if your periods are also getting heavier, lasting longer and/or getting more painful, it might be worth seeing your GP, but if apart from being closer together they are not really that different, I'm not sure I'd bother.

"normal" can be anywhere from 21 - 35 days.

Suggest you just see how it goes.

when i went to gp about my wonky cycle (I'm 39 and they kept disppearing for a couple of months then reappearing with short cycles) the seemingly 15-yr-old child gp looked blakly at me and suggested I come back in 6 months if they were still irregular

Hmmm - would it make a difference if it was 20 days long? My last period started on a Tuesday 3 weeks ago and this one started yesterday evening. Is that 20 or 21 days?

I suppose I'll start noting these down for a few months and see if it is a trend which is set to stay.

It's not pleasant though having to live with periods every 3 weeks when each period lasts 7 days. It messes up a lot more weekends and holidays.

My periods were regular as clockwork, every 28 days till I had dc1. Then they reduced to 21 days and still regular. When I was about 38 they became more frequent (every 2 weeks!) & I was told by gp I was menopausal. They eventually stopped when I was 40. No trouble at all (no hot flushes, etc) apart from the frequency - it was as if I just used them up quickly iyswim.