Help me stop my periods!

[viperslast]

So I have been single for a lot of years now. No need for contraception and my periods have always been light and short, which has been great of course! However I am now, apparently, peri-menopausal and my periods have gone all to pot. Still quite regular but flooding, lasting over a week, painful and so on.

I know other people have used contraception to gain a period free life, could that work for me? The only time I have used anything other than the pill was a depo injection 20 years ago whilst still losing lochia. Sadly it made me bleed heavily for the full three months so I have been scared to try it again!

Is there anything worth trying or is it too late now? I am under 40 so I really want to avoid another 10 or more years battling the periods I have now. Thanks in advance for any thoughts or suggestions

Have you been to your GP about this? Very important to get it checked first. Fibroids can cause heavy periods, but so can other things. The Mirena coil generally makes periods much lighter, or even stops them completely.

Thanks fudge, the gp simply said it was probably peri and that was that. I must admit I had a bit of a wobble as my mum had ovarian cancer but thought he would have checked if he thought it was anything odd? He certainly didn't offer any testing etc just seemed a bit sceptical that I hadn't used contraception for so long! (I honestly just haven't had sex I haven't been playing roulette with my health as he seemed to imply!)

that he hasn't investigated further.

The meno boards are not the fastest-moving. I wd suggest posting in general health. I'm sure you'll get lots of responses and experiences.

I use cyclo-f that you can buy in Boots to stop flooding. I have tried medication from the go but it didn't make a difference. I am a lot more confident when on my period now in that I can control it. I only use the tablets on my 3 most heaviest days.

They are pricey at £9.00 ish a box but they are definitely worth a try.

Good luck!

Go back to your GP, or to another gp in the practice, and be clear that the level of flooding is not something you can live with. Peri at under 40 also sounds a bit early, surely.

FWIW I have a Mirena and haven't had a period since before DD was conceived 20 years ago. It's now part of my HRT.

I had mirena coils for many years to treat flooding. My last one had been in 8 years and I am 55. Periods down to twice a year. I had it removed in July and GP said that if I had further problems with periods then another mirena would be the treatment of choice.
They are very controversial on MN but I believe mine was miraculous and saved me from a hysterectomy.

Ibuprofen, tranexamic acid and mefanemic acid can all help lighten flow, but at under 40 you could be taking stuff for a lot of cycles yet!
I had an endometrial ablation to sort nightmare flooding, which has been brilliant, but this is not so suitable at your age I wouldn't think.
To be honest I'm not one for fussing but even I would go back to the GP and get more answers or a referral to a specialist. Don't just leave it, it's miserable.

Thanks everyone, I think the gp is my first port of call. The flooding really does get you down! I will try to get a different gp this time, at least I have some ideas what to ask for now. I was wondering if it's just something we have to put up with but it seems not which I am quite pleased about!
I wasn't sure myself if I was a bit young for this so I will ask about that too. Thanks again