When to expect first period

[FedUpandEatingChocolate]

It's a long time since I went through puberty, and I have no idea when my DD might start her periods.

She's changing body shape (breast buds and a bit of shape to them), oily skin and greasy hair - but still got a childlike figure (no hip definition) and no pubic hair.

I went through mine quite late, so was really surprised to see the changes in her start last summer.

She's now 11.

DD is 12 and I think is on the cusp of starting hers - she has had a growth spurt recently, has got some noticeable breasts and pubic hair, and recently complained to me that she is having heavier discharge. I have already made her a little kit but maybe I should revisit it in the next few days, perhaps order some period pants for her to try.

I was 13 when I started and had a lot of non-specific lower back pain in the few days beforehand, which I only worked out were period pains when my first period arrived!

I’m not sure about the 50kg thing a pp says above - when I started university I was just over 50kg, and I was not at all thin or small! I think most 11-13 year olds aren’t quite that weight yet.

Indeed. I was 55kg at 17 and was a fairly average size.

Generally 6-9 months after appearance of body hair.

I was 9. DD was 14. There is no rhyme nor reason to when they might start.

A couple of girls in DS's class (Year 4 so just turning 9) have already started. Their moms have told me about having to give them pain relief and send supplies to school for them. It just seems so early to me 🙁

I believe it's down to weight, when a girl reaches the weight of about 48kg....I had read this somewhere and my DD was quite late to start and sure enough she weighed 48kg when her periods started. Not sure if what I read was correct, but in her case it was.

My dd11 weighs 7 stone 9 and in a 30/32b bra with a womanly figure, although she's is smaller in height than her friends. She still hasn't started so I'm not sure the weight guide is accurate.

I was 15 when I started but have always been small and still waiting for my body to develop at 35 🤣

My daughter uses a small pencil case to keep her pads/tampons (and some paracetamol) in. Fits in her blazer pocket if she needs to leave a lesson.

One of my daughters was 10 another 16!

I always thought this with weight but my DD was only a bit over 6 stone when she started unexpectedly.

Are these 50kg adults all very short? Dd is almost 13, weighs 50kg and is slightly underweight according to a healthcare professional we saw recently. Her size 6 trousers are very loose.

I was just over 13 starting, but had breast buds at 11. They say periods start about 18 months after they form. I'd be prepared though!

I started mine at 14/15. My daughter started at 13.

I’m 5ft 4 which is on the shorter side but quite normal for an adult woman! But when I weighed 50kg I was by no means especially slender - if anything, a bit overweight. I was a size 12 when I went to university.

I was 15, my DD is 15 and still hasn't started, nor has my 13 year old DD.

Wow, I guess people carry it differently. Dd is 5ft 7, and it puts her BMI around 17. I think it would be around 19 at 5ft 4? Or just under.

Trust me in the blink of an eye you will be supporting her to get norethisterone so that she can go on hols without worrying about periods...

And then in another blink of an eye you will be supporting with a GP appointment her to think about contraception ...

It doesn't seem 2 minutes since my 10 year old rang me in the hairdressers to tell me she had got her period and "don't worry i'm fine"

Now when she comes home from uni we end up with our cycles syncing and we snuggle down with chocolate 🍫 and telly .

Gosh I don’t think I’ve ever had a BMI of 19! I’m what people used to call “fine-boned” I guess. I am a classic hourglass figure and always looked pretty chubby even when I did weigh 50kg (I certainly weigh a lot more than 50kg these days).

The reason I know that was my weight when I started uni was my GP was doing a weight management review fit me recently and she showed me what it was on my medical records from when I started uni.

DDs here were 13 and 6 months, and 13 and 9 months. Thankfully, they were both at home when they started.

I was a late starter at 15.

I don't think weight is a reliable indicator, certainly not 50 kg. I was only about 36 kg leaving school. I'd say I hadn't quite reached 50 kg by age 30.

i was 10 and in year 6 when I started mine back in the olden days of 1988, my daughter was also 10 and in year 6 and her best friend who was tiny starter hers in year 5 when she was 9. She had very little in the chest area at all according to dd who had quite a bit!

after reading the replies here it doesn’t seem there is a definitive answer. I armed my dd with all of the information and knowledge she needed from a young age, she’s seen me go through them and yet when it happened she was beyond hysterical and couldn’t cope with all of the changes, refused to leave the house, didn’t go to school etc it was such an extreme reaction.

She ended up on the pill at 11 to completely stop them until she’s older. Was diagnosed with ASD when she was 12.5 and has just turned 14 and still struggles to talk about it. They were not heavy or painful and I do think it was more about change and being undiagnosed autistic.

Just a different perspective and it’s not something anyone really talks about. Everyone else she knows has just got on with it.

Thanks for all these answers, so interesting to hear how different it is for each girl.

A friend of my dd's started hers over half term, so DD was talking about it on Monday after school. It was a really good conversation, and she seems to be understanding that it might be her soon.

Re. the 50kg, I weighed more than that when I started mine. I zoomed past 50kg early in secondary school as I'm really tall! I remember friends saying how heavy 50kg was, and I was a skinny minnie who was over 50kg. Height makes so much difference.

@Zoflorabore this must be so hard for you both. My youngest dd has a learning difficulty and so I'm dreading hers starting.