14 year old period blood scant and irregular

[marcimomof1]

My daughter has been getting periods for about a year, but they are always very light and irregular (17-27 days long). I know it can take a while for cycles to settle into something regular, but this seems odd to me. Will check in with her GP, but am wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience, with a positive outcome?! Not dealing well with the stress :/

Sounds totally normal to me tbh, it takes a while for periods to be regular and for some people they’re always light.

When my period started, it was like that for the first year. I was very sporty though and that was partially why- low body fat. Although I have read that being overweight/obese can also have the same effect on a girls periods.

Not odd to me. Why do you think it is?

How many daughters do you have, op?

I'd say it's pretty normal to be irregular at first. The lightness could be normal too. What's her diet like? She maybe a bit low on iron if she's vegetarian or similar.

Thank you for the support! My periods started relatively heavy and regular, and have stayed that way for 40 years, so I guess I just assumed my daughter's would be the same way :)

My dd is a competitive rock climber, so she's very active. She's not skinny, but she doesn't have much body fat.

I guess I think it's odd because it's so different than mine was, and because her cycles are super short sometimes.

We don't eat much meat, so I will up her iron intake in case that's playing a role. Thanks for the idea!

Is she is low on iron her periods are more likely to be heavy. Not light.

Ah, thanks for the clarification!

But that’s because heavy periods cause low iron because of the heavy blood loss but she could still be low in iron from another cause and that can cause lighter periods. My DD had to have ferritin supplements as her periods were very light and irregular. It was a high dose and worked in her having more ‘normal’ periods. Low iron can even cause your periods to stop.

Do you happen to remember what form of ferritin your daughter took (liquid, capsule; prescription, over-the-counter) and approximately what dosage? And, if you don't mind sharing, was this something diagnosed as anemia via blood test, or did you assume low iron and the supplements fixed her irregular periods?

Pretty normal for a 14yo girl to have irregular periods, the fact that they are light is just a bonus for her!

My DD was vegetarian so I assume the reason why she was lacking. It was a blood test via GP, she was in the ‘normal’ range but only just on the low end, she had Ferrous fumarate 210mg which I believe you can get from the chemist over the counter these days. But I do think if you’re worried about your DD you should phone your GP, you could probably arrange for a blood test over the phone.

Thank you so much! We will definitely ask the GP at her next visit and will do follow-up bloodwork as recommended. In the meantime, I will have her start on a low-ish dosage of iron to supplement her diet. Not a bad idea, given her low intake of red meat.

My daughter just got her period again, after only 20 days (previous cycle was 18 days). You have all been so helpful with reassurances and possible explanations for this short/erratic cycle, so I'm asking again for input about chances this is something more than just cycles regulating until we see the gp in December. She's had her period for about a year now, so they should be normalizing, right? Could her athletics be having an impact? She's on a good dose of ferratin, in case low iron is an issue as she's mostly vegetarian. Thanks for any further insights/reassurances you can offer!