Can anyone help with some fairly rapid advice?

[DoinItForTheKids]

DD 16 has had painful periods for a while and at times gets Mittelschmertz (ovary pain when ovulating for those not familiar with the German!). She was put on mefenamic acid which has been helping and has used it every period pretty much for about 5 months.

We had a lovely day out doing prom preparation-related activities and she was her usual self until about an hour after going to bed when she appeared, snappy, distracted, desperately trying to get the lid out of the hot water bottle which wouldn't come out. Her period had started and literally immediately she had what I would describe as crippling period pain - worse than she normally gets it.

We got a hot water bottle on her tummy and she'd quickly taken one tablet straight away however the tablet just is NOT working, it's not touching the pain at all.

She tried to get to sleep waiting for the pill to work but it hasn't and it had been 2 hours when she called me down to her room and said she was still in so much pain. I was half going to take her to the hospital but whilst I then spent a bit of time trying to find a symptom checker when I went back about 20 minutes later she was getting a bit sleepy and we agreed she'd try and get off to sleep.

I will be booking in with the GP of course as the mefenamic acid was the first thing to try but I think DD needs blood tests maybe (rule out polycystic ovaries??) and to enter onto the endometriosis pathway if that's appropriate but, for now, if when she takes another tablet first thing tomorrow and it has time to work but doesn't and she's still in lots of pain - hospital? Then I guess there's a chance they would be minded to get the ultrasound machine on her which could show something?

I fear if I go to out of hours/urgent care type setting they'll do the usual 'oh give it another day yada yada' or 'have you thought of putting her on the pill'. I am all too aware this could be endometriosis, fibroids or ovarian cysts to name but a few and therefore it needs tackling. If she was going to be this much in pain every month she'd never finish her A levels especially since she's doing a triple sport A level.

Just wondered what had worked for people or their children as the most effective way of getting on the pathway or, will they think she's not suffered 'long enough' to be worthy to go onto it?? I know future fertility etc is at stake here so I don't want to, excuse my French, piss about over this.

Any help or advice would be absolutely great and I'll check back in the morning to see if any night owl may have spotted this and be able to give me some idea of what's best to do. I'm going to try and get to sleep now as she might wake up in the night and need help so sorry for disappearing immediately but I thought MN would be a really good place to ask advice on this.

Thanks all.

You need to keep track of absolutely everything. Get a decent period tracker app or similar. Some let you track other symptoms as well I think. Then get her to note the days when the pain is bad (maybe use a 1-10 pain score)

Information is key with this kind of stuff in my experience. You need to have records of as much as possible. If she's already on mefenamic acid then someone has obviously taken you seriously. I'd go back to them and discuss how it isn't enough.

Currently if the pain is so bad nothing touches it and she cannot cope then yes I'd advise urgent care or similar, depending on facilities in your area. If you are unsure then call NHS direct and ask.

Ok thanks Missed - yes I agree on the keeping track thing - on a monthly situation like this a couple of years could easily go by couldn't they being pushed from one 'treatment' to another (of course these treatment's actually being ways of masking the pain from an underlying cause).

I'll ask her if she has one and get her to start using it.

Thank you.

Has she tried taking other pain relief as
Well? I know you can take paracetamol with ibuprofen, and I know what she's taking is in the same family as ibuprofen but I don't know if you can also take a paracetamol top up- it might be worth asking a pharmacist for immediate relief.

Don't have any idea of what might be causing it, I had v painful periods as a teen which have gone away as an adult and evening primrose exercise and diet really helped me but for causes like endometriosis would be useless- I used to have to go home from school the first day or my period but once I got through that it was all ok. There's no reason to have to put up with that level of pain. I hope you can find a good solution for her.

Yes sadly other things like paracetemol etc just don't work at all. Thank you but sadly it takes between 7 and 10 years for a woman to be diagnosed with endometriosis (if that's what it is) so I'm determined to be on this and fighting for DD to get proper testing and investigations done. She'll never get through her A levels (or life in general really) if she's got this to look forward to every month.

I used to suffer with excruciating period pains when I was 13/14 so I can sympathise. I was also prescribed Mefenamic acid and didn't feel it helped at all, I usually just had to lay there with a hot water bottle until it passed. Luckily I grew out of mine though.

I'd suggest making a note of all in this in some kind of diary to make it easier to present to the GP. It might also be useful to make a note of when the period starts, how many days it lasts, how often the stomach cramps are, pain on a scale of 1-10, how heavy the period is, and any other symptoms such as stomach cramps outside of period, difficulty urinating, etc. Having information like this might help the doctor build up a bigger picture and prompt further investigations if necessary.

If the Mefenamic acid is no longer working after 5 months then I'd suggest going back to the GP. They may suggest the pill, which can be successful in some women in regulating and treating painful periods. They might also suggest further tests such as an ultrasound or blood tests to rule out any other conditions. If the pain gets too much before the GP appointment, then maybe ring 111. They can give you some advice and refer you to the appropriate place. I hope you find a solution soon!

I was the same at her age. I remember the pain being so bad I couldn't move. I did not grow out of it. I went to my gynecologist who thankfully took me very seriously (after prescribing pain meds that didn't touch the pain) and scheduled me for a laparoscopy. I had a chocolate cyst and endometriosis. Thank god that was caught while I was so young as were were able to treat it and I was able to conceive easily when I was ready.

I would definitely be pushing the GP for a referral to gynae.

Yes, thanks huha and minnie, she's using an app now one designed by a woman who had endometriosis, the matter is already logged with the GP that prescribed the mefanemic acid so I feel we're on our first rung of the ladder. If she has another period and the MA doesn't work again then we're going straight back there. I'm not having this take 7 years for us to reach a diagnosis / treatment.

It did make me wonder, what's going on inside her body that the absolutely immediate start of her period caused excruciating pain - what's happening that causes that I wonder... then the rest of the period was fine, she used the MA the next day and was right as rain by close of play the next day.