How can I get my doctor to take me seriously

[sabrinaplumber]

I’m a mess, I have been having painful periods for at least 10 years now and do not get on with hormonal contraception. After an entirely sleepless night last night caused by the pain and having to change my tampon every hour due to heavy bleeding I have just had a call back from the doctor who told me if I don’t want contraceptives then taking over the counter painkillers is my only option. Sorry for rambling but I just really need this taken seriously and I don’t know where to go from here. I have had to have at least 2 days off work for every period I’ve had over the last 12 months, they are extremely irregular and I just feel exhausted by it all. Can anyone help with how to get this taken seriously?

The usual solutions for this are hormonal contraception.

There's two kinds of pill - combined and single and also options like the injection and the implant.

Have you tried hormonal contraception or is this a cancer risk thing? I tried two difffernt pills before finding one that worked for me.

That having been said, there are other things that help. Most GPs are prepared to prescribe either mefenamic or tranexamic acid which is more effective for period pain than otc painkillers.

I have quite severe mental health issues and hormonal contraception either exacerbated those or ended up making my periods heavier and longer. Thank you for the suggestion of mefenamic acid I may go back and suggest that. The GP has just made me feel so stupid for so long.

You could try the mirena coil, not much evidence that it impacts mood.

I would insist they refer you, to look into the cause, it's only likely to get worse the older you get, there are treatments available, possibly surgery depending on the cause, no reason why women should just put up with it if contraceptives are not required or suit you.

I was going to suggest the mirena coil too. It stopped my heavy bleeding altogether and I’ve haven’t noticed any side effects.

I ended up going to the sexual health clinic for advice as my GP was so useless. Alternatively, you could ask for a referral to Gynaecology at the hospital to investigate the cause of your heavy bleeding. You might need a transvaginal ultrasound to check for fibroids.

Blood test for anaemia, scan ( or MRI, better for endo ( although scope best) and referral to gynae. Insist

Have you ever been referred to look into the cause of all of this? You need to see a Gynaecologist. I would request a second opinion from another GP and request this referral. Emphasise the fact that you are changing tampons hourly as this is really not normal.

I agree with @CrunchySnow you need an ultrasound scan at first as this could quite likely be caused by fibroids. If that doesn't find anything you need a referral to gynae. This is not normal and well within the realms of what the NHS define as abnormal heavy bleeding.

PCOS can cause painful irregular heavy periods. Fibroids can cause heavy periods and pain. Both these can be easily diagnosed with a cheap ultrasound, so getting your GP to agree should not be difficult. Try another GP.

I find taking DH to medical appointments with me has me taken more seriously, Sad but true.

That's disgraceful, you poor thing. Have you got anyone who can go in with you and advocate for you? Preferably a man, I'm disgusted to have to say. Or a local women's health charity who can advise you how to complain effectively?

You need a referral to a gynaecologist to check fir endometriosis.
Dont get fobbed off by a scan. You can’t diagnose endometriosis with a scan!!

But first and foremost is a referral.

Going to see a female GP might help.
Im also finding that looking up symptoms on the NHS website and listing them one after the other (but with out saying it’s endometriosis) can help - basically are you ticking boxes.
Oh and taking your dh with you so HE can tell the GP he can’t sleep because of you being in pain during the night etc… should help too
(yes it’s crap and it shouldn’t be like that but all the studies show that having a man with you make the difference)

Thank you for all of your support and advice. It was a female GP which is why I think I was left feeling so disheartened by the whole experience. No DH to take with me as I am a lesbian (I’m not sure my DW would have the same impact lol), which is part of my reasoning for not really wanting contraception as it feels unnecessary especially given the side effects it has caused me in the past. A second opinion sounds like the way forward, do I just call the surgery and ask for one? I have never sought one before

Absolutely you can.
Have you had blood tests, USS and swabs ?
All those thing should be done in primary care before referral to gynae- they wont accept a referral without to be honest.

I always had heavy periods with were fixed by the pill, but had to stop this in my 40s. Then very heavy period, I pushed for an ultrasound (sorry to say I got quite weepy which worked a treat..), thye found polyps which were removed, which fixed it for a while, then later they found endometriosis. So you might have one of these, so push for an ultrasound.

I had a blood test recently for something unrelated and she had a look at those and said I don’t need them redone. I just really really don’t want to be on contraception and that was the only option she was willing to give me. How would I go about asking for swabs etc?

just ask for an appointment with another clinician.
It is tricky to fully manage without hormones... but saying that- you still dont know exactly what the problem is

@sabrinaplumber it won’t help with a diagnostic but what helped me with painful period is Omega-3.
I ate a tin of mackerel everyday and within a month or two a lot of the pain had gone.
It doesn’t help with the heavy bleeding though.

Tranexamic acid helps to reduce blood flow too.

I would suggest that you tell them you want a referral to a gynaecologist at the hospital; and do stress that the awful symptoms mean you have to take time off work every month, and your employer is losing patience now.