Amenorrhea? How to re-gain period back.

alechua

I've been missing my period for 2 consecutive months already. As much as possible I don't want to give up working out. I've been overweight/obese since my childhood days and so I'm afraid I'll gain weight if I stop working out. 5lbs to lose til I reach my goal weight. And I'm currently on my 2nd week of turbofire and I love it. My daily intake would normally range to 1500-1700 net of calories. I don't want to take pills as much as possible and want to bring back my period the natural way. I don't know what went wrong, since my bmi is at normal range. Any tips? Like any food that I should eat? (Definitely not pregnant. )

age:21 years old
height:5'3
starting weight: 156lbs (end of may 2013)
current weight: 120lbs
goal weight: 110-115lbs

Klem4

Make an appointment with your GYN. I've been having similar issues, I've only had a few periods this year, and I'm not even underweight. I have an appointment in a few weeks, but yeah, just call and get seen.

thesophierose

Seen your GYN and if you don't want to go on pills (which only fake hormones anyways) you can try herbal treatment,

geekyjock76

Secondary amenorrhea can occur for several reasons. Outside of the obvious pregnancy explanation, two main reasons include excessive exercise stress and low energy availability (net calories) upon 5 consecutive days or more.

It is quite common for people in self-reported surveys to greatly underestimate food intake and overestimate exercise expenditure. Although your net intake range seems satisfactory, are you accounting for everything you eat and weighing all food using a digital scale? Are you perhaps miscalculating exercise energy expenditure?

If your calculations are significantly off, you could actually be netting less calories than you think which would lead to disruption in LH pulsatility and ovarian function.

You can read about how insufficient energy availability to lean to an absence of menses in this study:

http://jcem.endojournals.org/content/88/1/297.full

poohpoohpeapod

see a Dr

moonmistmm

My bet might be the turbofire. Is it strenuous? My friends would always lose their period during cross country season and gain it back after the season ended (less exercise). I'm not sure if eating more would help, but it might.

nxd10

Do a see a doctor. I also had that issue many, many times when I was younger. Stress and also whether you are spending time with other women or not. When I spent time with mostly men or alone, I could easily go for 50+ days between periods. Everyone in my family is like that. Hormones are just plain complicated.

Iknewyouweretrouble

what is your body fat%? women need ample body fat for menstruating hormones.

thenewmoni

Work out less and eat more fat. It will come back

Cherp18

see a Dr

^ ^ this ^ ^

PippiNe

Mine has gone AWOL too. Body fat percentage at 20%, weight 121 lbs, 5'4" tall. Is this too low of a body fat % to maintain proper cycles? I was very irregular when I was younger and weighed in the 120s and 130s. The heavier I got, the more regular I was. Took several preggo tests, so not preggo, but am wondering why? I work out 6 days a week average, usually for 30-45 minutes each day.

VoodooAborisha

My doctor told me that the body will stop ovulating and/or stop having periods if there is too much stress on the body to support a healthy pregnancy. Could be anything from lack of enough calories, protein, healthy fats, and/or iron. I did ballet and a lot of the really skinny girls who ate very little and did a lot of exercise tended to go for months without periods. See a doctor but in the meantime eat more, especially protein and iron containing foods. If your hair isn't falling out it may be iron not protein, but a doctor will have to do a blood test, and tell her what you eat each day and how much exercise etc.

Also have them check your B12 levels. If you are not getting enough animal products or B12 vitamin, you could have "pernicious anemia" which looks like low iron, has low iron symptoms like amenorrhea, but is really low B12. Just in case.

Soyajam

Because I'm overweight, my cycles can be completely wonky - they can range from 20 day, 27-28 day (spot on), to 40-45 day cycles - often depending on (like the other ladies say) stress, how active I've been, and the composition of my diet.

I find for example, that if I have a really bad month full of sugar in my diet, it will often result in an elongated cycle.
I have since discovered from my doctor that this may be linked to insulin resistance. (since all that stuff is linked)

(My mother has also told me she was like this and having kids knocked her cycles back on time, so perhaps genetics are a factor too? Dunno)

In your case, if this is unusual for you and it's the first time it's happened, I would also suggest seeing a doctor or gynecologist - even if it's caused by the regime you're on, they may have recommendations that will put your mind at ease (about whether to ease up, or if it's okay to continue).

Hope that helps!

alechua

Thank you all for the advice! My doctor prescribed Provera (10mg), but I'm a bit hesitant to take it. Has anyone tried Provera, and any side effects? Results? How long did you take (Provera) before you regain your period back? Any tips? Thanks!

alechua

Seen your GYN and if you don't want to go on pills (which only fake hormones anyways) you can try herbal treatment,

Do you know any herbal treatment that works? Thanks!

alechua

Secondary amenorrhea can occur for several reasons. Outside of the obvious pregnancy explanation, two main reasons include excessive exercise stress and low energy availability (net calories) upon 5 consecutive days or more.

It is quite common for people in self-reported surveys to greatly underestimate food intake and overestimate exercise expenditure. Although your net intake range seems satisfactory, are you accounting for everything you eat and weighing all food using a digital scale? Are you perhaps miscalculating exercise energy expenditure?

If your calculations are significantly off, you could actually be netting less calories than you think which would lead to disruption in LH pulsatility and ovarian function.

You can read about how insufficient energy availability to lean to an absence of menses in this study:

http://jcem.endojournals.org/content/88/1/297.full

Honestly, I'm just estimating my food and not using scale. And searching the net for the general calories burned of my workout (present workout - turbofire; now on my 2nd week). Thanks for the advice, will definitely check out the link!

alechua

My bet might be the turbofire. Is it strenuous? My friends would always lose their period during cross country season and gain it back after the season ended (less exercise). I'm not sure if eating more would help, but it might.

The turbofire program has HIIT workout, but then everyday is a different routine, more likely kickboxing type of workout. I'm actually increasing my calorie intake little by little. I'm afraid I'll go over and gain lbs again.

alechua

Work out less and eat more fat. It will come back

I really hate skipping workout, instead I just increased my fat intake, regularly eating chicken and pork and nuts at present. Hope it'll improve my situation. Thanks for the advice!

alechua

what is your body fat%? women need ample body fat for menstruating hormones.

Haven't check my body fat %. Guess need to do some measuring. Thanks for the advice!

PleasantDisarray

I had Provera to treat my amenorrhea in what's known as a "progesterone challenge", which is used as both a diagnostic tool and to induce periods in patients with amenorrhea. I have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) which has led to difficulties with my periods from the very first one, and in people with sufficient estradiol (a form of estrogen) giving patients Provera for I think seven days, and then withdrawing it, should induce bleeding withing 2-7 days. If there's something more complicated going on, after 7 days there will still not be bleeding. I don't know if this fits the dosage instructions your doctor gave you, but this is my experience!

In my personal case, I experienced no real problem with taking the Provera beyond a slight increase in the hair on my upper lip, which I will admit was embarrassing, but was easily waxed off. After completing the week long course of Provera, it took the full 7 days for me to get a period. It made no difference to the long-term regularity of my cycle, because of the PCOS - I still need to be on some form of hormone therapy, be it the pill (which I can't take) or Provera, to force periods to occur at the right time.

Really, though, don't sweat about amenorrhea too much. You only need a good bleed every 3-4 months to keep things properly healthy, and I've gone up to 10 months without a period and everything is still in working order. You just learn to roll with it.

tula1980

Did your doctor have no advice other than take a pill?

I never suffered with lack of period when I was at 15% body fat, in fact I fell pregnant at 32 the first month we tried. Women clearly do need a certain amount of body fat, but getting your BMI down to normal shouldn't be enough to stop your periods if it's been done sustainably.

If I were in your shoes I think I would weigh/measure/track your intake, even if just for a couple of weeks, to make sure you are getting enough protein, fat (including omega's), iron, vits D, B's and E as well as enough calories for the amount of working out your doing.

You may need to raise your calories slowly but quite a bit. I'm 5'1, 112lb and I do 3x 60 minute yoga (normal yoga) workouts and 3x 40 minute lifting workouts a week and I'm maintaining my body weight at 2100 calories a day. You might find, depending on workout intensity, that you need to get to an average of ~2000 calories to lose those last few pounds slowly but carefully. You shouldn't have to big a deficit with such a small amount left to lose.

alechua

My doctor told me that the body will stop ovulating and/or stop having periods if there is too much stress on the body to support a healthy pregnancy. Could be anything from lack of enough calories, protein, healthy fats, and/or iron. I did ballet and a lot of the really skinny girls who ate very little and did a lot of exercise tended to go for months without periods. See a doctor but in the meantime eat more, especially protein and iron containing foods. If your hair isn't falling out it may be iron not protein, but a doctor will have to do a blood test, and tell her what you eat each day and how much exercise etc.

Also have them check your B12 levels. If you are not getting enough animal products or B12 vitamin, you could have "pernicious anemia" which looks like low iron, has low iron symptoms like amenorrhea, but is really low B12. Just in case.

I actually notice a significant increased in my hair falling out. I have no idea if this has something to do with my period stopping.

alechua

I had Provera to treat my amenorrhea in what's known as a "progesterone challenge", which is used as both a diagnostic tool and to induce periods in patients with amenorrhea. I have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) which has led to difficulties with my periods from the very first one, and in people with sufficient estradiol (a form of estrogen) giving patients Provera for I think seven days, and then withdrawing it, should induce bleeding withing 2-7 days. If there's something more complicated going on, after 7 days there will still not be bleeding. I don't know if this fits the dosage instructions your doctor gave you, but this is my experience!

In my personal case, I experienced no real problem with taking the Provera beyond a slight increase in the hair on my upper lip, which I will admit was embarrassing, but was easily waxed off. After completing the week long course of Provera, it took the full 7 days for me to get a period. It made no difference to the long-term regularity of my cycle, because of the PCOS - I still need to be on some form of hormone therapy, be it the pill (which I can't take) or Provera, to force periods to occur at the right time.

Really, though, don't sweat about amenorrhea too much. You only need a good bleed every 3-4 months to keep things properly healthy, and I've gone up to 10 months without a period and everything is still in working order. You just learn to roll with it.

Thanks! But I'm really worried since this is the first time i skipped period ever, and worst is, this is already my 2nd month skipping my period.

alechua

Recent Update: Has anyone missed their periods, but occasionally having some discharge? Could it still be amenorrhea? I'm really confused now.

AlsDonkBoxSquat

1) See your doctor
in the mean time:
2) when did you start working out
3) how are you estimating your caloric burn?
4) at what rate have you been losing weight?
5) how active were you before this happened?
6) what is your current bf%?

alechua

1) See your doctor
in the mean time:
2) when did you start working out
3) how are you estimating your caloric burn?
4) at what rate have you been losing weight?
5) how active were you before this happened?
6) what is your current bf%?

2.) I started end of May 2013, enrolling in a zumba class. It lasted for 2 months. Then August - Jillian Michaels Workout. September-Mid October Fitness Blender workout. Last 2 weeks of October-up to present turbofire and blogilates.
3.) Present: I just do research on the calories burned in turbofire. I don't count calories burned in blogilates, since I'm only doing like 2 short video workouts. When I was still doing Fitnessblender workout, they provide their estimated caloric burn. When I was still doing Jillian Michael's workout, I am not actually tracking my caloric burn.
4.) I don't actually weigh myself too much like weekly. When I weigh last mid-august, I am 130lbs, and when I weigh last week I'm down to 120lbs.
5.) Mid-august, my last period. I was doing HIIT workout everyday! Wrong move I guess. so in september i missed my period
6.) Haven't measured my body fat %.

alechua

Seriously you NEED to see a Dr. It could be something basic it could be something that requires medical intervention. If you wish to have kids some day why risk it? My sister had this and it turned out to be hormonal issues, she now needs to take medication for it. So please go see a professional. All the best! And congrats on your amazing achievements! =D

I definitely do want to have kids in the future. However, I'm currently afraid to gain back lbs. I still want to build muscles and lose some fats.

momRN2B

i would not go by BMI since its inaccurate. Body fat % is a better way of measuring. I am 5' 2 and i maintained at 120-125 lbs and wore a size 2. I dont think you need to lose a lb. more. Continue with your exercise and make sure you are getting in enough calories. And definitely go see a Dr. You also might want to invest in a HRM so you can accurately account for your workout burns.

susannamarie

When you add in that your hair is falling out, I would definitely talk to your doctor.

alechua

When you add in that your hair is falling out, I would definitely talk to your doctor.

Oh no.. This made me nervous.

alechua

i would not go by BMI since its inaccurate. Body fat % is a better way of measuring. I am 5' 2 and i maintained at 120-125 lbs and wore a size 2. I dont think you need to lose a lb. more. Continue with your exercise and make sure you are getting in enough calories. And definitely go see a Dr. You also might want to invest in a HRM so you can accurately account for your workout burns.

Thanks for the advice!