Period changes? (ladies only)

PrincessMorticia
PrincessMorticia Posts: 96 Member
edited November 10 in Health and Weight Loss
Since I have been exercising again and eating healthier, my period has been acting very strange. Last month, about a week before it was due, I spotted for a couple days. It stopped, and then it began again at the right time. Now this month I'm experiencing the same....it's 2 weeks before I should start it, and I've had light bleeding and moderate cramps (not so much cramps...just very sore in the lower abdomen). Now it's going away and I figure I'll still get my normal period like I did last month.

Does this sound familiar to any of you guys? I don't know if I should get it checked out because I'm uninsured. I have my tubes tied, and my period has always been very regular.

Replies

  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
    Mine has been funky as well, coming early etc..

    On a good note, I don't find I am bloated the week before like I was before this journey, I am also finding that I lose weight the week before now...which is weird... it used to be the week after I would lose the bloat....

    I think it's normal but if you feel uncomfortable with your troubles it would not hurt to put a call into your doc
  • lizard053
    lizard053 Posts: 2,344 Member
    Sounds very familiar to me! I've always been somewhat irregular, but more so when I restarted my exercise program.

    When you put your body under significant stress, as in eating less and exercising more, it will do what it can to preserve as much energy as possible. This includes mucking with our periods. Some months I'll skip all together, other months I bleed for 2 weeks, other times I spot for the entire month. It's so odd.

    However! If you keep up the healthy habits and drinking water, etc, it does seem to make my periods easier to deal with. Lots less cramping, minimal bloating, etc. It's a welcome change for me!
  • tbloor
    tbloor Posts: 56 Member
    Just spoke to my doc about this, as well as slightly thinner hair and a few other concerns. She said that these problems are very common with women who are losing/have lost significant amounts of weight. As you lose weight, your brain signals for a decrease in production of 2 hormones. She ordered blood tests and said if hormone levels are low, we can try a few things. If they are low/normal, I just have to be patient and wait for my brain to signal for an increase in hormone production. She also suggested I may want to slow my weight loss. I am less than 10 pounds from what I think will be my ultimate goal weight, so I have set MFP to"lose 0.5 pounds per week" and significantly increased my calorie intake over the past few weeks. SInce I've done that, I feel a lot better, energy wise, and I'm still losing between 0.5 and 2 pounds per week.
  • littlemsmuffet
    littlemsmuffet Posts: 84
    I would wait at least another month and make some solid notes on a calendar describing exactly what happened. Make sure your exercise notes and food notes are detailed also. In a month you can lay everything out and look at it day-by-day to see exactly what happened and whether there were any changes from last month. If something is truly wrong you want to catch it early but I think you will need more evidence for your doc than "my last period was weird". A lot of women have weird periods. That is normal, especially if you are losing weight/exercising. I read somewhere (wow - that sounded credible!) that estrogen is stored in female adipose tissue and more may be released during weight loss. I do know that fat cells and cholesterol are necessary for steroid production but I am not sure how that relates to menstruation. Do your own research before you go to the doc - always! You shouldn't diagnose yourself or get a fluffy head, but you should definitely know the differences between normal and abnormal menstruation and what causes it, etc., so at least you will know what the doc is talking about.

    On a personal note, my periods were never "normal": I have one every 6-8 weeks and it usually lasts 5-9 days total. Sometimes I have a "fake" one, which is a 2-3 days of cramps and spotting. My doc suggested that I start birth control to "normalize my hormones" but aside from atypical periods, there is nothing amiss (I actually had my blood-hormones tested which should be step #1 before considering birth control, IMO). The last thing I am going to do is play with my hormones to fit a statistic. Get the facts first - always! That's why I suggested taking notes on a calendar.
  • lindseykp
    lindseykp Posts: 76
    This just happened to me too! I started Jillian Michaels Ripped 30 DVD. I am on day 3 of week 2. It's a very strenuous work out, and I started getting very mild cramps and spotting today. I googled it and it sounds like this can be normal but not very common. Anyone else experience this and does it go away?

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  • Katanthus
    Katanthus Posts: 346 Member
    I read somewhere (wow - that sounded credible!) that estrogen is stored in female adipose tissue and more may be released during weight loss.

    Outside of the ovaries, stomach fat is the biggest producer of estrogen, or so I was told by a Doctor. If we are losing fat, it is going to mess up our menstrual cycle. I know mine has been harder to predict than the lottery numbers.
  • jacknbox
    jacknbox Posts: 6 Member
    hi

    have to say that I would get it checked out...

    better safe than sorry and there is nothing to lose....

    I have had similar changes in menstural cycle as my weight as changed (and my age :wink: ) - but never bled inbetween...

    it would put your mind at rest to speak to somebody who knows for sure....

    Am sure all ok - keep us updated...
  • auntycaca
    auntycaca Posts: 2
    I used to eat anything that wasn't nailed down the week before my period. I couldn't control it, and I never recognised what was happening until my period started!!! I would then think to myself "week before syndrome" LOL, but now I don't have to worry about that anymore (menopause). Another thing I used to notice was that if I had been drinking too much at period time, my hangover was unbelievably bad - no period = no hangover. Strange or what?
  • paintlisapurple
    paintlisapurple Posts: 982 Member
    Its been off kilter for me too. I feel like I'm going to get a second one this month (ugh) with cramping and bloating. I also tend to spot after my workouts.
  • paintlisapurple
    paintlisapurple Posts: 982 Member
    I read somewhere (wow - that sounded credible!) that estrogen is stored in female adipose tissue and more may be released during weight loss.

    Outside of the ovaries, stomach fat is the biggest producer of estrogen, or so I was told by a Doctor. If we are losing fat, it is going to mess up our menstrual cycle. I know mine has been harder to predict than the lottery numbers.

    That is motivation enough for me not to skip a workout cramps and all!
  • delonda1
    delonda1 Posts: 525 Member
    Since losing weight (38lbs). My period has been all out of whacks.... I actually have been to many doctors appts because of it.

    I had it for 2 wks straight one month and then was late another....got it 2wks early one month. it has its own mind and agenda
  • marie_cressman
    marie_cressman Posts: 980 Member
    I would say this is fairly common. When you make dietary changes or change your activity level or lose weight, your body changes and so do your hormone levels. If it continues for too long, get it checked out because it may be something more. Other than that, I wouldn't worry.

    Mine has been wonky lately too. It was messed up when I first started and went normal again. Messed up when I started new birth control and went normal again. Now it's been wonky for about 2 months. I am giving it until the 1st of the month and if I'm not straightened out, I will take a pregnancy test and go from there. LOL
  • h2oophelia
    h2oophelia Posts: 48
    I'm been having issues since losing weight as well. I'm on BC and loved that I knew exactly when my period was due. But the last two months my period has come a week early...even on the pill! And then it continues through the next week. :grumble: My doc said the same thing about women who lose a significant amount of weight tend to have period irregularity because of the hormones in fat. I'm giving it another month hoping it will work itself out and if it doesn't, my doc suggested switching my BC.
  • ash1rose
    ash1rose Posts: 3
    Mine lasts less time and I have less cramping, which is awesome. Bad side is I gain 5lbs regardless of what I do and 2 of them stick around even after no matter how much I exercise/watch what I eat.
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