The official menstruation thread
This is a place to talk about our periods! Not just diva cup related, but whatever we'd like to discuss/get help with.
My period recently switched from being towards the beginning of the month, to the end. I hope it stays semi-constant (schedule-wise). When I was younger, I had some cramps, then I was on b.c pills for about 4-5 years, and didn't really have cramps, I've been off the pill for about two years now, and I have pretty bad cramps the first couple of days/nights. They were HORRIBLE this morning.
I'm REALLY wondering what I'm going to do when we run out of our bottle of Tylenol. Tylenol stops my cramps pretty quickly. By "cramps," I mean the horrible stomach/back pain, the feeling like I always have to poop, the flushed feeling, etc. Before I've taken Tylenol it doesn't really seem to matter how I'm lying/sitting/standing...anything. I know yoga helps some people...I don't know if it helps me or not..b/c I don't think I've been able to force myself to do it when in pain. But, I can't always stop and do some yoga....I don't drink tea..I'm just not wanting to buy more drugs.
Anyway, let's discuss!
Does anyone else have different cramps/pains/feelings whenever your diva/tampon/pad is full/needs to be changed? I've always had that. Then as soon as I take my diva out and empty...and wait a few minutes..the cramps are gone.
Not that I've noticed, but I wouldn't be surprised. ???
FTR: Heli is a fool. The diva arrived over two weeks ago and I never tried it out... and yesterday, my period arrived. Now I'm on one of my last pads and I have to attempt to put in the diva later today for the first time with blood everywhere. This... is gonna be messy. And not fun. :( >:( Also, the peak of my cramps occurred at precisely the hour when I had lots of work to finish up before I could go home, and all I felt like doing was sitting down, not making damn bouquets and running around pricing flowers. And sitting down and massaging my abdomen didn't help anyway. :waa:
/endrant
P.S. AC, you're welcome to quote the first sentence of what I said, but I think the rest is TMI for the Record thread. ;D
You can do it! I was pretty/completely unsuccessful during my practice runs anyway. Just do it in the shower-washes away "mess," plus natural lube, plus ability to easily squat down. Stick with it!
The book I recommended spells it all out, it's really very educational...I thought I was pretty well informed about these sorts of things, but I definitely learned a ton! ;)b
Hi Living_My_Truth,
Is all this info only relevant to someone with "regular" cycles? Does the book address particular menstruation disorders and the effectiveness of FAM in those instances?
Just a thought for those of you who don't menstruate very often...I was the same way in college and was like, "woo hoo! I hate periods anyway!" and I never had it checked. Then when it came time to have a baby (never thought I would at the time either) it was discovered that I was not ovulating and we had a hard time conceiving. Obviously it eventually worked ::)If you plan to have kids someday you might want to get straightened out sooner than later. I waited till my late 20's. The second time we had no trouble at all, and I had been off birth control for a long time as well.
Yeah, no more l2as, that's for sure....unless I get drunk and accidentally screw someone else :D ;D
that was a joke!
Hey L2A,
I just found out the root of my problems; anovulation.
I knew there was something wrong! I'm just so glad that I kept pushing and changing GYN's until I found one that actually took me seriously. At least now DH and I are prepared for seeking additional help (if needed) when we decide to try for kids.
So while I'm still waiting for that "mother of all periods" I'm supposed to get on the IUD, I noticed I've sort of been spotting for the past 1.5 days.
And then I realized... hey, the last time this happened, it was about a month ago.
waitaminute.
this IS my period. Seriously? I mean, I only have a vague recollection of what it used to be, but damn, it used to be heavy enough to use menstruation products and lasted at least four days. But since then (during the non-period period) I've taken up running... I've heard exercise can reduce the "flow," but this much?
:)>>> period from heaven. no pain, and not enough of anything to bother with either a disposable or a diva cup (thank you, environmentally friendly uterus!).
*ahem*
with all this talk about FAM and rhythm and whatnot, I'd like to add a little shameless plug for the Contraceptives Club....don't wanna let that one die out, y'know.
Does anyone else have different cramps/pains/feelings whenever your diva/tampon/pad is full/needs to be changed? I've always had that. Then as soon as I take my diva out and empty...and wait a few minutes..the cramps are gone.
yes
I haven't had a period in over a year. Before then, it was irregular. I would have like one to two a year and they never lasted a normal length of time. I would either spot for a few hours or bleed constantly for days and days. The very last period I had over a year ago was incredibly heavy and lasted 18 days. After that, they just stopped. It's eating disorder related. The only way to get it back is to get up to a healthy weight, which I'm struggling with.
The book I recommended spells it all out, it's really very educational...I thought I was pretty well informed about these sorts of things, but I definitely learned a ton! ;)b
Hi Living_My_Truth,
Is all this info only relevant to someone with "regular" cycles? Does the book address particular menstruation disorders and the effectiveness of FAM in those instances?
Hey LLG, definitely still relevant! Admittingly, FAM can bit a bit more complex with those without regular cycles, and depending upon their cervical fluid patterns they might find that they have more "unsafe" days in a given month than a typical person. But the book definitely does address annovulation among other irregularities and disorders. Actually surprising you should ask about annovulation, because I just had to look that up again recently. In all the time I've been charting I've never not ovulated except for the first month or two I had gone off the pill. For whatever reason I didn't ovulate last month....or I guess I should say I didn't ovulate until like day 45. Had I not been doing FAM and charting I would have been freaked when I didn't get my period thinking I was pregnant. But I knew that wasn't the case since I never ovulated, so there were no worries. But with FAM, basically if you are consistently not ovulating, you just need to take a bit of time to determine what you basic infertility pattern is as far as the cervical fluid goes-most likely just dry, but maybe sticky. Then once you observed that infertility pattern for 2 weeks so you know that is your pattern, you can consider yourself safe on those particular days. If you happen to get a wetter type cervical fluid on a given day it means you are either approaching ovulation or your body is going to try and ovulate, so you wouldn't consider yourself safe until the set number of days after this wetter fluid passed. Even if you think that using the method for birth control may be too complex with your issues (and maybe it would be if you are really irregular), I definitely think you would benefit from charting just too know exactly what is going on with your body-for your own knowledge and it would certainly help your healthcare provider with any diagnosis, etc. Hope this helps!
*ahem*
with all this talk about FAM and rhythm and whatnot, I'd like to add a little shameless plug for the Contraceptives Club....don't wanna let that one die out, y'know.
Sorry CW!! I didn't want LLG to miss the response..... :-[
Has anyone seen the movie Dirty Love with Jenny McCarthy? There's a seen that I feel closely resembles my periods. NOT GOOD.
I didn't read every post on this thread yet, just the beginning and end few... but has anyone mentioned anything about the estrogen-like properties in soy, and how it can prolong periods? I don't know very much about this... ???
I don't know if anyone has mentioned this, but here's what I gathered from something I just read.
Yes, soy does impact your menstrual cycle, usually giving longer periods which is supposed to be a good thing because it lowesrs the exposer to estrogen later in life and this helps to prevent certain cancers and diseases. Here's a link:
http://www.geocities.com/healthyadvice/Health-Q13.html
i just googled 'vegan longer periods' and got two sites that swear strict vegan diets in the long term are dangerous (one was the first result, and claimed that 'from what i can tell' people who are healthy long-term on a vegan diet are so because they've occasionally eaten animal products anyway)
>:(
I know that having an animal-product-free diet is supposed to prolong the cycle (from 28 to 35 days on avg, I think) and result in earlier menopause, but higher fertility during fertile years. I don't recall anything about the length of period though... and I certainly have no basis of judgment myself :P
I don't know what to say...I can't share your pain. I have my uterus and Auntie Flow has been here this week, but I didn't notice. At nearly 49, I am on menopause watch, but alas...I am not even irregular and I am still ovulating regularly!!!! Not a hot flash either.
The only thing that has ever interrupted my cycles is pregnancy and then breastfeeding. After my boys, that was 12 months to the week, with my first 2 girls that was 9 months to the week and with my second 2 girls that was 6 months to the week after I had given birth. I breastfed them all for 2 years though. Yup, that is a lot of years PG, nursing or both.
I have dropped a lot of weight in the last year, no interruption. I don't eat meat, but I do have cheese on rare occasion and eggs sometimes, at this point, but I am a bean eater primarily. No, no difference. I eat a fair amount of soy, but no...I still have them like clockwork. No cramps, no PMS and without a calendar mark, no clue. I feel for you all, but honestly I never notice that 3 or 4 days out of my life. My girls whine all with theirs...I can't relate to this.
My attitude has always been that it is what it is. You have a choice about your attitude. I had my "sex education" at a time when they told us that there was no need to interrupt your life for your period and to just keep going. My mom would push me to do more physically when I was on the rag and make it worse. I have thin veins and I learned long ago that overdoing it physically will make me flow very heavily, so I don't do that. I do sorta baby myself a little bit. I try to sleep a bit more, schedule a short nap, have my favorite tea, a special squirt of perfume on my pillow, tiny creature comforts. I don't care who you are, what age, anything this time of every month is an insult to you physically. I am not suggesting a sweat lodge or being confined to your bed, but taking things a little bit easier is better for you. When my oldest daughter was having such a hard time at first, I spent a lot of time (too much if you ask me) convincing her to just take a little extra special care of herself. When she got that through her head, she felt better about all of it. I'd tell you all the same thing. That time is not the time over extend yourself in any way!
Excellent advice LD! (nice to see you, how have you been? I still love your ribs!)
I find that I feel more tired in general a few days before my period & the first couple days during, so I also make sure to get extra rest & tone down my workouts. I think some easy exercise is good, like taking a walk or easy jog, if you are used to running, or some easy swimming, but it is completely counter productive for me to try a track workout, or tough weight lifting session. I would feel completely wiped out the next few days and also leave myself open for catching a cold.
I have noticed a longer cycle (well, just a shift to a DIFFERENT cycle), but my periods are not longer.
I haven't noticed the length of time between cycles, it seems I'm irregular at some points and too lazy to sit down and keep track of it for a yr or more. Some times I know when it is coming and others it is a complete surprise.
I totally agree with Lady Dragonfly. If I can take it easy I do, especially, when I am cramping. If I relax let the cramps ride out and then do things, I can do more, but that is easier said than done with a 2 1/2 yr old.
From what I've read about menopause is that women on a veg*n diet don't have the hot flashes as extreme as thoses that eat animal products because of the hormones. The levels are lower so the drop of estrogen and such is not as dramtic making it less of a change on the body. I've also heard that menopause arrives earlier, but I think family history has a role in it too.
Ok, I don't understand what's going on with my uterus. I should be due for a period any day now, but I've felt like I've had it for a week already. Cramps, dizziness, nausea, bloating, craving chocolate...all the symptoms except for blood. So I don't know if this is the PMS from hell (I've never had PMS last more than a day or 2), or if this IS my period, a little early, minus the blood. This is my first period since giving up HBC, so I expected it to be a little screwy, but wtf? >:(
Have any former HBC users experienced anything like this?
depends what kind... after stopping depo the first time i didn't have my proper period for like a year
now, the second time giving it up plus a copper IUD, it's practically nonexistent.
Not that I'm complaining.
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