I need some advice/help. I am in my early 40's and this year I have bled more than I haven't. I went off the pill (I am not in a relationship) and just bled for months. I have tried to get a pap smear done but couldn't because of the bleeding. My doc put me back on the pill to correct it but I am into the second month of taking it and am bleeding through the days that I am not meant to be. I have never had this problem before this year. I was tested for STI's and there were none. I cannot possibly be pregnant. I got referred to a gyno to get my pap smear done and a mirena inserted, but I can't make an appointment because I keep bleeding! The mirena was the doc's idea. I have one 10 years ago and bled heavily (never while on the pill before now) so I am a bit reluctant. I know there are probably not a lot of docs on here, but maybe you can relate to this and give me some advice? I know I need a pap smear as I am overdue and very worried about what is happening, but ironically I can't have one!
7 Replies
Keep going back to your GP. You might need more testing. Lots of things can cause this. Scar tissue from c-sections, peri-menopause, endometriosis, incompetent uterus, fibroids the list goes on and on.
How do I know? My mum went through the same thing at this age and I've also been through it recently, I'm 43. I was expecting it (kind of) because my mum did.
My GP did blood tests, vaginal ultrasound etc.
I ended up on HRT designed for lots of bleeding. The traditional pill was not working. Now I have a regular normal period every 28 days.
Still go to your appointment at the gyno they can still do an ultra sound if your bleeding, I had to have one done vaginally when I was bleeding. It ended up I had polyps, since having them removed I've been much better. Less bleeding, less pain, less clots
Sounds silly but I was a seriously heavy bleeder for 8-9 days and I quit wheat and dairy and am lucky to get it for 4-5 days now, not a solution obviously but may help stop it long enough to investigate what's going on
Obviously I'm not a doctor but this is my experience. I have always had heavy periods and at times very irregular. I ended up bleeding for about 18 weeks over Christmas last year. Same issues with Pap smear. However when I saw the gynaecologist he was happy to insert the mirina and do the Pap smear while I was still bleeding.. (gross I know) after a few weeks of cramps and more bleeding it stopped and I haven't had a period since march... amazing! (Also gynae diagnosed we with adenomyosis)
This happened to me and isn't very unusual. Go and see a gyno- it doesn't matter that you are bleeding. They will likely book you in for a d&c where they scrape the inside of your uterus and insert the mirena. They will test the tissue to see if there is an issue and treat from there.
In the meantime ask your GP is primolut is an option for you - it's progesterone and will temporarily stop your bleeding so you can do Pap smear and have a break from bleeding. It is often enough also used to reset cycles. It's the same hormone that's in mirena.
I had to get a Pap smear (among other tests) to find the cause to my bleeding. They knew I'd be bleeding and were prepared for it. It's gross but it had to be done. Turned out one of my ovaries was completely destroyed by a tumour (benign) and had surgery to remove it.
I had a problem where I was only having 10-14 day cycles. Yes, over a year of bleeding every 2 weeks... it was like one week on, one week off. I had every test under the sun done as I was only 28 yrs old at the time but there was no issues found. I was concerned about early menopause but they have a test for that and it wasn't the issue. I was considering the mirena to help with the bleeding (on my GPS advice) however when I spoke to the gynaecologist she talked me out of it. She looked at me and could see some tissue popping out where it shouldn't have been which would have been causing the bleeding. She recommended I avoid anything that would mess with my hormones and try to take it easy, it's very common and would get better on its own.
I was under a lot of stress at the time, I left a violent man and was trying to get my life together/recovering from PTSD from it.
It actually got better as soon as I got a job and wasn't worrying about money anymore. Cutting out the stress in my life helped a lot. It impacts your body so much!
Are you under a lot of stress at the moment? Is there anything you can do to make your life less stressful until you can see a gynaecologist. Book in an appointment with an actual gynecocolist, not your GP, you need a specialist, there might be a waiting list so book it and they might be able to call if there is a cancellation... eventually you'll get an appointment at the right time! xx