Irregular AF and cramping

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Irregular AF and cramping
3
Mon, 08-25-2003 - 8:27pm
Can anyone shed some light on this? This cycle has been very irregular. I'm 39 days past my last AF. I had about 3 weeks of spotting in between. I'm not too concerned about it because I quit birth control in May and it could easily be my body adjusting. The last time I tested, I was not pregnant (Thursday).

During the last week, I have been experiencing cramping and pains in my abdomen. Some feel no different than AF cramps only to one side or another rather than centered. I also have throbbing pains on either side.

I had a checkup with my Gyn today who said I was just getting used to the lack of birth control. Could the pains and cramping be caused by the same thing? I don't want to blow money on a pregnancy test. The DR didn't test me, but don't you think he'd know something was up if I were pregnant? Plus I have no other signs. So, what could be causing my pains?

Sharon

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 07-29-2003
Tue, 08-26-2003 - 12:18pm
I wonder if during your switch to new birth control pills you may have ovulated. If you did then this pain you speak of could be an ovarian cyst. However your OBGYN should have been able to feel the ovaries. If she did feel them did you have pain when she did check them? This isn't always easy to feel. I went in to have my annual with pain on my lower right side, when she felt that ovary it hurt, however about 4 days later I was in the emergency room (only because they didn't know at the urgent care place if it was apedicitis and they didn't want my appendix to burst because that is serious). So I had a 6cm cyst on my right ovary and it had ruptured. It was very painful and it took about a week and a half for it to totally heal. Then on the next cycle my left ovary made a cyst, but it din't rupture.

However, if you are on BC pills then you aren't ovulating. As a matter of fact my Dr. tried to put me on them to stop ovulation which is where ovarian cysts start.

Since you switched pills you may have ovulated. Just my thoughts. Our bodies are tricky things aren't they?

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tue, 08-26-2003 - 2:39pm
You misunderstand. I didn't switch pills, I quit entirely. I am not on any birth control at all right now and haven't been for three months. My first two cycles after quitting were perfectly normal and regular. It's the third cycle that threw me for a loop. I thought I might have been pregnant, but I am not. Yet my period has not yet returned despite the cramping and sharp pains.

They are not bad today. There's only a slight lingering of achiness. When my Gyn pushed on my stomach, it did ache a bit, but it wasn't horrible. He didn't seem concerned. But is it normal to have cramps but no period?

ANother question, if I didn't ovulate last month, which could cause the absense of a normal period, when can I expect my period to return and will I ovulate before that happens?

Sharon

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-14-2003
Tue, 08-26-2003 - 6:17pm
Welcome Sharon!

This is a tricky one. It does sound like you had/have a cyst. Or, maybe it was just ovulation pains. Either would explain the throbbing. A cyst can causing your period to go haywire. The ovaries are what control the estrogen and progesterone released into our body. When they are out of whack, so is everything else!

Question, were you regular before you went on the pill? Are bodies tend to revert back to the way they were.

Are you tracking your fertility signs? Meaning, basal body temperature, cervical fluid or cervical position? This would help you determine when you ovulate. Typically, the time between ovulation and menses is a set number of days. Did you have any extreme stress that would cause a delay in ovulation?

I know, it's like a big puzzle! Keep in touch with your doctor. If you're not getting the response you want from him, try another doctor. Get one that wants to figure out what the problem is!

Take care,

Kristin


Edited 8/26/2003 6:55:22 PM ET by cl-cinderkitty77

 


 


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