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Helen shares her experience of having heavy periods; how they affect her life and how she found a treatment option that works for her.
I hate having periods.
I saw a tweet a while back that said ‘Periods are a great example of meetings that could have been emails’ and, quite honestly, I couldn’t agree more. I know not everyone feels this way. For some, their period is a nice reminder that their body is going about it’s business as it should, or a welcome confirmation that they’re not pregnant (been there!). But for me they are a massive pain, in many ways!
I haven’t always been so bothered about periods. When I was younger, I didn’t really think much about them other than hoping they’d provide a good excuse to avoid the dreaded school swimming lessons. And when I was using the contraceptive pill, I often took back-to-back packs so I didn’t even have one (yes, you can do that, and yes, it is safe!). It’s fair to say they didn’t bother me. I was lucky that I didn’t get cramps or pain; at worst, they were a mild inconvenience.
My dislike of my periods started in my early 30s when I stopped using hormonal contraception and switched to the copper coil. I LOVE my coil. Having it fitted wasn’t fun and I dread having to have it removed/changed, but for me that’s outweighed by the knowledge that it’s almost 100% effective at preventing pregnancy.
I don’t, however, like my periods now I’m not longer using hormones as they have become really heavy. I can’t say if it’s the coil making them heavier or if this is just what they are like now – our bodies do change with time.
But for at least two days each month I have to seriously consider if leaving the house is worth it.
I’ve also started getting cramps, back pain, bloating and, in the spirit of honesty, increased wind!
For two years, I was just dealing with it. I accepted that I would bleed through underwear and trousers, sometimes having to change them 3-4 times in a day. I put up with not getting a proper night of sleep because I was so worried about bleeding through the three pads that I had carefully crafted into one super-pad to avoid having to do another load of sheets in the morning.
I cancelled plans if they coincided with the dreaded day two of my period.
I rarely left the house for more than an hour at time. When I did go out, I was constantly paranoid about bleeding through my clothes and it showing or, worse, standing up and seeing a stain left on the seat behind me.
Things changed when I happened to mention my heavy periods to a colleague who is a sexual health nurse. She said that my periods shouldn’t be affecting my day-to-day life, and that it might be possible to get medication to help. She also suggested doing an STI test as a first step, just to rule out that as a possible cause, so I did.
Two weeks later, I had an appointment with a nurse via my GP to talk about what was going on. She did an examination, ran some tests, and talked through my symptoms. There were no signs that my heavy periods were more than just that – very heavy bleeding – so she prescribed me tranexamic acid and asked me to keep track of my cycle and see if things got better.
They did. Tranexamic acid is a medicine that controls bleeding. It helps your blood to clot and is often used for nosebleeds and heavy periods. It’s only meant to be used for a few days at a time and, like all medicines, might not be suitable for everyone. But for me it’s made a huge difference. I usually take it for the two-three days that I know my periods will be heavy and it massively reduces the bleeding. I can sleep, I can go out and do normal things, and my washing machine isn’t running 24/7! It hasn’t got rid of the cramps and other unfortunate period side effects, but it’s given me back freedom to do what I want during my period and has greatly reduced my anxiety about bleeding through clothes.
I feel fortunate that I mentioned my situation to my colleague, and that she was forward in giving me advice. It was a great reminder that people should talk about things – even difficult or embarrassing things – to connect with others going through the same, and to identify when something isn’t as it should be. I also feel fortunate that I was able to speak to someone at my GP who understood the impact of heavy periods and was prepared to investigate rather than dismissing my symptoms.
So, whilst I still don’t like my periods (and probably never will!), I’m thankful I can manage them much better now.
Do you have heavy periods?
If your period is so heavy it’s disrupting your daily life, it’s worth talking about.
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