QuestionI am 10 days late. My last period started on May 25th, and I have a 35 day cylce, so I should have started on June 30th. I have taken 3 hpt, all negative results. My husband and I have been very careful and always use a condom, we already have 3 children, and with each one, I new right away with a positive hpt. I am very concerned because I had my wisdom teeth removedon June 12th and was put asleep for that, then I was placed on pain killers for several days after. I take bactrim and spirnolactone for acne. I know spirnolactone can cause male babies to have small reprod. organs, so I stopped taking it on July 1st when I didn't start. I also have been under a tremendous amount of stess, wisdom teeth, laptop and back-up drive were stolen, dog had to have a very expensive spine surgery, and I have 3 children. My test were taken on July 4th, 6th, and 8th. I can't get into see my ob/gyn for some time. Any advice or information would be very appreciated.
AnswerDear Nicki,
Well, I would actually have a few questions...
1st - you didn't mention your age. Sometimes this is a touchy subject but it may play a part in your delayed period. Perimenopause symptoms can begin as early as your late 30s. Many times the very first symptom is lengthening of your cycles and/or skipped periods. For me, this began at about age 40. And it may have actually began before but I was on BCPs before that, so I wouldn't know.
Perimenopause is the time leading up to menopause when you start to notice menopause-related changes--plus the year after menopause. Perimenopause is what some people call "being in menopause" or "going through menopause." But menopause itself is only one day--the day you haven't had a period for 12 months in a row. During perimenopause, your ovaries start to shut down, making less of certain hormones (estrogen and progesterone), and you begin to lose the ability to become pregnant. Women normally go through perimenopause in their 40s to early 50s, but some women start perimenopause earlier, even in their 30s. When perimenopause starts, and how long it lasts varies from woman to woman. You will likely notice menopause-related symptoms, such as changes in periods.
Your only symptom may be your period stopping, but you may have other symptoms, too. Menopause-related symptoms you might have during perimenopause include:
-Changes in pattern of periods (can be shorter or longer, lighter or heavier, more or less time between periods)
-Hot flashes (sudden rush of heat in upper body)
-Night sweats (hot flashes that happen while you sleep), often followed by a chill
-Trouble sleeping through the night (with or without night sweats)
-Vaginal dryness
-Mood changes, feeling crabby (probably because of lack of sleep)
-Trouble focusing, feeling mixed-up or confused
-Hair loss or thinning on your head, more hair growth on your face
It sounds like you've had quite a bit of stress recently and stress can definitely affect our cycles as well. I assume you have regular 35 day cycles and don't ever vary much for you to be this concerned. You took the last two tests late enough after a missed period that they should have picked up the hCG if you were pregnant - especially if you used concentrated 1st morning urine. If you want to be absolutely sure, you can make a quick trip into your doctor's office and request a quantitative blood pregnancy test (serum beta hCG). That test gives an actual amount of hCG in the bloodstream rather than just a positive/negative result. Any amount of 25 mIU/ml or more would be considered positive for pregnancy.
I hope this information has helped you and answered your question. I wish you well.
Brenda
