Brown Spotting After Endometriosis Diagnosis: Causes & What to Do

Question
I have a history of painful periods that make me immobile. I have many symptoms of endo, however, I had a diagnostic laparscopy which came back negative. After being on Anaprox and Ortho Tri-Cyclen lo for almost six years and having regular periods, I have had brown spotting for the past two months. LAst month, there was only a small amount of brown spotting. This month, I have had 10 days in a row of brown spotting. It's light brown when I wipe and I have ruined several pairs of underwear as I have spots. There is also a small odor, but no discharge. I took a pregnancy test and it was negative. Sometimes with the spotting I have had slight abdominal cramps and rare backaches. (DR.'s/ nurses have mentioned that ortho-lo causes spotting, but I have been on it for 6 yrs and no problems until now) What is wrong with me?????

Answer
Dear "dnzer53",

The spotting sounds hormonal, along with the cramps and backache. Brown discharge is typically old blood that was not expelled with your period for one reason or another.

Sometimes if you have been on a certain dosage of BCP for a long while, your body becomes accustomed to it and you may need a dosage adjustment. I was on TriPhasil for MANY years. I never had any issues until years down the road. It's kind of a slippery slope. By the time I really got sick of dealing with it, the doc tried switching me to some others - neither of which made it immediately better and I was impatient.  :-)  I ended up going back on the Triphasil and was fine for awhile. Every now and again I'd have the spotting and I just decided to deal with it rather than go through the switching hassle. So... I feel your pain, but it's really up to you. It may be a simple dosage switch for you and your symptoms can be alleviated. Otherwise, you can give it a bit longer and see if it dissipates with the next few cycles.

I hope this has helped you and answered your question. I apologize for the delay in the answer - I was on a rare vacation for the 4th and for some reason this system didn't schedule it as it should have.

Brenda