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View Full Version : Need a reality check (period stuff)



fleurdelis
08-02-17, 21:48
Hi all! I'm struggling with whether or not to keep pursuing a medical issue, so I'm hoping for some advice on what a non-hypochondriac would do in this situation. It's a bit of a long story, though, so bear with me.

About a year and a half ago I took emergency contraception, and my menstrual cycle has been all out of whack ever since. I now always have three to four days of spotting immediately before my period starts and, occasionally, spotting at other points in my cycle (possibly sometimes coinciding with ovulation?). I never used to experience these things, so I mentioned it to my GP. I'd had a recent clean pap smear, but she tested my thyroid--normal. At that point she said I could go on birth control if the spotting bothered me. GYN said basically the same thing, so at the time I let the matter drop; I didn't like the spotting, but I figured that since it seemed to have been caused by the Plan B, it couldn't be anything too serious.

Lately, though, I have gotten it into my head that maybe I have uterine cancer of some time. This is really unlikely (for one thing, I'm only 28 and have no family history), but I'm wondering whether I should keep pushing the doctor for answers. Other than pretty minor cramps, I don't have any symptoms (long periods, heavy periods, etc.) beyond spotting, so it's not in and of itself anything I can't put up with...if I could just get the cancer thing out of my head :wacko: Thoughts on whether this is something a "normal" person would keep pursuing? Alternatively, has anyone had long-term effects from taking EC? One reason I'm kind of concerned is that my doctor didn't seem to think the spotting could be related to that months and years later--but the change dates exactly to when I took it, and I had very heavy spotting soon after taking it...

Chris 614
09-02-17, 02:15
A "normal" person would not pursue this. She would trust what the doctor said and move on. If your doctor thought you might have cancer she would pursue it. But you have no symptoms...nothing to pursue.

Mommyof2boys
09-02-17, 04:59
Have you been checked for cysts? I had a few after I had my second child, never had them before, my periods were insane and i had cramping, sometimes extremely severe, even between periods. I never did anything to control it, didn't take the BC they prescribed me. I have no idea if I still have them or not, but the cramping is gone. If you tell your obgyn that you are cramping, they will most likely do a sonogram to check.
If you have had a recent PAP then I wouldn't worry about cancer. I had abnormal cells which were potentially cancerous show up on one of mine a few years ago, and they ordered a biopsy. After the biopsy came back negative i never had another bad PAP again. PAPs are pretty sensitive, they pick up on even the most minute discrepancies.

GlassPinata
09-02-17, 06:41
About ten years ago, I had endometrial polyps, and I would spot for 3-4 days before my period (sometimes more).
When i began spotting mid-period, I was like, "game over". And i demanded they figure out what was wrong.
Like I said, it was endometrial polyps. They did a D&C and removed them and biopsied them. They were benign.
I do not think you are out of line to push for answers.
Premenstrual spotting can be normal, but mid-cycle spotting never is.
The answer may be and probably is some benign cause, but it is NOT normal to spot mid-cycle. There is a reason this is happening.
Find out why.
Best wishes.