First period after 3 months on the pill (im scared)

[Sheri26]

Hi.

I have been on the pill contant since i had my lap done 2.5 months ago, my doctor wants me to have a period and to stop taking the 21 day pill have a break, period, then start again. She has warned me it could be painful as given me co-dydamol, Mefenamic acid and omeprazole (i need that to prtect my stomach),

Im scared its going to be really bad, some people on here or (most) have really suffered with it being painful, how painful or has some people just had normal period ????

Thanks xx

[missee]

hey...wen i had my lap i had a ovary and fellopian removed and my period after that was very painful..i struggled to walk ..but dont for get i had things removed....i got told becos your first cycle after can clear out old blood bits of tissue from your lap it tends to be more painful...just brace your self for it .its gonna come wether you want it or not.....ive learnt to always expect the worse with endo...xxxx

[Impatient]

The old blood and tissue will probably be rather a dark brown colour than fresher red blood, so don't be too surprised at the strange colour that is normal. That's why endo cysts are called chocolate cysts, as old blood loses it's redness and rusts to dark brown.

If you've not seen that before it can be a bit of a shocker. Pain wise it's not likely to be much more than a regular painful endo period, only it could last longer because the flow is not fresh lining it doesn't run out so quickly. Mine post op 1st bleed went on for about 2 weeks, but I was also on zoladex, so some of that bleeding was operation, and period and flare from the drug.

Start taking the pain relief as soon as you feel the symptoms of the period beginning, whether that's from PMS or Anger or slight aches, just start the painrelief then and keep on top of it, don't let it run out before topping up with the next dose.

start with your regular pain meds the lowest you normally take -e.g. parcetamol or ibuprofen, then if they are not enough start on the stronger ones for a few days as required before switching back to the less powerful ones as the period starts to ease off.

My post op bleed wasn't too painful, given that I'd had a laparotomy and was in such severe pain before surgery, after the op was a very different type of pain more from the operation than period cramps really, but either way much less painful that what I had been feeling all the tie before the op.

We're all a bit different in how we react, but it isn't something to be scared about, it won't be likely to be excrutiatingly painful if you have the meds inside you, and infact you might find that the op has made periods actually a lot less painful than they had been previously.

We all hate pain, you're not alone in that respect, it's not a nice thought that shortly you know you are going to be really uncomfy, but you can prepare and make sure you have enough meds on hand, You might find using tampons still too painful, in which case stick with sanitary towels for this one, also because the blood is old and can be smudgey and rather thick in consistancy, it's not that easily absorbed by a tampon anyway. Towels are probably the better way to go until you are sure with what you are dealing with or it really gets going in to bleeding fresh blood.

[cupcakegirl]

When you delay your period using the pill, the blood doesn't sit there and build up (luckily) - that's what I'd always thought, but my old pelvic pain specialist told me that it gets broken down and reabsorbed when no pregnancy occurs. I'm pretty sure that's how she explained it, but either way, it doesn't build up like you might think.

I've spent many years tricycling the pill as I need to avoid periods as much as possible, they are hell - however, it's not like having 3 periods at once, and usually they're not as bad as they are without the pill.

The first period after a lap can be more painful because there's swelling, bruising, possibly scar tissue and so on. Most of this should be healed for you by now - you may find its slightly more painful, but if theyve removed all the endo it will probably be less painful than before the op. I don't think you need to worry about it being much worse than usual as that's unlikely.

It's not a good idea to use the pill to put off periods indefinitely, but running three packs together between each break is helpful as it reduces the bleeding and therefore should minimise endo recurrence and spread. That's not always the case, but in lots of cases it can extend the efficacy of your surgery for a long time, compared to having a period every month. Don't worry that you'll end up having 3 periods in one, as that won't be the case!

x

[Sheri26]

Thank you x