irregular cycle

[~TT40~]

Hi all!
I've been starting to thnk about this alot the last month or so and figured what better way to start than post it on here..
Basically I stopped taking the contraception pill in May 07, which is about 19 months ago, and i'm still not regular...(I had been on the pill for about 8 or 9 years with maybe a year gap in the middle), my cycle has been up to day 41 averages about 35-40 and i've had maybe 2 cycles at 28 days that whole time, the last one which was at day 28 was the most pain I have ever experienced in my life (prob my uterus contracting...things to look forward to in childbirth =P ) the bleeds are all the same consistancy, i guess the only differecne is it is random when it comes and random ones will really knock me out but others i wont even notice...
Is this normal? like does the fact its irregular really matter?
I was hoping to chat to my dr about this when i got my papsmear last mth, but my regular female dr (who i have been seeing all my life) is away sick with rumous of cancer, so no one knows when she is coming back if she is at all, and the nurse who did my papsmear said she doesn't do pelvic exams or anything and that was that...so another dilema is finding another female dr i can chat to..
other thing is basically not that we are TTC its just that we are not doing anything to stop it...and we DTD alot (hehe) so the fact nothing has 'accidently' happened yet makes me a little concerned.
should i be concerned?
oh an i am currently day 35 with a BFN...a few times in the last week i'm like...oh yea im going to get my period tomorrow i can feel it...and nothing!
I think I will deff. go get myself checked out properly after the wedding, when we will be actually TTC, but should i just keep on going like I have?
Thanks for any advice or comments or anything people!!!

[AliB]

Hi Teirae

Sorry to hear about your worries and painful periods.

I understand what you're going through. After using the 'withdrawal method' for 12 years with 2 partners and no accidental pregnancies, I started to wonder what was going on too! I had all sorts of issues with varying cycles over the years, I even went for 3 months one time. Then I had 2 years where it was 28 days like clockwork, WTF?! That suddenly stopped and it went haywire again - 29 days, 45 days, you name it. Sometimes terrible pain during periods, sometimes during ovulation, sometimes nothing at all. Finally I looked into it at the age of 33 and discovered PCOS, endometriosis, borderline insulin resistance, and hormonal imbalances. So! It's worth investigating before you start TCC!

Having said all that, I have heard of people who've taken years to get over the pill - but more often than not, the issue is that the pill is masking an underlying issue.

So, I would recommend seeing a GP and getting a referral to a good gyno. They will send you for an ultrasound and blood tests and take it from there.

It's really scary to think there might be a problem - I remember when I was 27 and was told that I might have PCOS, I was SO relieved when my period came again so I just decided to forget about it. But in hindsight I wish I'd started on my journey of getting well sooner rather than later. Amongst other things, I was prescribed Metformin which regularised my periods and helped me lose 8kg in 4 months!

HTH and good luck to you. xo

[Georgi]

You are describing my menstrual cycles to a tea! I can so relate to feeling like AF is coming, to no avail. It has now been 8weeks since my last period (I'm definately not pregnant). Over the years I have had very irregular cycles & as you describe, different each month. Some months I get bad symptoms, other months nothing at all. I'm pretty sure that goes hand in hand with irregular cycles.

I have never been on the pill, so my situation is a bit different I guess. I did have a few years where my cycles were quite regular & I was able to easily conceive (between the ages of 27 until recent, I'm 33 now).

Have you ever charted? Maybe join Fertility Friend & do a few cycles of checking your cervical position & mucus, plus taking your temps. I did this for months before we were actively TTC & found it amazing to learn about my cycles. It will give you a really good insight as to what goes on. You may find that you just haven't been DTD at O time.

It certainly would be worth seeing a GP & get some blood tests done to check out your hormones, particularly if you would like to conceive in the near future.