Common reasons for missed or late periods
- You might be pregnant. If you think this could be the case, you can take a home pregnancy test or see your doctor to check.
- However, several other factors can cause late or even missed periods, for example medication, stress, diet, or exercise.
- If your period has just started, it is perfectly normal to have irregular menstrual cycles. Talk to your doctor if you are experiencing pain or have concerns.
- Young women, whose cycles are not yet so well established, often have hormonal fluctuations that can cause late or even missed periods.
The time from the first sign of blood to the last is usually in the 3-to-5-day range. It’s common for cycles to be a little irregular for a few years after your first period. This means your periods may not always come at the same time every cycle, and they may be a bit different from one month to the next. Don’t worry, as you progress through adolescence, your cycles will become more regular and start to reflect adult cycle ranges, but they may still be a bit variable.
Yes, it’s possible. Why?
- Some months, your menstrual cycle may last for more or fewer days than the previous month.
- Or your cycle may start earlier or later than before.
If you usually have a regular cycle, a change in your cycle could indicate a medical condition. In case of any concerns, please talk to your doctor to get individual medical advice.
Well, if you have bleeding that lasts longer than 7 days per period or is so heavy that you have to change your pad or tampon nearly every hour, you need to talk to your doctor.
There is a stubborn myth that your monthly period is a form of body "cleansing" that washes germs or dead cells out of your uterus. But the truth is: bleeding every month is of no benefit from a medical viewpoint. It does not therefore do any harm if your period is shorter or lighter because of hormonal contraception.
From a historical perspective, women have never had as many periods as they do now: up to 450 in a lifetime! In the past, by contrast, there were many more times when women did not have periods because of more frequent pregnancies with extensive periods of breastfeeding. This resulted in only about 150 menstruations during your Grandma’s lifespan.
Many women and girls suffer from irregular bleedings during their monthly menstrual cycles.
Your period is irregular if:
- it comes more frequently than 21 days,
- you go 35 days or more between period.
Sometimes irregular periods can be caused by:
- some medicines,
- exercising too much,
- too low body weight,
- too high body weight,
- hormonal imbalances can also cause irregular periods, e.g. thyroid hormone level abnormalities.
Please check with your doctor, who may find out the underlying reason and may be able to help you. If you also need a contraceptive, they may prescribe a hormonal one which prevents you from unintended pregnancies and may reduce your irregular bleedings.
For irregular periods there usually is no immediate reason to consult your doctor. But if you are concerned, please do so. If you need contraception your doctor can help you with that by prescribing you hormonal contraceptives which do not only reliably prevent unintended pregnancies but can also stabilize your menstrual cycle so that you can better plan for your periods.
There is a huge variety of symptoms of an estrogen or progesterone imbalance:
- heavy or irregular periods
- thinning hair or hair loss
- weight gain or trouble losing weight
- night sweats
- and many more.
A hormonal imbalance means that women or girls have too much or too little of a certain hormone (like estrogen and progesterone).
Estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, thyroxin, insulin and cortisol levels can be detected in the blood through blood tests. Please talk to your doctor for individual medical advice.
A hormonal imbalance means that women or girls have too much or too little of a certain hormone (like estrogen and progesterone). Hormonal imbalances can be caused by:
- hormonal therapy,
- hormone releasing tumors,
- stress,
- injury,
- or traumas.
Estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, thyroxin, insulin and cortisol levels can be detected in the blood through blood tests. Please talk to your doctor for individual medical advice.
Irregular period is where the length of the menstrual cycle keeps changing. Hormonal imbalance may be the reason. Young women whose cycles are not yet so well established, often have hormonal fluctuations that can cause irregular periods.
Lighter periods than usual do not usually cause concern. People often find their menstrual flow varies from month-to-month, and some months are naturally lighter than others. The following factors can cause periods to be lighter than usual:
- a lack of ovulation,
- being underweight,
- stress,
- pregnancy,
- or a medical condition.
Please talk to your doctor to get individual medical advice. They can also explain how contraception methods can reduce your period pain.
You are not alone! Cycle-related symptoms are experienced by about eight out of ten women at some stage during their fertile lives. If you complain about disturbances such as excessive cravings, you may experience symptoms that differ from those your sister or your best friend is suffering from. Even if your symptoms are identical to someone else‘s, you may feel them more or less intensely. If you suffer from any of these symptoms on a regular basis, always a few days before your period sets in, talk to your doctor.
Not every woman or girl experiences period pain. For some, menstruation is entirely painless and problem-free. Be happy if you are one of them!
Yes, PMS (premenstrual syndrome) is not a myth! 8 out of 10 women do experience some discomfort shortly before their monthly period sets in. These symptoms are caused by the hormonal changes of the cycle and for many women they are so severe that they impact on their daily lives – both in personal and working aspects.
What you should know:
Most common premenstrual symptoms are divided into two groups:
- Affective: depressive mood, angry outbursts, irritability, anxiety, confusion, social withdrawal
- Somatic: breast tenderness, abdominal bloating, headache, swelling of extremities
Medical researchers are still working on identifying the exact cause of these symptoms, but it is certain that they are linked to the hormonal fluctuations during the menstrual cycle. Some combined contraceptive pills are proven to reduce these symptoms. Please talk to your doctor in case you are heavily suffering from these symptoms.
For many, periods are a real misery. Common pains can be:
- abdominal cramps,
- headaches and back pain,
- breast tenderness,
- mood swings or nausea
But you should certainly not suffer severe discomfort in silence. Consult your doctor or healthcare provider so they can investigate possible causes. Ask about ways you can alleviate pain relating to your menstrual cycle.
Some hormonal contraception method such as the pill or the hormonal IUS can make periods lighter and therefore more bearable. This usually also means: less pain and fewer limitations, e.g. in terms of holidays, exercising and sex.
Painful period cramps could be caused by heavy menstrual bleeding, which often affects you to take part in everyday life around your period. Or they could be caused by endometriosis. In this painful condition, the cells or tissue lining the uterus, grow outside the uterus. You should see your doctor who can do a blood test and get your history to help you get better. Some hormonal contraceptives are registered for women or girls with heavy menstrual bleeding who also need contraception.
To reduce period cramps and pain you can try the following things:
- Over-the-counter pain medicine
- Putting a heating pad on your belly or lower back
- Having a hot bath
- Hormonal birth control (like the pill, patch, ring, implant, and hormonal IUS)
- Acupuncture and acupressure
Cramps are a pretty standard part of having your period. But if your period pain is so painful that you can’t take part in everyday life, please talk to your doctor.
Not using contraception during your period is a dangerous game, because it is actually possible for fertilization to occur during this phase of your menstrual cycle! The length of the menstrual cycle varies from woman to woman between 21 and 35 days. Ovulation almost always occurs around two weeks before your period, i.e. between day 7 and 21 of your cycle. Because the life span of sperm is unpredictable, unprotected sex can lead to pregnancy from the first day of your period.
Another thing is some women misinterpret breakthrough bleeding as a period and think they are "safe". If you don't wish to become pregnant, you should always use contraception without interruptions.
Yes - during monthly bleeding the chances of pregnancy are low but not zero. Bleeding itself does not prevent pregnancy, and it does not promote pregnancy, either. In the first several days of monthly bleeding, the chances of pregnancy are lowest. As the days pass, the chances of pregnancy increase, whether or not she is still bleeding. The risk of pregnancy rises until ovulation. The day after ovulation the chances of pregnancy begin to drop steadily. Some fertility awareness methods that depend on cervical secretions advise avoiding unprotected sex during monthly bleeding because cervical secretions cannot be detected during bleeding and there is a small risk of ovulation at this time.
Ovulation happens about 14 days before your period starts. Let’s say your average menstrual cycle is 28 days, you ovulate around day 14, and your most fertile days are days 12, 13 and 14. If your average menstrual cycle is 35 days ovulation happens around day 21 and your most fertile days are days 19, 20 and 21.
Example: cycle length = 28 days (counted from the first day of one period to the first day of the next)
Yes, you can. We have to admit it can be a bit misleading, but yes, you can get pregnant before your first period and here is why: getting pregnant is related to ovulation. Ovulation means that your ovaries release an egg which is ready to be fertilized by male sperm. Your first ovulation occurs around 2 weeks before your first menstruation.
It's unlikely that you'll get pregnant just after your period, although it can happen. Sperm can sometimes survive in the body for up to 5 days after having sex. This means it may be possible to get pregnant soon after your period finishes if you ovulate early, especially if your menstrual cycle is naturally short. Ovulation means that your ovaries release an egg which is ready to be fertilized by male sperm. Your first ovulation occurs around 2 weeks before your first menstruation.
Yes, sperm can survive in your body for up to 5 days whether you are menstruating or not. And the period blood can't flush away sperm. Please always use a contraceptive method to avoid unplanned pregnancies.
Wait a minute - there's no "safe" time of the month when you can have sex without contraception and not risk becoming pregnant. You can also get pregnant:
- if you’ve never had a period before,
- during your first period, or
- after the first time you have sex.
You’re most fertile at the time of ovulation, which usually occurs 12 to 14 days before your next period starts. This is the time of the month when you're most likely to get pregnant.
But there are lots of reasons why it's possible to get pregnant at any time:
- your menstrual cycle is not well established and the cycle length might be changed,
- sperm can sometimes survive in the female body for up to 6 days.
If you don’t want to become pregnant, please always use contraception.
There are four phases in the female cycle: menstruation, the post-menstrual phase, ovulation, and finally the pre-menstrual phase. In the ovulation phase, hormones stimulate the ovary to release a mature egg. During ovulation, the mature egg travels down the fallopian tube from the ovary into the uterus. At any time during this journey, the sperm can fertilize an egg, which could then be implanted in the uterus. If that happens the woman or girl gets pregnant. Read more about the menstrual cycle in our blog post “Ride that cycle! Periods 101”.
