WOMENS-HEALTH Messages for February, 2001: Re: ammenorhea

Re: ammenorhea

From: Patti Tessler, Family Nurse Practitioner (anonymous@obgyn.net)
Tue, 27 Feb 2001 09:12:14 -0600 (CST)

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At Sat, 24 Feb 2001, Amy wrote: >
>My questions:
>1. Is there any natural approaches to drugs to solve ammenorhea caused
>by the pill?

The pill is not thought to cause amenorrhea. See below for more information. Finding the cause of amenorrhea would be the first step in choosing a treatment approach.

>2. What is the usual time-frame for people to get their normal cycle
>back?

50% of women conceive within 3 months when stopping the pill and not using any other form of pregnancy prevention. A certain percentage won't get pregnant after a year. That percentage is no higher than in women who have never used the pill. In other words, a certain number of women have amenorrhea each year, whether on the pill, just off the pill, or never on the pill.

>3. What exactly is happening from The Pill withdrawal to place my body
>in a state of ammenorhea?

At this point in time, there is no known cause-and-effect relationship between stopping the pill and amenorrhea.

>History:
>I haven't had my period since when I got off of the pill 6 months
>ago.I've been given medroxyprogesterone. I got my period once and
>haven't gotten it since. The doctor prescribed 3 more months of this
>drug (10 each month to induce a period).

That medication will give you some withdrawal bleeding, but what you see is not a period. The medication does not lead to a normal cycle, with ovulation followed by menstruation. In essence, it "puts on a show" of bleeding. The medication can be useful to help rule out certain causes of amenorrhea and also to help prevent overgrowth of the uterine lining.

>I'm hesitant to get on this drug
>again because it's hormones (The Pill) which got me in this mess to
>begin with.

Again, the latest thinking is that the pill does *not* cause amenorrhea (see Speroff's Clinical Gynecologic Endocrinology and Infertility for more info, if desired). You and your health care provider may try looking at other causes for your missing periods, as the pill is probably a red herring. After six months, it seems wise to do so.

>I'm 24 and was on the pill from 1997-2000. I'm 5'6', 120,
>eat well and exercise. I was very regular before I got on the pill.

That's reassuring. Good luck.

--
Patti Tessler, BSN, MSN, RN, CS
Family Nurse Practitioner

I'm sorry that I can not respond to private emails.
All private emails received will be ignored.
I regret that the recent increase in volume precludes a polite redirection.

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