When you're a young woman and learning about your period, you seldom hear about irregular menstrual cycles and what those cycles mean. You know that being a few days late can be a sign that you're pregnant but not what it means when you have cycles that come every few months.
As we age, we learn that irregular menstrual cycles can be quite common. You don’t have to have a perfect 28-day cycle. As long your period starts every 21 to 35 days, you have a healthy cycle. It can even vary a little month to month (by more than eight days at a time).
Your actual bleeding should last between two and seven days, and you don’t want to lose more than 80 mL of menstrual fluid over all the days. A regular tampon holds 5 mL so you can fill 16 tampons and still be in the norm. More than that is considered a heavy period.
Irregular Periods or No Period
It’s okay to miss the occasional month, but if your period doesn’t match these criteria, or does not come at all, then something might be up.
The first step is to see your doctor so they can rule out pregnancy, perimenopause or medical causes such as thyroid disease and celiac disease. Your doctor will then test your hormones and hopefully be able to offer you a diagnosis. Two of the most common explanations for irregular periods are: 1) polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), and 2) hypothalamic amenorrhea.
PCOS
Polycystic ovarian syndrome is a condition in which the ovaries make too much testosterone compared to estrogen and progesterone. It can cause irregular periods, acne and facial hair (hirsutism). PCOS affects up to 1 in 10 women
.
Naturopathic Treatment: PCOS is made worse by high blood sugar and insulin, so one of the best treatments is to stop eating sugary foods such as dessert, fruit juice and sweetened yogurt. The nutritional supplements magnesium, berberine and inositol can help to regulate blood sugar and may relieve symptoms of PCOS.
Functional Hypothalamic Amenorrhea (FHA)
Amenorrhea is the Latin word for lack of periods. Hypothalamic amenorrhea simply means lack of periods because of your hypothalamus (your brain’s hormone command center). It’s not that anything is wrong with your hypothalamus, exactly. It has simply stopped producing a hormone required for menstruation (GnRH). This can happen in response to things like emotional stress, or not eating enough.
Naturopathic Treatment:
Convince your hypothalamus that all is well and it’s okay to have periods again. To do that, you might need to reduce stress and/or gain some body fat. The herbal medicine ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) helps to regulate the body’s stress response, and so can be helpful for hypothalamic amenorrhea.
Other Causes and Treatments
Menopause or Perimenopause: Your lack of periods could be the beginning of menopause. If you are younger than 40, then your lack of periods is probably not menopause. Your doctor can easily rule out menopause with a blood test for follicle stimulating hormone [FSH].
Stress or Illness: Emotional or physical stress, illness, trauma, or surgery are all common reasons to miss a period or two. It happens when your hypothalamus, which is the command center of your hormones, makes the executive decision to temporarily suppress reporduction and half your period.
Undereating: Undereating can stop periods - even if you are a healthy body weight. Too few calories can trigger a starvation response in your hypothalamus that disrupts luteinizing hormone and shuts down ovulation. Too few carbs can do the same thing.
Need help figuring out the cause of your irregular periods? Schedule a free 1:1 health strategy session with me to get started! I offer full hormone lab testing to get you on the path to regular periods!
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