Question:
what's the deal with hormones? (for perimenopausal ladies)

ok ladies...i am 42 years old and had my surgery back in may...before surgery i had to go on birth control pills because my hormones were so out of whack with my mood swings that i thought i was going to either kill someone or have a nervous breakdown...lol they had been working great with my moods and even my periods for about 6 months (went on them in jan) but now all of a sudden i get my period when i still had another week and a half on my pills! it's been very heavy and i've had it for a week so far....i'm also having very bad period cramps which i had not gotten in ages! does this have anything to do with losing weight? ( i've dropped about 50lbs so far) does one thing have to do with another? any input would be greatly apprectiated..thanks...    — lizzie42 (posted on July 29, 2007)

July 29, 2007
Liz, estrogen is stored in fat, as you lose fat the estrogen is released to your circulatory system-viola! menses- mood swings etc. While I was perimenopausal before surgery (almost 16 mo ago) I haven't had a period since but for the first 8-10 mos I was an emothional basket case due to all the free floating hormones- I actually thought I might need to see a shrink but finally things evened out- now I am down where I want to be weight wise (which is lower than the doc thought I would be) so any occassional mood swings are not due to free floating extra female hormones. Hope this helps- Donna 286/134
   — dabby

July 29, 2007
Liz, you are realeasing estrogen with the fat loss, as estrogen is stored in the fat. There is not much you can do about it. I was on birth control pills, and prior to surgery only had periods for about 1 day per month. After surgery, I had heavy periods every other week for almost the first 6 months. Make sure you are taking your vitamins and having your doc keep track of your iron levels. Hang in there! You are doing awesome! Shelly
   — scharlier

July 29, 2007
I read your question and boy did it hit home. One week ago I started my period as normal and then bam the bottom fell out. I was wearing two pads which is the norm for me since I had my kids (now 22 and 19) and when I got up to go to the bathroom the napkins were saturated and running down my legs. Now I know this is graphic but it was horrible and scarry. I called my wls doctor and he said it was nthing to do with my surgery or upcoming gallbladder surgery and suggested I get to my gyno real fast. I did and he gave me some medicine to slow me down which has helped alot. I take my last two tonight and the doc said I might start again and if I do I might have to have a dnc to keep me from getting too anemic. I heard it was hormones too and my doc is going to do all kinds of test in s few weeks. I have lost 107 pounds in four and half months or a little bit over. I hope to have a normal period but time will tell. At least this time I will know what I am going through. My prayers are with you and hope that you see your doc soon.
   — TrevaDeck150

July 29, 2007
Hi Liz, thanks for writing. You put a lot of information in your question and that is great. I would say yes that they are related, your period and harmones and weight loss. Many obese women have light periods or don't have the full cycle while they are obese, and as you lose weight, your body has to adjust to that, and you can have the most miserable cycles of your life until it adjusts. I would call or visit your gyn and get some advice, but honestly, as horrible as this can be, it might be good for your body to work itself out for several months. When we get in the way of the body adjusting, I just think that we confuse our bodies more. I would advise to first talk with your gyn doctor and get their advice, but if they say this can be a normal thing, then give it another 6 months to work itself out, then re visit the issue again with your gyn. It sounds like a long time, but if your body adjusts and works itself out, then you will be fine, if it doesn't, you have at least given yourself time to let your body adjust. Take care. Patricia P.
   — Patricia P

July 31, 2007
I have endometrosis and have also had the same kinds of periods you described and went to my dr......1st they tried me with the pill the one where you have your period every 3 months...When that didn't work (I had my period in the 2nd month for 3 weeks) they gave me a pill to help me stop bleeding and said that since we can't rely on my stomach to digest the amount of estrogen out of the pill before it goes through I had to do it a different way....I am now on the birth control patch and it seems to be helping and doing what it is supposed to do......(so far....... fingers crossed) I hope this helps you out......if you have any other questions please feel free to let me know.... Shawna
   — AngelBaby