Menstrual Pain And Irregularity

Menstruation is a monthly process that occurs as the female body prepares itself for pregnancy. The female reproductive system forms eggs to make pregnancy possible. When the pregnancy does not happen, the egg along with tissues and blood, leaves the lining of the uterus and comes out of the vagina. The discharging process lasts for about 3-5 days. Menstruation usually starts during puberty and lasts until menopause, within a one-month interval.

The menstrual cycle completely depends upon the hormonal changes that take place inside the female body every month. Ideally, the menstrual cycle is of about 28 days, which may vary, depending upon the hormone secretion. The average age when girls start menstruating is around 12 but these bodily changes are best to be kept range bound between 8-15 years.

Menstrual Pain

Apart from heavy vaginal bleeding that most women suffer from, menstruation also causes various other discomforts. Some women face severely painful periods which are highly dominated by menstrual cramps, throbbing and pain in the lower abdomen. Such painful menstruation is also termed as Dysmenorrhea. Apart from cramping and abdominal pain, other symptoms that women suffer from during the menstrual cycle are mood swings, irritability, headache, fatigue, tenderness in breasts and lower back pain.

Dysmenorrhea is also categorized into primary and secondary, depending upon the cause of period pains. Primary dysmenorrhea is caused due to prostaglandins hormone secretion from the uterus. This hormone causes contractions in the uterus, which block the blood and oxygen supply to the uterus. This causes severe pain and cramps during thse menstrual cycle. Studies also reveal that women who suffer from severe menstrual cramps and likely to have strong uterine contractions at the time of giving birth. These pains usually start a day or two before the beginning of menstruation and may last for two to three days after the start of menstrual cycle.

Secondary dysmenorrhea is not usually found in younger women but starts later in life of a female. The prominent cause of this pain are conditions that affect reproductive organs, like uterine fibroids and endometriosis. These pains are highly discomforting and may even get worse with time. Some studies also reveal that secondary dysmenorrhea is also caused due to pelvic inflammatory diseases which cause the egg to implant outside the wall of the uterus and scare the fallopian tubes. During menstruation, the hormone secretion affects the uterus and the scar tissues, which increases the menstrual bleeding, inflammation and pain.

While you know about the basic dysmenorrhea, it is also critical for you to know the other factors that cause severe pain during menstruation. Menstrual pain is predominantly normal, but it is important to understand the other causes of menstrual pain, before such pain causes serious problems to your body.

1. Adenomyosis is a gynecological condition in which the tissue that usually lines to the inside of the uterus, implants itself outside the wall of the uterus. This causes the uterus to become bruised, causing severe cramps and painful intercourse.

2. Uterine fibroids are one of the most common gynecological problems and every one in three women suffer from this. If you are suffering from uterine fibroids, you are most likely to have severe menstrual cramps. The reason behind such painful cramps is that that uterus contracts forcefully to expel out the blood clots that are formed due to fibroids.

3. Women who have a copper IUD inserted, can also experience painful periods along with heavy menstrual bleeding.

4. When a female child is still a foetus in the mother’s womb, its own uterus starts to develop. In some cases, due to certain structural deformation, the uterus does not form correctly and causes period pain, infertility issues and painful intercourse.

Irregularity in Menstrual Cycle

Menstruation is considered to be irregular when the menstrual cycle does not fall on the due date. In most women, the usual length of the menstrual cycle is 28 days which may extend to even 35 days. A menstrual cycle is considered to be irregular when the cycle occurs more than 35 days apart. 

In medical terms, irregular periods are also called oligomenorrhea. Studies have revealed that primary causes for irregular periods in women are use of contraceptives, hormonal imbalance, indulgence in certain endurance exercises and hormonal changes during menopause. If the menstrual cycle is irregular during the early stages of puberty or during the menopause phase, the problem might not be serious, however, it might be a concern when the menstrual cycle is irregular during the reproductive years. In such cases, you should consult a doctor at the earliest, to avoid any further complications.

Irregular periods are indicative of a serious problem so it is important to investigate the cause for your irregular periods. Understand the below stated causes for irregular periods: 

1. Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS): It is a medical condition in which small cysts begin to develop in the ovaries, which is why the ovaries do not release eggs every month.  

2. Thyroid: Women who are suffering from thyroid disorder also suffer from irregular periods. This is because, thyroid causes the body to release hormones that affect the metabolism. 

3. Cervical or uterine cancer: If a woman is suffering from cervical or uterus cancer, she is likely to experience bleeding between the menstrual cycles and sometimes even after intercourse.

4. Endometriosis: It is a medical condition where cells start to grow outside the lining of the uterus instead on the inside.  Endometrial cells are released every month and come out from the vagina along with menstrual blood. In certain cases when the blood gets stuck around the tissues, it damages the tissues and this causes irregularity in menstrual cycle and even causes infertility in certain cases.

If you encounter any of the above stated causes for irregular menstruation, you should immediately consult a doctor and start with the remedies. If irregular menstruation is due to contraceptives or birth control pills, the doctor might change your medication with pills that have a balance of estrogen and progestin. For PCOS and thyroid related issues, eating habits, a healthy lifestyle and lowering down the testosterone levels, will help women to ovulate timely.