(no subject)

[tusk.livejournal.com]

Hello, hope all is well with everyone else. To be honest, I'm not sure how I am. I'd like to know if anyone has had similar programs to me and what you've done about it. Here's some background:

Age: Almost 18
Started Period: 12
Use: Pads
Problem: Lots of clotting, cramping.

I've never been on any medication. I am a bit overweight, and not overly tall either. I'm average in terms of athletics. I have horrible posture.

For as long as I can remember I've experienced the most aweful cramping. I've almot always got it on the second to last day of my cycle (which is usually around 5-6 days). This cramping lasts for about 30 minutes to an hour and is the worst pain I've ever been in. It's a heavy contracting of my uterus and a swelling of my ovaries. I can hardly walk when this happens and I ache all over and sweat. Lately, this problem has been getting worse. Twice, I threw up from the pain and discomfort. So when this happened I decided to finally see a doctor as the problem wasn't going to get any better. He put me on the pill Alesse.

I'm on my second pack of pills. I've been through one cycle while on the pill and it didn't seem to change at all (I still got the pain on the second to last day and also experienced dry clotting). But I remembered that the doctor told me that it takes a while to see a change. So I'm sticking with it. The only problem is, it's making me a BITCH. The hormones have a bad effect on me and have changed my entire mood. Not to mention, I've also been experiencing strange pain while I'm not on my period. I've put this down to ovulation, and PMS. But right now (as I type) a week before my period, I'm feeling sharp shooting pain up the right side of my uterus as well as general discomfort in the whole area.

So I'm going to see the doc on Monday to see what else he can suggest. I'll likely have to go in for a Pap Smere which I'm nervous about.

So I have several questions:

1. Can anyone relate to anything I've said?
2. Does something sound especially worrying about my situation?
3. What's a Pap Smere like? It'll be my first time and I am a virgin.

Thanks for any info.


Crossposted to Menstrualhealth.

Comments

[just-a-duck.livejournal.com]

Hi. :) What you could be experiencing is called mittleschmertz (or something like that) which is just painful ovulation. I get it all the time. Hormonal contraceptives prevent ovulation, so you could be getting some relief from that soon.

This (http://www.scarleteen.com/pink/gyne.html) page has info on everything that happens at a gyno visit, including Pap smears.

[tusk.livejournal.com]

Great thank you. I'm just weirded out because I haven't experienced this before. It only began when I started the pill. :S My whole body and mind seem to be upset with me for taking it right now, so I suppose the tubes aren't pleased either. :)

[freakwoman.livejournal.com]

Uh, you have my sympathies. When I was about the same age I would have the same problem. I would throw up, shake, be unable to stand, sweat.. it was like having a really high fever without the temp. My parents wouldn't let me see a dr about it, and eventually it just kind of stopped being so bad. I used to find that if I took something for it the second I thought I might *maybe* get those cramps it helped, as did warm baths. You might also want to talk to your dr about a painkiller a little stronger then over the counter. My friend has similar problems that never went away, and she takes a pain killer/muscle relaxant that helps her a lot, though it makes her very sleepy.

[just-a-duck.livejournal.com]

Some women take it one step further and start taking meds the day before their period is about to start.

[tusk.livejournal.com]

Thanks! I've always been really hesitant to take medication. I also find that when I take a Tylenol in the morning of the usual day then I won't get them. I just hate the thought of going through life taking Tylenol all the time. I'd rather figure out why I get this and what can actually be done.

[taldragon.livejournal.com]

i;ve found that it usually takes about 3 months for my body to get used to taking the Pill - and that in the short term, symptoms do get worse but then they ease.

it's up to you whether you want to continue on Alesse or switch to another pill but i'd give it another month and see. if it doesnt ease, then talk to your doctor (hell, talk to him/her anyway :) )

as for the pap smear, it's undignified but it doesnt take long and personally, i'd rather be undignified and reassured than the other way round ;)

hope this helps.

[sulingsi.livejournal.com]

hey there...

more reassurance.
i mean, you could ask your doctor about something like polycystic ovaries, but i'm suspecting this is just your normal thing. if it was related to endometriosis, the pills should help.

you can easily switch to another pill, they affect everyone differently depending on the type and i'm sure you can find some sort of hormonal method that will make you very happy!

also... if tylenol really takes care of it, taking one tylenol a month is not going to affect your body negatively at all, so i would say don't suffer! take the tylenol and feel good! sometimes we feel pain and there is no way for us to stop the pain without taking medication. it doesn't mean that there is something wrong with our bodies or that we need to have some other procedure done - pain is the body's normal response to the inflammation caused by the menstrual cycle, and the medication just decreases the inflammation.

[xlostinxadreamx.livejournal.com]

I've been on Alesse for about 7 or 8 months and I still get cramps the first 2 days of my period. I take Ibuprofen to help. It makes my cramps go away completely. I suggest trying it. Alesse has also made me moody but I haven't had the chance to go to the doctor. I've learned to control my moodyness I guess. I'm going to switch methods the next time I go to the doctor though.

I had my first pap smear about 5 months ago. I was terrified, but it really wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. It only took like one or two minutes for her to do it, and she talked me threw the whole thing.

Good luck with everything!

[youraddiction.livejournal.com]

i took aless for 6 months, during all of which i was not myself.

not that pills are the only option, but if you are comfortable taking them, maybe its the hormone level that is the problem. my gyno explained it to me like this: aless is a monophasic hormone (all pills deliver the same level of hormone thoughout the 21 days of hormone pill), and when i switched to a triphasic, (pills contain 3 different levels of hormone for 7 day intervals), pill i was LOTS less cranky and stayed on them for a year after.

also, although my cramps are not as severe as yours, i find that the pill eased them significantly.