Menstruation, more commonly known as periods, is very normal vaginal bleeding that happens as a part of every women’s reproductive monthly cycle. The human body prepares for pregnancy every month and on not receiving the sperms, the uterus sheds its lining. The bleeding that happens during menstruation is partly from inside the uterus.
A healthy woman starts menstruating around the age of 11-14 and this lasts till the menopause. It is not the same for every girl and a normal and a healthy period flow occurs once in 21-35 days. For the initial years of menstruation, longer cycles are quite common. They get shorter and regularize on their own as women age.
Periods themselves come with multiple range of symptoms such as lower back pain, abdominal pain, bloating, mood swings, headaches and fatigues in almost all women in variable degrees of intensity.
Delayed periods is a cause of concern for many women across the globe and there are a number of medical and healthcare and lifestyle reasons responsible for it. Changes in periods monthly cycle leads to a number of healthcare and medical reasons. Also note that a delay of 4-5 days is extremely normal owing to the lifestyle of today’s women.
Every woman has this thought once in her head that because she’s late, she might be pregnant. This scary and unannounced pregnancy stresses us out. Before you run over to the pharmacy and get the home pregnancy tests, take a break and understand that it might mean something else. Being pregnant is not the only reason why your periods are late. There are a number of other reasons of irregular or late periods apart from pregnancy. It’s time to let go of this misconception and understand all the medical and lifestyle related reasons behind irregular/late periods.
Before you panic and start stressing over your last period and why are you late, calm down. Go through these reasons that might be responsible for your irregular or late periods.
You are breastfeeding:
Even after you have delivered your baby, there are chances your periods might be delayed. No need to be alarmed. Irregularity or lack of menstrual cycle while you are breastfeeding your child is quite a common thing. It takes a few months post your delivery to normalize your monthly cycle.
You have lost weight or gained weight in the recent past:
Any type of weight fluctuation eventually might result in changes in your monthly menstrual cycle. Rapid dietary or weight changes also lead to irregular periods. Pay a visit to your healthcare expert if you experience any issues such as eating disorders, anorexia, bulimia or uncontrolled diabetes.
Increase in your workout and exercise:
Maintaining a constant workout schedule is a healthy practice but excessive exercise is known to lead to lower the female hormone, estrogen, which is responsible to regulate all the female reproductive processes. Athletes at times are known to go through secondary amenorrhea, which means they do not have their periods for longer durations like six months.
You are stressed:
Chronic stress is extremely harmful to your body and it throws you off balance. It activates the cortisol hormone which pushes your body in to survival approach- which leads to amenorrhea.
Your sleeping schedule has changed:
It might be a change in your work timings or you might be travelling from one time zone to other. There are some nights that you just don’t sleep well. According to expert doctors, any changes or irregularities in your circadian rhythm (your internal clock which is responsible for regulating all essential metabolic and cellular processes) has the potential to bring about changes in your menstruation.
You are on some medication:
Some medicines like antipsychotics, anti-depressants, thyroid medicines, or chemotherapy are known impact the regular periods. Rarely, side effects of some medicines is delay of periods. Some medicines lead to disrupted levels of hormones which impacts your normal reproductive cycles.
Your thyroid function isn’t normal:
Hyper or hypothyroidism is also one of the reasons responsible for delaying your periods. If the balance of the thyroid hormone is disturbed, you might miss a period. Fortunately, all thyroid related diseases are well treatable.
You are suffering from PCOS:
PCOS is getting extremely prevalent in women. Polycystic ovary syndrome is a disorder that largely impacts the hormones in a women’s body. It causes hair growth on face and body and baldness and is a cause of concern for many women in India as well as abroad.
The doctors are yet to find a cause for the problem of PCOS; but PCOS is known to increase male hormones in the female body, thus they result in prevention of ovaries from producing hormones and making eggs.
Some of the most common symptoms of PCOS are:
- Irregular periods
- Heavy bleeding
- Acne
- Extensive hair growth on body
- Weight gain
- Baldness
- Skin darkening
- Headaches triggered by hormonal changes
A few other known reasons why your periods are late:
- You might be entering perimenopause:
- This is the first stage of menopause. During this phase, the periods occur more frequently than usual.
- You are on birth control pills
- You have a chronic health issue
- You might be diabetic
There’s a wide range of things that can happen about your routine and lifestyle changes which will lead to your periods getting later than usual. Almost 9-14% of women face irregular and late periods, so you can stop stressing about it and you are not the only one with it.
Home remedies to treat irregular periods:
- Perform yoga on a daily basis. This is an ancient and a natural method of exercising, aimed to improve hormonal mechanisms and functioning. It has proven to be one of the safest ways to boost reproductive health and regularize menstrual cycles.
- Try to keep your weight constant
- Add cinnamon to your diet. Cinnamon is known to regulate insulin in your body, which in turn impacts your hormones and menstrual cycle.
- Vitamins are your best friends; maintain a healthy diet and take your vitamins regularly to regularize your monthly menstruation cycle.
- Eat pineapples because the enzymes present in pineapple (bromelain) is known to help in shedding the lining of the uterus and also increase the production of RBCs and WBCs.
There are a number of trusted and genuine android and apple mobile applications that help you track your periods. It is suggested that you use one which suits you best and make appropriate notes about all your period related data like what date to remember and when did your period last, when did it end, what symptoms you experienced in your last period etc.
When is a good time to visit the doctor?
If you are unable to identify any of the reasons that might have led to your periods being late, it is a good time you must visit your doctor and understand the concern. Heavy or incredibly light bleeding along with irregular bleeding is also a sign for you to visit the doctor and understand what your body is going through. Remember that all types of bleeding is not healthy and all blood is not period blood.
Reference:
https://vitalrecord.tamhsc.edu/9-reasons-missed-period/
https://www.healthline.com/health/how-late-can-a-period-be#takeaway
https://medlineplus.gov/menstruation.html
https://www.healthline.com/health/polycystic-ovary-disease#symptoms
https://www.healthline.com/health/womens-health/irregular-periods-home-remedies