What are irregular periods? Your periods may come early or late. Causes of irregular periods There are many possible causes of irregular periods. Common causes include: puberty — your periods might be irregular for the first year or two the start of the menopause usually between the ages of 45 and 55 early pregnancy — take a pregnancy test to rule this out some types of hormonal contraception — such as the contraceptive pill or intrauterine system IUS extreme weight loss or weight gain, excessive exercise or stress medical conditions — such as polycystic ovary syndrome PCOS or a problem with your thyroid When to see a GP You don't need to get medical advice if you have always had slightly irregular periods or you're still going through puberty.
But see a GP if: your periods suddenly become irregular and you're under 45 you have periods more often than every 21 days or less often than every 35 days your periods last longer than 7 days there's a big difference at least 20 days between your shortest and longest menstrual cycle you have irregular periods and you're struggling to get pregnant There might not be anything wrong, but it's a good idea to get checked out to see what the cause might be. Trying for a baby It can be more difficult to get pregnant if you have irregular periods because you might not ovulate release an egg regularly.
More about periods and other period problems Read more about: periods and the menstrual cycle heavy periods stopped or missed periods period pain Video: menstrual cycle This animation explains in detail how the menstrual cycle works.
Media last reviewed: 21 October Media review due: 21 October Find out about treatments for heavy periods. Ovulation is the release of an egg from the ovaries. A woman is born with all her eggs. Once she starts her periods, 1 egg develops and is released during each menstrual cycle. After ovulation, the egg lives for 24 hours. Pregnancy happens if a man's sperm meet and fertilise the egg. Sperm can survive in the fallopian tubes for up to 7 days after sex.
Occasionally, more than 1 egg is released during ovulation. If more than 1 egg is fertilised it can lead to a multiple pregnancy, such as twins. A woman can't get pregnant if ovulation doesn't occur. Some methods of hormonal contraception — such as the combined pill , the contraceptive patch and the contraceptive injection — work by stopping ovulation.
It's difficult to pinpoint exactly when ovulation happens but in most women, it happens around 10 to 16 days before the next period. This might be true for women who have a regular, day cycle, but it won't apply to women whose cycles are shorter or longer.
For more information on fertility awareness, see the FPA guide to natural family planning. Vaginal secretions sometimes called vaginal discharge change during the menstrual cycle.
The length of the follicular phase is variable between individuals, resulting in most variations of total cycle length. The luteal phase starts after ovulation and continues until the onset of the next menses. During this phase, the ovary releases progesterone which changes the uterine lining and opens the window of implantation — the time during which the embryo can attach to the uterus. If pregnancy does not occur, the progesterone level drops and bleeding occurs.
The luteal phase is usually between days. The length of a menstrual cycle is determined by the number of days from the first day of bleeding to the start of the next menses. The length of your cycle, while not on any form of birth control, can be a key indicator to hormonal imbalances and whether or not ovulation is occurring in a predictable manner.
Hormonal imbalances can affect if and when ovulation occurs during your cycle. Without ovulation, pregnancy cannot occur. Cycles of a normal length suggest regular ovulation and that all of the sex hormones are balanced to support natural conception. Shortened cycles can be an indication that the ovaries contain fewer eggs than expected. This is typically a pattern seen in women in the years leading up to perimenopause. Alternatively, a short cycle could indicate that ovulation is not occurring.
If blood work confirms this to be the case, natural conception can be more difficult. What Causes a Shorter Cycle? As a woman grows older, her menstrual cycle shortens. As the number of eggs available in the ovary decrease, their quality also declines.
These dysfunctional ovaries lose their ability to effectively communicate with the brain. Additionally, the brain needs to release more follicle stimulating hormone FSH to stimulate these abnormal eggs to mature. As a result, the dominant follicle is ready for ovulation very early in the follicular phase and consequently produces a short cycle length.
In addition, sometimes bleeding can occur even when ovulation does not occur, and this may appear as shortened and irregular cycles. Longer cycles are an indicator that ovulation is not occurring or at least not in a regular manner which can make conception difficult.
What Causes Long Menstrual Cycles? Longer cycles are caused by a lack of regular ovulation. During a normal cycle, it is the fall of progesterone that brings upon bleeding. If a follicle does not mature and ovulate, progesterone is never released and the lining of the uterus continues to build in response to estrogen.
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