So, I'm now 51 😠and am taking the pill which I get prescribed by an online doctor. I run every packet into the next and have done for years so I never have a bleed. How can I tell if I'm in menopause? Would it show up in bloods? When I was 22 my periods were so irregular that following blood tests showed some of my hormones were at menopause levels. I got pregnant (unplanned) at 24 because my periods were so hit and miss and my G.P. said being on the pill wouldn't help at that time. Do I come clean and tell my G.P. in on the pill on the quiet or just ask for bloods and see what they show up?! 🤔
Yes, get bloods drawn for hormones.
Will get a blood test referral when I see G.P. on Thursday.Â
Bloods may be inaccurate if you’re taking hormonal contraception at the moment ..?
I'll have a chat with him and see what he recommends
its inaccurate even if you're not contraception. Becauss you'll at least be in peri menopause, and they fluctuate too much. look at r/perimenopause they have a good explanation of that.
I would probably take an break on the contraception and see what you're periods are like.
As if you want the health protections, you want to get on hrt (its bioidentical which birth control is not)as soon as you're in menopause, if not before.
thats actually not accurate.. at 51, they're will wothin perimenopause if not menopause, and hormones levels fluctuate too much. Its only used to diagnose full on menopause, and thats only after 1 year of no periods.
downvoyed..but its true..any doctor who uses hormonal blood work over symptoms to diagnose perimenopause is outdated
The official guideline is to wait until you are 55, come off the pill and see where you are. No harm in doing it earlier of course, but you’re more likely to not be menopausal I guess. To answer your OG question- The pill, assuming it’s a combination pill, can stop menopausal symptoms from showing. And yes, your GP should absolutely know you are on the pill.
Thank you. I'll fill him in on Thursday at my appt.
Do you mean you're on the regular pill? This is extremely dangerous and not recommended after the age of 35. You are at a high risk of clots or stoke. Are you getting this behind your GP's back? I can't even comprehend what type of madness this is!
Bloods will do nothing to show if you're menopausal as you're on the pill so long. You really need to bite the bullet and go and see your GP and get a full review. It could be that they take you off the pill and put you straight onto HRT. But please go, you're obviously worried yourself and it will really put your mind at ease
When I turned 35 I asked my doctor about this very thing and the doctor said that as I was heathy and didn't smoke there would be no issue to continue taking the pill. The whole stop taking it at 35 is based on outdated studies and birth control has come a long way since then. He did recommend that I would need to be more vigilant about blood pressure checks etc but as long as I was having no issues I could continue on the pill safely.
Big difference between that and taking it behind your GP's back at 51 by ordering it online from a different doctor and running backs together constantly
Yes, I understand a doctor should advise, however the placebo week was put into birth control to appease the Catholic church. It isn't a true period that women have during the withdrawal week and there is no actual benefit of the break. Many women take the pills back to back without the break because the constant level of hormones is far better for their health than the cold turkey break. Again this should be discussed between a patient and doctor to decide what is best.
The seven day break was put in to mimic the natural cycle of the female body. Also, traditionally some women liked the reassurance that they weren't pregnant. Obviously, as time has gone on and more research is carried out the need for a break is now known to be less important. I'm not sure why you'd bring the church into it.
I really have no idea why you keep talking about the pill like I'm sort of ignoramous who's never heard of it? It's the fact that OP was taking it against medical advice and was concerned enough to ask for advice about it that's important
Perhaps I've misunderstood but I don't see OP mentioning anything about taking the pill against medical advice. She said it was being prescribed by an online doctor and wants to ask her GP about it because she's concerned it's masking menopause symptoms.
Telling her it's dangerous because she's over 35 and because she's taking it back to back is scaremongering. The most recent advice from 2019 is to no longer take the 7 day placebo break, and take it everyday, and the main reason the break was even there was because of the Catholic church. I never said you were an ignoramus, those were your words. I do think people should be aware of the history of the pill and the misinformation that many women still have about the pill so they can make the best decisions with advice from their doctor.
She's 51, so likelihood is she's probably not getting periods anymore but has no way of knowing due to the way she's taking the pill. Telling someone who's 51 who's taking the pill for years back to back that it's dangerous is not scaremongering. You serously can't believe that? She's having no medical checks for it as her GP doesn't know she's on it. No GP in any practice would prescribe the pill for a 51 yr old. Your personal opinion doesn't come into it, it's not safe practice and it just wouldn't happen. The reason she's getting it from an online doctor and not her GP is because her GP wouldn't prescribe it for her at her age.Â
Again, the only involvement the church had was when the pope was approached the week's break was used as a selling point. But in those days the hormones were much stronger so it was felt a break was benefical anyway along with the other reasons I said.
I know it's madness. I've an appointment next Thursday with G.P. so I'll tell him what I've been doing and hope I get straight onto HRT. I really would rather not be on the pill at my age anyway, I know it's dangerous.Â