Can someone help me with this question I have about menopause?

It’s different for everyone. For me, I went from being regular to having it once a year. Amazingly, that 1 time a year always managed to cover Christmas…the gift that just kept on giving…until I realized that had finally just stopped about 5 years later.

It would be unusual for it to be part of menopause since it has been 18 months, that’s a fairly long time. My mom actually went 9 months period free, then had one or two more periods, then finally stopped cycling forever. If it’s a period, meaning you cycled, it will probably stop way before your appointment.

It’s good you made a doctor appointment. If you’re still bleeding they can do an ultrasound and some other tests. Do you have any other symptoms? Ovary pain?

If you usually run on the low side for iron you might want to take a little extra if the bleeding is heavy or prolonged. Only if you know.

If the bleeding is light I wouldn’t change what I was doing regarding activities. That’s not medical “advice” that’s just what I would do.

^No other symptoms other than feeling tired, but I’ve been tired since my recent illness.

How about going into a walk in clinic for reassurance?

I believe there’s an over the counter test you can purchase to test hormone levels for menopause. You might want to look into it. I don’t know if the doctor will do any internal tests while you have your period, if you still have it when you see them, because they can’t see anything when there’s blood.

If it were me, I’d wait 4–5 days, then call back to see if there were any cancellations. I can also email my doctor and her nurse will see it and ask the doctor if I could be seen earlier. They always have appts saved for patients who should be seen sooner. I’ve had the receptionist tell me the first available appt was in 6 weeks, only to have my doc see me within 1 week due to the pain I was in. Good luck!

@jca2 I did consider getting that test. I think I will.

The bleeding is heavier today so I could see how a pelvic exam would be difficult. I think I’ll wait it out this weekend, then reach out to a nurse at my primary care clinic on Monday.

Thanks everyone!

They can do an ultrasound when there is bleeding and test for a lot of STI’s, although sometimes doctors prefer to do a pap smear when you are not bleeding, but ironically some people bleed from the test.

If you are still bleeding at the time of your appointment I think don’t cancel it. Especially since that will be a lot of days bleeding.

You can always use a tampon right before going to the doctor to reduce the amount of blood.

I think bleeding heavier today is a good sign (hopefully). To me, light bleeding or constant spotting is more worrisome.

My menopausal friend ended up having fibroids she was completely unaware of. Similar to your issue with the bleeding. Best of luck!

I hope things are better, please let us know how this goes. Just FYI, they can do a pelvic if you are bleeding, especially if the bleeding is unexpected. Yeah, it’s messy, but worth getting checked out. They were able to diagnose me through all sorts of blood and gunk.

I wish for you that the word “unremarkable” appears on all tests.

Fingers are crossed for you. <3

^Thank you! It presented as a typical menstrual cycle that I had in the past. I had to reschedule my Monday appointment for this Thursday. I’m thankful for not bleeding anymore and I’m not as stressed out. I think a few more days won’t make a difference.

A few days before this all began I told my husband how nice it was to not have to deal with a period anymore. Then this happened! I jinxed myself.

Hi everyone. I have an update. I had an ultrasound yesterday, the soonest I could be seen. Of course it was a Friday afternoon so I need to wait until Monday to speak to my doctor. I have the results on MyChart. Can anyone help decipher this? I looked up heterogeneous echogenicity of the uterus and it can be a sign of adenomyosis? Also, Endometrium: Indistinct and difficult to convincingly define can be a sign of malignancy?

Narrative
CLINICAL INFORMATION: 53-year-old female with postmenopausal bleeding.

COMPARISON: None.

TECHNIQUE: Limited transabdominal and transvaginal ultrasound of the pelvis with color Doppler was performed.

FINDINGS:

UTERUS: Heterogeneous echogenicity of the uterus. No convincing focal mass lesions identified.
Size: 7.2×3.8×4.8 cm.
Endometrium: Indistinct and difficult to convincingly define, but not thickened.
Endometrial thickness: 5.6 mm

OVARIES: Normal size. No masses.
Right ovary: 1.7×1.3×1.7 cm, volume 2.0 mL.
Left ovary: 2.0×1.5×1.2 cm, volume 2.0 mL.

FREE FLUID: None.

I’m not a doctor, but after reading a bit, I get the impression that both “No convincing focal mass lesions identified” and “Endometrium not thickened” are not negative findings. “In the context of a uterus, it [heterogeneous ethogenicity] implies that the tissue within the uterus shows varying densities or textures.” You might want to call your doctor’s office Monday morning, otherwise you could be waiting most of the day.

Here’s the site: https://radiologyinplainenglish.com/heterogeneous-uterus/

^Thank you. Of course my mind worries about the worst.

One sentence doesn’t sound right…I meant to say that those findings do not sound bad. I think “not negative” sounds like the opposite!