[identity profile] loveofdaisies.livejournal.com posting in [community profile] vaginapagina
I took an ECP a few weeks ago which in turn caused a period-like bleeding. I called my clinic and talked to the nurse about it- she referred to it as "withdrawal bleeding" (I think that's what she said) due to the hormones. Can anyone expand on this a bit for me? What exactly is going on in my body during withdrawal bleeding? And is it that bleeding that throws off your cycle?

Date: 2006-07-25 09:07 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] yourkisshello.livejournal.com
Ok, let's see if I can explain this in a good way, haha. Withdrawl bleeding is something that happens when a large amount of synthetic hormones are introduced into your system and then are not replaced. When women on hormonal birth control (pills, patches, rings) are having their "period" it's not really a "real" period, because the hormones stop ovulation which pretty much means you have no menstrual cycle at all. The 28-day packs are just for a sense of normalcy, because most people need to have their "period" every month to make sure they aren't pregnant/every thing is working OK. The "period" that women experience during hormonal birth control (and in your case of taking EC), is just their bodies reacting in a way to let them know that all the synthetic hormones are out of the body.

I hope that made sense! If I'm incorrect about something, someome please let me know! This was just how my GYN explained it to me :]

Date: 2006-07-25 11:49 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] frolicnaked.livejournal.com
Like [livejournal.com profile] yourkisshello mentioned, a "withdrawal bleed" is basically your uterus shedding its lining in response to the lowered amount of progesterone in your system.

Basically, when you took EC, that put a lot of progesterone into your body. As it worked its way out of your system, it triggered your uterus to start bleeding. (The bleeding in response to lowered progesterone amounts is actually similar to what happens in a standard menstrual cycle; the main difference is that "withdrawal bleeding" doesn't follow ovulation while standard menstrual bleeding does.)

Yes, the withdrawal bleeding can throw off your menstrual cycle. If you were to count the first day of this withdrawal bleed as a new cycle, you may find that you'll return to what's normal for you right away; you may also find your next cycle to be irregular. You can check out VP's "All About EC" (http://community.livejournal.com/vaginapagina/7466955.html) post for more info on EC side effects like cycle irregularities as well as this section (http://community.livejournal.com/vaginapagina/7325155.html#anchor7) of our "All About HBC" post for more info on withdrawal bleeding.

Date: 2006-07-26 06:07 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] frolicnaked.livejournal.com
You're welcome!

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