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Menstruation Stopping

What is menstruation

Menstruation , or having periods is a normal part of the female reproductive cycle that starts when girls become mature at the time of puberty. During a menstrual period, a woman bleeds from her uterus via the vagina.

Menstruation Stopping or Never Starting at Puberty

Periods are often light when a young woman starts having periods and also when a woman is nearing menopause. This is absolutely normal because they are not producing an egg every month regularly. Several women experience one or two irregular periods once in six months. This is not usually caused by any serious condition, but many women seek an explanation the gynecologist.

Girls who have not begun to menstruate by the age of 16 are said to have primary amenorrhea. Women who have had normal periods, but the periods stop for 6 months or more, are said to have secondary amenorrhea.

Stress, and worrying whether you will get your period or whether you are pregnant can cause your period to be delayed by 1 or 2 weeks. Severe physical or emotional stress can also cause the periods to stop for a longer time. A condition called polycystic ovaries is the most common cause of irregular periods.

Menstruation stops due to problems associated with the hormones that regulate menstruation. The glands that affect menstruation include the pituitary gland at the base of the brain, the thyroid gland in the neck, the adrenal glands on top of the kidneys, and the ovaries.

If a woman has been taking birth control pills, then it may take 6 months to a year for normal periods to resume, after a woman stops taking the pills. The pill blocks certain hormones and it can take a long time for those hormones to return to normal. Menstruation also stops during pregnancy.

In some women, menstruation never starts because their ovaries do not respond properly to the hormones that trigger the release of an egg. Such women cannot ovulate and menstruation is not possible without ovulation. While some women do not produce enough estrogen to ovulate. Other causes of amenorrhea can be ovarian cysts and obstructions in the reproductive tract.

About one-third of girls with primary amenorrhea have a genetic disorder or a congenital problem with their reproductive tract.

Causes of Menstruation Stopping or Irregular Periods

Periods can stop for a number of reasons. The most common causes are:

Treatment

If you notice that you are not having periods regularly, without any cause such as birth control pills or pregnancy, go and see your gynecologist. The treatment will depend upon the diagnosis. Your doctor may advice you to get a blood test done, to measure the levels of various hormones in your body.

Treatment is only necessary if there is a long absence or irregularity of periods or if a woman has difficulty becoming pregnant.