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Worried over periods while on depo shot

raie40 posted:

For the last 6 to 9 months I've had periods while on my depo shot the nurses I've talked to at the dr office says that's normal but for the last 3 months I've had heavy clumpings and now I've got big time cramps with heavy bleeding and huge clumps so I'm scared

1 Replies |Watch This Discussion | Report This| Share this:Worried over periods while on depo shotFor the last 6 to 9 months I've had periods while on my depo shot the nurses I've talked to at the dr office says that's normal but for the last 3 months I've had heavy clumpings and now I've got big time cramps with heavy bleeding and huge clumps so I'm scared

Jane Harrison Hohner, RN, RNP responded:

Dear raie: Yes, it does seem strange that DepoProvera is supposed to cause menstrual periods to disappear, and some women can have erratic and/or heavy bleeding while using "the shot". There are two reason for this to occur, hormonal effects or a new pelvic infection.

If you have no risks (eg new unprotected sex partner) for a new infection with gonorrhea or chlamydia then you would not need treatment with antibiotics. Thus my best GUESS is as follows.

Simply stated, if the uterine lining is like grass or lawn, estrogen is like the fertilizer (causes a thickening of the lining ), and progesterone is like the lawnmower (keeps the lining thin by three different mechanisms). This is why DepoProvera (high dose synthetic progesterone) brings about a thin lining, and why birth control pills (relatively progesterone dominant) bring about shorter, lighter periods.

However, with longer term use the lining of the uterus can get so thinned out that it is easy to destabilize. This leads to erratic and occasionally very heavy bleeding. One treatment is to give the woman a short course of low dose estrogen pills to get the lining to restabilize.

I would urge you to contact the clinic and tell them that the flow is increasingly heavy. If you have risks for an infection let them know. If you are in a monogamous relationship you can ask them about a short course of estrogen to see if the bleeding will stop. They may also want to rule out pregnancy, as well as the risk for infections, just to be thorough.

Hopefully you can get the bleeding to cease. If not you might want to consider some other form of birth control. So sorry you are having to deal with this.

Yours,
Jane

Report This| Share this:Worried over periods while on depo shotDear raie: Yes, it does seem strange that DepoProvera is supposed to cause menstrual periods to disappear, and some women can have erratic and/or heavy bleeding while using "the shot". There are two reason for this to occur, hormonal effects or a new pelvic infection. If you have no risks (eg new unprotected sex partner) for a new infection with gonorrhea or chlamydia then you would not need treatment with antibiotics. Thus my best GUESS is as follows. Simply stated, if the uterine lining is like grass or lawn, estrogen is like the fertilizer (causes a thickening of the lining ), and progesterone is like the lawnmower (keeps the lining thin by three different mechanisms). This is why DepoProvera (high dose synthetic progesterone) brings about a thin lining, and why birth control pills (relatively progesterone dominant) bring about shorter, lighter periods. However, with longer term use the lining of the uterus can get so thinned out that it is easy to destabilize. This leads to erratic and occasionally very heavy bleeding. One treatment is to give the woman a short course of low dose estrogen pills to get the lining to restabilize. I would urge you to contact the clinic and tell them that the flow is increasingly heavy. If you have risks for an infection let them know. If you are in a monogamous relationship you can ask them about a short course of estrogen to see if the bleeding will stop. They may also want to rule out pregnancy, as well as the risk for infections, just to be thorough. Hopefully you can get the bleeding to cease. If not you might want to consider some other form of birth control. So sorry you are having to deal with this. Yours, Jane

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