Are Periods after Menopause Normal?

One thing above all others has the ability to put menopausal women into a state of fear. Suddenly having periods after menopause can be more than disconcerting. It can be downright terrifying. And yet, a lot of women do experience what seems very much like a period, even after they are truly in menopause. Mind you, you are not considered to be truly in menopause until you have gone twelve months without menstruating. So, getting successfully over the hump and making it into post menopause is a big deal. Naturally, suddenly seeing blood again can be very scary. Still, sometimes spotting after menopause is completely normal. There are also many other explanations to explain why it is happening.

Sometimes, women simply jump the gun. They may have gone for, say, eleven months without a period and then start bleeding again. That is nothing to be frightened about, really. You see, eleven months is not twelve months; those women need to begin counting again. Other times, a woman may have indeed gone for twelve months without a period – except for a day or two of spotting somewhere in there. Sorry, that is not menopause! Even if you only bleed for one day in a twelve month period, you have to start all over. The biggest symptom of menopause is erratic periods, after all. You may go a long span of time without having one and then boom, you suddenly menstruate one month.

When you are truly menopausal, however, when you have definitely gone a full year without a period, then bleeding can be very serious business. You should not have a period after menopause. That is the whole purpose. That being said, though, spotting is entirely possible. In many ways, it should be expected. It is still scary, of course, and you should certainly contact your doctor immediately. All the same, there are generally perfectly logical explanations.

For instance, if you are utilizing hormone replacement therapy to get through menopause, it can cause spotting. In fact, it frequently does. Most women on cyclic hormone replacement therapies actually go through monthly bleeding. If it gets to a point where you are bleeding heavily, however, that is definitely a cause for concern. The same goes for continuous hormone replacement therapy. Some bleeding is expected, during the appropriate adjustment period. If the bleeding continues or starts up after that period, you need to see your doctor at once. Similarly, if you go from one form of therapy to the other, bleeding can also occur.

Therapy is not the only thing that may cause spotting after menopause. An unhealthy diet can cause it as well. That is part of the reason that a healthy diet and certain vitamins are recommended for menopausal women. This is particularly true for women who have any form of insulin resistence.

If you quickly lose a significant amount of weight during post menopause, bleeding may also occur. This is because your fat tissues actually store estrogen. When you lose those cells, the estrogen goes into your bloodstream, creating an imbalance just when estrogen levels are starting to get steady again. Having a lot of stress can actually do the same thing.