How To Stop Your Period Before And After It Comes?

The article provides various methods on how to stop your period, in which you can choose yourself the most appropriates ones for your needs and body.

We all know that period is an important part of a woman’s physiology. It is the symbol of a healthy woman. It makes the women be able to have kids, be a mother the amazing function given to us. Although period brings inconvenience, over time we gradually get used to having it once a month in our life.

However, there are times when the period becomes a real obstacle. It prevents us from carrying out our plans, such as before the competition day, when we go to the beach, a picnic… Or maybe your period this month suddenly lasts longer than usual and you do not know how to stop your period… Fortunately, there are several ways to deal with the period comes at the wrong time and stubborn like this.

What is a period?

Menstruation or period is the regular discharge of blood and mucosal tissue from the uterine cavity through the vagina. It is caused by the uterine endometrium (or inner lining) desquamation, under the influence of the sudden drop in estrogen and progesterone level in the body.

The first period usually begins between ages 11 and 16 in girls, averagely 13 years old and marks a point in lifespan known as menarche, when a girl officially steps into the reproductive age with the ability to have children.

How long does a period last?

During the reproductive age of a woman, menstruation comes once a month.

At the period time, the uterine endometrium desquamates differently at different areas of the uterus. At a time, the desquamation might have finished in this area already while it is desquamating or has not desquamated yet in other areas. That is why the period usually happens from three to five days. If all endometrial areas of the uterus desquamated at the same time, the menstruation would last for only a few hours.

What causes period?

About the mechanism of the menstruation, it is the result of the physiological function of the female genital tract under the control of the female hormonal system, which we have discussed in my previous article. Therefore, I would like to skip the mechanism and go straight to the characteristic, as well as the feature of menstruation. If you want a comprehensive answer to what causes period and how exactly the hormonal system works, please read my last article: DISCHARGE BEFORE PERIOD AND ITS MESSAGE TO YOU.

Ovulatory and anovulatory cycle

We all know that the period is influenced directly by two ovarian hormones estrogen and progesterone. Depending on whether the ovulation takes place or not, the menstrual cycle is classified into two types: ovulatory cycle and anovulatory cycle.

If the level of hormone LH is not of sufficient magnitude, ovulation will not occur, and the cycle is said to be “anovulatory”. The phases of the monthly cycle continue, but they are altered in the following ways:

First, lack of ovulation causes failure of development of the corpus luteum, so there is almost no secretion of progesterone in the cycle. There is only the rising of estrogen in the first half of menstrual cycle. Still, the sudden drop in estrogen is sufficient to cause period. The inner lining of the uterus is only influenced by estrogen, leads to the significant proliferation of highly tortuous blood vessels, mostly the arteries. Menstrual blood comes from these arteries in bright red color.

If the level of hormone LH is potent enough to cause ovulation, the cycle is said “ovulatory”. Also, we have the participation of both estrogen and progesterone. The menstrual blood comes from both veins and arteries. That is why it is usually darker, from red cherry to dark brown.

Blood loss per menstrual changes with age. In general, the average amount is around 60 – 80ml. The blood is discharged more in the middle of the period. There is no correlation between the length of period and the blood loss. The amount of menstrual blood can vary from woman to woman, and sometimes it is four times different. But it is not different between menstruations of a woman.

The length of a period, the amount of blood loss are not only influenced by the female sex hormones but also the condition and response of the uterus lining. Some lesions of the uterine endometrium such as inflammation, uterine fibroids leaving the regions not respond uniformly to the sex hormones. As a result, it leads to the uneven development and uneven desquamation of the endometrium. The consequence is the lengthening of the period and severe blood loss.

To sum up, menstruation reflects the hormonal activity of the hypothalamic – pituitary – ovarian and the condition of the uterus lining, as well as a measurement of the female sexual activity.

What are the main ways on how to stop your period?

There are many techniques to answer the question how to stop your period. Before going into detail of each specific method, I would like to classify all them into five main categories, which are medications, feminine hygiene products, home remedies, lifestyle, and surgery.

Among these techniques, some of them are the answer to the question how to temporarily stop your period which means they only prevent period while you are using them. Once you stop using, your period is back to normal.

In contrast, there are techniques that stop your period permanently, which means they also take away your fertility. This type of technique should be applied to women who do not wish to have children anymore.

In this part, I want to present to you generally about all the methods and their features, the advantages and disadvantages, as well as what to take cautious when using these methods. For specific use, guidelines of each method will be described in detail in the following parts.

Medication to stop your period

How to stop your period with medication? The most commonly used are hormonal birth control and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).

Hormonal birth control

Hormonal birth control, also known as hormonal contraceptive can be used under the oral (pills), injection (shot) and patch form. You can also find implants and intrauterine devices which contain similar hormones on the market. Their effects are quite the same. However, the simplest way to stop your period is to take oral contraceptive in pill form.

Then, how does birth control stop periods?

The pill consists of two components which are estrogen and progestin. Progestin is the major component. The drug is packed in a blister of 28 tablets, of which 21 tablets contain the two components with the same content, called contraceptive pills. The remaining 7 tablets do not contain contraceptive components, called placebo pills.

The main effect of this hormonal contraception is to inhibit the pituitary gland from secreting FSH and LH, thus inhibits ovulation and fertilization. Hormonal birth control can also decrease cramping and shorten the number of days you menstruate each month. Some kinds of them can even reduce the number of menstrual cycles you get in a year. For instance, to stop periods for around 2-3 months, you can get an injection called Depo-Provera.

In general, this is a safe and effective method for the question how to stop your period, and to regulate your monthly menstrual cycle. It is suitable for married women to aid in delaying periods and for those who suffer cramps before period or heavy period. Cramps before period is a common symptom met in many women. To find out what it is and how to overcome, please refer to my last article: IS IT NORMAL TO HAVE CRAMPS BEFORE PERIOD?

Birth control pills and shots are available by prescription only. Discuss your needs with a doctor before and during the time you are taking the contraceptives. Together you and your doctor can determine which type suits you the best, as well as proper adjustment for you, based on your lifestyle and medical needs.

Also, the nature of hormonal contraceptives is of steroid preparation. Besides the menstrual regulating effects, there are several side effects as well, for examples headaches, hormonal imbalance, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer. The risk of having these health problems may increases if you regularly use hormonal contraceptives for a long time. So again, before taking any of these, remember to consult your doctor for clear guidelines of usage.

Non-steroidal anti–inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)

This is over – the – counter (OTC) medication which you can easily buy at any drug stores without a prescription. It is also known as painkillers. The most common ones are aspirin, naproxen, and ibuprofen. In general, their effects are quite similar. NSAIDs directly block effects of prostaglandins; a vasoconstrictor chemical presents in the uterus lining at period time.

Prostaglandins promote uterine muscle contraction. The more the muscle is contracted, the greater amount of blood is discharged from highly tortuous blood vessels of the uterine endometrium. More blood discharged requires more days to expel all of them from the uterine cavity through the vagina to outside. As a result, your period is extended to several days.

NSAIDs prevent the overproduction of prostaglandins, thereby reducing the amount of menstrual fluid by about 20 – 50%, as well as period cramps.  There are many types of NSAIDs, but you should choose Naproxen, Aspirin, and Ibuprofen to stop periods. These drugs work better if taken before the start of menstruation and can be continued as long as needed, but should not exceed two weeks [1].

However, NSAIDs have quite a lot of side effects.  It can be harmful to your stomach such as digestive difficulties, prone to ulcers, bring up blood problems such as internal bleeding or blood clotting. If you have a medical history of kidney problems or stomach problems, my sincere advice for you is to consult your doctor in advance, particularly if you take other medications, herbal supplements, or herbal teas.

Other medications

Besides hormonal birth control and NSAIDs which are very common and popular to women, I would like to introduce two other medications for answering how to stop your period. They are Tranexamic acid (TXA) and Gonadotropin – releasing hormone agonists (GnRH agonist)

Tranexamic acid (TXA)

Tranexamic acid (TXA) belongs to the anti – fibrinolytic family of medication. It is used to treat severe blood loss as in the case of surgical, trauma, tooth extraction, and heavy menstruation. It can be taken both by mouth and injection into a vein [2].

TXA induces blood clots in the uterus cavity. By that, it can help reduce heavy menstrual bleeding about 30 – 60%. However, it is not a hormonal contraceptive so it cannot prevent pregnancy. Side effects of TXA are rare. They might be allergic reactions, blood clots, changes in color vision. People with kidney diseases should be more cautious and monitored while using TXA. However, TXA is considered to be safe for women in pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Gonadotropin – releasing hormone agonist (GnRH agonist)

Gonadotropin – releasing hormone agonist (GnRH agonist) is a medication which has influences on gonadotropins and sex hormones. It is given by injection into fat, implants placed into fat or nasal sprays [3].

Having a similar structure to GnRH of the hypothalamic, GnRH agonist will compete with our GnRH in binding to its receptors in the pituitary gland, prevent the secretion of two hormone FSH and LH, leading to a rapid reduction in the concentration of these hormones in the blood. By that, GnRH agonist cut down bleeding during your period and temporarily imitate menopause, including hot flashes.

However, the price of this method is quite high, and its side effects are somehow serious. GnRH agonist inhibits the activity of estrogen in your body while estrogen is an important factor to stimulate bone growth. Because of that, long – term usage of GnRH agonist can lead to osteoporosis or weak bones.

Feminine hygiene product

Besides asking for medications support on how to make your period stop, you can also look for assistance from female sanitary devices. They do not literally stop your period but hide it away. Simply saying, they prevent blood from flowing through the vagina. We can mention here tampon and menstrual cup.

Tampon is a mass of absorbent material placed inside the vagina. By absorbing the blood right in the vagina, it blocks your menstrual fluid from flowing outside. This is the basic difference between tampon and sanitary napkin. A tampon absorbs your menstrual fluid when it stays inside while a sanitary napkin absorbs menstrual fluid after it has left your body.

Menstrual cup is a female sanitary device to collect menstrual flow inside your body. It is inserted to the cervix, above the vagina. Although it does not literally stop your menstruation, it blocks the blood to flow out of your vagina [1].

Although tampon and menstrual cup are not truly an answer for how to stop your period, the benefit of using these devices is that they help hide your period and they do not cause many side effects as other medications might bring to you.

In addition, these products help clear your worries in period days. They will make you feel comfortable and concentrate with ease on your work. Whether you are traveling, swimming or having sex, you do not need to worry about the leakage with these devices. However, please be noted that these devices do not prevent pregnancy and they should never be used for the purpose of contraception.

Home remedies to stop your period

How to stop your period naturally? Talking about home remedies to stop your period, I must say that most of them are not scientifically proven. These remedies are just passed down from mothers to daughters throughout ages. So it is normal to be a little questioning about the effectiveness. However, as these remedies are easily applied, and they do not cause any harm to your body, sometimes you can give them a try. You might have your own from mother or grandmother. Still, I would like to list down several remedies for your reference:

• Applying heat: Get on your bed, relax and put something hot, such as a heating pad or a bottle of hot water roll over your abdomen. Remember to check the heat to make sure it will not burn your skin. This method is believed to relax the uterine muscles from contraction. The less contracted these muscle are, the lesser amount of blood is discharged. By that, the number of period days is shortened as well.
• Apple cider vinegar: To mix a glass of water with two teaspoons of apple cider vinegar and drink the mixture three or four times a day is a suggestion for how to naturally stop your period.
• Gelatin: To mix a package of gelatin with a glass water, then drink the mixture is also a suggestion for how to delay your period. It is believed to work for around three to four hours.
• Lemon: To drink lemon juice extracted from a piece of lemon is also believed to make your period end faster.
• Herbs: Drinking herbal teas such as raspberry leaves, angelica root, garden sage, shepherd’s purse, and lady mantle are also believed to stop or lighten your period.

As mentioned earlier, there is no guarantee that these remedies are going to work one hundred percent on you. According to my observation, some remedies might work on this person while might not on others. No formal research has been conducted on these remedies to find out why exactly they work, or what the side effects are. Without proper research, we can’t tell anything, and you will have to conduct your own experiment to make your own conclusion.

However, from my point of view, if you really need to stop or delay your period, do not lean on these remedies only to hope for the best result. You should take medication method under a doctor’s guideline. These remedies should be considered as an extra therapy, to support the medication ones on how to stop your period faster.

Lifestyle

You may not believe. But yes, your lifestyle also influence the length of your period and the amount of the menstrual fluid too.

Foods and drink

Eating healthy is always a good habit for your body. Get yourself more vegetables and fruits than normal can lighten the menstruation and make it easier on you, especially green beans is particularly known to help slow your menstrual cycle.

Besides, drinking a great deal of water or juice can also help lighten or stop your period, as well as keep yourself always hydrated from losing blood.

Exercises

Getting some exercise like yoga, walking, cycling will help to increase your blood circulation, by that it lightens your menstrual flow.

In addition, your body weight also influences the length of your period and the amount of blood loss in an unexpected way. Women who have a low amount of body fat usually are reported to have shorter and lighter periods. In contrast, an obese woman is likely to have longer and heavier ones. Therefore, if your Body Mass Index (BMI) is somewhere overweight and you want to have shorter periods, let’s consider doing exercises to lose a few pounds.

Surgery

While most of the methods above help stop your period temporarily, there are some surgical options to permanently stop it. In some circumstances, the doctor may recommend surgery to control or to stop one’s period. This will occur if you have a medical condition that causes severe menstrual bleeding such as a myoma,  a uterine fibroid, or endometriosis. The surgical option may be the removal of the uterine endometrium or the complete removal of your uterus. This method is only applied after carefully considering the desire of being pregnant of the woman.

So, we have gone through all the technique to answer how to stop your period. However, different methods act differently at different stages of your menstrual cycle. Moreover, depending on your needs, this method may be suitable while the others might not. Therefore, the following parts are meant to help you determine what method is more proper at a certain time, as well as the specific use and guidelines of each method. This is a comprehensive suggestion on how to stop your period.

How to stop your period before it comes?

If your period has not arrived yet, but it is expected to fall on the day that you do not wish for. Then how to stop your period from coming?

In this situation, the best choice is to ask for medications support on how to delay your period. As presented earlier, we have hormonal birth control and NSAIDs as the most common medications nowadays.

How to stop your period with birth control or hormonal contraceptives?

Remember that the drug is packed in a blister of 28 tablets, of which 21 tablets contain contraceptives components, called contraceptive pills. The remaining 7 tablets do not contain contraceptive components, called placebo pills.

Usually, for the purpose of contraception, we take one contraceptive pill every day, for three weeks. For the other week, we take placebo pills. By that, the period usually comes in the fourth week. For the purpose of period cancellation, all we need to do is to skip taking the placebo pills and continue taking the contraceptive ones.

You should start taking the hormonal contraceptives one cycle before the period you want to skip. When being taken regularly as directed, the medication will stop your period. Once you stop the treatment, your period will return. This method is safe and effective to adjust your period. It is especially useful for women who always suffer heavy of painful menstruations. However, its constant daily usage might be annoying for modern women who are always occupied with family and career.

Also, please keep in mind that prolonged intake of hormonal contraceptives may increase the risk of hormonal imbalance, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer. So if you are considering to use this method in a long time, my advice for you is to consult a gynecologist physician in advance.

How to stop your period with NSAIDs?

While the most common NSAIDs are aspirin, naproxen, and ibuprofen, my suggestion for you is to start with ibuprofen. As ibuprofen has very few side effects, it is more safe and trustworthy to use. So, how to delay your period with ibuprofen?

The prescribed dosage of ibuprofen 1.2 to 1.8 grams a day, divided into three times, each time at least six hours apart. However, you should not take them on an empty stomach and should not take more than the dosage above. Even though ibuprofen has few side effects, it is still not a good idea to overdose [1].

If ibuprofen does not relieve the pain, try another NSAIDs, because these medications do not work the same for everyone. Remember not to take two different NSAIDs at the same time as many studies have shown it does not increase the effectiveness of treatments but doubles the side effects. Also, you should not take any NSAIDs for over two weeks. Though this is OTC medication, it is a must to consult your doctor before taking large amount or using it for an extended period of time.

How to stop period your period once it starts?

If your period is already here and you might want to ask for how to stop your period for a day or two. What if the important day is just a few days ahead and you are still stuck with the menstruation? How to stop your period faster?

I am afraid that my answer may bring you down because you cannot stop the menstruation once it starts actually.

As I presented earlier, you may ask what about taking tranexamic acid (TXA)? Probably yes, when the bleeding starts, you can take from two to three tablets per time, three to four times daily to stop the period. These doses can continue for three to four days. However, TXA is quite expensive, and it is not an OTC medication. You must come to a doctor for the prescription to be able to have this medication.

There are other solutions which are much cheaper and easier to access for you to stop the menstruation. It is to ask for support from feminine hygiene products; highlights are tampon and menstrual cup. Though this method does not literally stop your period, it still not a bad answer for how to stop your period. The advantage of using these devices is that it helps hide your period perfectly like you are not menstruating. Whether you are traveling, swimming, or having sex, it helps clear your worries and make you feel more comfortable and confident to stick to your plan.

These devices are not difficult to use, and you can search on the internet for many tutorials. But still, there are few points I would like to note down for your attention if you choose this method:

• Change your tampon every four to six hours. You don’t have to do this immediately as soon as four hours have passed, but try not to let it go for longer than six. If you’ve accidentally left a tampon in for more than eight hours and you experience high fever, vomiting, itchy and rashes after using a tampon, pull it out and immediately get medical supports. It may be symptoms of toxic shock syndrome (TSS) which is extremely rare but potentially fatal consequence of leaving a tampon in the vagina for too long.
• For menstrual cup, it can be worn up to 12 hours and can be reused throughout your period. However, to avoid to avoid leakage, it should be replaced with new one. You must also remember that these cups do not avoid pregnancy and should not be used for the purpose of contraception.

In addition, it’s time for you to try some home remedies on how to stop your period and see if they work on you.

Also, do not forget to review and adjust your lifestyle as it has a significant influence on the length of your period, as well as the amount of the menstrual fluid. Followings are what to eat on your period and what to do on your period. Remember to drink a lot of water to keep yourself hydrated, eat a lot of fruit and vegetables, especially the green ones such as green bean, broccoli, spinach… to complement the amount of iron loss in menstrual blood. Remember to do some light exercises on your period days as well. It will also help improve your menstruation.

Conclusion

So, it is normal to temporarily stop your period sometimes. The important thing is to do it safely. There are many methods and techniques to support you on how to stop your period. As mentioned above, we have medications, feminine hygiene products, home remedies, lifestyle, and surgery. Each method has its advantages and disadvantages. Besides the effectiveness they bring, it is necessary for you to understand their side effects, to promptly recognize the abnormalities during the usage.

If your period always lasts for more than a week with heavy bleeding, or painful cramps, do not try these suggestions on how to stop your period on your own. Instead of that, make an appointment with a gynecologist physician. It may be the result of an underlying medical condition.  The doctor will examine you to determine what the cause of these symptoms is and come up with the best treatment for you.

It is always a good habit to have your menstrual diary to keep track of dates, symptoms, and history of your menstrual cycle. Most of my suggestions on how to stop your period above are just temporary, which means your period is back once you stop using these methods. At this point, you can make use of the diary as a reflection to help double check the first period after the skipped one, and all the following periods as well.

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