Jump to content

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Ladies, Did Anyone Notice A Change In Your Menstrual Cycle?

mommyof4

Recommended Posts

mommyof4 Apprentice
mommyof4
Posted

Hi!

I am 7 months post-diagnosis...I'm also 40.

I am getting really sick the day or 2 before my cycle starts. Terrible pain in my left side & back...up most of the night. I had blood work done last week to check thyroid, vitamin levels...about 12 things. Everything is normal. Next week I am doing a "natural" test...urine & saliva to check hormones, adrenal fatigue, etc.

So, my question is, can the trauma on the body from Celiac cause changes in menstrual cycle? I'm not sure how long I was an undiagnosed Celiac.

My other question is one from fear...until I got sick this Fall, I was pretty healthy(so I thought). I have had lots of tests done...MRI's, CT scans, 4 endoscopys(I had a telescoping intestine along with the damage in my intestine). I am trying to be at peace with my body healing. I am getting better, but I still worry that the doctors didn't find everything. I never used to be like this & I don't want to turn into a hypochondriac. Has anyone else experienced fear during this healing process? I especially feel fearful when I have an off day.

By the way...haven't baked with regular flour anymore & am logging food.

Thanks...

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


Little Feather Newbie
Little Feather
Posted

Wow. Just. Wow. I'm newly diagnosed, age 41, and was going to ask the same thing! I definitely notice a change - about 4 days before my cycle starts I feel pain in the area where my Dermatitis Herpetiformis rash :ph34r: "lurks" on my neck. Sometimes the DH will erupt into the rash. My skin gets super itchy all over, my scalp burns on fire, I feel like I'm being pin-pricked a thousand times over and over all night long in different areas, and really bad "brain fog". The worst is the disturbingly heightened sense of smell. It's so bad that I have to avoid all fragranced products at all times!

I don't know if it's changing hormones (pre-menopause), poor nutrition or simply from having Celiac.

I too worry about being labeled hypochondriac. None of my circle has any knowledge of Celiac.. To them I look fine but they don't know how miserable I feel. I also have a fear of being alone because when the DH flares I feel so sick with cognitive symptoms that I can't think well enough to drive my car.

I am comforted to know i'm not alone in this. I was so pleased and relieved to find this forum because I don't feel so isolated. It's a gold mine to me. I hope others will give their insight into this topic.

Christine0125 Contributor
Christine0125
Posted

Wow. Just. Wow. I'm newly diagnosed, age 41, and was going to ask the same thing! I definitely notice a change - about 4 days before my cycle starts I feel pain in the area where my Dermatitis Herpetiformis rash :ph34r: "lurks" on my neck. Sometimes the DH will erupt into the rash. My skin gets super itchy all over, my scalp burns on fire, I feel like I'm being pin-pricked a thousand times over and over all night long in different areas, and really bad "brain fog". The worst is the disturbingly heightened sense of smell. It's so bad that I have to avoid all fragranced products at all times!

I don't know if it's changing hormones (pre-menopause), poor nutrition or simply from having Celiac.

I too worry about being labeled hypochondriac. None of my circle has any knowledge of Celiac.. To them I look fine but they don't know how miserable I feel. I also have a fear of being alone because when the DH flares I feel so sick with cognitive symptoms that I can't think well enough to drive my car.

I am comforted to know i'm not alone in this. I was so pleased and relieved to find this forum because I don't feel so isolated. It's a gold mine to me. I hope others will give their insight into this topic.

I am 40 and recently diagnosed too! Must be a common age for diagnosis. I got terrible headaches and leg cramps during my recent cycle... Never had migraine type symptoms before. While the nausea which was my worst celiac symptom has improved dramatically I seem to be getting a bunch of other aches and pains. Ugh!

RashyA Apprentice
RashyA
Posted

Hi, I'm 25 and and am finally gluten free all the way. My last cycle was a week delayed and lasted like 14 days which never happens. I am usually always on the same day every month so I don't know if it's because of celiac or what. Maybe a celiac pro could answer this?

Cara in Boston Enthusiast
Cara in Boston
Posted

I noticed a change, but it was an improvement. My PMS symptoms got better, but strangely, my lymph nodes under my arms get swollen and painful in the days before. Weird, but after a few months, the pattern has repeated consistently. Not sure if changes are due to my age (45) or being gluten free (1 year).

However, I recently went GRAIN FREE (it was easy since I had already given up all the good stuff like real donuts and brick oven pizza crusts) and I had zero PMS symptoms - I was actually taken by surprise when my cycle started because I had none of the usual "clues." I have read that a low-carb diet can do that so I'm not sure if it is the elimination of all grains or the resulting total lower carbs that did the trick but I'm not complaining.

I felt much better after going gluten free, but I feel absolutely GREAT being grain free.

Cara

sce2012 Newbie
sce2012
Posted

I'm afraid all the time that the docs have mised somehing. I am two and a half mos. gluten free and not sure how much I have improved. I feel like the docs just assume that I am or will improve...same for others around me. This thing is a real beast...

Jetamio Apprentice
Jetamio
Posted

Hi. I'm glad someone posted this. I've noticed my cycle actually improving. My first cycle sans gluten was a little rough and two days early but I had been on tons of antibiotics pre-diagnosis and my doctor said it was normal to be off. Then, I leveled back out to my normal schedule and my PMS has been lots better. I knew my cycle was coming but the backache, cravings and irritability didn't come until my cycle started. Cycle length has been the same. I've heard that going gluten-free can actually help stabilize hormones and I'm hoping so. I'd really like to try for a baby here in the next year to year and a half.

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


Mnicole1981 Enthusiast
Mnicole1981
Posted

Hi!

I am 7 months post-diagnosis...I'm also 40.

I am getting really sick the day or 2 before my cycle starts. Terrible pain in my left side & back...up most of the night. I had blood work done last week to check thyroid, vitamin levels...about 12 things. Everything is normal. Next week I am doing a "natural" test...urine & saliva to check hormones, adrenal fatigue, etc.

So, my question is, can the trauma on the body from Celiac cause changes in menstrual cycle? I'm not sure how long I was an undiagnosed Celiac.

My other question is one from fear...until I got sick this Fall, I was pretty healthy(so I thought). I have had lots of tests done...MRI's, CT scans, 4 endoscopys(I had a telescoping intestine along with the damage in my intestine). I am trying to be at peace with my body healing. I am getting better, but I still worry that the doctors didn't find everything. I never used to be like this & I don't want to turn into a hypochondriac. Has anyone else experienced fear during this healing process? I especially feel fearful when I have an off day.

By the way...haven't baked with regular flour anymore & am logging food.

Thanks...

Do you have nightsweats too??

Sky Aura Newbie
Sky Aura
Posted

Hi, I'm 25 and and am finally gluten free all the way. My last cycle was a week delayed and lasted like 14 days which never happens. I am usually always on the same day every month so I don't know if it's because of celiac or what. Maybe a celiac pro could answer this?

My cycle has been about a week delayed for a few months, and the month before that it was delayed for 3 weeks. I am not a celiac pro, so I hope you get one here who can answer you. I have become gluten intolerant as of two years ago. I get tested for food intolerance every couple years so was fine before then. My periods have been regular all my life other than one time when I was doing a lot of physical activity and under a lot of stress. I'm 43, so it's possibly it's peri-menopausal, but I am in denial about that possibility. ;)

Calmom Apprentice
Calmom
Posted

It was definitely a change for the better for me. By the age of 26 I though I had gone through menopause because I completely stopped having periods. The Dr.s tested me for everything, tried putting me on hormones to try and trigger them ect. I felt like a freak, in some ways it was nice but deep down it frightened me. About two months in to being gluten free I started having periods again. Now almost a year later I am having regular normal periods for the first time since I was around 23. I am currently 32.

I assume it was caused by sever vitamin deficiency.

Rera86 Newbie
Rera86
Posted

I am 25 and recently got diagnosed with celiac, so this is all pretty new to me. I'm trying to get the hang of the gluten free diet. I did notice a change in my menstrual cycle. I have always have very regular cycles with migraines and cramps before I start and this was no different, but the cramps seem to be worse and I have been getting hot flashes which is extremely odd for me considering I keep a jacket in my car all year long! Cara, how hard was it to go completely grain free and is this similar to the paleo type of diet?

Di2011 Enthusiast
Di2011
Posted

Pre Gluten-Free my period was getting worse and worse. Pain, bleeding heavy and often over a week (not my normal), bloating etc. Within a month or two of going gluten free I noticed most of this had stopped. Now, 12 months later it is 2 to 3 days max. No pain, bloating etc. I am 39. I am considering doing a grain free test.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      131,945
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Miyasato
    Newest Member
    Miyasato
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.5k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):


  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Jacki Espo
      Covid caused reoccurrence of DH without eating gluten

      By Jacki Espo · Posted

      This happened to me as well. What’s weirder is that within a couple hours of taking paxlovid it subsided. I thought maybe I got glutened but after reading your post not so sure. 
    • Mari
      New Celiac Mama in My 30s

      By Mari · Posted

      Hi Tiffany. Thank you for writing your dituation and  circumstancesin such detail and so well writte, too. I particularly noticed what you wrote about brain for and feeling like your brain is swelling and I know from my own experiences that's how it feel and your brain really does swell and you get migraines.    Way back when I was in my 20s I read a book by 2 MD allergist and they described their patient who came in complaining that her brain, inside her cranium, was swelling  and it happened when she smelled a certain chemical she used in her home. She kept coming back and insisting her brain actually swelled in her head. The Drs couldn't explain this problem so they, with her permission, performed an operation where they made a small opening through her cranium, exposed her to the chemical then watched as she brain did swell into the opening. The DRs were amazed but then were able to advise her to avoid chemicals that made her brain swell. I remember that because I occasionally had brain fog then but it was not a serious problem. I also realized that I was becoming more sensitive to chemicals I used in my work in medical laboratories. By my mid forties the brain fog and chemicals forced me to leave my  profession and move to a rural area with little pollution. I did not have migraines. I was told a little later that I had a more porous blood brain barrier than other people. Chemicals in the air would go up into my sinused and leak through the blood brain barrier into my brain. We have 2 arteries  in our neck that carry blood with the nutrients and oxygen into the brain. To remove the fluids and used blood from the brain there are only capillaries and no large veins to carry it away so all those fluids ooze out much more slowly than they came in and since the small capillaries can't take care of extra fluid it results in swelling in the face, especially around the eyes. My blood flow into my brain is different from most other people as I have an arterial ischema, adefectiveartery on one side.   I have to go forward about 20 or more years when I learned that I had glaucoma, an eye problem that causes blindness and more years until I learned I had celiac disease.  The eye Dr described my glaucoma as a very slow loss of vision that I wouldn't  notice until had noticeable loss of sight.  I could have my eye pressure checked regularly or it would be best to have the cataracts removed from both eyes. I kept putting off the surgery then just overnight lost most of the vision in my left eye. I thought at the I had been exposed to some chemical and found out a little later the person who livedbehind me was using some chemicals to build kayaks in a shed behind my house. I did not realize the signifance  of this until I started having appointments with a Dr. in a new building. New buildings give me brain fog, loss of balance and other problems I know about this time I experienced visual disturbances very similar to those experienced by people with migraines. I looked further online and read that people with glaucoma can suffer rapid loss of sight if they have silent migraines (no headache). The remedy for migraines is to identify and avoid the triggers. I already know most of my triggers - aromatic chemicals, some cleaning materials, gasoline and exhaust and mold toxins. I am very careful about using cleaning agents using mostly borax and baking powder. Anything that has any fragrance or smell I avoid. There is one brand of dishwashing detergent that I can use and several brands of  scouring powder. I hope you find some of this helpful and useful. I have not seen any evidence that Celiac Disease is involved with migraines or glaucoma. Please come back if you have questions or if what I wrote doesn't make senseto you. We sometimes haveto learn by experience and finding out why we have some problems. Take care.       The report did not mention migraines. 
    • Mari
      My only proof

      By Mari · Posted

      Hi Jmartes71 That is so much like my story! You probably know where Laytonville is and that's where I was living just before my 60th birthday when the new Dr. suggested I could have Celiacs. I didn't go on a gluten challange diet before having the Celiac panel blood test drawn. The results came back as equivical as one antibody level was very high but another, tissue transaminasewas normal. Itdid show I was  allergic to cows milk and I think hot peppers. I immediately went gluten free but did not go in for an endoscopy. I found an online lab online that would do the test to show if I had a main celiac gene (enterolab.com). The report came back that I had inherited a main celiac gene, DQ8, from one parent and a D!6 from the other parent. That combination is knows to sym[tons of celiac worse than just inheriting one main celiac gene. With my version of celiac disease I was mostly constipated but after going gluten-free I would have diarrhea the few times I was glutened either by cross contamination or eating some food containing gluten. I have stayed gluten-free for almost 20 years now and knew within a few days that it was right for me although my recovery has been slow.   When I go to see a  medical provide and tell them I have celiacs they don't believe me. The same when I tell them that I carry a main celiac gene, the DQ8. It is only when I tell them that I get diarrhea after eating gluten that they realize that I might have celiac disease. Then they will order th Vitamin B12 and D3 that I need to monitor as my B12 levels can go down very fast if I'm not taking enough of it. Medical providers haven't been much help in my recovery. They are not well trained in this problem. I really hope this helps ypu. Take care.      
    • knitty kitty
      Does anyone here also have Afib

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      Fascinating.
    • DebJ14
      Does anyone here also have Afib

      By DebJ14 · Posted

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.