Spotting After Period
A Quick Guide to Spotting after Period
Spotting after period is a condition that usually happens to every woman sometime in her teen or adult life. It happens to many women frequently and for the most part, is not anything to worry about. Hormones can bring on all types of changes in a woman’s body.
Spotting after period or in-between periods makes a lot of women nervous and many immediately think that something must be wrong. This is especially true if you have had a normal period for many years and then you start spotting after period for the first time. If you are still a teenager, it is even more common for there to be spotting. Sometimes young women do not gain regularity in their periods for several years.
It is not uncommon for the spotting after period to be brown and to be very light. When blood is brown, it means that it is older blood that just didn’t make it out during your last period. If this happens occasionally, there is probably no problem at all but if it starts happening very consistently, you should be examined by a medical professional to make sure that everything is OK.
You should also visit a medical professional if the spotting after period is bright red and if it starts to be heavy. There are many reasons for spotting and flow in-between periods. Some are normal and some are not. Sometimes this type of bleeding can be caused by a cyst in the ovary or uterus that needs to be removed. It could be a larger problem that might mean ultimately having a partial or complete hysterectomy.
Sometimes a procedure known as a D & C can be performed and the bleeding can be stopped. The formal name is dilatation (D) and curettage (C), which is a widening of the cervix that will allow an instrument into the uterus for curettage, a scraping of the walls of the uterus. This is a procedure that is often done to treat heavy menstrual bleeding, irregular periods, to remove tissue after a miscarriage, diagnose uterine cancer and other conditions. The procedure is usually done under general anesthesia.
If you have spotting after period, the technical name for it is metrorrhagia. Make sure the blood really is coming from the vagina and not from your rectum or blood from urination. Some common causes of spotting after period include fluctuations in hormones, thyroid levels which are low, stress, beginning or stopping the use of oral contraceptives or estrogen, use of IUDs, medications, Gyn procedures, injury, cancer or other illnesses.
Spotting or any type of vaginal bleeding can be a problem for women who are pregnant or women who have gone through menopause and who have been over a year without a period. If you fall into one of these categories, get checked out by a gynecologist right away. And, remember that every woman should see a gynecologist at least once a year for an annual exam.
One of the reasons it is always good to write down your menstrual dates is so you know right away at what stage you are at in your monthly cycle. Keeping a journal and writing down things such as spotting after period can give your doctor more information to work with in determining if something may be wrong or not.
Spotting can occur with some contraceptive methods, such as an intrauterine implant or a birth-control shot. If you take the “pill” for birth control and miss a dose, vaginal spotting can also occur.
Play it safe with spotting after period. If the blood is brown or if it happens very occasionally, there is most likely no problem. If other conditions are present and/or the blood is bright red, see a medical professional to make sure everything is O.K.