16 day period

[blessedwithboys]

Quick synopsis:  I am on about day 15 or 16 of my period.  No cramps, heavy flow.  Blood clots the size of the palm of my hand.  WWYD?

More background:  I began menstruating at age 13 (22 years ago) and was regular from day one.  Even after 2 pregnancies and nursing both babies, when AF came back she stuck to her previous schedule of 28 day cycles, 4-5 days of heavy flow, a 24 hour break, and then one or 2 last days of medium to light flow.  Horrific cramps all throughout.

Then a year or so ago, things changed.  I started having much longer gaps between periods, up to 60 days or so.  I also began having a pain in my right side, low down, that knocked me off my feet a couple of times.  My ovulation cramping got stronger than ever before.

And now things are just weird!  I had a long cycle.  Around the middle of March I had a few light spotty days, then a break, and then the floodgates unleashed.  In the last week, I have stood up several times to feel my Diva Cup give way.  Three times I have had a clot that took up the whole cup.  One looked so bad I dumped it in the bathtub and spread it out with Q-tips.  It was big enough to literally cover the palm of my hand!  (Not that I tried it for real  haha)

I don't have insurance or much money so I go to a local free clinic but they don't do much more than paps.  They already told me a couple months back when I mentioned the pain that I should go to the ER if the pain happens again.  The gyn said it sounded like an ovarian cyst.

Oh, and, no I'm not having a miscarriage.  Havne't had sex in years.

Thanks!

[pattimomma]

This happened to me once. It actually continued for a whole month. I ended up having a D&C to make it stop because I was getting anemic from the blood loss. They sent the contents that were removed from my uterus to pathology and everything checked out normal (no miscarriage or anything). After that my periods went back to normal. I never did know what caused it. The clots freaked me out. I had medicaid cover it. Not sure what to advise you to do.

[blessedwithboys]

Well, I'm still spotting.  Lost count, but I think I'm somewhere around 21 or 22 days.  I called the GYN today and left a detailed message describing my issue and she called back and left a message that she didn't understand what the problem was! 

[lil_miss_understood]

This sounds like your cyst may have burst. I would be seeking medical attention at the ER.

I hope you're ok.

[blessedwithboys]

Day 28, flow got heavier this morning.  Doctor never called back.  It's sucks being poor and having to rely on the free clinic staffed by volunteers who don't know their youknowwhat from their elbow.  I'll be dipping into savings Monday to get an appointment with a real gyn.

[pattimomma]

I know it's not what you wanted to spend your savings on but sometimes you don't have a choice. Keep us posted on what happens.

[akmeg]

Have you considered Adenomyosis?  My mom has had experiences like that, never ending bleeding with clots.  She had to have a few D&C's to stop it.  Good luck, I hope it's resolving itself!  :)

[blessedwithboys]

Hi, thanks for the replies.  I should have come back to update.

I ended up bleeding for 33 days.  It stopped after having an endometrial biopsy, which apparently sucked everything out of the uterus.    The biopsy was clear, no cancer, yay!  So then I had a transvaginal ultrasound, which found a small mass in the uterus.  The doctor said she would have to do surgery to identify what it was but since it's definitely not cancerous, I've decided to hold off on surgery and do some research and maybe contact a naturopathic doctor.

It's been a while and so I've actually had (well, am currently having) a "normal" period.  Not too heavy, no huge clots, and cramps were just mild.  I'm hoping it stops in the next day or so, I can only imagine how much iron I lost after a month of non-stop bleeding.