How long can there be a delay in menstruation (without pregnancy): with a regular cycle

Menstruation is not just a natural phenomenon for the female body, it is an important part of a woman's life. And if suddenly there is a failure, then any woman has anxiety. Almost every lady is faced with a delay in menstruation. Why is this happening, how critical is it, how long there can be a delay in menstruation and how to fix the situation - read in this article.

What is menstruation

Many women of reproductive age are primarily concerned about the rate of delay in menstruation, as a moment until which you can not worry. To begin with, let's remember what menstruation is in general.

1. To begin with, the menstrual cycle is a cyclical period from the first day of the onset of menstruation to the first day of the next.
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2. Each woman's cycle length may differ from others, it depends on many reasons, but there is still a normal range, which is 21-35 days. The most common cycle, which is characteristic of the bulk of girls, is 28-30 days.
3. Menstruation is a stage in the cycle that is characterized by thick, dark blood secreted from the vagina. It happens that in the secretions of many women, blood clots and lumps are scary. Do not worry, there is no danger in them. These are simply areas of the inner layer of the uterus - the endometrium, which dies off, in the event of unfulfilled conception, and is excreted from the body along with the blood.
4. But, sometimes, for a variety of reasons, there are violations in the work of the female body, as a result of negative exposure does not form an egg, the ovaries stop producing hormones, which can provoke hormonal crash. Then your period may be delayed.

Causes of the failure of the menstrual cycle

The fact is that all the work of the ovaries is under the control of the pituitary gland (the main hormonal gland). It is the pituitary gland that controls all the work of the female reproductive system, especially in conditions when changes in the external environment occur.

It would seem that such ordinary moments of human life as:

1. Overwork associated with stress, increased physical exertion, and even a job change and a new team.
2. The hormonal system goes astray, there is a deviation from the schedule, the permissible delay in menstruation in this case is no more than a week.
3. A sharp change in climate when the temperature, humidity, and the number of sunny days change. All of these factors affect women's health. In such cases, a delay in menstruation within a week should not be scary - this is quite normal.
4. Violation of the quality of nutrition: consumption of fatty, heavy food, and even in excess of any norm, or the other extreme - diets and a half-starved existence can lead to the fact that menstruation is lost enough for a long time, up to a complete disappearance.
5. Smoking, alcohol (for those who do not know: beer is also an alcoholic drink), and tonic drinks not only lead to a delay, but have a destructive effect on the female body.
6. Uncontrolled use of antibiotics or hormonal medications can result in a delay of up to 5 days.
7. Sometimes a delay can occur after severe colds with complications associated with an endocrine system disorder.

Important! Cycle delays after childbirth are completely normal. In this case, menstruation themselves are restored and their delay is not a pathology.

But the delays in the monthly cycle associated with various disorders of the reproductive system require strict medical supervision.

Failure of the female cycle may indicate the presence of serious diseases:

• endocrine system (thyroid gland, ovaries, diabetes mellitus);
• neoplasms in the reproductive system;
• polycystic ovary;
• genitourinary sexually transmitted infections, inflammatory diseases;
• various disorders in the work of the kidneys and liver.

Important! If menstruation is normal, while the discharge of the usual intensity remains, but for a long time, then they come much earlier, then they are thoroughly delayed, it is necessary to undergo an examination at specialist.

Amenorrhea

Disorder of the menstrual cycle in women aged 16–45 years, in which the maximum delay in menstruation can last from six months or more, is called amenorrhea.

Such dysfunction of the female body is not a disease in itself, but a reaction to various kinds of genetic, physiological, psychoemotional disorders.

Categories of amenorrhea

Amenorrhea in gynecology is divided into 2 categories: false and true.

1. With false amenorrhea, all functions of the cycle, with the exception of the excretory, work. That is, preparation for pregnancy occurs, the egg matures, and some anatomical barrier prevents bleeding from the vagina. These are congenital malformations of the genital organs: atresia of the vagina, cervix or hymen. Menstrual blood does not come out, but accumulates in the uterine cavity, in the tubes or in the vagina. In this case, pregnancy is even possible.
2. With true amenorrhea, there are no cyclical processes in which it prepares for conception: there is no ovulation phase, pregnancy in this case is impossible.

Important! True amenorrhea, depending on its causes, is divided into pathological and physiological.

Physiological amenorrhea is not a painful phenomenon associated with pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding. Or age moments when the cycle should not be (childhood) or should not be (menopause).

Anxiety is caused by pathological amenorrhea, which indicates functional disorders of the female body. If menstruation does not occur immediately from adolescence, amenorrhea is primary. And if menstruation has stopped during life - secondary.

What can be considered a delay

The normal interval between periods is 21 to 35 days maximum. For all women, the average frequency should be 2-3 days, that is, for one woman 21-24 days, 26-29 days for another, and some 32-35 days. If the same girl had her period after 21 days, and next month after 35 days, this is already abnormal, despite the fact that in the general picture, the terms fit within the normal range.

It is believed that a delay in menstruation with a regular cycle in a healthy woman is normal, when menstruation comes no later than 7 days, provided there is no pregnancy. But a greater delay is also not necessarily a pathological process.
A delay is the absence of a periodicity of bleeding at a given time. This disorder has a different duration for each woman. Already in itself, the appearance of such problems should alert and force you to undergo an examination in a medical institution.

Maximum delay

Let us consider those few cases in which they are not a pathology of delaying critical days for long periods. There are very few such facts, let us list them.

1. The longest period for how much a delay in menstruation is allowed without the presence of pathology, depends on the onset of pregnancy and breastfeeding. Menstruation may be absent not only during pregnancy, but also for the entire period while the mother is breastfeeding the baby. Since it is during this period that the woman's body produces the hormone prolactin, the main property of which is to block the formation of an egg ready for fertilization. This stops the entire menstrual cycle: there is no ovulation, the endometrial layer does not thicken, bleeding stops. But as soon as mom stops regularly feeding her baby with breast milk, the delay goes away.
2. The climacteric period in women 40-55 years old, when the menstrual cycle gets lost, the delay can last first more than a month, then two, then, comes less and less, and finally - the absence of menstruation.

If the age is far from pre-retirement, and the cycle irregularities are more than a week, then you need to see a doctor. In this case, the specialist will prescribe examinations: it will be necessary to pass tests for the absence of infections, inflammations, and conduct an ultrasound scan. Only on the basis of all these indicators will you be given a final diagnosis.

Reasons for the delay

Why menstruation doesn't goif the test is negative? Many ladies are most worried about the question of how long menstruation can be delayed without pregnancy, how much you can not panic and not be nervous.

Gynecologists consider a normal delay period without the presence of pathologies per week.

The delays can be due to gynecological disorders or to reasons related to the woman's lifestyle.

Gynecological reasons affecting the delay in menstruation:

• polycystic ovary;
• uterine fibroids;
• endometriosis;
• abortion or miscarriage.

All these diseases affect the violation of the hormonal background of a woman, the maturation of the egg and the ovulation process.
The delay can also be observed after the installation of the spiral or after taking the pills.

Attention! The body after an abortion is under tremendous stress to restore the monthly cycle, adaptation after such an operation can last for many months.

For reasons related to a woman's lifestyle, in addition to those listed earlier: nervous stress, increased physical exertion and improper nutrition, there are a few more that are worth mention:

1. The girl's weight should not be less than 45 kilograms, otherwise the protective function of the body will work, when he puts all his energy into preserving nutrients for survival, not for bearing fetus.
2. Poisoning of the body with drugs and due to a negatively tuned environment.
3. Genetic predisposition.

Contraceptives

Taking contraceptives will help not only avoid unwanted pregnancy, but also reduce the menstrual cycle to normal, and cure gynecological diseases.

There are a lot of contraceptive pills, but when choosing them at the pharmacy, rely not on the advice of friends, but on the advice of a gynecologist.

Only a doctor, after examining the state of the body, taking into account age, will select the necessary drugs and calculate the required dosage.

The gynecologist offers several types of drugs to choose from, and the patient already chooses herself, based on factors such as:

• price;
• manufacturer's reliability;
• safety and effectiveness of use.

For nulliparous girls, they are most often prescribed:

Tri-regol

It belongs to the combined type. The manufacturer introduced natural hormones into its composition. The basis of the activity is to slow down the development of the follicle and prevent the maturation of the egg. The drug does not cause weight gain, effectively prevents pregnancy, reduces pain during menstruation. A side effect is nausea.

Triquilar

Contains a low amount of hormones, it is always applied at the same time. Does not contribute to weight gain, helps in the treatment of some of the female diseases. Reduces the number of bleeding days to the minimum. Reduces the soreness of critical days. Relieves PMS symptoms. The only drawback is a strong decrease in sex drive while taking the pills.

Mercilon

The drug is practically without flaws, containing a minimum amount of hormones. Tied to time. Efficiency is confirmed by numerous reviews of girls. Taking pills does not affect weight, maintains a constant cycle, and does not reduce the level of libido.

For women who have given birth, drugs are suitable:

Minisiston

A reliable contraceptive drug that brings the menstrual cycle back to normal. Not indicated for women who smoke and breastfeeding mothers. Side effects when taking it: shortness of breath, weight gain, swelling, blood clots in the legs.

Silest

An effective therapeutic hormonal drug: migraines, dizziness disappear, the cycle is restored. You can not be afraid to get better when you take it.

Jess Plus

An effective drug for preventing pregnancy and treating endometriosis. The only drawback of this drug is a slight decrease in libido.

Drugs used for delayed menstruation:

With a delay in menstruation, in order to restore and normalize the menstrual cycle, effective drugs for oral administration are prescribed.

It should be noted that these drugs are not for permanent use.

How much should they be used if the delay in menstruation does not exceed the norm of 7 days?

The drug, Postinor, is admissible for taking no more than 5 days. This is a drug called emergency contraception. It can be used only with a regular cycle and only once every six months. This drug is a quick assistant if a woman did not have time to use another contraceptive. If you extend its use for a longer period, you can achieve infertility.

On many forums, newly minted moms claim that they took contraception and did not could become pregnant immediately after the end of their intake, mention the risk of having a large fetus, or even twins.

Delay surveys

The female body, with regular menstruation, is incredibly rare. Every woman should know that a delay of 7 days is the norm.

If the bleeding is 10 days behind on schedule, or you endured it when the monthly delay is more than a month, you just need to visit a doctor. Anything can affect changes in the duration of the cycle: from such nonsense as a change in the weather, and ending with oncology.

Let's get ready for an appointment with a doctor, find out what examinations are carried out in such cases:

1. If there is a delay before the doctor's appointment, home testing is carried out.
2. Blood test for hormones.
3. Ultrasound of the pelvic organs to exclude an ectopic pregnancy.

In case of special doubts, additional laboratory tests are carried out;

• colposcopy;
• CT scan.

Important! In case of a delay, the examination without fail begins with a blood test to assess hormones, smears for the presence of genitourinary infections, histological examination of the mucous layer of the uterus and ultrasound.

Already at the first stages of the examination, the doctor becomes clear about the problem that has arisen and he prescribes effective treatment.

What to do if there is a delay

The greatest delay in menstruation, which does not require a visit to the doctor, is the postpartum period when breastfeeding the baby, and the period of the onset of menopause in older women.

In other cases, if the delay lasts more than a week, you need to do a home pregnancy test and go to the doctor. Only a specialist and no one else can determine where your critical days have gone and what kind of treatment you need.

Now the Internet is replete with grandmother's advice on how to induce menstruation and claims that these funds are safer than pills.

Do not go on about such beliefs, do not endanger your life. The female body is very capricious, it does not tolerate neglect of itself.