Periods (hate them)

[Salman67]

Hello everyone,

I went through a lot posts to find something that i was looking for but couldn't find it or maybe i am turning blind now.

I had a questions in regards to periods (hate that with passion). Now i did read online that once you use "T" within some months (4-6) your period will stop but since i am way far from t and all the other things i was wondering what are some other things that you could do to reduce or end period.
I know medically there are alot of stuff but i am not looking into that. I tried working out alot but still i get my period even though i play sports/bike/go to the gym about 4 to 5 days a week but still i get my period for about 5 to 6 days. I know that it is important to get that every month but it just feels so wrong, i would rather have cancer then to get my period again.

In those 5 to 6 days i hate myself and just want to die and i cannot look at my self in the mirror. I feel sooooo ashamed of myself and of course i usually cannot fall asleep.

Are there other things that i could do to reduce my period or at least get it maybe every 2 or 3 months instead of every month.   

[DriftingCrow]

There's really no practical way to stop your period without having a medical procedure or taking medications. You should talk to a doctor, maybe you can get on birth control which may help lessen symptoms or see if you qualify for a procedure.

Intense exercise with a restricted caloric diet can stop your periods, but starving yourself isn't healthy. The period only really stops is because there's not enough calories to allow the body to menstruate/get pregnant. Sometimes exercising can create a hormonal imbalance, but that's likely just going to cause a screw up in your cycle. I am sure some people will say I am wrong, and that you can just exercise it away without severely restricting your diet, and maybe they're right, I am not a doctor, but many girls I've seen in my own life didn't eat nearly enough for the amount of exercise they did and that's what caused their periods to stop. So, yeah, think of Valeria Levitin if you're going to try to exercise your periods away.

Insideontheoutside posted a link awhile ago on Qi Quong's Deer Pose which said some women in China have been using to stop periods and pregnancy, but yeah, you need to do it every day for months before it actually starts to have an affect. I haven't heard much else about it, since I don't think many people really have that much dedication.

Before getting on T, you should try to just focus on making periods easier:
-Taking something like asprin can help lessen the flow a bit
-Try using a menstrual cup, you can't feel them, its reusable so you won't have the shame of going to the store and buying sanitary products, and it'll save you money overall
-I hear drinking a lot of water can help lessen the flow

[Salman67]

Thank you for the information i know that down the road i have to get it stopped forever because it just feels so wrong when i get it.

Thanks for those tips, i will try them

[Jack_M]

Watch the birth control option.  Birth control = increasing female hormones which is the absolute opposite of what you want!

There's no real cheap or safe way to stop periods, I'm afraid, even on birth control pills, you go on placebos to allow shark week to happen.  And it's also medical intervention that you say you don't want.  If you get an implant then it can stop them (not always completely though) but again, do you really want more feminising hormones right now?  The idea of that makes me sick to my stomach but maybe you could handle it, I don't know.  Just talk to a doctor who knows that you eventually want to be on T and don't just find any random doctor and tell them you want to go on the pill.  I highly doubt you'd qualify for any procedures either.  Ablation is an option but it's expensive and not as good as a hysto.  Getting a hysto would be quite the challenge and is quite a radical response to not wanting periods so it's doubtful you'd qualify for that.  There's always blockers but they're also very expensive and ideally you'd rather be on T so it's probably not an option if you say you can't be on T yet. 

It all depends on your age too (don't reveal age if you're a minor).  If you are a minor then most options above wouldn't be available other than possibly birth control but then that's dependent on where you live.

So if you don't want, nor qualify for medical procedures, then there's really nothing.

Exercising and/or starving yourself to get rid of periods is a deadly mistake.  Anyone who loses their period this way is very unwell and needs to see a doctor ASAP, so please don't go that route.

To be honest, it's really an unnecessary evil for now, but have hope that one day it will end.

[AdamMLP]

Before getting on T, you should try to just focus on making periods easier:
-Taking something like asprin can help lessen the flow a bit

That is a bad idea.  Asprin is a blood thinner.  It can make the blood flow heavier, and make them longer.

[musicofthenight]

+1 for not exercising your menses away.  That works by dropping your luteinizing hormone far lower than it should be.  LH is a sex-hormone, but it's not a sex-specific sex hormone.  It signals that your body has enough energy for reproduction, regeneration, and growth.   

Insufficient LH and you're at a big risk for osteoporosis and stress fractures, not gaining or losing muscle mass, depressed mood, poor immune system response, etc. etc.  Not good.

(I've been suffering from poor mood, weight loss, etc for a while now.  Male-bodied and yes T and LH are two hormones my doc's having checked.)

[mm]

This is such a great topic. I hate mine too and want it to stop ASAP.  I have cramps today so mine will start tomorrow I know.  I don't want to take any female hormones so almost everything that a dr can give you for pain or to stop them is a hormone which I don't want to try.  I use tampons which work best for me, nothing is see or feel like pads and can still wear boxers.  I looked at these menstrual cups but could never feel around in my parts to get one in and out so that is out for me. With tampons after the first day I simply put one in and forget I have it until I have to change. This is what I will do until I have the money and can find a trans friend surgeon to have all the parts taken out.

[DriftingCrow]

That is a bad idea.  Asprin is a blood thinner.  It can make the blood flow heavier, and make them longer.

it seems contradictory, but thats what a doctor told me to do.

[AdamMLP]

it seems contradictory, but thats what a doctor told me to do.

One doctor vs many sources on the internet and common sense.  Try it if you want, but I'd not recommend it.

[DriftingCrow]

One doctor vs many sources on the internet and common sense.  Try it if you want, but I'd not recommend it.

Thanks for mentioning common sense, I often go by the assumption that no one in their right mind would just go ahead and say "some random person on a forum said "XYZ btw I am not a doctor" and go do it. I'd hope the original poster looked online and/or spoke with their own doctor before doing anything I'd suggest. 

(and, I don't take anything during my period, a bit of suffering now and then is good for you IMO  )

[spacerace]

What helps me is to just try to think of it as a wound that needs a bandage changed frequently. I pretty much sequester myself for the duration of it - I can't even handle tampons; I can't imagine trying to deal with that cup.

[Mosaic dude]

I can't imagine trying to deal with that cup.

+1 to that.  If I tried using one of those I think I'd be sick.

Sorry Salman67, there's no way to get rid of periods without medical intervention.   You can try a progesterone only pill, which doesn't have feminizing properties like estrogen does and deals with your period pretty well, but for the love of Odin don't make the mistake I made and try estrogen pills.  They made me very sick and my boobs grew 3 cup sizes.

[DriftingCrow]

While cups are clearly not for everyone, I think people who aren't going to go on T for awhile and who already use tampons should at least consider trying one. They're not as gross or hard to use as you might think. Also, especially during the lighter days, you don't need to change it as often as you would a tampon or a liner. For guys who might not want to deal with it on heavy days, you can just use a tampon/pads then, and then use the cup on the lighter days when you can leave it there all day (. . . or two --it's really easy to forget about them) and not have to worry about TSS or cotton drying up in you.

Here's an interesting article for anyone thinking of giving one a shot.

[Salman67]

Thanks for the info...i guess i have to wait and see what i will do if i wont go on T
Right now the good thing i that i dont get pain or cramps (thank god) but still the fact that i het them and have to use stupid pads ughhhhhhh
I still hope that one day i wake up in the morning and i am in te right body no boobs no v n no stupid periods until then i guess i have to deal with this mess

Oh BTW the best thing for cramps is advil; my sister gets really bad cramps and the ony thing that works fast for her is advil just in case anyone hasnt tried advil yet for their period cramps

[Kei22]

I was thking on getting a cup but the possibility of that thing overflowing just gives me the creeps.

Also i was thinking that you don't have ti wash it every time,just by taking a wet paper towel before going to the stall or carrying a little packet of alcohol wipes*the little square ones* msy also be good,only wipe it and its all.

And,if you alreafy fiddle around with a tanpon,why not a cup?...

I dont use tanpons,personally i think that's disgusting......a cup also is nasty but that blood won't go anywhere near your body once you clean the thing. Which you can take out in the shower at night and wash it good with soap and warm water.

For me,Flo week its just...there. i have never really care,i just don't like it.

[musicofthenight]

My mother swears by ibuprofen.

Sooo, I'm not comfortable linking this conversation because it's from an 18+ forum, but I know of at least one guy who recommends the Diva Cup specifically, and a bunch of cis-women who like cups and natural sponges.

One has worn her cup for two days because it's comfortable enough to forget about.  (Not recommended, by the way.)  Another says that hers doesn't leak, even during sex. 

Alcohol and soap can cause yeast infections.  Water, maybe vinegar to clean; boiling will kill any bugs.   The kind of silicone they use is really easy to clean.  It's pretty much non-stick.  (I do have first-hand experience with the material, for other products.)

[DriftingCrow]

Cups usually come with a sample cleaning solution, which you can order more of. Though you can clean with a vinegar solution, or dip in boiling water (that's what the directions on mine says to do before and after your period).

[Kei22]

Yes but that's after. How can one clean it easily in a bathroom break? Or when you have to empty it. Taking a damp paper towel sounds best....

I use three pads per day. One at morning,another during the afternoon and one at night when i sleep.

[YBtheOutlaw]

thats the most disgusting part of having to dwell in a female body. yuck. even reading through these posts made me cringe. btw, i havent seen tampons or cups in the town i live, so i have to go with pads. i hate seeing packs of them in my cupboard, so i hide them deep among my clothes. i dont even wear them on lighter days. having to wash the underwear later is quite gross, but its better than the feel of a pad there and being aware that i have periods every second of the day.
anyways the above should go in past tense cos i havent had periods for a few months now and god knows why. (im not on t) i know its bad but i really dont want to go to a doctor to fix it. im quite better off without it and i dont want to explain about female parts of my body to anyone, not even a doctor. kinda scared though. wish it stays the way it is.

[BeefxCake]

I am one of the lucky few who hardly has a period. I have pcos, so they are random but they've sort of regulated out to be about once every 4-5 weeks. I know it should be every 28 days but i used to be on the pill and i hated it. so i went off it. mine are very light and i don't cramp.

but i also work out a bit, i lift weights plenty and walk a lot so perhaps the small boost in my t levels from the pcos and exercise has made them like this. also i remember being ont he pill and it made my boobs bigger, more than likely cuz the hormones but since i've been off of it they're back to being small a's.

perhaps it's a little to much info but i also get a bit of hair on my chest and I have a faint happy trail going from my bellybutton down. note i am a ginger. im super pale, the fact i can see these hairs baffles me a bit.