First W30...Early Period

[wildokie]

I'm currently on day 22 of my first W30, and I'm loving it! However, I woke up to a surprise this morning when I discovered that my period had started 3 days early. After years of having a 28-day cycle as reliable as the German train system, this seems to be a clear indication that something is shifting. I'm interested in hearing from any of you that have had something similar happen. Did your cycle remain shortened, or was it only temporary? Me and my husband are trying to have a baby so I'm especially interested in what this could mean for my fertility. Thanks! 

[Staggolee41]

I have been reliably early for over 10 years and was actually late during my Whole30. I know they caution that the changes being made can cause weird period occurrences, and I've seen multiple accounts of the plan enhancing fertility for couples who had been trying a while. Might want to talk to your doctor about the impact of this diet on fertility if you're planning on keeping some of the changes.

[wildokie]

That's interesting! I would consult my doctor about this, but unfortunately she's more interested in fertility meds than a holistic diet approach. Either way, I feel like eating a nutrient dense diet like this can only help.

[Staggolee41]

I have known women who were told to add fat to their diets to make their bodies more ready to support a second life form, and this plan is heavy on fat (in a good way). So... it wouldn't surprise me if the added fat and overall better health resulted in a better starting place for pregnancy.

[bjyoung116]

I just came across this post because the same thing happened to me this morning.  I'm about 5 days early.  I'm on day 10, and I think the added fat and overall real food has maybe regulated things more. 

[saraip]

@bjyoung116 I also woke up this morning (Day 25) with a 10 day early period!  Hmmm...strange!  How are you feeling now?  Was there other strange symptoms besides it was early?

[bjyoung116]

@saraip I suppose the only "strange" symptoms was that this was the easiest period I've had in a long time! Not as heavy and I didn't get horribly emotional right before like I usually do. I'm only 34 and there was a point when I thought I had perimenopause because of how hormonal I was! 

[saraip]

@bjyoung116 Thanks for your note!  What I thought was my period is actually just spotting...hmmm...still going - very light but like you said, no crazy emotions which is good for EVERYONE involved.  Also, no breast soreness at all this month

[bjyoung116]

@saraip

Yay you! We'll take what we can get! LOL! My husband even noticed I was not as emotional! LOL 

I've also dealt with spotting and from everything I read it seemed attributed to our hormones realigning and our bodies getting used to everything.  WIthin a month or two everything is back to normal. 

[Sarah_MT]

@saraip & @bjyoung116 you can add me to the list as well.  Was surprised just this afternoon at work.  Thank goodness I always keep a stash on hand!  Very light though, might be spotting as well.  We'll have to see, it's about 6 days early.

[Cheshire Cheetah]

I've always had a long cycle (35-40 days between each period), but on my first Whole30 a year ago I was surprised by it arriving 2 weeks early. Granted, I am still a teen, but after that Whole30 I went back to my crappy way of eating, and my long cycle and painful cramps return. I am now back to a mostly Whole30 (took me almost a year), and I'll share my results when my "monthly visitor" arrives.

[Uni_corndog0625]

I've started doing a bit of research, as I have been on birth control for 10 years(28 day cycle) and I am on day 19 of the diet.  I started spotting yesterday, which is about 9-10 days early for me(cramps being a bit more of a nuisance for me than a typical normal cycle).  From the bit of reading I've done online, I've heard a lot about estrogen being stored in fat cells, and when the fat cells are being "burned" that estrogen is released in the the system, causing unusual cycles.  Is this true?  (It certainly did seem fascinating)

[porshathomas]

Hello! Yesterday was my first full day of Whole30 and this morning, I am definitely spotting. I'm not on birth control and have only spotted in the past when I've missed pills. I use Eve to track my cycle and after this morning, I checked the app to find that my cycle is 9 days away. I'm also experiencing light cramps. From what I've read here, it looks like starting this number of days or less before your regular cycle is a thing with Whole30, but I guess I'm just surprised it's happening so soon after beginning the program! Perhaps it has more to do with where I am in my cycle than how long I've been doing Whole30? Any insight you guys can offer on this would be lovely! Thanks.

[praxisproject]

I asked a doc about this a few years back, and this was his theory:

If your body works out it's healthier now than before and you're not pregnant, it knows it can grow a healthier baby by starting from scratch.

While there may be more to it than that, makes sense.

[RandiW]

So I'm a bit late to this thread, but I work with a lot of women who are TTC as an acupuncturist. Often the first month of acupuncture weird things happen with their cycle. Early periods, late periods, early ovulation, late ovulation, heavy periods when before they were light and vice versa. I always see this as a good thing. Things are moving, things are shaking themselves up. If you were taking some time to conceive and something shifted, then that's good because you weren't making progress where you were. My experience is that people usually go back to their "typical" cycle after 1 or 2 cycles and unless they are more serious issues, conceive within the next couple months. Just my two cents.

[ldrolling]

Just coming to this conversation now. My cycle had always been 28 days, like clockwork. I never had to track it because I would just know it was coming and bam. In the past few years since having my son it's been slowly getting shorter and shorter, to the point where it's typically about 3 weeks between, but not consistent. Hugely emotional before, bad cramps which were never an issue for me before, and all that jazz. I started Whole 30 on the 5th and the next night got my period. It lasted a day longer, but I wasn't as emotional or cranky. I felt pretty good actually. And way less cramping than I had been getting. It'll be interesting to see if things regulate back to my old cycle over time.

[alidog819]

Getting in on this convo...I was on day 10 when my period came about 2 weeks early. I'm on birth control and my period has been reliable and like clock work for 20 years. I called my gyn. before I realized it may be the whole 30. also, my belly (or intestines?) is "rolling" inside. It seriously feels like baby kicks  and I can feel it on the outside when I put my hand on it (this just started today, day 13 whole 30). no, it's not a baby. ;-) I'm waiting for my doc to call back and I will definitely mention the whole 30. I'll report back! 

[Barbaragordon]

On Saturday, January 14, 2017 at 4:05 PM, alidog819 said:

Getting in on this convo...I was on day 10 when my period came about 2 weeks early. I'm on birth control and my period has been reliable and like clock work for 20 years. I called my gyn. before I realized it may be the whole 30. also, my belly (or intestines?) is "rolling" inside. It seriously feels like baby kicks  and I can feel it on the outside when I put my hand on it (this just started today, day 13 whole 30). no, it's not a baby. ;-) I'm waiting for my doc to call back and I will definitely mention the whole 30. I'll report back! 

Yes please share what your doctor has to say. I am also on birth control and have always had periods exactly on schedule as the pill intends. However, about a week into this whole30 I have started my period about a week and a half early and it is lasting longer than a normal period does for me. Curious if melissa hartwig has ever acknowledged this to be a side effect of whole30 and if it is ok?

[Alch3millaNurs3]

I'm interested to hear what happens as well, @alidog819. I'm on just day 3 of my whole 30, but had started cutting some things the week before to make it easier on my body. It started slow, but I've been spotting/bleeding since day 1 (I had cut added sugar and dairy, and limited grains for the week prior). I'm on hormonal birth control and usually have a very predictable, pms-free period. I'm doing the whole30 to help with my mental health more than anything, so it feels kind of sucky that I'm experiencing crazy mood swings in the first few days. I'm trying to see if there's anything to be done about the extra bleeding, or if we just sort of have to ride it out?

[Torsaporsa]

Curious about this as well. I am on day 9, and had some spotting last night that really freaked me and my husband out! My period isn't due for another week so my first fear was implantation spotting. I am on birth control but got a little off track when I had a stomach bug earlier this month. We have only been married 2 months and are NOT ready for a baby so I'm really hoping this is whole 30 related. 

[alidog819]

Talk to my doctor and she said to first take a pregnancy test -- I did and it was negative. She said the old standard "a change in diet and/or exercise regime can cause this." She said as long as I was still taking the pill at the same time everyday, ovulation would not occur. If this happens to you, take a pregnancy test! If it's negative, it's probably Whole 30 related. :-)

[hales.eats]

Just wondering if anyone else has experienced an early period with PCOS on Whole30? I am on day 5 and started spotting, with my PCOS things can be off but i have not experienced an early period in quite some time... any other PCOS girls out there?

[Whole30Peach]

I'm so glad to read this! I'm on day 20 of my first W30 and I am on birth control. Yesterday, my period came on heavy! It's the worst one I've had since before I went on the pill. Periods like this are the reason I went on the pill. If it's a side effect of whole30, then I can deal with it, but I hope it's not something that is going to continue! I can barely leave the house for any extended period of time. 

[yogajen]

I was just coming here to post the same question!

I am also on the pill and my period was not due until tomorrow. I started spotting last Tuesday, a week early, very lightly. I was also having sharp twinges of pain on the left side the wsy I used to during ovulation when I was not on the pill. The spotting stayed very light until about Saturday when it started to be like a light period, though it is still darkish old looking blood. I have had my usual mild, but annoying period cramps since Friday. 

I suppose tomorrow I will have my full period like I am supposed to.

I plan to keep mostly on a Whole30 plan after my 30 days is up. (today is day 15) I hope this doesn't happen again next month because I am going on vacation somewhere warm and want to enjoy the beach without having to feel uncomfortable and want to stay near a bathroom. Based on the timing, it would happen on the very first day of vacation. Boooo.

[DebraW502]

Here's one for you. I'm R2D24. I'm 55 years old, and seem to still be in perimenopause. I had heavy, but still regular periods until my first Whole30 round last May. Things were confusing through that round, and after reintros, and resuming some of my old habits, no period until December. I had a short cycle after starting my 2nd Whole30 round with plenty of nipple soreness preceding the period, then a heavy period. Soreness, never went away, and now it seems like I'm ovulating (light spotting) with some cramping. Very confusing now! Sure seems like my hormones are crazy! I had a regular annual gyn exam in December so I'm thinking I just ride this out for another month or two and see what happens? Any older gals out there having experiences like this?