Period Happening Twice in One W30 Round

[heyap]

I've tried to find a similar situation in the forum under different titles but so far I have not seen anything that applies to my situation ... sorry if this is a repeat!

I am on birth control (the pill) and I just finished my "period week" as usual. I had extremely intense cramping and it was much heavier than I can ever recall it being since I started the pill several years ago. From the forums, I had kind of figured this was a result of the dramatic change in my diet (this is my first Whole30). I tried to be vigilant about eating plated fats in order to help the cramping/bloating because that was one area I felt I was slacking in, though this usually came in the form of avocados or almond butter.

Unfortunately, I missed taking my pill at my normal evening time one night, so I wound up taking it the next afternoon. However, this slight lapse triggered another full blown period, with slightly less severe cramping. But I still feel extremely bloated. (Ordinarily, if I missed a pill and took it as soon as I remembered, I would be okay. Not the case on Whole30...) 

Has this happened to anyone else? Did the second period eventually end? I still have another three weeks of my active pills and I'd really hate to have my period for a full month. Thought I'd reach out here before calling my doctor. 

[ladyshanny]

No one here is a dr so if you're worried, see your physician. That said, a hormone fluctuation is common on Whole30. While there might not be forum threads exactly called "had period, missed pill, got period again", there are lots that discuss how these hormonal changes can affect the menstrual cycle. If you go and read through a few of the threads on the first couple pages of the Ladies Only section, I suspect you'll be able to glean quite a bit of useful information even though it isn't exactly matching your issue.

[heyap]

I HAVE been looking through the Ladies Only section, as I stated that I couldn't find an issue there that was quite similar to the issue I was looking for. Thank you so much for your personal and polite response. I'll be sure to reach out to a doctor since this is the type of response I'll be finding on the forum.

[ladyshanny]

I'm sorry you felt I wasn't polite. I'm not sure which part of my post read as impolite but that wasn't the intent.

The trouble is, your situation isn't unique. I mean that in the most respectful way. There is one way for the human body to go through a menstrual cycle. There are certain things that have to happen to create a period. These are all conveyed on chemical messengers called hormones. Artificial hormones like birth control only serve to disrupt the natural signals. Then, when we clean up our diet, get our meal timing in order, stop eating things that also mess with hormones, the artificial hormones that are trying to control the show get overtaken by floods of hormonal imbalances, thus sometimes creating a period. Maybe you just had it two days ago but if you experienced a progesterone drop because of Whole30 (common!), you'll get your period whether you're on birth control or not.

Do you see why it's not necessary to find a story super similar to yours in detail? Because the mechanics are the same for everyone. People getting their periods 2 weeks early (ultimately a week after they just had it), people spotting mid-cycle, getting their period while taking birth control or having an implant. Bleeding out when they don't normally bleed much at all. Killer cramps when they normally coast through. It's all period disruption because of hormonal fluctuation and period disruption is exactly what you're experiencing.

I've linked two of the more relevant threads from the first page of the Ladies Only section: