Dr Hive: At what point would you contact Missing Persons after Aunt Flo doesn't show up for her visit?

[luuknam]

I hate Aunt Flo.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Depends.  Are you regular as clockwork and this is the first anomaly in your life after mensturation started?  Then I would make an appt. to see the doctor if it didn't happen the next month.  Are you normally hit and miss or perhaps just not regular on timing?  Then I would make an appt. to see the doctor if it didn't happen in a couple of months.  Either way, I think I'd wait a month.  If there was pain or other problems then I would go in sooner.  

[Jean in Newcastle]

PS - perimenopause can start in the 30's.  

[SparklyUnicorn]

I think it's too soon to throw a party that she has finally left for good, but otherwise I wouldn't contact the authorities probably ever for that.  LOL

 

 

[EKS]

What do you mean by "missing persons"?  If you mean a pregnancy test--then ASAP.  If you mean the doctor, then maybe a month or so.

[Guest]

I'd give it a good three to four weeks before calling in and talking with a nurse about it. That's if there was zero period.m any spotting I'd count as a weird, light period and not worry unless it happened again, but no PMD symptoms and totally MIA for no good reason I'd give it at least three weeks just in case it was late. Dieting can be a cause, as can stress and poor sleep.

[Tsuga]

I think it's too soon to throw a party that she has finally left for good, but otherwise I wouldn't contact the authorities probably ever for that.  LOL

 

While usually benign, can be a sign of uterine cancer or other serious issues. You really should contact the authorities at some point.

 

I'd wait until it had been 8 weeks since I last saw her.

[SparklyUnicorn]

While usually benign, can be a sign of uterine cancer or other serious issues. You really should contact the authorities at some point.

 

I'd wait until it had been 8 weeks since I last saw her.

 

Yeah I suppose it would be questionable if it stopped abruptly with no other warning signs leading up to it. I've just been having signs for what seems forever.  So I would not be surprised. 

[carriede]

I had a lot of dental work done once. Nothing painful and I wasn't really concerned about it, from a mental standpoint. But my body was stressed enough to skip a cycle.

 

Any hidden or sudden stress or sickness lately?

[luuknam]

So, to answer the questions:

 

By missing persons I meant the doctor. That's why I said that we're assuming Aunt Flo isn't on pregnancy leave.

 

My Aunt Flo has always been kind of flaky but since high school she's always shown up every 5-8 weeks (she's 10 days over the 8 week mark right now).

 

I have zero family history of cancer of any kind (knock on wood) even though I've got a fairly large family.

 

I have zero family history of early menopause afaik and I just turned 31, so while it's possible it could happen that early, it's just really unlikely.

 

I haven't had any drastic weight loss/gain recently, nor more stress than usual, nor been sleeping worse than usual, nor been exercising more than usual, nor been ill, or really anything different from usual.

 

Last time I think Aunt Flo was really late as well, but that was of course the one time I didn't track it so I'm not sure. I do know that the last time she showed up was June 2nd, so I'm getting more annoyed with Aunt Flo than usual (I never like Aunt Flo, regardless of when she shows up, lol).

 

Finally, when my mom's Aunt Flo decided to go for retirement, she started showing up more frequently for a while first (my mom used to be roughly 5 weeks, but then it become 4 weeks or slightly less).

[HSmomof2]

I would do a pregnancy test very soon after a missed period. Before kids, I always had very irregular periods,and my dr. said to come see her if I go past 90 days without one.

[Crimson Wife]

If applicable, I would go for a blood test to make sure that I wasn't one of those fluke cases where the body healed itself after sterilization. One of my good friends from high school has a sister 15 years younger because that happened and her parents even separated for a while until the DNA test proved it was the dad's child.

 

If I wasn't pregnant, I'd see what my gynecologist advised.

[AnnE-girl]

I've only ever been two weeks late a few times due to stress or a change in diet, aside from when I was first starting my cycles again post-partum, so I would call after three weeks to four weeks late. With your very long odd cycles have you been tested for Pcos or any other condition that can affect your cycle like that?

[Jean in Newcastle]

Perimenopause can go on for ten years in some cases.  So if (not saying you are, but if) you are going into early perimenopause it doesn't mean that you are going into menopause soon.  But as others pointed out, there are a lot of more common and probably even likely reasons for a late or missed period including stress, diet or minor illness.  

[abba12]

For someone who has a regular 4 weekly visit, I would see the doctor after the second missed period to ensure I hadn't just 'skipped one', so, 8 weeks without a period instead of 4 if there's no other issues, or whatever twice your usual cycle is.

 

However, I too have flaky visits, every 3 to 8 weeks. In that specific case, I'd probably think about seeing a doctor after 8 weeks since the last one. Explain 8 weeks is at times normal for me, so I'm not too worried. But it's usually not THIS long between them and often shorter. 

[zoobie]

I've never been late for stress, only for pregnancy or after a miscarriage when my cycles were funky. So I'd be calling the POAS authorities after a couple of days. If that were negative, I don't know how long I'd wait, but not indefinitely. I do hate going to the doctor. (Insert bag over head emoticon here.) I would call and go in based on what the nurse advised because of a family history of uterine cancer.

[luuknam]

I do hate going to the doctor.

 

Yep... not a big fan either. For the record, I'm not real concerned yet (I am annoyed though). At some point I'll become concerned enough to buy a pregnancy test (though pregnancy would be rather unlikely at the moment for various reasons), and eventually I'd go see a doctor... not sure when since I've never gotten to that point. This poll is mostly just to satisfy my curiosity and to see at what point other people would become concerned enough to go see the doctor. I also thought others might like to see at what point people would become concerned as well.

[SKL]

I would probably just mention it at the next regular visit to your general health care person.

 

It's not particularly unusual for people to go 6 months or more between periods.  I have a friend who used to go for years, and then she'd start a new exercise program and Flo would come back.

 

Personally I have never ever gone more than 29 days between her visits, until last winter when she stayed away for 2 months.  I thought maybe it was all over but ... no such luck.  :/  I'm a lot older than you though.

[SproutMamaK]

My aunt is fairly flaky as well. She's supposed to come by every 4 weeks but sometimes she's like "HEY, I know I just saw you two weeks ago but I thought I'd pop in for a quick visit!" and sometimes she's like "Sorry I didn't come by last month or the month before that, but to make up for it I've decided to stay and hang out with you for a REALLY LONG TIME, since I missed you so much!"

Any time I skep more than 1 month I check to make sure that I don't have any other unexpected little visitors about every two weeks. Once I hit the three month mark I check every week because I get freaked out, unexpected company has been known to come by before. My aunt's never waited more than 4 months to drop in, but if she did I think that's the point at which I'd file a missing person's report.

[hollyhock]

I have no advice, but I love that analogy! The authorities! :lol:

[TechWife]

My doctor told me to wait three months if being off schedule was the only issue. That was years ago, though. At my age now, I'd probably call to ask the nurse around the six or eight week mark, so 2-4 weeks late.

[East Coast Sue]

Well, when it happened to me I went to the doctor because something must be wrong, right? The first thing the doctor did was a pregnancy test- and it was positive. Looking back, I must have ovulated really, really early.

I was absolutely certain that I had no chance of being pregnant... That was several years ago, but I still remember telling the doctor that I wasn't there for a pregnancy test. I was there to find out why my cycle was so late.... So yeah, I recommend a home test before a trip to the dr.

[SereneHome]

I would start peeing on the stick immediately.  But that's only bc for some reason I loved taking pregnancy tests, even if I KNEW I wasn't pregnant. 

 

Otherwise, I would probably wait indefinitely bc I am not a big fan of running to the doctor.

[redsquirrel]

Gosh, I am so regular that I would go see the nurse practitioner if my period was 2 weeks late. At my age I am sure I would be told that it is normal, but still, I would want to know.  Now, that said, I have several very concerning diseases in my family history so whenever I show up with mystery symptoms they take it very seriously. Missing a period for no known reason is something I just know she would want to know about ASAP.

 

 

But I am 47, so the reason it would be missing is hardly unknown, lol. I've just never done it before

[rose]

Are you taking any meds? Some can really mess up your cycle. I'm going to chime in in agreement with getting a pregnancy test. In Canada they're only $1.25 at the dollar store. 

[sbgrace]

It sounds like you're regularly kind of irregular (5-8 weeks). Do you know why?

I was thinking likely an anovulatory cycle. I voted wait what I assumed would be the equivalent of one extra cycle. If she was still missing, I would assume I needed pregestorone (I assume that's still the treatment) to start things. For me, that would work and get things back on track.

 

But then I read your follow up after posting. That you are having such long cycles normally makes me think there is underlying/chronic issues of some sort w/ovulation. Even If I wasn't wanting to get pregnant I would probably seek medical investigation and treatment to avoid excess exposure to estrogen and/or testosterone (depending on issue). I am going off my experience, and may be medically off base of course.  So if I hadn't already voted I would have voted sooner based on the follow up info. I am assuming pregnancy isn't possible. If it were I would take a test to rule out before I did anything else.

[Tap]

I had a very irregular cycle and my doctor wanted to see me after 60 days of a no show.  So I would say 2-3 months. 

[rose]

I asked my dh last night (he's an MD) and he said that it would depend on whether or not the person in question was obese. He said that extra weight will make your cycles more flaky and puts you at a higher risk for PCOS. He basically said, a couple of months if you're a regular weight an longer if you're obese.

[Truscifi]

I would go pretty quickly, but Aunt Flo is a regular guest around here. Has been since after my first pregnancy. And I do have a family history of various unpleasant things.

 

In your case, I'd probably wait until next month and see if she shows up.

[Elfknitter.#]

If I were absolutely certain pregnancy was not a perpetrator, then maybe a month. Usually pregnancy was a reason for me.

 

During college undergrad years, I did get a cyst that caused me to not have a visit for 4 months. Because I was religious about the pill and dh (then dbf) and I weren't always active, I knew pregnancy wasn't the cause. So somewhere around month 3-4, I finally went in for a visit.

[Cinder]

For me, I'd go to the doc if there were other suspicious circumstances. But I am of *that* age where AF visits whenever she feels like it. :p

[KungFuPanda]

This is way better than her showing up early. I wouldn't look for her for two months.

[luuknam]

It's kind of funny to see the results of my poll with two peaks - one at 1-2 weeks and one at 1-2 months. Thanks everyone for voting. The pregnancy test last night said "not pregnant", so that tiny possibility is ruled out.

 

And I am technically obese (BMI 30), but my cycles have pretty much always been 5-8 weeks whether my BMI was 21 or 34, so I'm not convinced my weight is causing more irregular irregularities now, especially since my weight has been fairly stable for quite a while now. I'll find a GYN if Flo continues to be a no-show for another few weeks.

[chocolatechip]

I've got a very regular cycle (I can count 20 days exactly between the day I finish and the next day I will start), so I'd probably try to go see someone about it if I missed two in a row.