Hi,I am Dr. Shanthi.E (General & Family Physician). I will be looking into your question and guiding you through the process. Please write your question below.
I m a 46 year old female who has always had regular periods. In the last few days I have begun to spot (this has not ever happened before) and I m a little concern that something might be wrong. Could I be in the beginning stages of menopause or is this a sign of something more serious like cancer? I get yearly pap smears and my last one was normal. I ve made an appointment to see my gynecologist, but it is in a few weeks. Should I insist on being seen sooner?
I can understand your concern about spotting when you have never had this before. In our late 40s as we start to near menopause, it is not uncommon for periods to become more irregular, both in timing and in amount of flow. This is caused by the change in the level of hormones (sometimes higher and sometimes lower than with a normal cycle). There are other causes of spotting as well. Even stress can cause some dysfunctional uterine bleeding. And spotting can happen in pregnancy too.
Age for menopause may be genetically linked, so you may want to know when your mother began the menopausal process.
I think you are doing the right thing to see your gynecologist since this is a new symptom for you, but as long as you will be seen within a few weeks (within a month) that should be ok.
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Suggest Treatment For Spotting During Menopause
Hello and welcome to HCM, I can understand your concern about spotting when you have never had this before. In our late 40s as we start to near menopause, it is not uncommon for periods to become more irregular, both in timing and in amount of flow. This is caused by the change in the level of hormones (sometimes higher and sometimes lower than with a normal cycle). There are other causes of spotting as well. Even stress can cause some dysfunctional uterine bleeding. And spotting can happen in pregnancy too. Age for menopause may be genetically linked, so you may want to know when your mother began the menopausal process. I think you are doing the right thing to see your gynecologist since this is a new symptom for you, but as long as you will be seen within a few weeks (within a month) that should be ok.