Raise your hand if your period has ever been a total pain, emotional or physical? Raise your hand, again, if you ever wondered what life would be if you did not get the monthly visit from the crimson brigade? Truth is, you won’t be the only one if you have considered this on several occasions - before a trip, intense traveling, an athletic event, a religious ceremony, a sleepover with friends, a romantic date or simply because you didn’t feel in the mood for it. And it doesn’t end there - if contemporary medical science is to be believed, getting rid of your period entirely without too many drastic effects on your body, is very much within the realm of possibility.
Menstruation 101: The female body gets ready for pregnancy every month with the uterus lining getting thicker to prepare for a fertilised egg. But if the egg doesn’t fertilise, that it doesn’t mate with a sperm, the uterine lining is rejected as it is no longer needed to support a foetus. That lining is released as blood through your vagina. Once this lining has been completely shed, your next cycle begins.
It’s painful, it’s uncomfortable, it’s messy and leaves many women wondering - why do I have to go through this every month? And is there a way to do away with them completely?
At first glance, it appears to be a complex medical task - how can one simply choose to not bleed?
But according to doctors, the answer is quite simple.
First off, is it even ‘normal’ for the body to not bleed? Dr Nozer Sheriar, a senior gynaecologist and obstetrician and leading voice in the space of women’s reproductive rights in India, says, it is indeed. In fact, having your period regularly might be the ‘abnormal’ thing, according to him.
There is more, the doctor adds. Regular menstruation has coincided with several problems of the reproductive system that did not exist in the previous generations.
Dr Sheriar calls this “almost a justification for thinking about change.” He adds, “For example, we do know that if a woman is on birth control pills for a very long time, she will have a reduced risk of ovarian cysts and cancer.”
These views may sound pathbreaking to an average woman who indeed considers a regular menstruation cycle as an essential part of her good health. However, within the medical community, several doctors are of the opinion that if a woman chooses to skip her period entirely, to remove them from her lifestyle for a long period of time, and to not simply delay it for a particular event, it is perfectly normal.
Dr Sonali Gupta, Senior Consultant, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Max Multi Speciality Hospital, Greater Noida, agrees with Dr Sheriar on this and says:
Dr Gupta further adds that period suppression can be easily achieved without any major negative consequences.
Wait, the consequences of stopping menstruation might not be major, but what are they?
The first concern that many women have is if it would affect their fertility. What if at some point in the future they want to have a baby, would it be possible? The simple answer is - yes, it would be.
Dr Sheriar also emphasises that any changes that are brought about in the body are completely reversible.
It is to be noted, says Dr Sheriar, that an IUD device will not automatically remove periods entirely. They might make them scanty. How an IUD affects a woman’s body is a very individual experience. He adds that in his experience, since many women have come for help as a consequence of a regular heavy period, even scanty bleeding is a much more welcomed possibility. Several women also opt for medication that makes their period seasonal, that is, they bleed four times a year, once every season.
“These pills are not only cleared by the US FDA, but the return to fertility after discontinuing their usage is almost immediate”, says Dr Sheriar.
What could be better than a reality where there are no spells of melancholia, not tearing up at the smallest provocation, mood swings or unhealthy cravings, cramps nausea or indigestion? The list of symptoms linked to your monthly cycle could just simply go on. However, along with comfort, there might be medical benefits of getting rid of your periods too.
However, the doctor emphasises, it’s important to have your own individual evaluation thoroughly done by a doctor.
Dr Sheriar reiterates his earlier point about endometriosis and related concerns.
Taking a pill to delay your period temporarily is different from the point we are trying to make here. Women often do the former to delay their cycle by a month or so. This comes with its own set of side-effects which may range from mild to severe.
However choosing to cut menstruation out of your life entirely is different. Dr Sheriar explains:
So, how does one go about achieving the no-period life?
There are several ways of achieving this and only your doctor can guide you best on it. The list includes pills, injectables and IUD devices. Each body will respond to them differently which is why it’s best to have a health expert on board at every step of the process.
When you hear such a proposition, of course there is the instinctive hesitation. As a woman, a life without menstruation goes pretty much against all that we have associated with a healthy female reproductive system. On the other hand, there is also the sense of liberation, of not being tied down to a medical phenomenon that can be erratic, unpredictable and difficult to control. So, where does this leave menstruation? Is it truly redundant?
But how does one even begin to prepare themselves mentally and emotionally for such a reality?
Dr Sheriar lists it down for us:
“It has to be two things - firstly, I would evaluate what my patient wants. If she is very uncomfortable with having periods, I would guide her with the suitable methods. If she is indeed comfortable with the idea of no periods, I would counsel her and say many of these methods may not guarantee no periods. She has to accept that she might sometimes have periods which are disturbed as compared to conventional periods. They might be lighter, scantier, less frequent, there might be intermittent spotting. And secondly, it depends on whether the doctor is convinced that is the best option available for her. He has to listen to her and then individualise her needs and then decide on the most suitable option.”
He further adds that the biggest hurdle in achieving a no-period lifestyle is a matter of mindsets.
“We are still at a point where more women want to menstruate regularly than those who are choosing to skip it.”
If all of this information has gotten your brain cells in a knot, here’s a potentially useful tidbit by Dr Sheriar:
(Rosheena Zehra is a published author and media professional. You can find out more about her work here.)
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