If pregnancy does not occur, estrogen and progesterone levels continue to fall to their lowest, and bleeding will begin as the uterus discards its lining since it has no use for it. Medications often need to be adjusted as puberty progresses and normalizes and lupus symptoms improve.ĭuring a healthy menstrual cycle, estrogen and progesterone levels will begin to fall in the absence of pregnancy. Hormonal changes are often associated with the onset of juvenile SLE as well as flares for those already diagnosed.
The transition through puberty may be particularly difficult for some girls, however. However, as a woman ages, this tends to regulate. At the beginning of puberty, young girls may experience some irregularity and severity of symptoms. Just like with any symptom of lupus, it helps to know what is considered normal and identify when something is wrong.Ĭurrently, menstruation typically occurs for girls between the ages of 8 and 12 – a generation ago, the average age was 17. To better understand reproductive health, however, it first helps to have a better understanding of menstruation and what it means specifically to the individual. Additionally, symptoms may become conflated leaving you wonder whether the pain and discomfort comes from lupus or menstruation.įor many women of childbearing years with SLE, there may be great concern about fertility, the ability to become pregnant and carry a healthy baby to full-term. For women with lupus, the menstrual cycle is one more challenge that needs to be dealt with. Although in most countries and cultures, there is no longer a stigma associated with the natural process of being on your “period,” it still comes with a plethora of challenges. On any given day, more than 800 million women, globally, are menstruating. If so, what’s the relationship between the two? Since 90% of individuals with lupus are women of childbearing age (15-44), it stands to reason that lupus may somehow impact menstruation.
“The average woman experiences around 450 periods in her lifetime.” That means women spend nearly 10 years of their life on their period.