Hello,

I want to start off by saying that I am currently in the process of finding a quality OB/GYN that is covered under my insurance so I can get a much needed 'professional' opinion. But, I have been doing some research online and am curious to see if anyone out there has had a similar problem with their periods.

I got my first period when I was 8. I had three or four of them, before they stopped. I got them again around 10, then they stopped. Around age 12-13, I started getting them somewhat more frequently. I had one almost every month for approximately 6 months, before they stopped again. I then got them consistently for about 9 months when I was 16.

But in the past nearly 2-3 years, they have been sporadic and really irregular. I'll go a few months with them normal (3-4 days once a month). Then I'll have some that are shorter, some that last a week or more. Sometimes I'll go months without one at all. I frequently spot between periods.

Since August, I have had a problem of as soon as I lay down, I will start bleeding. I will go all day with no bleeding, but will wake up covered in blood. I will go all day again with no bleeding, just to have it happen again that night. Then I'll go a week with n problems, and it will happen again. It is incredibly irregular and unpredictable.

As of writing this, I have been spotting (*very* little blood) almost daily for about 2 weeks and have had 5 nights of bleeding in that timeframe.

I have also gained approximately 60 lbs in the past year and a half with no change in diet or exercise.

My sister, maternal aunt, and paternal grandmother all have polycystic ovarian syndrome, and my mothers cousin survived ovarian cancer approximately 10 years ago. Could it be that I also have PCOS or am predisposed to reproductive problems?

Any ideas you guys have about what this could possibly be is greatly appreciated. I have avoided going to an OB/GYN because of the typical nerves surrounding that experience, haha. And when I told my pediatrician about the problem, she told me it was normal to be abnormal (I was about 16 at the time.) But I think it has gotten to severe to ignore or hope it will fix itself.

Thanks!