[kb10]

I'm 37 and have had regular periods my entire life. I've never even skipped one unless I was pregnant. Last week Sunday, I noticed a very dark discharge in my underwear and thought, "Wow that's weird. I'm early this month." And I assumed that I just got my period. But then, it stopped. Then that Tuesday, I got the same thing. And then again it stopped! Didn't have anything else until this past Sunday (when it would've been regular for me to start my period) and there was normal-looking blood when I went to the bathroom. So I was like, "Cool. I finally started for real!" But then, AGAIN, the bleeding has stopped. I feel all the symptoms like it's here, but I haven't been bleeding.

This has never happened to me before & I'm worried about it. I should say that I've been under quite a bit of stress lately. People at work are being laid off left & right, and I'm afraid I might be next. Both my kids have been sick, I'm always borderline broke, and I have no family here to rely on for help. So yeah, I've been a bundle of nerves lately. But can stress REALLY wreak that much havoc that my entire cycle is thrown off & I'm bleeding and then not bleeding and having weird discharge and then not having it and all that stuff? And I'm not old enough to be experiencing perimenopause yet, am I? I just don't know what it could be, but I also don't know if I could handle any more bad news right now. Thanks for reading.

[kb10]

Also, there's NO WAY that I am pregnant either. Thought I should add that!

[rrb01]

me too!

I am also close to your age, I'm 42, and have been experiencing some problems. I have always been regular, like clockwork. Recently, I have experienced some pain with my period and then most recently, I have had very small discharges of dark or brown blood. This has been ongoing for over a week. Finally, this morning, bright red. I thought, finally. However, it simply disappeared and nothing else. I feel like I have been gaining weight these past few months also. I am not pregnant. I have my tubes "tied" for several years. I am currently researching what this means for me. I believe I am in the perimenopasual stage. I began having other syptoms when I was about your age. I have had breast tenderness, fatigue, vaginal dryness, mood swings, difficulty sleeping...not all at once but gradually I have experienced these and more. I spoke to my doc but was blown off pretty much, said it could be perimenopausal but as long as I wasn't trying to have children I shouldn't worry. I just want some concrete answers because it drives me crazy!!!!!!!!!! I haven't been back to that doc and that was over a year ago. This old blood sort of scares me, if someone could just verify that it is normal!!!!!!! It is encouraging that someone else has had this experience, so maybe it is all part of the cycle. Good luck and let me know if you find anything out!

[Guest]

are you eating enough? if you eat very little,your body goes into starvation mode and it can affect your cycle.you can very little bleeding,or none at all.

[Jujufruits]

This is strange and I just had to share my situation as well. I am 27yrs old and will be going to the doctors this week, I am havign your exact symptoms and cannot find results even close on any website. I had discharge last month at the time my period should have been coming, then it stopped. 2 days later my period (or so i thought) and then after not even a full day it stopped. 2 days of nothing, followed by discharge again. Then this month, the same thing....I am so lost and confused. I have been a little stressed myself, but that has never affected my menstrual cycle before. I will post any results I have when I visit my ob/gyn. Good luck

[kileyw]

Im having the same problem. Im 21 and there are some days I will bleed heavily on this dark blood, which I thought it was just old blood..and other days I will bleed only a little. Ive been bleeding pretty much for a month..and im sorta worried. Ive been on b/c since i was 12 years old..and tryied going off it to get my cycles normal..which didnt help. Im wondering if I should go see a gyno..the money just isn't there. Please let me know wha anyone found out..

[Emit75]

I'm 37 and have had regular periods my entire life. I've never even skipped one unless I was pregnant. Last week Sunday, I noticed a very dark discharge in my underwear and thought, "Wow that's weird. I'm early this month." And I assumed that I just got my period. But then, it stopped. Then that Tuesday, I got the same thing. And then again it stopped! Didn't have anything else until this past Sunday (when it would've been regular for me to start my period) and there was normal-looking blood when I went to the bathroom. So I was like, "Cool. I finally started for real!" But then, AGAIN, the bleeding has stopped. I feel all the symptoms like it's here, but I haven't been bleeding.

This has never happened to me before & I'm worried about it. I should say that I've been under quite a bit of stress lately. People at work are being laid off left & right, and I'm afraid I might be next. Both my kids have been sick, I'm always borderline broke, and I have no family here to rely on for help. So yeah, I've been a bundle of nerves lately. But can stress REALLY wreak that much havoc that my entire cycle is thrown off & I'm bleeding and then not bleeding and having weird discharge and then not having it and all that stuff? And I'm not old enough to be experiencing perimenopause yet, am I? I just don't know what it could be, but I also don't know if I could handle any more bad news right now. Thanks for reading.

Hi I am in the same boat and it is quite scary! I have for the first time had a "black period"! Two weeks before hand I had a very light brown period! And I have tender breasts! I have had a couple of light head spins in the last week also! I am trying to get pregnant and just did a test which was negative! I have had 6 losses in the last 18 months and have just come off the pill about three weeks ago which I had only been on for a couple of months to let my body get back to normal after my losses! We would love to try again and every time I get tender breasts I think I am pregnant and I get nervous in case I lose it! I have a suspicion that I may be starting perimenopause although I hope not! I am sick of this emotional rollercoaster! I am very emotional at the moment too however I seem to be like this alot! I should go to the doctor but sometimes I feel like they are just out to make a buck and have no idea! I would love to go to a specialist but they charge the earth! So lost and scared!!

[animallover]

I want to add here and keep watch. I am 43, I did have unprotected sex, had pregnancy symptoms that were awful, and now 14dpo I have some dark red, brown and pink spotting. If you looked at it on the TP I have been using as I do not have enough to use a pad or tampon, you would never thinking it was menstrual. I have had some stringy black dark red stuff too. I thought I was pg from symptoms and than this stuff hit. I am not sure what to think. TMI alert, it is sweet smelling too. I have had stuff like this in the past after having unprotected sex and one time for sure I had a cyst but that cycle was nothing like this one. This happened another time, and I had this spotting for one month with pg symptoms, next month was normal. So I am wondering if im allergic to sperm or my eggs are turning into cysts. I tracked my symptoms this time as to keep track to compare. Period is suppose to be tomorrow. Anyone ever had anything like this? Is this just an age thing when we get older??

[Ronit Raj]

Stress can indeed disrupt your menstrual cycle, causing irregular bleeding and changes in discharge. While it's less common at your age, perimenopause is still a possibility. Consulting with a healthcare professional would be the best course of action to address your concerns and get personalized advice.