r/Amenorrhea

I feel like when people talk about PCOS its always having irregular periods or periods for months , but never the absence of periods. is anyone on here suffering from amenorrhea also have PCOS? I’ve had no period for 7mo now

Hi! I’m new to Reddit so I hope this is the right place to ask this question. I’m looking for advice/healthy discussion from fellow women who have had the same issues. I am looking for natural remedies. I believe standard medicine has its place but I don’t want to rely on it for the rest of my life. I want to preface this small book I wrote by saying: I DO NOT have Prolactinoma. I had an MRI- I have no tumor. Only hyperprolactinemea.

I was on birth control for about 2 years and I didn’t like how it made me feel. About 4 years ago I went off of it and I have been struggling with amenorrhea and hyperprolactinemia ever since then. Biggest regret of my life is birth control.

For 2 years I had no period. Finally, I went to a standard medicine dr and she did tests and noticed the high prolactin level.

She prescribed me Cabergoline. I took that for a bit and it brought my periods back but the dr wasn’t much help in terms of following up and helping me keep the prolactin at a normal level. I don’t want to have to take cabergoline for the rest of my life so I slowly weaned myself off the cabergoline and for a year I had pretty normal periods(delayed by maybe a week at most) so I thought all was good.

Then I had a really stress filled time at my job and I noticed my periods fluctuating drastically. They’d be delayed by a week, then two weeks, then a month, and then a week. So I quit my job because it wasn’t worth it and it seemed like I was having less stress reactions and my periods seemed to start returning to normal… well then life happens(as it so often does!). I had some personal issues that caused LOADS more stress than that job ever did and now my periods are completely gone. I have tried researching this topic but it is SOOOO hard to find assistance for it because everyone just assumes high prolactin means Prolactinoma and I do not have Prolactinoma.

In searching this topic, I did learn about how high cortisol can cause high prolactin so I started paying attention to my body and I think I can safely assume I have high cortisol levels. I get brain fog often, I bruise easy, I gain weight easily and struggle to lose it, I have poor sleep, anxiety, irritability, and reduced libido.

I believe birth control messed something up in my body’s wiring BUT now I think stress triggers it. I believe this is going to be a lifelong issue for me and that my cortisol/stress levels are playing a major roll in my body right now.

So that’s why I’m here… I need hope and I need help. I feel so overwhelmed and bummed out. Any advice on herbs, grains, foods, tinctures, etc. would be so helpful. Please let me know if any of you have ever had the same issues and what worked for you? For the most part, I eat well. I buy mostly organic, whole foods and eat minimal sugar or processed foods(obviously, I have cheat days but I try to keep them to a minimum). Last month I started taking Ashwaghanda, Maca, Vitex, Magnesium Citrate, B-6, and Methyl B12 but I don’t know how much to take or how long to take it until I can expect to see some results. I feel as though I am just bumbling along in the dark! I’d appreciate some guidance! Thank you! 🙏

CONTEXT: D1 runner sent away to ED treatment, got it back about 2 months stopping ALL movement + eating a ton.

HOW:I’m a division one cross country athlete and my school sent me away to ed treatment after a leptin level of 1.2 and estradiol of 16. I lost my period in sixth grade because of ED but then got it back in eight grade. I lost it again the summer after my freshman year of high school. I am now a freshman in college and decided to go all-in (and did no exercise) 2 weeks before coming to residential. I spent 3 weeks of residential and the most activity I did was a 30 min slowww walk each day. This was a big change because I was used to running 65+ miles a week plus weight lifting. After those 3 weeks, I have spent 3 weeks in PHP. My dietitians analyzed my growth chart to establish a healthy weight range for me. After weight restoring, I was able to move down to a PHP program. In treatment, I eat 6 times a day (3 meals, 3 snacks). Even though I’m weight, I still eating 6 times a day.

WHAT I DID:
- residential treatment for ed
- eat 6 times a day (8am, 10am, 12:30,3:00,6:30,9:00). Way more than 2500 calories… snacks were 200-400 calories each time and balanced.
- gained weight (I don’t know how much I gained but enough to go from a xs to a small in some clothes)
- stopped all movement except for 30 minute walk
-made sure I wasn’t having more than 400mg caffeine each day
- worked on mental health
-slept 7-9 hours, took naps
- prioritized carbs and fats over protein at meals and snacks

MOST IMPORTANT THING I DID WAS EAT CONSISTENTLY AND ENOUGH! ESPECIALLY CARBS AND FATS

SYMPTOMS BEFORE
- 6 weeks before getting it: night sweats, extreme odor ** **
- 5-4 weeks before getting it: cervical mucus, greasy hair, pimples which is rare for me, tired (all from hormonal shifts)
3 weeks before: increased cervical mucus, still tired but a little more energy, back cramps
2 weeks before: increased cervical mucus, not so tired anymore, back cramps
1 week before: irritable, headache, cervical mucus,
4 days before: cravings, subtle cramps, tired, emotional, face looked weird/didn’t look like myself
3 days before: reallyyy bad stomach cramps, diarrhea, nausea, cervical mucus

i also got my labs done
before starting recovery labs
leptin: 1.2
estradiol 16

when i got to treatment labs
leptin: 10.2
estradiol: 22

labs taken 6 days before getting it
estradiol: 144
leptin: 9.8

I was told that leptin has to be around 10 and estradiol has to be around 30 for normal hormonal function where you can engage in exercise mindfully again.

let me know if you have any questions! happy to help! and remember the best advice i have- give in to extreme hunger and EATTTT!! the more u eat the faster u will get it back!

soooo i’ve been thinking a lot about this, i haven’t had a period since August 2024 or even a regular one since June 2024. My ed got really bad at the end of 2024 but ive been doing a bit better and have gained some weight since then but definitely still a bit underweight. I still have a lot of ed thoughts and actions but not as restrictive as i was. I’ve been having a lot of joint issues and have had heart issues in the past. I don’t know if not having my period this long will cause serious health issues. I don’t have a gyno and i’ve been delaying getting one because i know i don’t want to bring up my period situation. I don’t know what to do because i definitely don’t want to be told to gain weight especially because i have been mentally doing better.

Hi everyone,

I was recently diagnosed with Hashimoto’s after my TPO antibodies came back at 348.

I also have lean PCOS (not insulin resistant, normal weight, no issues with weight gain), and my testosterone is slightly high.

I originally got tested because my period stopped (about 6 months after stopping birth control), which is what started all of this. Now I’m trying to understand what’s actually causing it whether it’s the higher testosterone, the Hashimoto’s (high TPO), or a mix of both.

Some context:

- I’ve never had issues losing weight

- My cycles were irregular before, but not completely absent like now

- Thyroid ultrasound came back normal (no structural damage so far)

What I’m currently taking:

- Magnesium

- Inositol

- Vitamin D (was low)

- Probiotics

- Liver support supplement

- glutamine

- Low-dose naltrexone (1.5 mg, off-label)

I’m also doing 2 cycles of progesterone + vitex to try to stimulate ovulation again.

My goal is to regulate my cycle naturally if possible and improve my hormonal balance before considering ovulation induction.

I’d love to hear from anyone who:

- Has both Hashimoto’s + lean PCOS

- Lost their period or has very irregular cycles

- Also had slightly high testosterone

What helped you get your cycle back?

Did anything make a noticeable difference (diet, supplements, medication, lifestyle)?

I’m especially interested in early-stage cases where the thyroid isn’t visibly affected yet. I’m trying to get pregnant in the next 6 months, so any advice helps at this point.

Thanks in advance 🙏

To give some context, I lost my period in March 2025, I had not lost significant weight by this point but had been severely under fueling (less than 2000 whilst being a competitive swimmer 5x 2 hour sessions per week and a lot of steps in the day- maybe 10-15k). I had begun to eat significantly less at the end of January that year. In September 2025 I had lost a lot of weight and decided to t try and get my period back, I cut down a lot only three light strength sessions per week and 8-12k steps. I did gain some weight but nothing significant (In July/ August I had been eating around 2200 and maintaining my new body without swimming). However, I actually became happier with how I looked, I had some more cm etc but I needed to eat more however was scared to as I actually liked how I looked having gained a bit of weight. (For context I was always a bit bigger but lost until I was very small but still healthy due to my accumulated muscle mass over many years of swimming), thus I was stuck in quasi-recovery until about three weeks ago (start of April 2026).

However, I felt so isolated and alienated from my body and I knew that I needed to go all in to get my period back as the signs I was having were fleeting and not realistic). So I began eating 2600-3000 every day, walking a lot less 8-10k average and stopping strength training for a bit. As I had already but a lot of work in I got significant cm almost immediately. Last week I had an increased libido for the first time in a while, some VERY light spotting and random cramps after the spotting and lots and lots of stretchy clear cm. I also got some night sweats one night and on the same night very vivid dreams and odd sleep. I also began taking acetyl-l-carnitine and red maca however I can’t say if there was a correlation as I started taking them the day I was eating more. Right now I have only water creamy slightly sticky discharge and am wondering if I’m in the luteal phase help needed!

Also after my first period I want to slowly start reintroducing exercise as I have always had a period whilst swimming more than I previously had been since I was 9. However this will only be 2 x light strength training sessions to feel a bit better in myself and refocus myself as I need an output whilst doing my a levels. I’m feeling very down and uncomfortable about my body aswell and I think a bit of muscle gain would be beneficial?