I got my first period when I was almost 11 I think. I am almost 16 now. I can't honestly tell you if it is regular or not because I have to admit I have never actually counted to see if my period is regular but the time it comes has never seemed too close or too far apart so I'm sure on that level I am okay. What I am writing about is my cramps. I never used to get cramps until about a year or so ago. I know cramps are normal, but if they get "bad enough" they should be checked out for a doctor. My cramps double me over sometimes and iboprufen or acephetamine don't seem to work at all. Sometimes I take laxatives because it hurts too much to go to the bathroom (I can't contract the muscles in the abdomin at all). Am I just being wimpy or should I get this looked at?

Thanks, Em

PS- Oh, I don't know if this matters, but my cramps never occur before my period but always during. And they seem to worsen with my breakfast and at one time I had thought that maybe I was sensitive to dairy/wheat (cereal), but when I tried to eat them separately it didn't bother me at all.

I actually have the same problem with the cramps being really bad. Do you have heavy periods? How long does your period last?

Cramps are a normal part of your period, but the severity is different with each woman. I would discuss it with your doctor. It could be something as simple as a tilted uterus, which is common, or it could be something more serious such as endometriosis. I highly doubt it is the latter, but I would check with my doctor if it really concerns you. Have you had an annual exam recently. It is always good to go in and have things checked out. There is prescription medicine you can take to help the pain.

My periods are quite heavy, yes. Very heavy for about 3 days and then very very light for about 2. Usually four or five days. Now that I think about it actually, I am guilty for leaving my tampons in for long periods. I am a dancer and am always on the go. Sometimes I don't get a chance to change it for at least 6, but sometimes 10, hours. I know this bad but I don't have a choice most of the time. This may affect it. I have never had an annual exam... How would I go about that? Can I get prescriptions without parents permission? I don't have a mom I can talk to about this kind of stuff, or rather any womanly figure. How would a doctor solve a tilted uterus? In conclusion, I should go to a doctor then, just to make sure?

There are excersies that correct the tilted uterus, and I think I read that there is a type of surgery, although I don't know that it is needed. I just found out today, that I have this type of uterus, but it was brought on by my last pregnancy. My doctor told me that it is very common and probably won't even affect me. But I was reading that it can cause pain during period and intercourse, and so some women choose to correct it.

An annual exam is just an appoint,ent with your gynecologist. All women who have started their cycle should go to this doctor at least once a year to have things checked out. They will do a pap smear and look to see that everything is fine. I would suggest finding a good GYN and making an appointment. Do you have insurance? Is your mother not around? I don't see why it would be a problem to get a prescription for this type of thing without your parents permission, but you will need some type of insurance. But if you are worried about what they would think, it shouldn't be a problem, its just a normal prescription and going to this type of doctor is what every woman has to do.

I live in a small town. We don't have a gynecologist. Can a family doctor do this? No, I don't have insurance. I don't think that I can get it at only 16. My mother is around, but we don't talk much. She and my father have problems and I have decided that I don't want to be involved in them anymore. I am on my own for a lot of things.

You can start with a family doctor and he may refer you, but really a gynecologist is going to be the one specially trained in locating problems in this area. Have you tried getting on a medical card from the government? You can go to a local planned parenthood for this type of thing as well, they don't only deal with pregnancy. You wouldn't need parents permission or insurance to go there.

No, I haven't gotten a medical card, unless my mother has been hiding it from me. I don't think we have a planned parenthood either but I do know we have a pregancy care centre, which would probably be similar, I would think. I'll make an appointment with a general doctor and see what he says, because the nearest gynecologist is at least 9 hours away, even I did have a way of getting there.