will eating more fat bring back my period!?

Its coming on three months since my last period.  You might have read other posts about me complaining about my period not being here but I'm just concerned.  No... I am not pregnant... Yes... I have gone to the doctor for my period problems and they just wanted to put me on birth control.  Can't start that until I get my period though! ARG!

I've been trying to eat more fat grams... but i guess I've been being unhealthy about it.  Still staying within my calorie limit... just eating a lotta high fat/unhealthy food.  I know... BAD... FOR SHAME.

Gosh! I just want my period! (as weird as that sounds...)

Even though I've never lost my period because of not eating enough fat/being underweight, when I am late, I will usually start within 5 mins of eating Ice Cream or drinking a Shake. Weird? lol.

Start adding avocado, nuts, and full fat dairy if you can (I'm not sure if you're a veggie/vegan)

Seriously, just take a gob of peanutbutter on a spoon and eat it if you have to =)  Yum.


Your doctor didn't have any suggestions to bring it back?

lol strangly... i WAS vegan... transformed to vegetarian then to full on omnivore. ha all in attempts to get my period back and get more healthy.

and trust me... ice cream and chocolate have been my best friend the last two days.  I suppose I should try healthy fats? I'm staying w/in my calorie limit.... 1600-1800 a day... but not the healthiest! Eeek!!

I was kinda bloated yesterday... and I was actually excited... STRANGE HUH?! haha I thought it was a sign my period was coming... well today the bloating kinda went down... there goes my hope ha!

I would say that if eating chocolate and ice cream every day for a month doesn't work, I'd suspect a bigger problem.  I tried to find something tied to loss of periods on Webmd, but I failed.  The only things listed are anorexia, underweight, pregnancy, and some other weird thing that had to do with hormone imbalance.

I can't say that eating ice cream and chocolate is "unhealthy". Chocolate is a fruit, and ice cream has a lot of calcium, and other stuff I'm sure is good for you.. XD

I donno... I'm recovering from an eating disorder now and am doing quite well if I do say so myself.  But the strange thing is... i had my period when was full blown into my eating disorder... now i'm eating a regular amount and it decides to pack its bags and leave! I don't think I'm underweight... or if I am... its only by a pound or two! uck! haha i plan on calling my gyno again to complain if my period doesn't start up w/in the next month! I'll stick w/ the higher fat food... maybe peanut butter and cheeses now... haha I feel kinda bad for eating the unhealthy fat!

I think the only bad fats are trans fats.  Dairy and nuts, I don't think would count as "bad".  Though, I don't have any packages handy.

Hmm, it could be that you finally lost enough body fat% after you started eating normally again, the body's metabolism tends to go into overdrive.

I had a problem a few years ago where I did not have mine for almost 9 months. I found out after an ultrasound and blood tests that I had Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. They used a medication (I forget the name, but the dr. said most people call it the "b---- pill" - which was accurate hah) and within a week it forced my period, and I've been on the BC pill ever since so that I have periods. I know eating disorders can also do that, as when I had anorexia MANY years ago as a teen, I didn't have mine for several months, though I don't think that would be the case when you no longer have the disorder.

Oh - on a side note, you are VERY thin, so I doubt it is PCOS, but I figured I may as well throw it out there as a possibility.

I think eating more fat will help, esp. if it comes from milk, meat and eggs. After missing my period for 6 months (from dieting and excessive exercising) my gyno said my body fat was low and i should drink whole milk, and of course take the pill. Once I stop taking the pill my period stops. I haven't gotten my period since Feb, and I remember getting it in Feb. because the period before that came around October, so I tried to think about what I was doing differently that month and i just remember eating a lot of hot dogs. I know its bad, my mom bought those big packs from costco, I was eating 2 for breakfast, and 2 for dinner, I was also eating it whenever i was hungry. (testing the low carb thing, bad idea.). I stopped eating like that because I was getting wierd heartbeats, but I got my period. i don't know, i don't usually eat that much meat, don't like it, i prefer cake.!

I wish I could offer some real advice.  I suppose if you've really been limiting the fat in your diet, it wouldn't hurt to try and get some back.  And summer is a great time to add ice cream to your daily nutrients! Also, I found that as a teen, my periods were wildly irregular, and often stayed away for three or four months at a time. I was underweight most of that time, but not because I wasn't eating enough fat, just because I was growing so fast, height-wise and was so active.

Hope you see it soon! I know, it sounds weird to want it, but you don't know what you're missing until it's gone. ;-)

nocturne- chocolate is a fruit? I guess you're right, lol.  Well, it seems I've been cutting this "fruit" out of my otherwise healthy diet. I'll probably be much happier if I put it back!

Uh, I have to say, I don't think so. It's not actual fat grams that stimulate the production of estrogen in the body, but it's the amount of body fat that produces estrogen.

I mean, you can try it, but I'm skeptical. I think your body fat is just too low. It's what I'm going through right now...and trust me, I'm trying everything. I got progesterone from my doctor, and it worked before when my body fat percentage was higher, but now, it's not working. *grumbles*

Birth control, here we come, I guess.

I'm in the same boat.  I haven't had my period for almost a year due to my eating disorder.  I've been eating a lot more than I used to since the summer started.

So eating more fat will really help me get it back?  Well that's good news; that shouldn't be too hard -- fatty foods are so plentiful here in America.  Bring on the peanut butter!

Does chocolate really help?  I do eat a little chocolate every day, but I wonder if it would help more if I ate more.  Does anyone know about how much chocolate/ice cream/etc. we should eat?

Your body is probably still recovering from the trauma of the eating disorder. Be patient and give it more time (and be diligent about protection in the meantime ;))

Here are some other thoughts:

1. How much are you exercising? I know many athletes lower the amount of estrogen in their bodies and lose their periods during their training seasons.
2. Make sure you are continuing to eat well balanced meals... each and every day.
3. You might consider adding a multi-vitamin to help add to those lost nutrients.
4. Make sure you are getting enough protein... especially if you are exercising.
5. STOP worrying! The more you dwell on it...the longer it seems like it will stay away! lololol

Stay positive, things will be all good before you know it!

Chubby

I havent had a chance to read all the replys, but I will say this, my body is very sensitive to changes, and I have tried many different diets, and when I switch to one that is drasticaly different in any way than the last, or if I change my excerscie method or amount, it makes my period late or skip...when I first started yoga it skipped 4 months. Recently, when I cut out simple carbs I skipped a month and a half.

Im really not sure why, and believe me it scared me the first few times (especially when it skipped 4 months) , but my body does that, and Im sure Im not the only one. It seems like once my body got adjusted to the new routine, my periods came back and stayed steady and on time til I did something else to confuse my body;)

Another thing, is when my period is late/skips, I get all the PMS-like signs every so often, then they stop after a couple days. I would get bloated, then tender breasts (sorry if that is tmi), then light cramping, then it would all just stop. Very frustrating.

It seemed like everytime I just decided to put it out of my mind and figured "it will start when it starts" and came to grips with the idea that I wasnt actualy pregnant (that was always in the back of my mind) then it usually started within a couple days.

You really don't have to wait around for your period. You can start it right away and just deal with the fact that it will take longer to adjust, or your doctor can prescribe you leutinizing hormone to start you. If you've been longer than three months, you need to shed that uterine lining ASAP. If your doc won't/can't subscribe leutinizing hormone, just start your pills right away and expect it to be light for the first month.

Anything's better than nothing.

I'm not big on excersizing... I walk at a moderate pace for about an hour every day, and then I'm a waitress, so I have to walk briskly and carry moderately heavy things for a few hours most days.  I do take a multivitamin every day, plus a calcium supplement, plus a Boost protein drink. 

I thought about taking something for it, but my doctor said I should try to get it back naturally first.  Plus, I'm not too keen on taking pills -- they make me nauseous.  But I will do it if it is absolutely necessary.

I know I shouldn't worry so much, but I can't help it.  I heard that this could damage my ability to have children later in life, and I don't want that.  Does anyone know how dangerous it is if your period has been gone for a year?

 In addition to what everyone else has said, make sure you have enough iron in your diet.

hey, poisonedheart, stress plays into this equation, too.  you might want to think about other aspects of your life.

PCOS affects 1/10 american women and is largely undiagnosed/misdiagnosed. My friend discovered she had it only after not being able to conceive a child (she had sporadic or missing periods for years before that). She had to go to numerous doctors all who told her there was nothing serious wrong with her. Then the last doctor diagnosed PCOS, put her on glucophage and then voila, her period came back and she got pregnant. She is now the mother of two. She is also thin, wasn't hairy and had no acne (being obese, hairy and acne are symptoms).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polycystic_ovary _syndrome

Frankly this is the first time I have heard that eating more fat will cause the periods to come sooner! I was diagnosed with mild PCOS and am on a Birth control pill - Yasmin from a few years and it has helped dramatically. Mine was stress induced and possibly because of no exercise. I would suggest ask your gynac to do a full hormone test and find out for sure if you have this condition.

I know of some very good yoga poses that will help you-its hard to explain but look up for CAT pose (some say it as Cat and Dog pose). And dont worry too much!! It'll come!!

Good luck

I agree with ourladyofthehighways. I didn't have my period for 2 years (not underweight, not pregnant and no PCOS, my body just went goofy) so my doc put me on birthcontrol and told me to just start on the closest sunday.  You don't need to wait.  I would still be waiting if that was the case, I've been on BC for 3 years now and it's worked for me.