Packing extra pads everywhere you go. Getting up during the night to change them. Worrying about bleeding through your clothes at work. Saying no to plans because your period arrived.
When heavy periods dictate your schedule, they’re more than an inconvenience.
At Nile Women’s Health Care in Roswell and Johns Creek, Georgia, we help women understand what’s causing abnormal bleeding and find treatment options that fit their health, goals, and stage of life. For some women who have finished having children, endometrial ablation can significantly reduce heavy menstrual bleeding without removing the uterus.
It's difficult to know what’s “normal,” especially if your periods have always been heavy.
Signs of heavy menstrual bleeding can include:
Heavy bleeding can also contribute to iron-deficiency anemia, leaving you feeling tired, weak, or short of breath.
Before treating the bleeding, it’s important to understand why it’s happening. Fibroids, polyps, adenomyosis, problems with ovulation, bleeding disorders, certain medications, and other conditions can all contribute to unusually heavy periods.
Your endometrium is the tissue lining the inside of your uterus. Each month, your body sheds that lining during your period.
Endometrial ablation uses energy to destroy the uterine lining so there’s less tissue to shed each month. At Nile Women’s Health Care, your provider inserts a slim wand through the cervix. A small netted device expands inside the uterus and delivers controlled energy to the endometrial tissue.
The treatment itself takes about 90 seconds.
Unlike a hysterectomy, ablation doesn’t remove your uterus. It’s a minimally invasive procedure designed to reduce menstrual bleeding without major surgery or a lengthy recovery.
They might, but we can’t promise that.
Some women stop having periods after endometrial ablation. Others continue to menstruate but have much lighter bleeding. The goal is to make heavy bleeding significantly more manageable.
Ablation also isn’t necessarily the first treatment for heavy periods. Depending on the cause of your bleeding and your health history, we may recommend medication or other therapies first.
Endometrial ablation is generally intended for women with heavy menstrual bleeding who don’t plan to become pregnant in the future.
It isn’t appropriate during pregnancy or for certain women with conditions such as an active pelvic infection or suspected uterine cancer. We evaluate your abnormal bleeding and make sure ablation is appropriate before recommending the procedure.
One point is especially important: endometrial ablation isn’t birth control. Pregnancy is less likely afterward, but it can still occur and carries serious risks. You’ll need reliable contraception after ablation until menopause.
Because ablation is minimally invasive, recovery differs greatly from recovering from major abdominal surgery.
You may experience cramping and discomfort for several hours afterward. Our team gives you specific instructions about bathing, exercise, tampon use, sexual activity, and other restrictions as you recover.
The full effect may not be immediate, either. It can take several months to see how much your periods change following the procedure.
You shouldn’t have to plan meetings, vacations, workouts, or nights out around the possibility that your period will derail them.
If heavy bleeding has become your monthly normal, start by finding out why. Depending on the cause, your health history, and whether you’ve completed your family, endometrial ablation may offer a minimally invasive way to regain some of that freedom.
Schedule a consultation with Nile Women’s Health Care in Roswell or Johns Creek, Georgia, to talk about your heavy periods and whether endometrial ablation may be right for you.
