Monthly bleeding can cause dysphoria for some people who are trans, non-binary, or both. But there are drugs that can stop it, delay it, or make it lighter. Lots of them don’t use estrogen, if that’s a personal concern. Most of them can also prevent pregnancy.
There are no known risks to stopping your monthly bleeding. Lots of people safely stop their bleeding! But, like most drugs, there can be side effects.
Is it safe to delay or stop your monthly bleeding?
So far, studies haven’t found any risks to stopping your monthly bleeding. Some methods may come with health issues if used long-term. Everyone is different though and talking with your doctor can help find the best option for you.
Some people think that if you stop your bleeding, blood will keep building up inside of you. That’s not true. The drugs used to stop monthly bleeding make it so that there isn’t anything left to shed.
Most drugs have side effects. So the medication to stop monthly bleeding can have some risks. For example, some increase the risk of blood clots. Some have also not been approved for long-term use. A doctor or nurse can explain these risks and options.
Will it affect my body’s testosterone or what I take?
Using birth control drugs to stop your monthly bleeding will not impact your dose of testosterone if you are on HRT. This is true even with methods that have estrogen in them.
Some drugs like the mini-pill, hormonal IUD, and injections only use progesterone. Progesterone is an important hormone that helps manage monthly bleeding. A lot of people taking testosterone use progesterone to prevent pregnancy based on their personal preferences.
A lot of people’s monthly bleeding stops or gets lighter went they take progesterone. But some people’s bleeding doesn’t change at all. It depends on their bodies.
What kind of medications can stop monthly bleeding?
There are lots of options if you want to stop your monthly bleeding:
Lupron Depot
A hormone blocker that stops your body from making estrogen. It can also stop puberty from happening. This can stop someone from getting monthly bleeding.
You can get this prescription from a general doctor. If not, you can see an endocrinologist, who specializes in hormones. Usually, people need to get a Lupron Depot injection once a month. But, Lupron Depot is typically not recommended by doctors for more than 12 months.
Testosterone
Taking testosterone can also stop monthly bleeding for many folks. Whether you take it as an injection, gel, or patch, your bleeding typically should stop or slow down after around 2-6 months. It is safe to use long-term.
The mini-pill
Some medication that’s used as birth control can stop monthly bleeding for some folks. One option without estrogen is the mini pill. People take the mini-pill at the same time every day. If used as a birth control, taking it at the same time every day is important. Missing a dose by 3 hours means that you have a chance to get pregnant if you had sex involving sperm or precum.
For some folks, the mini-pill makes monthly irregular or stops it completely. Everyone is different. It has more of a risk for some random bleeding compared to birth control options that have estrogen but often stops monthly bleeding for many people.
Drospirenone (Slynd®)
Another progesterone-only birth control option is called drospirenone. If used as a birth control, one dosage can be missed within 24 hours before the chances of pregnancy increase.
Similar to the mini-pill, some people who take it no longer have a monthly bleeding, and others have spotting. It may not reliably stop your monthly bleeding but the longer you take it the higher the chances are that bleeding will stop.
Hormonal IUDs
A hormonal IUD is a small, T-shaped piece of plastic that can stay in your uterus for 3-8 years. It only uses progesterone. It can make your bleeding much lighter and sometimes it stops your bleeding completely.
IUDs need to be put in by a doctor. A person’s legs rest open in stirrups and a doctor uses a tool called a speculum to hold their front hole open. The procedure can be uncomfortable and painful. Some people feel dysphoria when they have it.
The Depo-Provera injection
This is an injection that goes in your arm or butt every 3 months. It’s also called “the shot.” It uses a hormone similar to progesterone. It doesn’t have estrogen. The shot can make monthly bleeding lighter or stop it. But, doctors do not recommend using it for more than two years.
Some people get the shot, stop their monthly bleeding, then suddenly get it again. If this happens, a doctor can check for any issues.
The pill, patch, or ring
The pill, patch, and ring all have estrogen in them.
The pill usually has three weeks of contraception pills and one week of sugar pills that don’t do anything. This is the week when people get their bleeding. Similarly, people don’t use the patch or ring for one week every month.
If you want to use these drugs to stop your monthly bleeding, you skip the week off. You keep using the pill, patch or ring during the 4th week. You skip the week of sugar pills and start on the next month of pills.
When do use them in the 4th week, you might have random, small amounts of bleeding. It can happen in the first few months. Then it usually stops!
If you want to stop your bleeding, you can talk to a doctor or nurse. This way they can make a plan that works for your health and body!
