Explore menstrual cycle basics, irregular or painful periods, common gynecologic conditions, pelvic health, and changes during perimenopause. This page lists all 28 ReproductiveHealthCtr.com guides on the topic, each with its opening lines so you can pick the one that matches your question.
ReproductiveHealthCtr.com is an independent publication. These guides are for education and do not replace care from a qualified professional.
Guides in this section
What Vitamin Helps Regulate Periods? Evidence and Causes
What vitamin helps regulate periods? There is no single vitamin that regulates every irregular period. Your cycle may become irregular for different reasons, so the most useful next step is to notice the pattern and look for the cause rather than relying on one supplement.
Irregular Period Medicine: Treatment Options by Cause
What is the best medicine for irregular periods? There is no one best medicine for every irregular period. The right option depends on what is changing your cycle, whether you are having heavy bleeding or missed periods, and whether pregnancy is a possibility or a goal.
What Can I Drink to Make My Period Come? Safe Next Steps
What can I drink to make my period come? There is not a drink you can count on to make a delayed period start quickly. A late period can happen for different reasons, so the useful next step is to consider pregnancy, your usual cycle pattern, recent changes, and whether a clinician visit would help.
Menstrual Cycle Tracking: What to Record, What Apps Cannot Diagnose, and When to Ask for Care
A patient sits down for an appointment, and the first question is almost always the same: when did your last period start, and what has it been like since? Anyone who has had to guess at that answer from memory knows how hard it is to give a useful answer on the spot.
Perimenopause: Common Changes, Symptom Tracking and When to Seek Care
Perimenopause is the transitional stage before menopause when hormone levels shift and menstrual cycles become irregular, typically starting in the mid-40s and lasting several years until periods stop for good. It is a normal, natural process, not a medical condition.
Endometriosis Symptoms and Diagnosis: A Guide to Preparing for a Care Visit
Endometriosis is a condition in which tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows in other places in the body, most often on the ovaries, fallopian tubes, or the tissue behind the uterus.
Uterine Fibroids: Symptoms, Types and Treatment Options
Uterine fibroids are common, noncancerous growths made of muscle and fibrous tissue that develop in or on the wall of the uterus. They range from tiny, undetectable nodules to larger masses, and many people have no symptoms at all, while others notice changes in bleeding or pelvic comfort worth discussing with a clinician.
Cycle Length Changes: What to Track Before a Reproductive-Health Visit
Cycle length changes mean the number of days between periods is shifting, and tracking bleeding dates, flow, symptoms, and medicine changes for two to three cycles gives your clinician the information needed to evaluate what's going on and plan next steps together at your visit.
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: Diagnostic Criteria, Treatment Options and Fertility Considerations
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a hormone disorder diagnosed when a woman has at least two of three features: irregular ovulation, higher-than-typical androgen ("male") hormone levels, and a polycystic pattern on ovarian ultrasound.
Asherman Syndrome: Intrauterine Adhesions, Causes and Treatment
Asherman syndrome is scar tissue, called adhesions, that forms inside the uterine cavity. It most often develops after uterine surgery, especially repeated dilation and curettage (D&C) procedures. The scar tissue can partially or fully block the space inside the uterus, which can affect periods and fertility.
Interstitial Cystitis: Diagnosis, Management and Impact on Daily Life
Interstitial cystitis (IC), also called painful bladder syndrome, is a long-lasting condition that causes pain, pressure, or burning in the bladder, often along with a frequent or urgent need to urinate.
Pelvic Organ Prolapse: Symptoms, Staging and Treatment Options
Pelvic organ prolapse happens when the muscles and tissues that hold up the bladder, uterus, or rectum weaken, letting one or more of these organs sag down into the vagina. It is common, especially after childbirth or with age, and it is treatable.
Reproductive Health and Autoimmune Conditions: Lupus, RA and Pregnancy Planning
Most people with lupus or rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can have a healthy pregnancy, especially when the disease is well controlled before conception. The biggest factor in outcomes isn’t the diagnosis itself — it’s whether the disease is active or quiet when pregnancy begins, and whether current medications are safe to continue.
Vulvodynia: Diagnosis, Treatment Options and Finding a Specialist
Vulvodynia itself is not an emergency. But some vulvar symptoms need prompt medical attention rather than a wait-and-see approach.
Reproductive Health After Cancer Treatment: Fertility Preservation and Recovery
Chemotherapy, radiation, hormone therapy, and some surgeries can all lower fertility or cause infertility, but the risk depends on the specific treatment, the dose, and your age. Some fertility changes are temporary. Others are permanent.
Menopause Hormone Therapy: Current Evidence, Risks and Shared Decision-Making
Menopausal hormone therapy (sometimes called hormone replacement therapy, or HRT) uses estrogen, often combined with a hormone called progestin, to ease symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, and vaginal dryness. It can also help protect against bone loss.
Hysterectomy: Types, Alternatives, Recovery and What to Ask Your Surgeon
The information in this article is based on peer-reviewed research, published clinical studies, and guidance from recognized health organizations including the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the FDA. Individual results and experiences may vary. A hysterectomy is surgery to remove the uterus.
Thyroid and Reproductive Health: How Thyroid Disorders Affect Fertility and Pregnancy
An underactive or overactive thyroid can throw off ovulation, make periods irregular, and raise the chance of pregnancy complications like preterm birth and pregnancy-related high blood pressure. That’s why many clinicians check thyroid function as part of a fertility workup or early prenatal care.
Pelvic Floor Basics: What It Does, Common Problems and When Physical Therapy Helps
The pelvic floor is a group of muscles that supports the bladder, uterus, and rectum. When these muscles get weak, tight, or injured, it’s called pelvic floor dysfunction, and it can cause leaking urine, a feeling of pressure or bulging, or pelvic pain.
The Menstrual Cycle Explained: Bleeding, Follicular Phase, Ovulation and Luteal Phase
The information in this article is based on peer-reviewed research, published clinical studies, and guidance from recognized health organizations including the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the FDA. Individual results and experiences may vary.
Vulvar Health: Normal Variations, Irritation and When Symptoms Need a Visit
Some itching, redness, or mild irritation of the vulva is common and often clears up on its own once a trigger — like a new soap or tight clothing — is removed. But symptoms that are severe, that don’t improve, or that keep coming back are a sign it’s time to see a clinician rather than wait it out.
Menstrual Products Compared: Pads, Tampons, Cups, Discs and Period Underwear
Pads and period underwear absorb flow outside the body. Tampons, cups and discs collect or absorb flow inside the vagina. All of these are regulated by the FDA as medical devices, but they are reviewed differently, made from different materials, and carry different safety considerations.
Pelvic Ultrasound, Sonohysterography, Hysteroscopy and Laparoscopy: What Each Can Evaluate
These four tests look at different parts of the reproductive system in different ways. Pelvic ultrasound and sonohysterography use sound waves to create images from outside or inside the uterus. Hysteroscopy and laparoscopy use a thin, lighted scope to let a clinician see tissue directly.
Endometrial Biopsy: Why It Is Done, What to Expect and What Results Can Show
An endometrial biopsy is a short office procedure where a provider removes a small piece of tissue from the lining of the uterus, called the endometrium, and sends it to a lab for examination under a microscope.
Vaginitis Basics: How Yeast Infection, Bacterial Vaginosis and Trichomoniasis Differ
Vaginal itching, discharge, odor, or burning usually comes from one of three causes: a yeast infection, bacterial vaginosis (BV), or trichomoniasis. These three conditions can look and feel a lot alike, which is exactly the problem.
Period Cramps Explained: Primary vs Secondary Dysmenorrhea and Red Flags
Period cramps come in two broad types. Primary dysmenorrhea is cramping caused by the period itself, with no other condition behind it. Secondary dysmenorrhea is period pain caused by an underlying reproductive condition, like endometriosis or fibroids.
Amenorrhea: What a Missing Period Can Mean and When to Seek Care
Amenorrhea simply means the absence of a menstrual period. Doctors sort it into two types: primary amenorrhea, when a period has never started, and secondary amenorrhea, when periods that used to come regularly stop.
Heavy or Irregular Periods: What to Track and When Bleeding Needs Urgent Care
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