One of the most frustrating problems when you're trying for a baby, can be having a very late period. With the lack of menstruation, you patiently wait until a week after your period is due, only to get a negative test. Then you spend lots of money buying more tests just in case the first one was wrong, only eventually to face disappointment when it finally starts, sometimes weeks late.
Because the onset of ovulation and the second half of your cycle can put you through some of the symptoms of early pregnancy, it makes it hard to sense what your body is telling you. However, even women who have always had regular periods can be late. But why?
The technical detail
Interestingly, and somewhat confusingly, the first 'half' of your cycle can be much longer than the second. If you read the ThinkBaby lowdown on Understanding your menstrual cycle you will see that there is such a complicated series of events needed to get your egg ripe and in the right place at the right time, it's not surprising that occasionally the body takes a while to complete this process. This can lead to an elongated gap between your periods.
Anovulation
Occasionally, you might have a month when you do not raise the sufficient oestrogen level to trigger ovulation. For more about this you can read all about anovulation here.
If you do not ovulate, you might still have a period but your temperature is unlikely to change as it does on a regular cycle, so tracking your temperature is a useful way to find out what your body is doing every month.
Sometimes your 'period' will be light or there will be a longer gap before the next cycle occurs.
It is not always obvious why this happens but reasons for lowered oestrogen levels include travelling, excessive exercise, stress, illness or losing weight.
Other reasons why a cycle may be disrupted
Sometimes the ovaries simply fail to work. There are drugs which can help this and they are often prescribed as the first step towards 'assisted conception'. For more on assisted conception (from a course of drugs to interventions like IVF), click here.
Up to ten per cent of women suffer from polycystic ovarian syndrome or PCOS, but many do not realise they have this condition, which is caused by hormone imbalances (and possibly linked to insulin levels).
Symptoms can include increased body hair or some baldness, weight gain especially around your middle, acne, pain in the area of your ovaries, and heavy or irregular periods. The condition can go undiagnosed, but it is worth talking to your GP if you think you might have this as it is a common reason for lack of ovulation and there are many courses of treatment.
It is possible that a woman is going through the earliest stages of the menopause (or perimenopause) which can begin many years before menopause. This is an unlikely reason for missed or erratic periods in most women who feel they are of child-bearing age. The average age for women to end their periods is around 50 though in extreme cases it can begin in a woman's thirties or as late as her sixties.
Unless you have a medical history that causes concern, please don't fear the worst straight away. A missed or delayed period is no indicator of a decreased ability to conceive. But it is frustrating and can be heart breaking. Visit the forums for support from the many women who go through the same things as you and the vast majority of whom will eventually be happily pregnant.
