Gwendal - 2005-07-19 3:36 PM
Doesn't anyone else have this pattern? What do you do when circumstances won't allow you to hang out on the couch?
Gwendal
Gwendal.
For three YEARS I lived with ten days of miserable cramps, literal flooding
(I could not be farther than an hour from a bathroom at any given time, and had disastrous results when I was
) and it really limited my activity - athletic and otherwise. I could not run a decent distance, could not cycle for more than half an hour, and forget about swimming.
I did have my tubes tied when my last child was born, and I was reluctant to go back on the pill
(after going through the surgery, who'd want to start pumping hormones in their body again, right?
) but finally decided I'd had enough and now I'm on Seasonale. I have to say, as anti-pill as I am
(we used alternative "natural" methods of birth control for years - though that, come to think of it, is how our youngest was conceived - oops
) - I love the regularity I have now and my periods are much more manageable and reasonable.
Just a thought - if nothing else, it might work for you during race season.
Otherwise, I'd say, load up on the iron beforehand, pack lots of super plus tampons and hope for the best.
![](https://beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/images/emoticons/wink.gif)
Maybe just the high of race day will help you, energy-wise.
Good luck.