Hi all. I have been reading your posts and it is amazing to hear all of your various stories and the journeys that you have been going through. It is wonderful how much support you have been giving each other through such anxious times. I have a bit of a journey ahead of me so have decided today to join the forum myself. My story is as follows: 

I am 51 years of age and my last period was between 1-1.5 years ago (I did not keep a very neat record of the dates so am not 100%sure). I am not taking any HRT and thought I had got off lightly with the menopause so far but it appears that my worries are just starting. At the beginning of June, after having intercourse with my husband, my tummy became very bloaty and tender and I needed to wee frequently. My urine dip samples said my leukocytes were high but there was no bacterial growth when the sample was sent to the lab. There was no sign of blood in the urine. I did take two courses of antibiotics anyway which did not seem to help straight away. The doctors suggested as there was no infection, I should have a scan to check for stones. After 3-4 weeks of discomfort, whatever the problem was it appeared to sort itself out but I went ahead and had a Cystoscopy and a CT scan of ky kidneys/bladder and all was clear. I then had around six weeks of feeling normal .

Then, ten days ago, I started post menopausal bleeding upon wiping. This lasted for 5 days. On the 4th day, I received an internal exam from my GP. She seemed to think my cervix looked okay although I have not had a smear since 2019 and did have some pre-cancerous cells 20 years ago for which I had laser treatment with no issues since. The GP has referred me to a gynae and for scans. So, I have a vaginal ultrasound on 7th Sept and a Hysteroctopy on the 21st Sept. I am such a worrier and have spent hours on Dr Google. Everything is going through my mind and at times I am having problems sleeping and functioning. I am wondering if the urinary issues I had in June are linked to the more recent bleeding.

Could be vaginal atrophy, however the bleeding started 2 days after having intercourse (which has not been painful) so I doubt it. What is worrying me most is that since the bleeding has stopped I have had a dull ache around my middle. It seems to be worse at different times of the day. I am starting to wonder if anxiety is causing it or if it is an underlying problem. I am analysing everything and am dreading the next five to six weeks as that is probably how long I will have to wait for all the results etc. I am hoping it will be a fibroid as my Mum has one, although I am not aware that I have one. I did have some VERY heavy periods with flooding during peri though which was very unusual for me as I had always been very light.

Has anybody been through something similar? - reading the posts it appears that you have. Any tips or advice would be very much appreciated xx