Dr Neda Taghinejadi

Brief Outline:

Dr Neda Taghinejadi is a consultant in sexual and reproductive health. Alongside her clinical work, she is a lecturer and researcher looking at improving people’s healthcare experiences in gynaecology and contraception.

Dr Neda Taghinejadi explains that the hormonal changes that happen through the menstrual cycle can lead to changes in patterns of headaches or skin conditions. A symptom diary can help doctors make connections and offer treatments to help.

Some people find that they experience changes in their skin or with symptoms like headaches at different times of their cycle. And actually, that's very common because some of these changes are driven by our hormones. And knowing the pattern can be really helpful.

So, for example, keeping a diary can help and discussing with your doctor as well, because that might help to know, how best to treat you.

Dr Neda Taghinejadi explains that many people notice changes in their moods across their period cycle. For some people, these can be really marked and impactful. She encourages any young people who are concerned about this to see a GP.

PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome) and PMDD (Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder), are terms that refer to a, a large spectrum of mood changes that can happen in your menstrual cycle.

So many people experience mood changes during the cycle. But for some people these can be really severe and significantly impacts on quality of life and ability to do things in their life. If you think that might be relevant for you, there are lots of different treatment options. So, it's definitely something that's worth discussing with your doctor.

Dr Neda Taghinejadi talks about PMOS (also known as PCOS), which can affect how often periods come, along with other changes in the body. It is difficult to diagnose definitively in teenagers, but if worried she advises young people to see a GP.

So PMOS ( Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome) used to be called PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome) lots of people will be familiar with the term PCOS. But the name recently changed to PMOS because it better describes sort of what's going on in the body.

And PMOS stands for polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome. So PMOS is very, very common. And some of the symptoms that people with PMOS might experience could be things like irregular or infrequent periods, periods that are heavy when they do come. Skin changes like excess hair growth or acne. And it can sometimes affect how your body handles sugar.

It's a really common condition and it can affect different people in different ways. One thing just to be aware of is that, as a young person, doctors are very cautious about diagnosing it definitively when you are younger. So, for example, within eight years of your period starting. And that's because there can be so many changes to your periods anyway during that time.

But still, if you suspect that this might be relevant for you, please do see your GP.

Dr Neda Taghinejadi explains that one option for helping with period pain is hormonal medication. These medicines can be really helpful for period pain. There are different types and options, so if one form doesn’t help or suit you go back to the doctor.

So, it's important to say that people with pain shouldn't have to suffer without treatment. It is really important to see your GP if this affects you. And there are lots of different treatment options, including things like hormonal medication. So, lots of hormonal medication is also described as contraceptive. So, contraception. But there's lots of evidence that they can also be used for period pain or period control.

There are lots of types, including things like tablets, patches or devices like implants or coils that people will probably have heard of, but what you can take really depends on your individual health history, and of course, your own preferences for your body. I often encounter people who are worried about starting hormonal contraception, or hormonal medication, especially because of side effects.