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Sunday, June 5, 2011

Advice for woman travellers - 03

Menstruation

    * Emotional upset, exhaustion and travelling through different time zones can all contribute to an upset in the menstrual pattern. Irregular menstruation is a very common problem affecting women travellers, excessive exercise and the stress of travel may cause infrequent periods, if this is the case it may lead to confusion over the timing of oral contraception and great anxiety of unplanned pregnancy. Dysmenorrhoea may also be aggravated by travel.
    * Oral contraception can be used to suppress menstruation. This is achieved by taking the pill continuously, without the usual seven-day break in between packets. A reminder to take extra packets to allow for this should be stressed. However, this method is not advisable for women taking biphasic or triphasic pills because the dose in the first seven pills is too low to prevent possible breakthrough bleeding.
    * Sanitary hygiene: Tampons and sanitary towels are widely available in larger cities but harder to find in remote and mountainous areas. Locally made menstrual supplies are usually available although the standard varies.

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