LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – A study published in the medical journal BMJ looked at nearly 20,000 women around the world. Almost all of the women in the study who were vaccinated reported a nearly one-day rise in their cycle length after getting the first COVID vaccine shot and a half-day increase after receiving their second dose.
“I’m not surprised because that was my personal experience,” Ryann Kaplan of Helping Women Period said.
Ryann Kaplan is the program coordinator of helping women period, a Lansing-based non-profit that provides free menstrual health products to people who are homeless and low-income. Kaplan said that after getting her first covid vaccine shot, her cycle changed.
“My average cycle got longer, but my bleeding was shortened, and it was much lighter, and I also noticed less cramping as well. I’ve had four doses of the vaccine now and I’ve seen that happen after each one and then within two or three months it starts to get back to normal again,” she said.
“This is something that patients don’t need to be anxious or worried about,” E.W. Sparrow Hospital Chief of Medical staff, Dr. LaKeeya Tucker, DO said.
According to the Chief of Medical staff at Sparrow, small changes in ones menstrual cycle is normal.
“Generally, there can be some things that we need to look into as health care providers if we do see some changes consistently,” Dr. Tucker said.
Dr. Tucker said that studies like these are a big help to physicians in the long run.
“Whenever there are changes with the reproductive health, we’ve got to investigate it. we need to know if there is something new on the horizon. we want to know how it affects us and so it’s good to keep doing these ongoing studies just to make sure that we validate these things,” she said.
